Ridiculous Infomercial Review Blog

Back in 2006, Richard Simmons decided to launch a new product. This time Simmons was going to promote a steam cooker called “Steam Heat.”

Richard Simmons even taped an infomercial to promote the Steam Heat steamer. I’m not sure if the infomercial ever aired on TV but until recently the clips were available on the official Richard Simmons website.

Here are two clips from the infomercial. These clips aren’t that interesting in themselves, but they do prove that Steam Heat was a real product that Richard Simmons was serious about marketing—it was not a “gag” product he made up for his appearance on Letterman:

Then in one of the least financially fruitful appearances anyone has ever made on a national talk show this happened:

If you watch this video closely, it is clear what occurred: Letterman set up Richard Simmons. The tray (which is not a “go-go kart”) that perplexed Simmons had been rigged to make it look like the steam cooker was malfunctioning. When the tray started to emit steam Simmons suddenly realized what was happening (“Oh, this is funny…This is why.”) However, he was still genuinely startled by the explosion. (You can see that Letterman, who took it all in stride, knew what was coming.)

Soon after this incident first happened I vaguely remember seeing a clip of it somewhere, and I wasn’t sure if it was all a set up or if the steamer genuinely malfunctioned. Now, after having watched the clip twice—the second time closely—it is obvious the Steam Heat product did not malfunction. But I’m sure that the majority of people who just saw this scene once on TV or caught the video on the Web will think the steamer really did explode. And Richard’s target market of middle-aged Quacker Factory-wearing QVC viewers are the least likely to understand that it was a prank; they will definitely not buy such a “dangerous” product, even if their favorite fitness guru is endorsing it.

Now Steam Heat is no longer featured on Richard Simmons’ own website. Most likely it flopped in sales and I’m sure the Letterman incident is a big reason why. The Letterman prank on Richard Simmons may have been one of the most financially costly practical jokes of all time.

In the current infomercial for her Reclaim skin care products, Victoria Principal wheels a cheesy RV around the country, which is dubbed the “Reclaim Mobile Salon.” Principal then uses this behemoth to surprise women with makeovers using her Reclaim products. (By the way, one of the products in the Reclaim line is called the “EyeMazing® Eye Serum”—which has to be one of the most absurd names ever given to an infomercial product.)

As one unsuspecting woman is filming her testimonial for the infomercial, Victoria Principal and host Jules Asner sneak up on the lady, who nearly suffers a stroke when she realizes that the person looming silently behind her is indeed the one-time star of Dallas and the creator of the Principal Secrets skin care line.

This is not the first time that the surprise pop-in has been used on an infomercial.

The infomercials for Tony Horton’s Power 90 and Michael Thurmond’s 6 Week Body Makeover both feature scenes in which a group of users are gathered together in a room, each giving their testimonial about how wonderful the products are, when suddenly and unexpectedly the gurus who saved their lives enter the room and are greeted with many tears and much adulation.

Another memorable use of the celebrity infomercial pop-in occurred during one of the Richard Simmons infomercials. In this infomercial he would sneak up on various women who had lost weight using his products. During a scene in a supermarket, Simmons pretends to absent-mindedly bump his shopping cart into the cart of one of his fans. And before the lady can shout out, “Watch where you’re goin’, numbnuts!” she recognizes the fey fitness guru and responds with the recondite emotional outburst.

Probably the best known, and perhaps strangest, surprise pop-in came during the infomercial for Lori Davis hair products, hosted by Cher in the 1980s. In this infomercial Lori Davis, Cher, and a group of Cher’s friends are sitting on a sofa when suddenly actor Ted Danson pops in for about 20 seconds, eliciting delightful squeals from the ladies. Danson never mentions the hair care products and no one ever tells us whether or not he was ever a Lori Davis customer.