Vivian Vance for Maxwell House Coffee - 1975

[BoydWunder]

She was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1973 I believe. Her "Maxine" commercials began airing in 1975. It was a good way for her to stay in the public eye. Vivian RIP. You are greatly missed.

[LadyEthelMertz]

I adore Vivian Vance. Simple like that. Just think that she is so inspiring :) Without being always the star she could always shine and that's being a good actress for me . & another thing that I love about her is that without being the skinny actress she could just as well be sooooo beautiful . :D ♥

[shmoker2010]

I love how the woman, after saying "that's it" to Vivian, changes the spot of the tall building at the last second just to be like " ok I'm still in charge here."

[cosmos34]

@shmoker2010 That is too funny.

[shmoker2010]

I love how the woman, after saying "that's it" to Vivian, changes the spot of the tall building at the last second just to be like " ok I'm still in charge here."

[Lenore1963]

Oh wow I remember this

[level242]

that urns me a cup!

[cheeriosinabowl]

Always loved Viv. She was always one of my favorites.

She looks great in this commercial.

[Ferdie1985]

Oooh that was soooooo cute.

[MediaWatchDawg]

Does anyone ACTUALLY buy instant coffee, much less drink it?

[Ferdie1985]

@MediaWatchDawg I do...Maxwell House is really good.

[MsTexas73]

@MediaWatchDawg My grandmother and my mother still drink instant coffee.

[defundthewar]

@MediaWatchDawg Me, and millions of others. That's why they still make and sell it. Even Starbucks got into the instant game.

[dastaylor]

Many celebrities young and old still do commercials. Look at what a Snicker's commercial did for Betty White....

[19ccj65]

I love Vivian Vance.

[ilovelucy1992]

i love viv so much...she was so adorable

[TimelordR]

A rather poignant reminder of Vivian Vance's final days. I didn't realize that was her when i first saw that commercial on TV in 1975.

[darcy031685]

Oh, that's it? Just rotate the building five degrees? Too funny.

[Simon5005]

People bickering in a video for coffee...........grow up. Anyway, I'd forgotten she did these ads...........now it seems like yesterday.

[customcartoons]

her talent is wasted on these commercials.. :(

[tall32guy]

@customcartoons Well she was an old lady and she needed to work. lol

[MegaNFLMAN]

I love Maxwell House Master Blend Coffee. Not a fan of instant coffee though.

[ohbutyes]

@THATBLACKGURL - I respect your right to make an ignorant, mean-spirited comment. Your inability to form a proper sentence structure also makes me question your ability to properly judge the situation.

[THATBLACKGURL]

Thanks for the insult. Don't leave the comment window open if your not open to opinions.

[ohbutyes]

who said I wasn't open to opinions? If you have an opinion - others have a right to disagree with it, don't they?

[THATBLACKGURL]

@ohbutyes you didn't have a opinion you had a insult. I'm not interested in sharing anymore. Have a great week!

[ohbutyes]

@THATBLACKGURL - even if my opinion insults you, it's still an opinion - they're not mutually exclusive. You have a great week, too!

[ILoveLucyStreet]

Is there anyone more adorable than Vivian? I think not. She is the cutest!!

[Ferdie1985]

Wooonderful! Absolutely wonderful!...I Love Vivian!

[AxelQC]

Ethel! I've got an idea!

[JessicaRabbitIdol]

ethel mertz!!!!

[mrskaystewart]

I didnt her but it feels as if I did.

[SockBoy65]

I don't remember these commercials with Viv.

[libertatus]

She always seemed like such a sweetheart.

[christheone8773]

I think its great that Vivian Vance was able to go out and persue other projects - I read somewhere that she didnt want to be known as Lucille Ball's sidekick-

[MerleOberon]

Vivian had a wonderful singing voice, too bad Lucy wouldn't let her use it more on the shows they did....

[uncoverbrother]

u better make that money ethel!

[defundthewar]

It seems to me her voice was exactly like it was two decades earlier, unlike Lucy's.

[usermikes]

I remember seeing Vivian Vance in an old 1940's black & white movie. Never seen her in any old movies but that one.

[pompom11]

One of her husbands used to beat-her-up. One day Lucy saw the black eye, and said if Viv didn't divorce the jerk, Lucy would see to it.

