There are commercials, and then there are old Chicago commercials. These are some of the most recognizable commercials, and the accompanying jingles, from the last 30 years in the Chicagoland area. Sorry in advance for getting these stuck in your head for the rest of the day.
Empire
If you don’t know the “588-2300 Empire” jingle at the end of every carpet commercial, are you really a Chicagoan? Probably not.
Feldco
The window company is known for their strange commercials in Chicago that turn milestones in a parody of buying windows. While their latest commercial of a pregnant woman and her husband is funny and a bit awkward, nothing is as cringe-worthy as the commercials they produced in the ’80s and ’90s.
La Preferida
Cubs fans everywhere were probably running to grocery stores to pick up La Preferida’s authentic Mexican fare after seeing their commercial with Harry Caray awkwardly opening a cabinet full of their product.
Webb Hyundai
The Webb family was known across Chicago and northwest Indiana for their unique commercials. How much more memorable can a singing, car-selling family be?
Moo & Oink
The dancing cow and pig in a supermarket selling their own kind is both comical and disturbing at the same time, but the tune will get stuck in your head forever.
Chicago Bears Super Bowl Coke Commercial
While this old commercial wasn’t only for Chicagoans, we can’t help but feel a little pride for the team of ’85 drinking Coke in a diner. Jim McMahon and “Refrigerator” Perry made Coca-Cola “America’s real choice.”
Your Singing Ford Dealer
When you heard this voice, you knew Harry Schmerler was here to sell you a Ford.
Eagleman
A ’90s Chicago classic with unforgettable hair and a creepy talking eagle.
Cub Fan Bud Man
Rounding out the list is another Harry Caray-centered commercial. No good Chicagoan can forget him dancing to “Cub Fan, Bud Man” set to the tune of Soul Man.
United Auto Insurance
Easily one of the most recognizable jingles in Chicagoland, this auto insurance company often gets local radio hosts Eddie and Jobo to have Chicagoans recite the catchy tune.
Luna
C’mon, you all know how this one goes. Seven, seven, three… two, oh, two… (beep-beep-beep-beep) Lunaaaaaaaaaaaa.
Peter Francis Geraci
Whether you remember that uncomfortably blank stare or the sheer monotony of his voice, attorney Peter Francis Geraci is a household name for his trademark Chicago commercial – and not to mention, his unbelievably cringe-worthy Chicago accent.
Glen Lerner
This guy’s a real character. In a wreck? Need a check? You know when you hear that two, two, two, twenty-two, twenty-two in these conspicuously kitschy commercials, injury attorney Glen Lerner is there to save your ass.
What are your favorite jingles and commercials that only Chicagoans know? Let us know if we missed any in the comments.
