You’ll Be Saying ‘Wow’ When You See Vince in the Full-Length ShamWow Commercial
July 28th, 2008 Paul Lucas
I’ve written before about the incredibly annoying ShamWow commercial starring everyone’s favorite new pitchman Vince. The video I included in that earlier post was the short version of the Sham Wow TV commercial. Here is the full length version:
There are two great things about this version of the ShamWow ad:
The line, “Made in Germany. You know the Germans always make good stuff.” Yeah, like Panzers and V-2 rockets! (In trying to come up with a line here, I realized that it is hard to think of a quip about Nazi death camps that wouldn’t be in bad taste.)
The other hilarious thing about the long ShamWow commercial comes at 1:24. The words “ten years” were obviously dubbed in later. And Vince, knowing they weren’t sure how long they would claim the ShamWow lasts, deliberately puts the ShamWow towel over his mouth so that viewers wouldn’t notice the mismatch between his lips and his words. (Sure Vince, that plan really worked out smoothly!)
For some reason I have watch this every time I run across it on TV. Vince is so cheesy. He is the quintessential street fair pitch man which he is obviously playing off off and the commercial is built around that idea. In the shot outside were they interview the passerby’s you see him in the background under the tent. Also, I love his miss matched eyes. Something is wrong with his right eye, its closed further then the other one.
5/5
Comment by Mentallo — July 30th, 2008 at 5:49 pm
Any info on who “Vince” is?
Comment by bk — August 6th, 2008 at 11:06 am
His name is Vince Offer and back in 1999 he directed and appeared in a lousy direct-to-DVD film called the “Underground Comedy Movie.” I’ll be writing a post about this soon.
Comment by Paul Lucas — August 6th, 2008 at 12:06 pm
$20 a month in paper towels. WHAT. Let’s calculate that out. A roll of paper towels is like what… a buck fifty? You’d have to use like 13 rolls a month. That’s one roll almost every 2 days. Half a roll a DAY. Half a roll of paper towels EVERY DAY. I have no idea how I’d manage to use HALF A ROLL of paper towels in one day. I barely use two or three SHEETS a day.
And the shamwow is fine, sure… pick up a spilled soda. But then you can’t just throw it away, you have to WASH it. Where do you wash it? Washing machine? Yeah, that’s not a pain in the ass.
Comment by eric — August 8th, 2008 at 1:54 am
“And the shamwow is fine, sure… pick up a spilled soda. But then you can’t just throw it away, you have to WASH it. Where do you wash it? Washing machine? Yeah, that’s not a pain in the ass.”
. . . you’re being satirical, right? you’re not ACTUALLY listing reusability as a con and disposability as a pro, right? Please tell me you’re not . . .
Comment by diemwing — August 20th, 2008 at 1:42 am
I think you folks are missing the point. All I care about is the gigantic, festering, pus-filled mole that protrudes from his chin. I swear, it looks like he talks into it…..as if it has a life of its own. A living, oozing, foul smelling chin wart speaking to Vince. Should he pop it? Maybe. but what about the swiffer refill he wears on top of his head? Oh my, I’m just so frightened for him…………and IT.
Comment by lynn — August 20th, 2008 at 11:13 am
I’m surprised they didn’t try to appeal to the tree bangers by saying it’s more eco friendly since it’s reusable. I agree with Eric above. Just use paper towels.. As Ron Popeil would say, “Use it and forget it!”
Comment by TimNRA757 — September 13th, 2008 at 10:13 am
Oh MYYY God, yall r a mess.(lol) Vince was just doing his job…. We would do the same,, right?? I love that shamThingy. Hey, those paper towels ARE high (the brand I buy) but i don’t think i spend $20 a month but its close. I always get the large bag from SAM’s Club, which last about 2 months.
Comment by Bekay — October 3rd, 2008 at 3:38 am
The dude has skinny arms. Signs of you-know-what…
Comment by leonard — October 6th, 2008 at 9:29 pm
The reason he covered his mouth was probably twofold: He wasn’t sure how long he would guarantee it, (probably because of legal prompting), and secondly, he didn’t want to waste cash refilming it.
The 1st time I saw this commercial, he said, “…lasts a lifetime.” Anyone else remember that version, from a couple of years ago?
