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Against the Grain by: Andy Sullivan

It’s Hot Don. Everyone says that phrase these days as summer rolls around. Do you know where the phrase originated? Flash back 25 years ago to Evansville car dealership owner Don Moore. “Typical TV spots are 30 seconds long”, begins Moore. “It was in the Summer of either ’86 or ’87. We had finished a spot that ran 25.5 seconds. Don Aldridge and I were doing post-edit and the spot was (4.5 seconds) too short”. Moore was wearing a Hawaiian shirt. Aldridge said “give me your shirt”. “He was a lot bigger than me, but he put it on and put an orange filter over the lights so it would look like the sun. He looked like he was burning up and miserable. And he said “It’s hot Don!”

“He had me put the shirt back on and say, “You can say that again.” Moore said that nobody remembered anything else about the spot except for the catchphrase. The phrase has become so popular that they had to copyright it. “We had to because some other companies were using it in their radio spots.” For Moore, the phrase is guaranteed free advertisement as long as the hot weather lasts.

In fact, the company’s website is www.itshotdon.com. Well, it was. I typed it in and it takes you to the new site name, www.mooredeals.com. What makes it even funnier is that, since my dad’s name is Don, it’s not uncommon to hear people say “It’s Hot Don” to him! So, if you find yourself saying “It’s Hot, Don”, in everyday conversation, you have Don Moore and Don Aldridge to thank.

Hello, my name is Andy Sullivan. I received my bachelor’s degree in business from Mid-Continent University in May 2009. I began writing for Beech Tree News in July 2009. I enjoy playing guitar, the occasional Wii game, writing, and listening to music. I write a sports blog that can be found at http://www.tumblr.com/blog/sports-news-and-views.  If you have a comment, feel free to leave it in the space below.

Comments

“It’s Hot, Don”..I HAVE HEARD DON/HOT SOME OTHER WORDS USED AND SOME TOWARD ME,BUT ANDY I ASK SOME PEOPLE AND NONE OF THEM EVERY HEARD OF “It’s Hot, Don”..~~~,SORRY CHARLIE,MAYBE NEXT TIME. ANDY IF IT HELPS,FOR YEARS AND MANY OF TIMES IT HAS BEEN HEARD SAID,"THE CUZ YOU KNOW". I NEVER WORRIED ABOUT COPYRIGHT STUFF,MATER EFFECT I KIND OF LIKED EVERYONE SAYING "THE CUZ YOU KNOW"..YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN VERN? BUT ANDY THAT IS JUST ME,COUSIN DON'S SINCE 72. ANDY BY BOY,WAIT A MINUTE. HOW ABOUT"JIM BOB SAYS SHOP AT WADDLES",I STILL HAVE A YARD STICK THAT SAYS "JIM BOB SAYS SHOP AT WADDLES". WHO WAS THAT KID(JIM BOB SAYS)ANY WAY?? IT PROBABLE BEATS "SHOP AT YOUR KIN FOLKS STORE",AUTHOR UNKNOWN? THANKS ANDY,YOU CUZ.
CUZ, Me being from Rochester (during the time frame reported) I heard "It's Hot Don" on the TV all the time. You would have had to watch one of the Evansville stations. For some reason WBKO never reports anything from Owensboro (even today). Being raised out on Hwy 1117 just out of Rochester (on the hill) we were blessed with five TV stations 4,5,13,14,& 25. I didn't know Don Moore had a dealership in Evansville I thought they all were in Owensboro, Mark today as something learned!


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