10 Commercials That Changed Pop Culture Forever

3. Partnership For A Drug-Free America - "Snake The Dealer"

Anti-drug PSAs have been with us since the advent of illegal drugs themselves, but they've declined in quality in recent decades. Anti-alcohol and anti-drug groups, fearful of permanently damaging innocent young psyches, have been scaling back on the shock value of their ad campaigns, opting instead for syrupy-sweet commercials about teen models telling kids that it's not right to do drugs, backed up by the latest Top 40 hits. While I support the message that these commercials convey, I'm certain that we'll find that such advertisements don't convince kids of the evils of drugs nearly as effectively as the Partnership's commercials of the 1980s, commercials that weren't afraid to directly confront kids with the deadly consequences of using drugs, to boldly challenge parents to quit their drug habits before they passed them on to their kids, and warning kids not to fraternize with drug dealers, as they do in this classic ad. The commercial opens on a pusher closing a deal. He turns around and starts telling us viewers about the wonders of getting involved with a dealer like him, wonders like stealing from parents and friends, getting addicted to drugs, and becoming reliant on him and the substances he peddles. As he walks and talks, we can see him start to change; his hair disappears and his head gets rounder and rougher until, finally, he emerges from behind a lamppost having turned into a very realistic-looking snake-man. He asks the viewer if he looks like the type of guy that would ruin your life to make a few (hundred or thousand) bucks. Before we can think about our answer, he answers his own question with a resounding "Ye-s-s-s-s-s-s!" This advertisement has warped everybody who has ever watched it; read the comments on this video and you'll find one testimonial after another from YouTube users stating how this commercial provided them with years of nightmares. Indeed, the commercial packed a punch then, as it does even now; see if you can watch it without feeling a chill run down your spine.