They were divorced shortly thereafter. Did you know Viv was discovered accidentally doing a Summer Stock type show in S. California, and one of Lucy's friends happened to go, saw Viv, and told Lucy about her. Viv auditioned and the rest is history ---> Timing Is Everything, REMEMBER THAT ! peace

[mkrobinson95]

To be precise, Vivian's abusive husband was #3 (out of 4) ... his name was Philip Ober. Ober appeared in an I Love Lucy episode as Dory Shary (MGM executive) during the Hollywood/Don Juan season. Viv was not discovered accidentally. I Love Lucy director Marc Daniels, along with Jess Oppenheimer and Desi Arnaz, went to see Vance perform in "The Voice of the Turtle", thinking she might be good for the role of Ethel. After the performance, Desi was convinced she was right as Ethel.

[BabyJaneHudson]

That's plain old repeated BULLSHIT!!..as Lucy would have said..

Read the books, talk to people who worked for them (I have..!).

[mkrobinson95]

are you responding to me or pompom11?

[mallyrose87]

@mkrobinson95 I have a hard time watching Phil Ober's episodes of "I Love Lucy" after reading about his abuse of Vivian Vance.

[rickhatch1]

I just loved Viv so much!

[mthivier]

She also guest starred on a very funny episode of "Rhoda" around this same time, playing an older woman who becomes friends with Rhoda (resulting in much jealousy from Rhoda's mother, Nancy Walker!).

[mkrobinson95]

The episode was called "Friends and Mothers", airing the same year as this Maxwell House commercial ... 1975.

[budscin]

Vivian Vance was a TV legend. I remember this spot vividly from back then. But I didn't catch the fact that Lee Chamberlain (of electric company fame) was also in this until now. Viv and Lucy were the one of the first female comedy teams and influenced others yet to come. Both of them are gone now. But they left us with a lasting legacy of laughter. Thank you for posting this great commercial.

[DisneylandWalt]

Freeze your video @ 00:32. So funny!

[Cathie8791]

Love Viv. The clear way she always delivers her lines just mezmerizes me. But she'll always be Ethel Mertz to me. IMO, that was her best role ever. She's Ethel in my heart.

[noirpoetix]

she reminds me of someones sweet grandmother in this commercial =]

[beautyandthebeastx]

She is a legend!

[fromthesidelines]

Vivian Vance and General Foods (the makers of "Maxwell House" at the time) were no strangers to each other; when they co-sponsored "THE LUCY SHOW", Viv usually appeared in their "integrated commercials", at the end of the episodes they sponsored, gently plugging Jell-O and their other food products [Lucy was usually absent from those spots, preferring to concentrate on the show instead of her sponsors].

[flirken]

The black girl is Lee Chamberlin from The Electric Company.

[kissmebaby341]

viv roxs my soxs!!!!

[bdavis4life]

ohhh! She is sooo cute. I love this!

[travis7310]

This was just two years before her death.

[travis7310]

Actually, it's 4 years. I thought she passed away in 1977, but it was 1979.

[Wonka399]

Aq Vivian is such a sweet, old lady!

[Mktryk]

Not bad but Viv was no Cora (and I'll bet Lucy would have had a good laugh over the idea of Viv being a 'sweet old lady' LOL)!

[cherboy25]

gotta love vivian!

[pnovak8]

Not Horrible at ALL!

She was still working !

Ever see her cameo in "Tora, Tora, Tora" as the Airplane Flight Instuctor?

[Patrick3183]

It's Ethel! :)

[DavidWhatsHisName]

The reason many elderly stars end up doing commercials is not a sad one; it's because commercials are not as physically demanding as television series or movies. Many commercials are shot in one day --- Bang, you're done, and you get a nice fat check, plus residuals. It's the perfect gig for older performers, such as Vivian Vance, here, who may not have had a tremendous amount of stamina at this point. This was only four years before her death.

[megasept]

@DavidWhatsHisName

not exactly, david. actors of all ages do speaking-part commercials to make good money upfront, and then residuals. "it's nice work if you can get it, if you can get it all the time."

[dopestar6666]

godd.

i think its horrible she ended upp doing this in her career after all shes accomplished, especially so near her death,

[amanda0205078]

gee, look at Vivian!!!Hahaha!!!Oh, she was such a doll!!!Thanks for sharing honey!