Young Carlton Hawks Breakin' and Poppin' like MJ

Sometimes a TV commercial can be like a time capsule of a whole era.  This commercial is all about the 80's - a lot!  In the ad a young Alfonso Ribeiro (sitcom second banana in "Silver Spoons" & "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air") shows off his dancing skills, and how you too can someday be as cool as Carlton.

Afternoon cartoon time used to be littered with these sorts of ads, and usually they were rip-offs that only succeeded in getting your mom to yell at you.  This ad is for more than just a Ginsu knife, or an inside-the-egg-scrambler - your $19.99 earns you the rare privilege to buy into a whole new lifestyle.  Not only do you get a breakdancing book, but also a poster, two rap LP's, and best of all - a giant sheet of cardboard to perfect your moves.

Conventional wisdom says that it's hard out here for a pimp, but two decades ago becoming a master poplocker only set you back a couple Hamiltons (for our friends in foreign lands, a "Hamilton" is terribly dated lingo for $20 $10).  What urban lifestyle tutorials are out there today?  Perhaps I missed the TV ads for the "Gangsta For Dummies" videos.

Ribiero would later spoof his musical talents on "Fresh Prince" with kooky dancing and decidedly non-soul renditions of non-soul classics like "It's Not Unusual" and "I've got a Gal in Kalamazoo", but he'd occasionally dust off his mad skillz and bust a move for real.  Let's close by going back to where it all started for a young Alfonso - check out his eerie resemblance to Michael Jackson in another classic 80's commercial.

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