In American films

[andsome]

A few questions addressed to our American friends.

1/ In American films I have never seen an electric kettle in use. In every kitchen scene that I have seen, a whistling kettle on a gas hob is ALWAYS used. This happens in even the most expensive luxurious kitchen. Do most Americans use whistling kettles?

2/ In American films, I have NEVER seen anyone lock a car door. People just get out of the car, slam the door and walk away. When they return they just reopen the door and get in, showing that it was not locked. Does America have car thieves?

3/ Again, in American films, EVERY time a car moves off, the tyres squeal. Do all American cars have squealy tyres fitted as standard?

4/ Yet again, in American films, 90% of office scenes take place in advertising agencies. Do 90 % of Americans work in advertising?

5/ In American films whenever the main character arrives at his advertising agency, everyone else has obviously been at work for ages, and his or her secretary immediately says good morning, and reels off a list of half a dozen people who need contacting by telephone. Does the office head always arrive several hours after everyone else?

6/ In American films, whenever anyone is poured a coffee, it is always black and unsweetened, and is drunk immediately. Do all Americans drink luke warm, black, unsweetened coffee?

7/ In American cowboy films, the baddies ALWAYS wear black hats, and the goodies wear White hats. Why is this?

8/ In American films, whenever a casualty arrives at hospital, there are always at least ten people waiting with a trolley, to rush the casualty at breakneck speed down endless corridors. Is the American health service really this efficient?

9/ What is the reason for steam constantly erupting from the manhole covers in American films?

10/ In American films, whenever anyone has a bath or shower, the whole bathroom is rapidly enveloped in voluminous clouds of steam. Does this mean that Americans bath or shower in BOILING water, or are American bathrooms at near freezing point.

There are doubtless many other things which puzzle British and others viewing American films.

[CurlyWhirly]

Some of those questions have often got me wondering as well, even though I am not a film buff.

I wonder if you will get any replies andsome?

I hope so as it should be interesting :rolleyes:

[andsome]

I have just edited the post and added number 10. I too am VERY interested in obtaining answers to all these conundrums.

[CurlyWhirly]

Just out of curiosity did you make the list up yourself?

If so it is very good, as even after reading them I realise these thoughts have often crossed my mind when watching films, to be able to actually put pen to paper (or in this case fingertip to keyboard) must have been difficult :huh:

[deuces wild]

Some of those questions have often got me wondering as well, even though I am not a film buff.

I wonder if you will get any replies andsome?

I hope so as it should be interesting  :rolleyes:

1. Tea kettles are generally whistlers. We know they annoy the Brits, so we use them exclusively. :rolleyes:

2. One can silently lock the door by locking the door on the inside before closing the door. But we never do as our streets are paved with gold and everyone is honest here. :flowers:

3. We like fast cars. We all zoom around squeeling our tires, especially when we see a Brit in a derby hat holding an umbrella and smoking a pipe standing on the corner. :D

4. Actually closer to 95%. The advertising firms are needed to advertise the advertising firms, and so on and so on. The advertising business is booming here. B)

5. Always. Managers get to that level by coming in late to work on a reglular basis. The later one arrives, the better the chance for promotion.

6. If the coffee is consumed immediately, it would not be lukewarm as you claim but hot. Anyway, we all drink black unsweetened very hot coffee as mandated by the government. Only underground movies will show someone adding cream and sugar to coffee as it a federal crime to do so. :ninja:

7. Good guys always wear white hats and bad guys black hats here. That makes them easy to identify. Not true in the UK? :blink:

8. Our hospitals are very well staffed. They are also the cleanest. We usually have 15 highly paid doctors and nurses at each door just waiting for an emergency. When not attending to emergencies the doctors clean the hospitals windows or paint the building. The nurses attend to the landscaping and floor scrubbing.

9. During the winter steam is sent through them to keep things down there from freezing. But in all honesty we do this to make the Brits think we have monsters living down there. :shocking:

10. Our water here is very hot naturally. We all have large vats constantly filled with ice cubes in our basements and the water pipes pass through the vats to cool down the water. Do you have to actually heat your water? :unsure:

But in general the answer is: Cartoons are not real, neither are most movies. We put most of these things in our movies to upset you Brits and keep you wondering.

:bangin:

[andsome]

Like it. Now how about a serious answer, we really do wonder about these things.

