Friday, March 9, 2012

Whacking the Holly. Or "Cut that Bush! Cut that bush! Cut that Bush!" Or "Is that what the kids are calling it these days?"

I used to hate Peyton Manning.   As a lifelong Patriots fan how could I not?   I used to look forward to seeing him make "The Manning Face" when things went wrong.   Only I don't any more.   First I learned grudging respect for the man when he finally started beating the Pats in the playoffs.  Then I grew bemused and even amused by the proliferation of commercials he appeared in.   That grew into actully looking forward to those commercials.  Say what you will about him, he has a strange and appealing presence in them.    He certainly is much better at it than Tom Brady is.    Brady may be one of the best football players ever (as is Peyton) but he is not much of a pitch man.    I could see Peyton in one of those great old Milller Light commercials with Rosie Greer and Bob Ueker, but not Tom.    Finally I found myself actually liking Peyton.  His teams weren't as much of a threat to the Pats, and he was getting nearer the end of his career, and his commercials were funny.   Today I feel a bit sorry for him because he was released by the Colts and may never be the same quarterback he was becuase of injury.  But whether he plays, and plays well again, I will always remember one particular commercial he made in which he went to various businesses and cheered on the workers there.  Most famously he cheered on a butcher with the phrase "Cut that Meat!  Cut that Meat! Cut that Meat!" Wherever he ends up next year I wish him well (except if he plays against the Pats). 

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