Slate.com did an article on the new Brawny man ad campaign. You might not have seen these ads if you don't watch much TV aimed at women -- they run all the time on ABC daytime -- but the ads feature a roll of paper towels with the old, 70's porn star Brawny man, and another roll with the new, sensitive-but-still-manly Brawny man. In each ad the new Brawny man does something sensitive (watch a soap opera, do yoga, sigh over a couple having a picnic in the park) and the old Brawny man scoffs at him. Slate wasn't that enamoured with the ads but I think they're hysterical.
As Georg pointed out, the Slate article committed a major omission by failing to mention "Chad Sexington," the "Burly paper towel" man that Marge fantasizes about on The Simpsons. I don't think the actual Brawny man had a name. Last time I bought paper towels they had both new and old packaging in the store. I confess I bought the one with 70s porn star Brawny man.
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ooh, there's more than one of those? i've only seen the soap opera one (and i giggle at it every time).
I've never seen the yoga one, but I have seen the one where they're sitting on a park bench looking at a young couple having a picnic, and new Brawny man is all "Awww!" and old Brawny man makes fun of him for being too sappy. So funny!
I've seen the yoga ad once, and seem to recall that the Brawny man might have been scoffing, but he was even more bewildered -- which makes me think that the scoffing was a cover-up for his insecurities.
But what they *really* need to be insecure about is whichever brand of paper towels is doing the ad with the billiard balls that stay suspended on the towel EVEN AFTER WATER GETS POURED OVER THEM! That commercial gives me the willies. Kind of like watching a balloon get inflated and inflated and inflated and you know it's going to pop but it hasn't yet...
actually, i love the billiard-ball paper towel commercial because the song is GREAT!
Ha! This is funny. I was looking for more info on the NEW Brawny Man reality show that just came out on brawnyacademy.com (Very funny - Husbands are sent to learn how to be more Brawny) .... I never realised the simpsons had had Marge fantasising about this already!