[andsome]

Some of those questions have often got me wondering as well, even though I am not a film buff.

I wonder if you will get any replies andsome?

I hope so as it should be interesting  :rolleyes:

Yes I did make up the list, they are things which have always puzzled me.

[deuces wild]

Like it.  Now how about a serious answer, we really do wonder about these things.

I did when it warranted a valid answer.

The other things do not exist on a regular basis as you claim. Some are special effects and have nothing to do with real life here in the States.

Perhaps we make special UK film cuts to include these things just for you folks. :D

edit: Some links for you andsome:

http://www.sptddog.com/sotp/pre.html

http://ask.yahoo.com/ask/20041130.html

The other stuff is just for special effects or to dramatize a scene.

[andsome]

Thanks for the links. Very interesting, especially about the steam from manhole covers.

[catgate]

I know you addressed this to "our American friends, andsome, but it took my interested when I saw it earlier in the day. Consequently I have been doing some research. Here is the result:-

1/ In American films I have never seen an electric kettle in use. In every kitchen scene that I have seen, a whistling kettle on a gas hob is ALWAYS used. This happens in even the most expensive luxurious kitchen. Do most Americans use whistling kettles?

ANSWER Whistling kettles are always used in America because most people have the attention span of a gnat and this is the only way to ensure that the country does not become awash with burned out kettles.

2/ In American films, I have NEVER seen anyone lock a car door. People just get out of the car, slam the door and walk away. When they return they just reopen the door and get in, showing that it was not locked. Does America have car thieves?

ANSWER American cars are so liable to a "recall" due to build quality that no one wants to steal one..hence no one locks them. It has been rumoured that Ford are going to take advantage of this and stop fitting locks entirely.

3/ Again, in American films, EVERY time a car moves off, the tyres squeal. Do all American cars have squealy tyres fitted as standard?

ANSWER Although it sound like tyre squeal it is, in fact, the driver breaking wind "squeakingly", as his/her fat gut is compressed by the forward motion of the vehicle.

4/ Yet again, in American films, 90% of office scenes take place in advertising agencies. Do 90 % of Americans work in advertising?

ANSWER It is only by keeping alive the mythical "American Dream" that the administration can keep everyone under hypnosis. Consequently 90% of the population is kept busy promoting, at each other, anything and everything that will achieve this aim. (the other 10% live on reservations)

5/ In American films whenever the main character arrives at his advertising agency, everyone else has obviously been at work for ages, and his or her secretary immediately says good morning, and reels off a list of half a dozen people who need contacting by telephone. Does the office head always arrive several hours after everyone else?

ANSWER It looks this way, but in fact the head of the office arrives at the correct time and insists that everyone else get there early.

6/ In American films, whenever anyone is poured a coffee, it is always black and unsweetened, and is drunk immediately. Do all Americans drink luke warm, black, unsweetened coffee?

ANSWER This is and old a tired ploy, within the film industry, that was used to play down the colour (sorry color) problem, and it has just stuck.

7/ In American cowboy films, the baddies ALWAYS wear black hats, and the goodies wear White hats. Why is this?

ANSWER This is like the problem of "why does a woman strike a match away from herself and a man strikes it towards himself?" The answer is "To light it." Similarly the goody wears a white hat and the baddy wears a black hat..to keep his head warm.

8/ In American films, whenever a casualty arrives at hospital, there are always at least ten people waiting with a trolley, to rush the casualty at breakneck speed down endless corridors. Is the American health service really this efficient?

ANSWER This is part of the advertising industries American Dream strategy.

9/ What is the reason for steam constantly erupting from the manhole covers in American films?

ANSWERE In all American town they have book repositories on the top floor of high buildings (mainly for snipers). Now obviously they need to keep their steam somewhere and so they have underground steam repositories. This is, of course, for the convenience of the wagon delivering the steam. It just quickly tips it down a hole in the road and moves off, thus not obstructing the road ..as would a motorcade or lemonade.

10/ In American films, whenever anyone has a bath or shower, the whole bathroom is rapidly enveloped in voluminous clouds of steam. Does this mean that Americans bath or shower in BOILING water, or are American bathrooms at near freezing point.

