Great Idea

 Saturday morning and all that is on the television is infomercials. I do find that amusing at times. Such excitement, such enthusiasm, and miracle products. I am reminded of the two companies, no longer in existence, that were the pioneers. Ronco and K-Tel. Who else remembers? Oh, the amazing array of products they offered. Who could forget the Pocket Fisherman? An entire rod and reel that simply fit right in your coat pocket, ready to cast, ready to fish in an instant! And of course, there was the Slice-O-Matic! I was always a big fan of anything that was an O-Matic. You could buy a smokeless ashtray or the bedazzler, to set those rhinestones. You could get a machine that scrambled an egg while it was still in the shell! Magic rocks were a big thing too. Ah, so many products. 

 But wait, that's not all. That catch line was added a bit later on I think, I don't remember K-Tel or Ronco using it. As seen on TV perhaps, I'm not certain about that. Billy Mays was possibly the best at hawking these gadgets. The spin mob, sham wow and other products. Flex tape, flex seal and oxi-clean. Remember when he put a screen door in the bottom of a boat? The classic commercials are the best! Today I see them in half hour or more infomercials. A little too long for me. I suppose there are those that watch those shows as a matter of course, I only watch when there is nothing else on or I want to kill five minutes waiting for another show. 

 I confess to still checking the As seen on TV section whenever I'm in Walgreens. I noticed Dollar General also has a section devoted to those products. I have even purchased a few. The blanket with sleeves in it wasn't a bad idea, the grandkids thought they were cool. Veg-O-Matic was a featured item for a long time. Today I see a lot of products centered around cell phones and accessories for that. Mount the phone in car anywhere with this product. It's mount-o-matic! Love the matic. A garden hose that magically shrink in size for easy storage, a food dehydrator and a vacuum sealer that promises to save you hundreds of dollars. All items hard to pass up. It was sad to see the downfall of Ronco and K-Tel but a relief to see others picking up the torch. I'm always anxiously awaiting the next O-Matic product. Who doesn't love something that's automatic? We have cars that shift gears automatically, lights that turn on, thermostats that automatically adjust the atmosphere for our maximum comfort, we have chop-o-matic, veg-o-matic and pop-o-matic toasters! Life is so much easier. Much of that we should thank those pioneers for, K-Tel and Ronco I salute you. R.I.P. Billy Mays your work was done. you blazed the path. I'm certain there is a light on your grave that comes on automatically. It's the eternal light-O-matic that ensures the "light is always on" and that's a brilliant idea.