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Larry the Lobster - On an
April 10, 1982 installment of SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, the
Not-Ready-for-Prime-Time Players threatened to boil a real
lobster named "Larry the Lobster" live on-the-air.
 
As the skit began, comedian Eddie Murphy informed the audience:
[speaks fast] "You want to save Larry the Lobster dial
1-900-720-1808. [speaks slowly]. If you want to kill him dial
1-900-720-1809. Now unless you call in to save him, we're going
to boil Larry's little butt right here on national television.
Now you call in. The phone company is going to charge you fifty
cents, but isn't it worth fifth cents to save Larry's life? Or
look at it this way: Isn't it worth half a buck to see us boil
Larry on TV?"
Nearly 500,000 viewers dialed into the program. The final tally?
KILL LARRY: 227, 452; SAVE LARRY: 239,096.
TRIVIA NOTE: On the March 2002 installment of the ROSIE
O'DONNELL show Rosie had a firefighter from Rhode Island
preparing some firehouse recipes during a cooking segment. One
of the ingredients was a lobster. Rosie pointed to three live
lobsters with their claws tied and told the audience she didn't
want to anger PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals)
by dropping them into the boiling pot live on the air. She then
jokingly offered the lobsters a drink from an opened can of
Budweiser beer and inferred she'd release them into the Long
Island Sound after the show. Ironically, there were already
three dead lobsters brewing in another pot.
In 2005, a web site called "SaveToby.com posted a
message threatening to kill a bunny rabbit named Toby and eat
him for dinner if people did not send donations. Here is a
snippet of the sites message:
"Toby is the cutest little bunny on the planet. Unfortunately,
he will DIE on June 30th, 2005 if you don't help....I don’t want
to eat Toby, he is my friend, and he has always been the most
loving, adorable pet. However, God as my witness, I will devour
this little guy unless I receive 50,000$ USD into my account
from donations or purchase of merchandise. You can help this
poor, helpless bunny’s cause by making donations through my
verified PayPal account by clicking on any of the Donate buttons
on this site, or by purchasing merchandise at the Savetoby.com
online store."
The hoaxster at this site uses the same tactic as seen on other
sites like www.savefluffy.com, and the Save Bernd! plea at
www.krohm.net/bernd.htm. However, be forewarned. Besides
generating sympathy for the plight of these alleged animal
victims, the webmasters are racking up lots of money (from
pop-up ad revenues) each time you access their site.
TRIVIA NOTE: On the Nickelodeon
cartoon series SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS there is a character named
Larry the Lobster. He is a bodybuilder and lifeguard at Bikini Bottom's
popular beach, Goo Lagoon. He is voiced by Doug Lawrence.
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