HU DID IT FIRST
August 9 2007, 9:52 am | | 22 Comments
A HK based CB Blogger writes:
I spotted this spot created by Ogilvy Hong Kong on youtube:
Now compare it to this classic:
All a bit too similar don’t you think?
Over to you and your viewers to judge.
22 Comments
Abbott: Well Costello, I’m going to New York with you. You know Bucky Harris, the Yankee’s manager, gave me a job as coach for as long as you’re on the team.Costello: Look Abbott, if you’re the coach, you must know all the players.Abbott: I certainly do.Costello: Well you know I’ve never met the guys. So you’ll have to tell me their names, and then I’ll know who’s playing on the team.Abbott: Oh, I’ll tell you their names, but you know it seems to me they give these ball players now-a-days very peculiar names.Costello: You mean funny names?Abbott: Strange names, pet names…like Dizzy Dean…Costello: His brother Daffy.Abbott: Daffy Dean…Costello: And their French cousin.Abbott: French?Costello: Goofè.Abbott: Goofè Dean. Well, let’s see, we have on the bags, Who’s on first, What’s on second, I Don’t Know is on third…Costello: That’s what I want to find out.Abbott: I say Who’s on first, What’s on second, I Don’t Know’s on third.Costello: Are you the manager?Abbott: Yes.Costello: You gonna be the coach too?Abbott: Yes.Costello: And you don’t know the fellows’ names?Abbott: Well I should.Costello: Well then who’s on first?Abbott: Yes.Costello: I mean the fellow’s name.Abbott: Who.Costello: The guy on first.Abbott: Who.Costello: The first baseman.Abbott: Who.Costello: The guy playing…Abbott: Who is on first!Costello: I’m asking YOU who’s on first.Abbott: That’s the man’s name.Costello: That’s who’s name?Abbott: Yes.Costello: Well go ahead and tell me.Abbott: That’s it.Costello: That’s who?Abbott: Yes.PAUSECostello: Look, you gotta first baseman?Abbott: Certainly.Costello: Who’s playing first?Abbott: That’s right.Costello: When you pay off the first baseman every month, who gets the money?Abbott: Every dollar of it.Costello: All I’m trying to find out is the fellow’s name on first base.Abbott: Who.Costello: The guy that gets…Abbott: That’s it.Costello: Who gets the money…Abbott: He does, every dollar. Sometimes his wife comes down and collects it.Costello: Whose wife?Abbott: Yes.PAUSEAbbott: What’s wrong with that?Costello: Look, all I wanna know is when you sign up the first baseman, how does he sign his name?Abbott: Who.Costello: The guy.Abbott: Who.Costello: How does he sign…Abbott: That’s how he signs it.Costello: Who?Abbott: Yes.PAUSECostello: All I’m trying to find out is what’s the guy’s name on first base.Abbott: No. What is on second base.Costello: I’m not asking you who’s on second.Abbott: Who’s on first.Costello: One base at a time!Abbott: Well, don’t change the players around.Costello: I’m not changing nobody!Abbott: Take it easy, buddy.Costello: I’m only asking you, who’s the guy on first base?Abbott: That’s right.Costello: Ok.Abbott: All right.PAUSECostello: What’s the guy’s name on first base?Abbott: No. What is on second.Costello: I’m not asking you who’s on second.Abbott: Who’s on first.Costello: I don’t know.Abbott: He’s on third, we’re not talking about him.Costello: Now how did I get on third base?Abbott: Why you mentioned his name.Costello: If I mentioned the third baseman’s name, who did I say is playing third?Abbott: No. Who’s playing first.Costello: What’s on first?Abbott: What’s on second.Costello: I don’t know.Abbott: He’s on third.Costello: There I go, back on third again!PAUSECostello: Would you just stay on third base and don’t go off it.Abbott: All right, what do you want to know?Costello: Now who’s playing third base?Abbott: Why do you insist on putting Who on third base?Costello: What am I putting on third.Abbott: No. What is on second.Costello: You don’t want who on second?Abbott: Who is on first.Costello: I don’t know.Abbott & Costello Together:Third base!PAUSECostello: Look, you gotta outfield?Abbott: Sure.Costello: The left fielder’s name?Abbott: Why.Costello: I just thought I’d ask