Got that? [off topic]
#1

Completely off topic but fun nonetheless...

(Be sure to read the explanation below before loading the video.)

Got That?

Several years ago, Rockwell International decided to get into the heavy duty transmission business. They were getting ready to tape a first introduction video, and, as a warm up, the professional narrator began what has become a legend within the trucking industry. This man should have won an Emmy for his stellar performance. Now remember this is strictly off the cuff, nothing is written down. It became the biggest talk in the industry, but had nothing to do with the new product which they were introducing.


http://home.comcast.net/~steveham21/turbo.mpg

#2

I don't believe it was off the cuff, given how much similarity there is to the better-known turboencabulator paper.

#3

There are tons of these on YouTube. This one features the same comic, with a longer script. It's not as tight as the one you posted, so I'm guessing it's an earlier offering. But it has some hilarious little throwaways that didn't make the cut, like the mention of the Peruvian Institute of Scatological Science.

This one is still under the Rockwell Logo, but features a different comic. To my taste, he's not as funny as the other guy. The script sounds very similar to the one you posted.

This video features the same actor, looking quite a bit older. He's joined by two other comics. This is hands down the funniest of the videos I watched, though it didn't seem promising up front. There is lots of new material.

Then, we have this video, that comes from Sun Microsystems. It has a new actor (a Sun manager no doubt) who really really sucks. The script has a few minor tweaks, but is essentially the same. The differences that stand out are that the product name has been changed to the "Heisenberg Compensator," and that the shtick is illustrated with Sun hardware video amd animations.

Hard to tell from the video, but this guy may be claiming he came up with the turboencabulator routine. Either that, or the comment up front is part of the gag. Either way, this presentation at a GE retiree luncheon from 2008 is funny to me because it's geekier. It's also a good example of why most engineers shouldn't quit their day jobs for stand up :)

The ending is hilarious. I wonder who makes the light bulb?

(Response referred to below was mine. I rolled it into this posting.)


Edited: 8 Apr 2010, 11:23 a.m. after one or more responses were posted



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