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Mr. Softee Driving People Nuts?
By
tien mao
Published Jun 23, 2004
Modified Mar 6, 2008
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By
tien mao
Published Jun 23, 2004
Modified Mar 6, 2008
Share
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In an article that will surely win The New York Times a Pulitzer, Dan Barry undergoes an experiment with the Mr. Softee jingle. Gothamist and our readers are very familiar with the jingle, but Barry sums it up nicely as, "Duh-DUH-duh-duh duh-duh-duhduh-duh-duh-duh-duh-DUH-duuuh-duh. . . ." Wait- isn't that one 'duh' too many? Anyway, Barry explores the hypnotic effects of the jingle and reveals that the jingle actually has words!
My milkshakes and my sundaes and my cones are such a treat / Listen for my store on wheels ding-a-ling down the street / The creamiest, dreamiest soft ice cream you get from Mister Softee. . . .
Recently, City Hall has proposed outlawing the Mr. Softee jingle. James Conway Jr., an ice cream executive (some might say he has the best job ever), reveals that Mister Softee has a lobbyist that is working with the City Council and the mayor to reach a compromise on the jingle. Conway also reveals that there is a technology that stops the song when the ice cream truck stops. Well, hot damn! Where has this been all our lives? And who ever thought you could make a living as an ice cream lobbyist? Where do we sign up to be the local voice of the BBQ industry?
No matter how much we dislike the Mr. Softee song, we know that summer will not be the same without it. Now we not only have a craving for ice cream, but we also have the song stuck in our heads. Damn Pavlovian effects. Gothamist isn't quite at the point of the Mister Softee drivers are at, who after repeated listening to the song have "become desensitized". [Mr. Softee has a website and some of the most disturbing merchandise we have every seen. No word yet on whether Mr. Softee has a posse.]
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