you.Abbott: Well, I just thought I’d tell ya.Costello: Then tell me who’s playing left field.Abbott: Who’s playing first.Costello: I’m not… stay out of the infield! I want to know what’s the guy’s name in left field?Abbott: No, What is on second.Costello: I’m not asking you who’s on second.Abbott: Who’s on first!Costello: I don’t know.Abbott & Costello Together: Third base!PAUSECostello: The left fielder’s name?Abbott: Why.Costello: Because!Abbott: Oh, he’s centerfield.PAUSECostello: Look, You gotta pitcher on this team?Abbott: Sure.Costello: The pitcher’s name?Abbott: Tomorrow.Costello: You don’t want to tell me today?Abbott: I’m telling you now.Costello: Then go ahead.Abbott: Tomorrow!Costello: What time?Abbott: What time what?Costello: What time tomorrow are you gonna tell me who’s pitching?Abbott: Now listen. Who is not pitching.Costello: I’ll break your arm, you say who’s on first! I want to know what’s the pitcher’s name?Abbott: What’s on second.Costello: I don’t know.Abbott & Costello Together: Third base!PAUSECostello: Gotta a catcher?Abbott: Certainly.Costello: The catcher’s name?Abbott: Today.Costello: Today, and tomorrow’s pitching.Abbott: Now you’ve got it.Costello: All we got is a couple of days on the team.PAUSECostello: You know I’m a catcher too.Abbott: So they tell me.Costello: I get behind the plate to do some fancy catching, Tomorrow’s pitching on my team and a heavy hitter gets up. Now the heavy hitter bunts the ball. When he bunts the ball, me, being a good catcher, I’m gonna throw the guy out at first base. So I pick up the ball and throw it to who?Abbott: Now that’s the first thing you’ve said right.Costello: I don’t even know what I’m talking about!PAUSEAbbott: That’s all you have to do.Costello: Is to throw the ball to first base.Abbott: Yes!Costello: Now who’s got it?Abbott: Naturally.PAUSECostello: Look, if I throw the ball to first base, somebody’s gotta get it. Now who has it?Abbott: Naturally.Costello: Who?Abbott: Naturally.Costello: Naturally?Abbott: Naturally.Costello: So I pick up the ball and I throw it to Naturally.Abbott: No you don’t, you throw the ball to Who.Costello: Naturally.Abbott: That’s different.Costello: That’s what I said.Abbott: You’re not saying it…Costello: I throw the ball to Naturally.Abbott: You throw it to Who.Costello: Naturally.Abbott: That’s it.Costello: That’s what I said!Abbott: You ask me.Costello: I throw the ball to who?Abbott: Naturally.Costello: Now you ask me.Abbott: You throw the ball to Who?Costello: Naturally.Abbott: That’s it.Costello: Same as you! Same as YOU! I throw the ball to who. Whoever it is drops the ball and the guy runs to second. Who picks up the ball and throws it to What. What throws it to I Don’t Know. I Don’t Know throws it back to Tomorrow, Triple play. Another guy gets up and hits a long fly ball to Because. Why? I don’t know! He’s on third and I don’t give a darn!Abbott: What?Costello: I said I don’t give a darn!Abbott: Oh, that’s our shortstop.
They’re both 100% rip-offs of a famous and classic Abbott and Costello skit. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEaKjRyPjVY
Yeah, okay Mr. HK Blogger. I love how you call the Bush/Rice spot a “classic”.They’ve both ripoffs of an Abbott & Costello classic skit. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sShMA85pv8M
I think Mr HK blogger is having a lend of us. (Good to see the full transcript of the Abbot & Costello sketch – you can also hear it in full on YouTube.) But it’s a bit much calling them rip-offs. That would make every ad that parodies a movie a rip off as well, not to mention The Big Ad, which, if we’re all going to get uppity, ripped off another ad – a genuine classic at that.
Well let’s call it borrowed interest then. A rip off may be strong language, but it certainly ain’t an original idea. It’s legitimate to call the Big Ad a parody of an ad. (It’s not pc to say so, but that’s all it was)
There’s a chasm of difference between a parody and a rip off. Both these posted videos are rip offs…. and bad ones.
