Ode to Crazy Gideon
Sad news for fans of discount electronics and general hilarity. Downtown News reports that “Crazy” Gideon Kotzer is shuttering his Downtown L.A. shop. Which means no more of this when you’re watching TV at 4 in the morning:
Every city has at least one wacky retail guy like Gideon, but I’ve lived all over the country and I can unequivocally say that Gideon is the king of the zany retail commercial genre.
Frankie and Johnny’s Furniture in New Orleans is great — tough to beat the “Special Man.” RIP. But they take too long to set up the good stuff. Gideon gets right to the crazy.
This guy out of Montgomery is pretty amazing, but he’s a bit of a one-trick pony.
Tough to beat Indiana Marty’s special effects and homicidal rage, but I still think Gideon has him.
Barry and Elliot from Jordan’s Furniture used to have some good commercials in Boston. But in the past decade they found a way to transcend their roles as wacky commercial guys into legitimate pillars of the community. No idea how that happened. Seriously, either of these guys could run for governor and have a decent shot. Now all their commercials are serious and artsy. Boo.
So thanks for all the memories Gideon. You are, indeed, the craziest of them all.
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I wonder if Crazy Gideon predated NYC’s great, great Crazy Eddie (although the guy who did the TV spots was not the eponymous Eddie, but a DJ named Jerry Carroll). If you spent any time in the tri-state area in the ’70s and ’80s, you know how profoundly Eddie/Jerry brought the crazy.
I did a little Google-fu and found out Crazy Eddie definitely came first. Gideon has been around for 35 years, but I think Eddie opened his shop in 1971. That said, Gideon does his own commercials and has a strange accent. So I have to give Gideon the nod in terms of the pure art of his craft.
In response to another comment. See in context »Wow, sad day indeed. I used to get my morning coffee from the place across the street from Crazy Gideon’s – though I only actually went in one time. He wasn’t as crazy in person, but I’d say he was sufficiently weird.
Maybe you caught him on an off day? Sufficiently weird is still pretty good though.
In response to another comment. See in context »Crazy Gideon and some of the others definitely stormed your senses via blitzkrieg but for sheer endurance Cal Worthington wins hands down. Number one, the fucking guy is ageless! He wears the cowboy hat and suit and has a depression era Oakie dialect – part evangelist, part huckster, and part savvy businessman leading you to the Best Deal Ever. He just does the commercials these days, no striking up a conversation on the lot and holding you prisoner for three hours until you still get a bad deal. Cal shows old clips of himself with a tiger, rolling around the wheels of a 67 DeVille. You can walk on furniture or a tv, but if you need wheels – you’re going to get screwed. Tom Medlicott
Hmm, I checked out Cal Worthington at your suggestion and have to agree he’s as good as it gets. I enjoyed the one where he stands on top of a biplane while it does barrel rolls. The song gets a little old, but for stunts and overall hijinks, he is indeed the best.
In response to another comment. See in context »