Infomercials: Reality TV before reality TV
Jason Gorsuch
Issue date: 11/2/04 Section: Opinion
It was during the midseason slump of sophomore year that I took a brief moment to stop and collect myself. It was the dreaded time when they tell you: "Jason, wake up, and find yourself a major." Egads! It was time to make a vitally important decision. My roommate helped me to concentrate and weigh in on some of the pros and cons:
Economics:This is the "science of common sense." You currently have your pants on backwards. I concur that this is not a good fit for you.
After some time, I realized that I wasn't cut out for this major thing. There was always the cart boy thing or the busboy thing or the "purposefully run in front of moving vehicles to collect insurance payments" thing.
But then, an epiphany: Marketing. I could be one of the proud 2,687 marketing majors at Loyola who grew up with the idea of selling interesting and innovative products to awestruck consumers via the infomercial.
I look back longingly at being an impressionable kid lying around the house on Sundays in front of the tube. Before the days of Billy Mays' amazing Oxyclean ("It's powered by the air you breathe!") and Ron Popeil's the Showtime Grill ("Set it and forget it!"), there was Mike Levey and his Amazing Discoveries show. For those of you too young to remember, Mike Levey was the next great Popeil, appearing Danny Tanner-like in his trademark sweater, complete with huge glasses and a receding hairline. "Amazing Discoveries" first aired in 1985 and was still going strong in 1992, when fitness guru Jack Lalane introduced his "Juice Tiger" brand juicer.
The Juice Tiger was a remarkable thing to a nine-year old kid growing up in American suburbia at the time. Mr. Lalane promised that by taking any combination of fruit or other items one could make a delicious, health-conscious shake in a matter of seconds.
I specifically recall him taking two bananas, six strawberries, two parts motor oil and eight parts 3M Post-it notes to create an energy drink that would allow old men to swim across bodies of water with boats tied behind them to their ankles (seriously).
Economics:This is the "science of common sense." You currently have your pants on backwards. I concur that this is not a good fit for you.
After some time, I realized that I wasn't cut out for this major thing. There was always the cart boy thing or the busboy thing or the "purposefully run in front of moving vehicles to collect insurance payments" thing.
But then, an epiphany: Marketing. I could be one of the proud 2,687 marketing majors at Loyola who grew up with the idea of selling interesting and innovative products to awestruck consumers via the infomercial.
I look back longingly at being an impressionable kid lying around the house on Sundays in front of the tube. Before the days of Billy Mays' amazing Oxyclean ("It's powered by the air you breathe!") and Ron Popeil's the Showtime Grill ("Set it and forget it!"), there was Mike Levey and his Amazing Discoveries show. For those of you too young to remember, Mike Levey was the next great Popeil, appearing Danny Tanner-like in his trademark sweater, complete with huge glasses and a receding hairline. "Amazing Discoveries" first aired in 1985 and was still going strong in 1992, when fitness guru Jack Lalane introduced his "Juice Tiger" brand juicer.
The Juice Tiger was a remarkable thing to a nine-year old kid growing up in American suburbia at the time. Mr. Lalane promised that by taking any combination of fruit or other items one could make a delicious, health-conscious shake in a matter of seconds.
I specifically recall him taking two bananas, six strawberries, two parts motor oil and eight parts 3M Post-it notes to create an energy drink that would allow old men to swim across bodies of water with boats tied behind them to their ankles (seriously).