Paying homage or ripping off?Much funnier than the stills one…
They even say in the description it’s a “Re-enactment” of the Abbot and Costello skit.
on the subject. Has anyone seen “Bring Back the Dickie” on Diet Coke film site. A blatant ripoff of MTV Budgie Smuggler. The other films on the site are shockers. Not Ads, Not films….
If it is based on a movie, TV Show (or comedy skit) it is an affectionate homage.If it is based on an ad it is a rip off.Them’s the rules.
Why is everyone bagging this blogger from HK? He’s not talking about the parody of the Abbott and Costello skit. That’s been done to death, and hell, it’s firmly ensconced in popular culture now anyway.The point he raises is, ‘is it ok to appropriate creative work?’ This is a prime example of seeing something on youtube, thinking it will make a cool ad and then whacking a logo on it.Whether it’s youtube, web, stocklibraries, newspapers etc we’ve all seen things and thought ‘hey, that’d make a cool ad.’But does that make it yours? It’s all just part of the Faustian bargain we all enter as soon as we set foot in an agency. I say try not to live by appropriation, because your career will die, but should an opportunity present itself, why not?It’s just advertising after all.
Abbott and Costello weren’t even first… it certainly wasn’t “This Classic”!!!!From Wikipedia….. “Who’s on First?” is descended from turn-of-the-century burlesque sketches like “The Baker Scene” (the shop is located on Watt Street) and “Who Died” (the owner is named Who). In England, in the variety halls (Britain’s equivalent of vaudeville theatres), comedian Will Hay performed a routine in the early 1930s (and possibly earlier) as a schoolmaster interviewing a schoolboy named Howe who came from Ware but now lives in Wye. By the early 1930s, a “Baseball Routine” had become a standard bit for burlesque comics across the United States of America.Then….Late night television host Johnny Carson gave a memorable rendition showing President Ronald Reagan being briefed by an aide. Puns were made with the names of Chinese leader Hu Yaobang (who?), of Yasser Arafat (yes, sir) and of Interior Secretary James Watt (what?). In 2003, an updated version of the routine circulated on the Internet featuring George W. Bush, replacing Watt with Kofi Annan (coffee?), identifying the aide as Condoleezza Rice (with eggroll?), Yassir Arafat (“Yes, sir.” “Yassir?”) and replacing Hu Yaobang with Hu Jintao.
Hu cares.
Hu cares?It’s a great wordplay that’s been begging to be picked up for an ad.
Yes yes all you bloggers who bought the Abbott and Costello skit to our attention are very clever. We had never heard of it before. So does that mean the people who wrote the Bush/Rice skit are rip off artists? Or do we appreciate that they took a well known skit and put a new twist on it? And the Ogilvy Hong Kong team. Are they rip off artists? Or do we appreciate the fact they took a popular new take on an old gag and found a relevant selling point for their client’s product?It’s only advertising.
Advertising… oh how original.Can someone please remind me how the label ‘creative’ ended up tagged to every self-hyped tosser’s business card in this industry?
Agree entirely 9:21.TheBush/Rice spot ain’t no classic. It’s just plain lazy and strategically flawed.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1X6MKsJm5WA&mode=related&search=
A good artist will borrow and a great artist will steal.
It’s funny. It might even drive traffic. nuff said
The whole debate about what’s a parody and what’s a rip off is a bit funny for an industry where every second ad – even the bad ones – tends to be similar to somethng else. If the point of this excercise was that someone did a Abbot & Costello parody on YouTube, and then some agency team saw it and used it, then the first is a parody and the second is a rip off. But what about this. Years ago, when the famous Hamlet cigar campaign was in full swing, one of the sketches on and English comedy show had a funny looking bloke trying to take a photo of himself in one of those passport photo booths, and stuffing it up. Apparently the next morning there was a queue at the door of the Hamlet agency CD’s office with a great new concept for Hamlet. First in got the gig, and they even used the same actor. Was that a rip off, a parody, or just smart thinking. It won heaps of awards and was a great ad seen hundreds of times by millions of people – the skit got seen once on English TV.
1.19 says: “If it is based on a movie, TV Show (or comedy skit) it is an affectionate homage. If it is based on an ad it is a rip off.”On that basis, Big Ad is a rip off, because it was clearly based on British Airways ‘Face’ ad. But Fat Bloke Dancing, being based on a movie, is a loving parody.But I know which one I prefer…and it aint the fat bloke dancing.