Post by Automaton on Apr 30, 2022 16:04:16 GMT
Last night, the following post appeared on r/tipofmytongue:
I'd definitely read that "test button" quote before, so I did a sub-specific search and found two other posts describing the same thing.
And:
I did a wider search for the quote and found a reference in an r/pics comment section. On Twitter, numerous users have quoted the same ad... many of whom have connections to the Kansas City area. It seems like the line about the test button is followed up with "so I could get hurt?" or some variation on that.
I asked the OP of the latest post about where they were located when the ad aired and, you guessed it... Kansas City.
I think the most obvious contender for who made this would have to be a local utilities company, perhaps Kansas City Power & Light (now known as Evergy, but would have been using the former name when this PSA was airing). It turns out that KCP&L have a separate lost PSA already, one from the early 80s which has been the subject of a very lengthy search to no avail. This other PSA, about the dangers of climbing trees near power lines, is the subject of a very detailed and informative article in the Flatland magazine.
It seems like the "test button" PSA doesn't quite have the same level of notoriety, but it's definitely left a mark on Kansas City culture. Hell, it may not even be lost, but it's certainly not easy to come by.
These commercials aired in America and had a guy that would teach kids about electric safety. I remember he would try to do something with a socket and someone would say "that's a test button. And test buttons don't always work" there were a couple scenes where he would be in a bathtub. It was a middle aged black man who was the main actor in all of them. Pretty sure the ads were on kids networks such as PBS. Cannot find these commercials anywhere!
I remember this video where a guy in a bathtub with a spider-man toy has a radio positioned on the lip of the tub. He goes to turn the radio on and a man comes into the bathroom and stops him, telling him it's dangerous. The guy in the bathtub's name is "Eddie" and then they talk about whether or not a "test button" on the radio actually makes it safer (it doesn't). The commercial ends with them saying to never plug in electronics near water.
I CAN'T FIND THIS VIDEO ANYWHERE! I remember it was on all the time on either Cartoon Network or Nickelodeon all the time during the late 90's or early 00's, but for all I know it could be older than that. I feel like I'm doing crazy because I can't find it. Does anyone have a link?
I CAN'T FIND THIS VIDEO ANYWHERE! I remember it was on all the time on either Cartoon Network or Nickelodeon all the time during the late 90's or early 00's, but for all I know it could be older than that. I feel like I'm doing crazy because I can't find it. Does anyone have a link?
There was an old commercial in the early to late 2000s that aired in the Kansas City metro area. It was an educational video about water and electricity safety. it involved a man sitting in a tub playing with a spider man action figure and then wanting to plug in some "tunes" then another man walks in and tells him not to then goes through the lesson on electricity and water. i remember specific lines like "that's a test button, and test buttons don't always work" "oh so i could get hurt" "kids water and electricity don't mix" they might have even made a second one with the same actors.
I asked the OP of the latest post about where they were located when the ad aired and, you guessed it... Kansas City.
I think the most obvious contender for who made this would have to be a local utilities company, perhaps Kansas City Power & Light (now known as Evergy, but would have been using the former name when this PSA was airing). It turns out that KCP&L have a separate lost PSA already, one from the early 80s which has been the subject of a very lengthy search to no avail. This other PSA, about the dangers of climbing trees near power lines, is the subject of a very detailed and informative article in the Flatland magazine.
It seems like the "test button" PSA doesn't quite have the same level of notoriety, but it's definitely left a mark on Kansas City culture. Hell, it may not even be lost, but it's certainly not easy to come by.
