Linkits Commercial

I’m not sure how it started, but my family got involved in commercials for the briefest of moments. I wish I knew the circumstances that brought this about, but somehow we have two commercials to our name.


This first one just has me in it. I got tapped to play… of all things, an eskimo. I think this was circa 1987, right when Matchbox released a new line of toys called “Linkits.” Sort of like Legos, but different.

You’ll see me wearing a huge fur coat, sitting in front of an igloo playing with the toys. If you’re quick, you’ll see that just to my right (in the background), this dog pops his head up for just a split second. This commercial was filmed in a warehouse near Glendale Mall, and it was the middle of summer. Totally uncomfortable.

I’m also in the group shot, where everyone’s lined up in all their Benneton glory, arms entertwined and singing (on the far left, way in the back).

After this commercial was shot, I kept my eye out for Linkits… hoping they’d become this huge craze and somehow I’d get called back to do another commercial. Sadly, almost noone I’ve talked to has heard of Linkits.

Weird and random trivia: in the large group shot with everyone swaying/singing, the girl in the front row in the red outfit is Ingie Bruggeman. Several years later, when I was in high school, I would eventually date her older sister, Dzintra. Somehow, we discovered that both of us took part in this very bizarre (and seemingly obscure) commercial. Weird!

Catchy song though, am I right? Partly it’s the awesome synth drums, and partly it’s the tune that sort of buries itself in your brain.

Me and yoooouuuuu oooooooo ooooooo ooooooo ooooooooo.

This Post Has 14 Comments

  1. Felix,I didn’t know how else to get a hold of you because I am in the Linkits commercial you have posted on your site and would like to be able to download/have a copy of it. How can I get a copy of it?Also, coincidentally, I am friends with the Brugman family and Ingi is married, pregnant and living in Chicago, as am I.Small world.later,marty

    Marty Daiga Reply


  2. Felix,I am also in the Linkits commercial you have posted. Thanks for posting it. I haven’t seen it in many, many years.Heath

    Heath Boral Reply


  3. This. Was. Awesome.I. Can’t. Stop. Reading. Your. Blog.I was supposed to be doing laundry. Ha. Fat chance, now.

    Lesley Reply


  4. Awesome! It’s always incredibly flattering when folks tell me they get sucked in to the blog.Since I just created this section recently, I figure I’ll hustle it a bit: if you haven’t yet, check out the Ten Best Days, a list of my favorite ten days for each year, from 2002 – 2008. There should be some fun stuff in there.And if it’s any consolation, I was supposed to be doing laundry tonight as well.

    avoision Reply


  5. I swear one of the kids is a young Ralphie (of A Christmas Story fame). If it were filmed in the 80’s and he were getting acting gigs, it’s actually possible.

    Kent Bell Reply


  6. I love to see this post, everytime someone adds a comment. Thanks for reminding me about this awesome commercial, Kent!I looked, and saw that A Christmas Story was filmed in 1983. So I’m doubting that Peter Billingsley (the actor who played Ralphie) was with us in a hot, Indianapolis warehouse… four years after starring in a movie.But yeah, I totally see the resemblance (the kid standing in front of the brick wall). Now I’m wishing I had done a commercial for Red Rider BB Guns instead…

    avoision Reply


  7. :) Super! Have never seen this before or at least i can not remember it, my dad is the co-inventor of linkits. Thanks for sharing.

    Anonymous Reply


    • Check out http://www.slideshare.net/EricParein/linkits.

      The Australian huge success, smartly commercially employing the undersigned sole inventor (slide 10), led to the downfall. Matchbox couldn’t deliver promised samples elsewhere and all abandoned Linkits. Matchbox London went on promoting ‘the Missing Link’, which failed miserably. Eric Parein – eric@erics.be

      Eric Parein Reply


      • I know these are your slides, but are these your photographs? Are you the inventor of Linkits, Eric? The image on slide 10 looks very similar to your avatar.

        avoision Reply


  8. My mother learned about the commercial auditions through another JACL (Japanese American Citizens League) member. Apparently Dean Crow Productions was lookin’ for kids with different ethnic backgrounds, and my biracial mix got me in. I remember having to sing “We Are The World” over and over. My brother didn’t make the cut, and I still give him a hard time for failing to become a TV star. Thanks for posting that.

    Mark Wickersham Reply


  9. There are good Linkits, there are bad Linkits! I remember seeing some sort of promotional comic for them in some junk shop, but didn’t give it much thought. If I had seen this beforehand, I would have bought it on the spot!

    Edgar the Stache Reply


  10. Felix! Can we get that Linkits commercial working? I saw this post in the footer and wanted to relive that masterpiece, but doesn’t look like the pop-up is hooked up correctly. Maybe it’s time to offload this onto Youtube!

    Chris Reply


  11. I am the one in the blue shirt behind the guy in the African attire and I was talking to my children about the commercials that I did and just, by chance I typed it in YouTube and was able to share that with my children. My youngest boy looks just like that now!

    John Cavanaugh Reply


    • That is awesome! I’m so glad you found this site, and got a chance to watch the commercial again!

      avoision Reply


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