Radio Free Europe PSA - 1971

"Information with a beat" ... "The IN sound from OUTSIDE." I remember this one from when I was little - it's one of several reasons the radio bug bit.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• RFE
• Radio
• Free
• Europe
• Ad
• Council
• PSA
• classic
• TV

[33Mark221]

Advertising council's drunk driving spots used to scare the hell out of me. "Janie died...because of a drunk driver." A friend told me about the nightmares he used to have about the spot on seatbelts with the woman who said, "They'll wrinkle my dress!" then after warning blows on a kettledrum, shows her in traction.

I did like the Advertising Council's cool mid-seventies ad that had a drawing of a house, then it filled in with the actual house at the end.

[rwells2265]

The seat belt PSA was called "What's Your Excuse?" and ran in the early '70s -- yeah, those drumrolls were a bit creepy.

I'd forgotten about the drawing of the house and it morphing into the actual photo.  Dunno what that was for, but it was in the same time frame as the "Excuse" PSA.

[33Mark221]

Thanks! I didn't even know it had a title. Just by the force of anecdote alone, now I'm dying to see it. Maybe it'll turn up one of these days!

[rwells2265]

Maybe sooner than you think. :-) I have a good copy of it somewhere ... It'll have to be after the weekend, but when I find the PSA I'll post it.

Now if only I could find that one with the house...

[33Mark221]

Outstanding! Thank you so much!

[rwells2265]

Better late than never -- I've posted the "Excuse" PSA.

Enjoy!

[natedash11]

@thesailormercury1 yeah, they broadcast around the middle east, and parts of europe and asia, they also have a website.

[natedash11]

@rwells2265 i wasn't alive then, but for some reason, i always like it, except for the woman's eyes.

[RetroToledo]

@thesailormercury1 rferl(dot)org

[999manman]

OMIGOSH!!! I saw this when I was a kid and NEVER thought I'd see it again!!!! I remember it so vividly! Thanks so much for posting this!!!! WOW!!!!

[stifrudy]

That was for US Savings Bonds. I remember seeing that psa as a kid in the 70's.

[drgeneva1]

I remember this PSA for Radio Free Europe when I was a kid....

[thesailormercury1]

is Radio Free Europe around?

[bobfritz1466]

I remember this PSA. I would have been five when it came out. I remember mishearing the song and thinking they were singing something about Hong Kong. I was only a few thousand miles off.

[ORELUR]

@swangonce Man, I remember that too. It has haunted me since my childhood (I'm 55) along with some of the other intense PSA's from that era.

[MadameLil]

I googled Mr. Savoya's name on the Net & found nothing except for anything having to do with this commercial. I still wonder whatever happened to him - especially if he's still alive. If so, he must've changed his identity.