ANSWER This is related to car doors. Everyone has got so used to not locking doors that the steam is used as a modesty device should anyone else inadvertently come into the room. It is a concious choise between third degree burns and a peeping tom, but the hospital service is portrayed as so efficiant and pleasant that should ones inherently thick skin not prevent serious injury, the resultant necessary hospitalisation will be a pleasure.

[andsome]

BRILLIANT

[joysness]

I found deuces answers very interesting...

Here are mine from a female perspective :D

1. I use an electric kettle

2. I always lock my car, even when parked in my locked garage.

3. I rarely ever squeal my tires, however, I have noticed they do that when the tire pressure is low and I go around a curve or corner a bit too fast.

4. Sure seems that way.

5. All of my bosses did.

6. I don't drink much coffee but when I do I like it hot with cream and a little sugar.

7. So we can tell them apart.

8. Depends on where you live, in larger cities this is true for the most part. In smaller places not so many people but the system tends to be very efficient.

9. I'm not sure but I know it happens in winter when the air outside is colder than the air in the sewer systems.

10. My bathroom always steams up, again because the air in the room is colder than the air contained within the shower. (I personally take quick showers to save water, most of the time anyway.) And, yes, from September to July my bathroom always feels like it's freezing, at least to me. But then I always feel cold unless it's above 85 degrees (F).

These answers are as honest as I can be. :flowers:

(edit spelling) :rolleyes:

[dadyassa]

Nice one catgate :thumbup: :clapping:

[dadyassa]

When i lived in the nice part of North America in the early 70`s, we had a gas kettle funny enough but i dont know why :unsure: .

I also had A V8 Pontiac Parisienne and you could make the tyres squeel at any speed, 50 mph speed limit though ;) , But that was when petrol was really cheap, you could fill up the tank for a few dollars.

Never locked it cos it was the cheapest car around ;)

Black and white hats for black and white tv, imagine the fuss for the yanks if both wore each colour ;)

[Gandalph]

Nice one Catgate. :muha: :loldbz_2:

[andsome]

This is getting interesting

[andsome]

Since starting this thread, I have still not seen an electric kettle in American films, even in what is obviouly a very wealthy home.

One more question comes to mind about American films. Why is it that whenever a tramp/hobo/down and out or what ever you call he/she, has a drink from a bottle, tha bottle is ALWAYS without fail, wrapped up in a brown paper bag?

[Thos]

I am grateful for your last posting on this thread because it bumped it up and I would never have seen the thread otherwise. It was great to read your list of queries and deuces, catgate and joys hilarious answers.

But the answer to the "brown-bagging" is straightforward. Boozing in the street is illegal, hence the hiding of the booze bottle in a brown bag.

Thos. :D

[andsome]

I am grateful for your last posting on this thread because it bumped it up and I would never have seen the thread otherwise. It was great to read your list of queries and deuces, catgate and joys hilarious answers.

But the answer to the "brown-bagging" is straightforward. Boozing in the street is illegal, hence the hiding of the booze bottle in a brown bag.

Thos. :D

But it still looks exactly like a bottle of booze. Am I to understand that American police are so dumb, that if they see a hobo holding a bottle shaped paper bag to his lips, they think it's a paper bag full of lemonade?

[Thos]

I am grateful for your last posting on this thread because it bumped it up and I would never have seen the thread otherwise. It was great to read your list of queries and deuces, catgate and joys hilarious answers.

But the answer to the "brown-bagging" is straightforward. Boozing in the street is illegal, hence the hiding of the booze bottle in a brown bag.

Thos. :D

But it still looks exactly like a bottle of booze. Am I to understand that American police are so dumb, that if they see a hobo holding a bottle shaped paper bag to his lips, they think it's a paper bag full of lemonade?

Yes.

Thos. :D

[andsome]

I am grateful for your last posting on this thread because it bumped it up and I would never have seen the thread otherwise. It was great to read your list of queries and deuces, catgate and joys hilarious answers.

But the answer to the "brown-bagging" is straightforward. Boozing in the street is illegal, hence the hiding of the booze bottle in a brown bag.

Thos. :D

But it still looks exactly like a bottle of booze. Am I to understand that American police are so dumb, that if they see a hobo holding a bottle shaped paper bag to his lips, they think it's a paper bag full of lemonade?

Yes.

Thos. :D

Than in that case, heaven help the general public in America.