The, “we’re gonna do this in real time”, is a typical diversion, as was, “ya following me camera guy”. That’s to reassure you it was done in, real time when, actually, it wasn’t.
Another thing; ever wonder why the special deal is, “for the next twenty minutes”? Because, commercials are spaced 11 minutes apart, in the U.S.. *wink wink*
As to, comments about his appearance, Vince had a stroke in, 2001. That may be the reason.
Comment by Reno — October 12th, 2008 at 1:18 pm
I THINK VINCE IS VERY HOTT, AND VERY CUTE I LOVE HIS COMMERCIALS, ALL YOU HATTERS LEAVE MY FRIEND
ALONE. VINCE HAS A PERFECT BODY VERY HOT BODY
Comment by KEVIN — October 31st, 2008 at 1:51 am
Think about it…the headset mic is possibly to conceal/not draw attention to the partial facial paralysis on his right side. Hence the talking out of the side of his mouth and slightly uneven eyes.
Also, when you see street/carnival pitchmen these days they are wearing a hands free mic, so its probably just part of his presentation.
If Billy Mays ever had to pitch a product on the street, he’d starve to death. You just cant be a 225lb + male shouting aimlessly at people and expect them to stop and hear out your pitch.
Everybodys gotta make a living, folks.
Comment by Vinnie — November 2nd, 2008 at 1:47 pm
“The Germans make great stuff”.Don’t forget those human lampshades too.
Comment by Richard Simmons — November 2nd, 2008 at 5:36 pm
The “Let’s do this in real time” when he cleans up the spilled soda is hilarious since you can see that his cleanup is done in something like ten different edits.
I sampled the material about fifteen years ago and it’s almost as good as Vince claims, but not for that kind of money.
Comment by Chet — November 8th, 2008 at 10:14 pm
Too bad Kevin! Vince is dating the Progrsseive Insurance chick. Think of their offspring….YUCK!
Comment by Leon — November 19th, 2008 at 4:24 pm
Made in Germany.
Do you also know what else the Germans invented? The first efficient printing press, the first mercury thermometer, the first car (Daimler-Benz), the first diesel engine, aspirin, electron microscopes, and our favorite, MP3s.
Vince is an incredible salesman and this disingenuous site does NOTHING to rebuke that claim.
Comment by Steve — December 6th, 2008 at 12:44 am
Vince is the Man! shamwow commercials are the best on tv. I think Billy Mays is watching his back, because vince could sell ice to the eskimos! Go Get ‘em Vince!
Comment by frank — December 10th, 2008 at 12:40 pm
germans always make good stuff? oooh yaaa, the holocaust was so cool. >.>
Comment by LOL — December 28th, 2008 at 2:51 am
Vince Offer is a hottie. This guy is absolutely hillarious, his commercial makes me laff. I bought his rag as a gift for xmas just because he is soo funny..
All you do nothing haters sitting their critisizing Vince, get a job, and then let us critique you. In the mean time… I’d like to try his nuts… :)
GO VINCE! GO!
SBNY Loves Vince!
Comment by jerry — January 1st, 2009 at 5:58 pm
C’mon - The “are you following me, camera guy?” is just the tip of the iceberg. I’m sure the camera person, who take pride in his career, was delighted by that. Of course he’s following him, you pinhead! Whatta dreadful way to demean hard working crew members.
There’s a Vince Shamwow entity now on Facebook too. I chose not to add him as a friend.
Am I the only one that’s a bit consternated by the fact that all “Vince is hot” posts have come from people with men’s names?
Comment by The Vapid Voice — January 2nd, 2009 at 2:14 pm
Has anyone see that Vince is now doing commercials for the Slap Chop? I saw that commercial with someone else the other day, then just today Vince was doing it.
He may sound slick but all you haters gotta give him props. At least he’s doing a job. And he’s better at his than you are at yours (otherwise you wouldn’t be a hater).
Comment by Yoshi — January 3rd, 2009 at 1:04 pm
Yes, I did see that: Slap Chop Commercial: Vince from ShamWow Makes a Triumphant Return
Comment by Paul Lucas — January 3rd, 2009 at 2:28 pm
“You know the Germans always make good stuff.” Yeah, like Panzers and V-2 rockets!
