Take a Break: TV Commercials Trivia Quiz

Answer: Matt LeBlanc

Matt LeBlanc was the star of the award-winning Heinz Ketchup "Anticipation" ad from 1987. All the Friends, including Matt, also starred in a huge promotion for Diet Coke during the sitcom's second-season ascent. But, really, who even knew they give "prestigious awards" for ketchup commercials at Cannes?

Answer: Monster

The employment-resource site Monster.com got a motherlode of attention after airing its "When I Grow Up" spot during the 1999 Super Bowl. The tongue-in-cheek ad features kids sharing their aspirations, including such goals as "I want to claw my way up to middle management" and "I wanna have a brown nose."

Answer: Madonna

In March 1989, controversy over Madonna's inflammatory "Like a Prayer" music video led ad agency BBDO to yank the Material Girl's Pepsi commercial after it aired just once (during "The Cosby Show").

Answer: Post Grape-Nuts

"Ever eat a pine tree? Many parts are edible," said good ol' Euell Gibbons in a '70s-era spot for Grape-Nuts. As author of the classic book Stalking the Wild Asparagus, naturalist Gibbons built a respected reputation among, well, health nuts. But to some, his pitch for Grape-Nuts represented a sellout to corporate America. Still, celebrity Gibbons kept his good nature. As a joke, he appeared on "The Sonny and Cher Show" and took a big bite out of a "wooden" plaque the duo awarded him.

Answer: Fred Astaire

Fred Astaire's dance with the devil--the Dirt Devil--in a 1997 Super Bowl ad elicited the scathing response from his daughter Ava McKenzie. Technology also made posthumous pitchmen of Jackie Gleason, for Braun blenders; Ed Sullivan, for the Mercedes M-Class SUV; and Munster man Fred Gwynne, "Dragnet's" Jack Webb and Lucille Ball, for Service Merchandise. John Wayne's Coors Light ads are probably the most familiar "dead celebrity" spots. It's been reported that Coors donated to the John Wayne Cancer Institute in exchange for use of the Duke's image.

Answer: Aaron Burr

The "Aaron Burr" guy was surrounded by artifacts from the 1804 duel in which Burr shot and killed Alexander Hamilton. The "Got Milk?" commercials have been among the best around for a few years now, and they've played the "mouthful of peanut butter" card very well. Have you seen the one in which a boy gives his dog a spoonful?

Answer: Frank and Louie

Frank is the voice of reason, and Louie is the hothead. The pair debuted in a 1997 Super Bowl commercial, with fast-talking Louie plotting to assassinate the annoying "Bud-weis-er" frogs, who got the beer-commercial spotlight instead of him. You can sorta understand where Louie is coming from.

Answer: Calgon

Wannabe inscrutable laundry owner Mr. Lee tries to pull the wool over a customer's eyes by telling her his method for getting clothes so clean is an "ancient Chinese secret." Then his very Americanized wife bursts in, demanding more Calgon to do the wash. This exchange produces another semi-classic line: "My husband, some hotshot!" Ethnic stereotyping used to be more prevalent in TV commercials (remember the egregious Frito Bandito?). This one scores some points for playing against type, but it rates high for cheesiness.

Answer: Prego spaghetti sauce

When Peller showed up in a 1985 spot saying she found the beef in Campbell's Prego Plus spaghetti sauce, Wendy's dropped her from its ads. Where's Peller now? She passed away in 1987.

Answer: A sledgehammer

Apple's famous 1984 ad, set in an Orwellian version of the future, started the whole Super Bowl commercial craze. An unidentified woman sporting flashy red jogging shorts wields a sledgehammer and smashes "Big Brother."