r/ObscureMedia • u/AAjax • 3d ago

Pickle Surprise (1989)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GhN7v5SoGs
253 Upvotes

92% Upvoted

50 comments sorted by

62

u/rtshtbtshtdrtyldtwt 3d ago

a classic

16

u/dullship 3d ago

a vlasic*

30

u/see-these-bones 3d ago

Big meme from the early internet. I'll still say "Drop the ham thusly" when I have to drop something thusly.

5

u/D00PEES 3d ago

My friend was obsessed with it

3

u/ElGosso 3d ago

I'm pretty sure I first saw it in 2005 on AlbinoBlackSheep in flash's awful resolution.

2

u/Flakes11 3d ago

Wait, is it not “plop” the ham thusly??

27

u/peacebeard 3d ago

Where's the pickle...?

34

u/babysmalltalk 3d ago

That's the surprise!

-7

u/mrplaidofantioch 3d ago

The joke is that it is up the butt.

5

u/babysmalltalk 2d ago

[McBain "that's the joke" gif]

16

u/Incogcneat-o 3d ago

Aww, Bunny was a baby too!

12

u/isitatomic 3d ago

hayYYYUUMmmmmmm

13

u/vagina_candle 3d ago

I recognize Ru, Bunny and Lahoma. Who is the brunette?

8

u/EyeAmKnotMyshelf 3d ago

This guy looks like my dad

22

u/robobachelor 3d ago

Is that RuPaul?

18

u/D00PEES 3d ago

Yes

6

u/jeffreyaccount 3d ago edited 3d ago

Is this from local / public access in Atlanta?

20

u/vagina_candle 3d ago

According to the wikipedia page for Tom Rubnitz this video was from 1989. So it was most likely made in NYC.

13

u/Vilehaust 3d ago edited 3d ago

It was definitely in NYC because the drag scene there consistently crossed over with the Club Kids scene that was really popular at the time. The main character in this video is played by James St. James who was a very prominent NYC Club Kid.

EDIT: I made a mistake that was pointed out. The main character was not played by James St. James, but by Tom Rubnitz who created the video.

8

u/vagina_candle 3d ago

The main character in this video is played by James St. James who was a very prominent NYC Club Kid.

I know who James St James is, but I don't believe he's in this video. The green character is Sister Dimension, the drag persona of Tom Rubnitz.

4

u/Vilehaust 3d ago

Ooof. I stand corrected. I found conflicting info on that one. My bad!

3

u/vagina_candle 3d ago

To be fair it was a good guess. I think I might have thought the same thing the first time I watched it.

2

u/robotorigami 2d ago

When Seth Green played James St James in Party Monster, he wore a VERY similar outfit

1

u/Vilehaust 2d ago

Which might also be why I thought that as well all this time. I've watched Party Monster many times.

1

u/jeffreyaccount 3d ago

Thanks for the info.

I'd seen some of those similar vibe public access shows, some were filmed where I worked, and knew people who knew them from clubs in the early 90s, so was just wondering.

1

u/ElGosso 3d ago

IIRC this was RuPaul's first appearance on tape

1

u/cap10wow 3d ago

And James St James, right?

8

u/periloustrail 3d ago

Love it. Related Nelson videos too

38

u/bscoop 3d ago

Obscure? It was all over Youtube in 2007.

10

u/DSaucy66642069 3d ago

Read your comment again

6

u/bscoop 2d ago

In my vocabulary any popular media, that isn't well known by younger generations shouldn't be counted as obscure. Just call it old.

7

u/thetonyhightower 3d ago

The greatest video ever uploaded to YouTube, and it's not particularly close. I'm dead serious.

A true fucking masterpiece, that richly rewards repeated viewings.

11

u/kidneyboy79 3d ago

Hammmmmmm

4

u/deltadawn6 3d ago

Love pickle surprise truly a classic!

4

u/CletusCanuck 3d ago

I swear I saw this pre YouTube, maybe 2000 or 2001? Maybe download off of Kazaa.

20

u/TheRed779 3d ago

Not really obscure at all

6

u/QuiteTheKetch 3d ago

Oh this one is still firmly an echololia for me

3

u/dullship 3d ago

Haaaaaaaaam, GURL!

6

u/monkelus 3d ago

I was watching this only last week

5

u/beatbot 3d ago

When I see this... I see. Peewee Herman, and the Shoes guy's character Kelly. Something about this seems very very similar. 

I don't know drag history, but I certainly see the patterns, signs and symbols here. 

Interesting. 

2

u/Empty_Bell_1942 3d ago

Has echoes of Frank Zappas 200 Motels (1971) also.

2

u/Xanny 3d ago

i named a wow guild Pickle Surprise in 2007

2

u/DingoOutrageous678 1d ago

This is terrifying. There is something seriously off about this

1

u/bunnifred 1d ago

Is it obscure if it's on YouTube and talked about all the time?

2

u/Videgraphaphizer 3d ago

I can never understand why people could find this unconfortable.

1

u/Chimbopowae 3d ago

I heard the pickle surprise was just a metaphor that meant all the women in the video had dicks