R I P, Ron Popeil

Discussion in 'Gadgets & Tech Talk' started by Beth Gallagher, Aug 1, 2021.

  1. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Note: I placed this in Gadgets and Tech Talk because Mr. Popeil was pretty much the King of Gadgets for decades.
    _______________________________

    July 29, 2021 Ron Popeil, a made-for-TV inventor and salesman whose infomercial stardom persuaded millions of Americans to buy the Veg-O-Matic, Pocket Fisherman and dozens of other products they had no idea they needed, died on Wednesday at a hospital in Los Angeles. He was 86.

    The cause was a brain hemorrhage, his sister Lisa Popeil said.

    Mr. Popeil’s mastery of television marketing, dating to the 1950s but spanning several decades, made him nearly as recognizable onscreen as the TV and movie stars of his era. Several of his catchphrases — especially “But wait! There’s more” and “set it and forget it” — have endured beyond his retirement.

     
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  2. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Interesting tidbit about his father, Samuel Popeil:

    His father, Samuel Popeil, was the inventor of the Chop-O-Matic and several other well-known items, and as a teenager Ron began selling his father’s inventions at a Walgreen’s store in Chicago.

    He described his relationship with his father, who died in 1984, as all business. In 1974, Samuel’s second wife, Eloise, was convicted of attempting to hire two men to murder him. After serving 19 months of her sentence, the couple later remarried.
     
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  3. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    R.I.P., Ron.

    He always had such Great Looking Hair.
    [​IMG]

    Only in America is a sales guy a nationwide icon.

    (I've owned a Pocket Fisherman, a Showtime Rotisserie, and a Veg-O-Matic. I never owned a Bedazzler.)
     
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  4. Faye Fox

    Faye Fox Veteran Member
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    I never owned any of it. I was and still am turned off by salesman that just won't shut the you know what up. I hated going to fairs with my bestie. She always had to stop and listen and buy their stuff. Some of it was good but really not worth the price in my opinion.
     
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  5. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    But don't you like it when they ask your name, Faye?
    And then they repeatedly use it, Faye.
    Like at the end of every sentence, Faye.
    Can't you see how this product will make your life easier, Faye?
     
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  6. Faye Fox

    Faye Fox Veteran Member
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    It depends what they are selling John
    And if it makes my life more satisfying, John
    I never let them know I am a widow, John
    I always wear my expensive wedding ring, John
    Then they assume my husband won't rise to the occasion, John
    And then they produce their best model, John
    And say, "Just for a stunning babe like you, Faye"
    And then they asked what name I want to be engraved on it, John
    And I say, "Clint ... Clint Eastwood" and then they say to me, John
    We can do that For A Few Dollars More, Faye
    And then I pull out A Fist Full of Dollars, John
    And then they give me the two for one deal, John
    And then they say, "It is Two Mules for Sister Sara,"
    And then I walk away, John because they called me Sara
     
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  7. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    I'd walk away, too, outraged that someone cast Shirley MacLain with Clint Eastwood. Faye.
     
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  8. Bill Boggs

    Bill Boggs Supreme Member
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    Say what!!!
     
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  9. Dwight Ward

    Dwight Ward Veteran Member
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    The Veg-O-Matic actually did what it was supposed to until the blades broke. We had one and I used to make french fries with it.
    My favorite of his products was a spray paint which matched the customer's hair color and was sprayed on his bald spot to hide that he was losing hair. Vanity, vanity, all is vanity.
     
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  10. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    I had one of his rotisserie oven things back in the early 90's. It actually worked very well. "Set it and forget it!!"
     
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  11. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    I liked my rotisserie oven. It made great chicken, and the kabob skewers automatically rotated 1/4 turn every revolution so as to give all sides their turn towards the heat.

    I used to roast meatballs in the rotating fish basket because it gave them such a great flavor while cooking all sides, and the fat dripped off. If I had the room, I'd still have one.

    @Dwight Ward That hairspray was called GLH. Great Looking Hair.
     
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  12. Dwight Ward

    Dwight Ward Veteran Member
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    NASA should have hired Ron and his crew of inventors to work on faster-than-light drive
    The rotisserie sounds like it was a good product. My Mom was an old school southern cook and wouldn't have known what to do with it.
    I used to have a pocket fisherman but all I ever caught with it were pocket fish.
     
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  13. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    Yeh, I used to have a pocket cue stick, and all I every played was...well, you know.
     
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  14. Dwight Ward

    Dwight Ward Veteran Member
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    LOL That's verging on too risque' for SeniorsOnly. Oh... you meant pocket billiards. Never mind.
     
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  15. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    Snooker.
     
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