Precariously balanced in a small boat floating inside a toilet water basin, the Ty-D-Bol man (wearing a Captain's hat, blazer and turtleneck) greeted a TV housewife when she lifted the basin lid and proceeded to sell her and the viewing audience on the advantages of his product. This has got to be the worst location for a commercial spokesman to live.

Comedian George Carlin once commented on one of his comedy albums "They're approving some pretty weird things, man. Like the guy in the toilet is pretty strange. Originally, it's a row boat. Then he got a speedboat. Then he was on a raft with two calypso guy musicians and two bushels of lemons [singing] "We put the lemon in the Ty-D-Bol for you."

Actors who portrayed the role of the Ty-D-Bol Man included Fred Miltonberg, Larry Sprinkle and Mark Matheisen.

TRIVIA NOTE: In 1958, Harry O'Hare Sr. developed Ty-D-Bol, a liquid cleanser/disinfectant for the toilet bowl that is still sold today by Sara Lee Corporation. He also helped pioneer the use of chlorinators to clean swimming pools. O'Hare sold Ty-D-Bol Chemical in 1960 for less than $100,000.

In 1988, at the age of 67 O'Hare developed a new product called the Watergizer, an electro-chemical process that cleans and softens a household's water supply far better than other systems on the market. It was developed by HOH Water Technology Corp, a Newbury Park firm organized by O'Hare in 1979.

In 1991, color consultant James Mandle changed the color of Ty-D-Bol's toilet bowl cleanser bottle from light blue and green to stark white letters on a dark background. In an 18 month period following the change of color, sales of Ty-D-Bol jumped 40%. The 1992 "Ty-D-Bol Spring Cleaning Report" asked 1,006 American adults what they would choose if they "had the power to throw out what exists and start all over again." The winner, picked by 49 percent, was the U.S. Congress.

In 1994, Ty-D-Bol Automatic Toilet Bowl Cleaner -the Blue liquid in a Sanitizing Formula - was promoted as being "the only automatic bowl cleaner so powerful, it goes beyond clean to kill 99.9% of toilet bowl germs with every flush. And it's the only automatic you can buy that's registered with the United States E.P.A."

In 2005, the Sara Lee Corporation recruited the talents of Hanson Associates, Inc. to revitalize their iconic Ty-D-Bol Man brand. The  campaign crated a new logo and packing. Their new slogan "Clean You Can See."

According to Stan Stoltzfus, Marketing Director at Sara Lee HBC, “The new brand look and package designs have resulted in increased market share and boosted sales with major value retailers.” See also PROPS - TOILETS: "Toilets"

• Sara Lee Corporation