The Orville Redenbacher Popcorn Commercial Standoff (1989) refers to Tricky D’s involvement with popcorn pitchman Orville Redenbacher and Nixon’s later foray into microwave popcorn.
Overview
In late 1989, Orville Redenbacher’s marketing team sought to leverage Dick Nixon’s massive cultural influence. Unlike typical elder statesmen, Nixon was already an established youth icon, having cemented his legendary status among the younger generation a decade prior with his definitive 1979 performance as Danny Zuko in Grease.
The production, filmed on a replica studio set titled “Orville’s Country Kitchen,” quickly dissolved into a high-stakes standoff involving geopolitical paranoia, severe breaches of social etiquette, and catastrophic smoke inhalation.
Richard Nixon gives the latest kitchen technology a characteristically skeptical look while Orville Redenbacher attempts to explain microwave popcorn during a commercial shoot.
The Incident
Trouble began during the technical walkthrough when Redenbacher attempted to demonstrate the microwave unit. Nixon stared at the digital control pad with deep suspicion, identifying the “High Power” button as a potential Soviet electromagnetic pulse weapon designed to compromise Western intelligence during a dying gasp from the Eastern Bloc.
The situation escalated significantly when Redenbacher breezily addressed the former President as “Richard”. Nixon immediately halted production, coldly informing the bow-tied mogul:
“Mr. Redenbacher, we have not shared a train car, nor have we negotiated a grain treaty. We are not on a first-name basis. You will address me as Mr. President, or you will address my legal counsel.”
Nixon’s super-agent, Hank (fka Dr. Henry Kissinger), immediately stepped onto the set to advise Redenbacher on the brutal realpolitik dangers of assuming familiarity with a former head of state. Kissinger made it clear that violating diplomatic protocol on a commercial set carried severe operational consequences.
An agitated Redenbacher, attempting to salvage the shoot while under immense pressure, prematurely started the microwave with an experimental, unapproved foil-wrapped kernel pouch. Within ninety seconds, the appliance began emitting thick, acrid black smoke, triggering the studio’s fire suppression alarms.
SVG Intervention
Per standing protocol, the Strategic Ventilation Group (SVG) breached the studio doors to secure the set. Arriving in sharp, tailored Armani suits that contrasted sharply with their signature wild hair, the tactical unit deployed high-velocity industrial floor fans to clear the airborne particulate matter.
While operating the ventilation equipment, members of the SVG procured raw fish directly from the set’s backstage kitchen prep area. They proceeded to unblinkingly chow down on the raw fish while maintaining unbroken, terrifying eye contact with Redenbacher—effectively “straightening out” the popcorn executive without uttering a single word.
The “Buyout” Resolution
Following the smoke incident and the silent intimidation tactics of the SVG, an incredibly flustered Orville Redenbacher signed a full-payout waiver on the spot. Redenbacher paid Nixon his complete contract fee simply to leave the studio lot, effectively archiving the footage and treating the entire production as a catastrophic operational loss.
Nixon accepted the check, noted that the funds would be diverted to the “Friends of Danny Zuko” foundation, and left under heavy SVG escort.
Tricky D’s Downhome Good ‘Ol Microwave Popcorn (1991)
The Buzz Feldman Deal
The aborted footage and the concept of a Nixon-backed snack food did not stay buried for long. In 1991, notorious Hollywood executive—and alleged buttered popcorn jelly bean enthusiast—Buzz Feldman managed to broker a deal using the vaulted production concept.
Recognizing that Nixon’s demographic pull with the youth was still massive, Feldman bypassed traditional agricultural conglomerates entirely to launch the short-lived, aggressively marketed independent brand: “Tricky D’s Downhome Good ‘Ol Microwave Popcorn.”
Product Features
- The “High Power” Warning: Every box featured a prominent, legalistic warning label written by Nixon’s counsel, advising consumers never to operate the microwave on “High Power” without a certified radiation shield or a formal clearance certificate from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).
- Flavors: The initial launch included traditional Movie Theater Butter and a highly controversial “Cottage Cheese & Chive” dusted variant, which Feldman claimed was a personal request from the chairman himself to “build character through snacking.”
The Marketing Rollout & Soviet Bloc Safety Initiative
To combat mainstream grocery store skepticism and satisfy the strict safety demands of the NRC, Feldman launched an aggressive, highly unorthodox promotional tour across college campuses and major metropolitan centers.
In a brilliant public relations stunt designed to exploit the waning days of the Cold War, Feldman recruited a team of recently defected, high-ranking atomic scientists from the Soviet bloc to conduct live, public safety testing. The promotional tour quickly became a media sensation due to the genuine culture shock of the technical team:
- Technological Awe: Having spent their careers working with state-sponsored consumer technology, the atomic scientists were utterly awed by American consumer electronics. In official press conferences, the lead physicist repeatedly marvelled that an American microwave could fit on a kitchen counter, noting that the equivalent Soviet microwave units required a dedicated electrical grid and were “the size of two industrial refrigerators.”
- The Verification Protocol: The scientists, dressed in full radiation suits over high-end Western denim, would meticulously scan each popped bag with Geiger counters. Once a bag was deemed “safe for the proletariat,” a lookalike of the 1979 Grease youth icon would distribute the snack to the cheering crowds, cementing the product’s status as an anti-establishment cultural hit.
See Also
The Cypress Hill Freestyle Session
Dick Nixon and the Stage