Not to mention BMW automobiles, Wusthof and Henckels knives, Zeiss binoculars and scopes, Junghans watches - garbage, all of it. Why would anyone want to buy such inferior products?
Comment by Guiseppe Madre — January 4th, 2009 at 1:45 pm
He’s gay.Paul Anka
Comment by Paul Anka — January 4th, 2009 at 3:50 pm
Those German ovens were pretty efficient!
Comment by Intercaust — January 6th, 2009 at 3:43 pm
Thing is that Vince’s face doesn’t look so messed up in the Slap Chop commercial. Either it’s great editing, great physical therapy, or perhaps rather than a stroke, he had Bell’s Palsy.
Bell’s Palsy is a temporary paralysis of one side of the face that hasn’t been attributed to a specific cause. It is generally thought to be caused by inflammation that causes pressure on the facial nerve, but the inflammation can be from a number of causes.
I knew a woman who got it after taking antibiotics way too long (she didn’t know to stop after the prescription was done and her HMO kept on refilling it until a pharmacist caught it and abruptly cut her off, leaving her with a compromised immune system).
For a few months, she looked like she’d had a stroke, but she got better. According to Wikipedia, a study of over 1,000 people with Bell’s Palsy showed that 85% started getting better within 3 weeks, the rest within 6 months, and that after a year, 71% had fully recovered.
Could be that they had the studio, the crew, etc. booked, Vince came down with the paralysis, it was too late to get someone else who could knock it out like he could, so they went with it.
The only place I’ve seen claims of Vince having a stroke is in blog comments. It’s not on his IMDb bio, his Wikipedia page… And with his apparent recovery in the Slap Chop commercial, I’m leaning towards Bell’s Palsy rather than a stroke.
Comment by Greg Bulmash — January 7th, 2009 at 12:54 am
Vince totally rocks! He’s a guy who just goes for it, doesn’t let what others may think or say hold him back. When he was working on his movie, he ran out of money and had to sell salad machines in malls to raise the needed funds. Dang, that had to be a lot of salad machines. He’s a worker, and he’s not afraid to be himself. I like his style. Don’t know that I will buy a Shamwow, but I definitely need a Slapchop.
Comment by Krafty_Momma — January 8th, 2009 at 10:51 am
Hey…Leave Vinny alone…the guy is brilliant at what he does. The commercials are like an auto accident…you drive by but HAVE to look. Yeah, he’s a character…and he’s a genius. And a hoot to watch.
Comment by PeepTheSot — January 10th, 2009 at 7:00 pm
Who spends $20 a month on paper towels? I do!
I use ‘em to blot the 8 lbs. of bacon I eat every day (2 lbs. at each meal & snack).
I really like Vince, but he’s too damned skinny. That boy needs to eat more bacon!
Comment by Gutbucket Lardner — January 18th, 2009 at 10:02 pm
My faith in the human race has been restored because a couple of people on this blog actually -noticed- how the guarantee time had changed “a lifetime” vs. ten years and the bad overdub and how the “real time” was a joke of a dozen edits. If only Vince would realize to tell them that these towels don’t dry! Notice how they say that they’re great for WASHING cars? They sure as hell won’t DRY one. Shaaamwooowws are not towels! They are magic moisture vacuums, but they don’t dry. And they leave lint. My condolences to Vince for his frightening charisma and unfortunate ability to fool the gullible effortlessly.
Comment by Roger — January 24th, 2009 at 12:11 am
Guiseppe Madre ..You’re an Idot….those products you mentions made by the Germans ..are amazing products.
Comment by Rommel — January 24th, 2009 at 3:56 pm
At least this one isn’t FILTHY like the Slap Chop commercial!
Comment by Sonnyboy — February 15th, 2009 at 7:05 pm
“Guiseppe Madre ..You’re an Idot….those products you mentions made by the Germans ..are amazing products. ”
Someone has no concept of sarcasm, I see.
Comment by Canaduck — March 25th, 2009 at 6:32 pm
vince offer is a prick and should never be allowed on tv. He should never be allowed to sell stuff, ever!
Comment by playstation — April 5th, 2009 at 12:18 pm