The Rocky LaPorte Show

January 25, 2008 /

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yx2FKXg060U[/youtube](Update…look, through the miracle of YouTube, you can enjoy the first segment of this sitcom…you could then go back and watch more, if you want…I don’t know WHY you would want that, but hey, whatever floats your boat!)

I answered the phone the other day, and the kind person on the other side of the line asked me if I would be interested in watching a 1/2 hour sitcom if they sent me a DVD, and then they would call me back and ask me questions about it. Cool, huh? And, to thank me for my time, I would be entered into a drawing to win $100 worth of valuable prizes. Yeah, that doesn’t sound like good pay to me, to be entered in a drawing, but still, to see a show before it’s on TV sounded like fun, or at least blog fodder, so I agreed.

The DVD arrived, along with two packets and some instructions. Read and fill out packet number 1 before watching the DVD. Packet number 2 is for after. OK, so I open the packet, and it’s just marketing crap for products. Like, if your $100 worth of valuable prizes should happen to contain paper towels, which of these five brands would you most like to receive? Pages and pages of this crap. OK.

Finally, we watch the DVD. It’s the worst sitcom ever, with Rocky LaPorte doing his best as a bemused husband who has no frikkin’ idea how to buy his wife a romantic gift for their 15th wedding anniversary. His accent was annoying, but the concept that this guy is so stupid that he doesn’t have any idea of what she might like should be left to yellow cartoon guys. But worse than that was that we had to watch COMMERCIALS! And the DVD wouldn’t allow fast forwarding or skipping, either. Oh god. It was horrid. TONS of commercials.

Then, the next day, I got the call. They had me on for 45 minutes, talking about the commercials. “Did you see a commercial with a toothbrush in it? What did you think about the toothbrush? Do you think you would be more or less likely to buy the toothbrush after seeing this commercial? What did you like about the commercial? What didn’t you like about the commercial? What message do you think the commercial was giving you about the toothbrush? How often do you brush your teeth?” On and on like this.

So…blog fodder? Yes, but not really that funny. Good TV show? No. Annoying way to spend an afternoon? Yes. If anyone calls you, and asks you if you’d like to provide valuable information by watching a new tv show on DVD, consider yourself warned.

I wonder what kind of crap I’ll get as a thank you gift, should I ‘win’ the drawing? From the questions I had to answer, I’m guessing toilet bowl cleaner and toothbrushes.

14 Comments

  • Jenny

    January 25, 2008 at 7:50 am

    They really just wanted to know about the commercials. The show was crappy because it was just a ploy to get you to finish watching it. What a scam they are pulling.

  • Py Korry

    January 25, 2008 at 8:29 am

    That was probably one of the worst sitcoms I’ve seen. And it was pretty clear that they were market testing commericals from the get-go. But when they had like 7 minutes of commercials, I wanted to call Amnesty International for help.

  • kookiejar

    January 25, 2008 at 8:41 am

    Yeah, it seems like that was less about a new tv show and more about seeing if you remembered the commercials.

    I got sent a pilot for a new sitcom once and there were no commercials in it. It was awful. It starred Kirsten Davis (from “Third Rock From the Sun”) and that guy who played Ferris Bueller’s best friend, Alan Ruck. And it stunk. I’m glad it never made it to air.

  • Karen MEG

    January 25, 2008 at 12:29 pm

    Ah, suckered in by potential blog fodder!!! You’re so funny J!
    At least it was in the comfort of your own home. I remember waaaaaay back before kids, before marriage maybe, I went with a couple of friends to attend this marketing session where they had refreshments and gave you a coupon of sorts for I don’t remember what. The most boring 1 hour of commercials I have never enjoyed, with about 100 other people in a large gymnasium. Never again.
    BTW, your comment (x2) in my post made me laugh! I have to admit that a big “???” popped up in my head when I saw the first ID, LOL!

  • Nance

    January 25, 2008 at 6:10 pm

    Thanks for the heads-up. I must fit some sort of marketing niche because I get a lot of calls for this sort of thing and have tried a ton of products (Pantene’s new line, Lever 2000 before it went to market, some Asian flavored BBQ sauce, among other things) as a tester. I’ll now be on the lookout for this call and know to say no.

  • lalunas

    January 26, 2008 at 3:01 pm

    I wonder if you will get a coupons for a free tooth brush. I watched the show and I was curious what the heck he got his wife. One year for my birthday my husband then/ bought me a diamond ring. I was shocked and he was so happy to explain several times that it was real diamonds. I could not believe it. Months later I was cleaning out the car vacuuming the carpet and sucked up a receipt and it was for the ring he bought me. It was a fake, he paid a total of 50 dollars for it. Man, I felt like taking the ring and shoving it up his nose. I was furious he lied to me. Oh got off on a tangent..