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Gosselin Divorce Doesn’t Hurt Crooked House
I can’t help wondering what kind of person watched Monday night’s episode of Jon & Kate Plus 8 and said, “ooh, they’re getting divorced . . . oh well, gotta get me one of those houses.”
A LOT, apparently. At one point on Tuesday when I entered “kids” into Google, “kids crooked houses” popped up automatically in my list of choices (I should have gotten a screenshot – oh well). And according to one online store that stocks the playhouses given to the Gosselin eight on Monday night, record visits were recorded Tuesday for inquiries into how people can get their own “crooked houses.”
According to a CSN Stores press release, “Usually, only a handful of people are checking out the Crooked Houses on any given day. But since late last night, we’ve logged a whopping 7,000 visits (and counting). People are still flocking to our sites to check out these unique play structures.”
I’ve actually shopped at CSN, so I’m not knocking them here. But with prices sitting around $2,499, is it any wonder they get only a handful of requests? Ouch!
The folks at Crooked definitely got their money’s worth – because if you were watching, you might have noticed Kate Gosselin say they were “bequeathed” to her kids. As in, the Gosselins didn’t pay for these in a literal sense. They had their kids wear “Crooked” tee-shirts throughout the episodes in true product placement mode, and there was of course the on-site filming. They even threw in a marital spat about the houses gratis!
I’m also not knocking the houses themselves – they’re adorable (albeit very, very pricey . . . I bet my little bro could knock something together that looked equally crooked . . . just sayin’). But come on, people, this was a show about the death of a marriage . . . and two idiots, er, famewhores, er . . . you know, people, who are willing to let their entire divorce play out on national TV for their eight kids to purchase on DVD in ten years.
And you were checking out the houses? “Fans” are turning away from TLC in droves, but Crooked Houses hasn’t been deemed “guilty by association.” If anything, their gamble paid off – the spot was ratings gold, even if it had nothing to do with their product (just check out this video I found on YouTube that expected people WOULD cash in):
If you haven’t turned away from them, you can cash in on the hoopla with a discount at CSN right now (enter CROOKED at checkout for $100 off). Or did the association bother you?
Image: CSN
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7 Comments
[...] staying tuned to the Jon and Kate Plus 8 saga all week, I needed a serious break from depressing television. So I turned to an old favorite – [...]
Win a Parenting Guilty Pleasure: Reba on DVD | Droolicious commented on Jun 25 09 at 1:30 amShannon LC Cate commented on Jun 24 09 at 1:54 pmIt’s kind of amusing–one could view the whole “crooked house” thing as something of a metaphor for chez Gosslein.
But I’m not actually all that amused by any of it.
bert commented on Jun 24 09 at 2:09 pmi do like the look of that crooked house
ernie commented on Jun 24 09 at 3:46 pmI googled the crooked houses. I don’t care about Jon and Kate or what they do, but I decided to watch to see the BIG announcement. I thought the houses were cool and tried to check them out-but the site was too busy. What kind of person does this make me? The kind who thinks interesting children’s toys are more interesting than Jon and Kate.
Rose commented on Jun 27 09 at 12:05 amI gotta say, I looked them up, but not out of “Oooh! I want one!”
I really wanted to see how much they cost. I’m irked that the Gosselins get so much free stuff. >:l
sdf commented on Jul 01 09 at 12:19 pmchrist, what do you give a kid that warps their perception of the dollar further
lawrence commented on Jan 10 11 at 5:38 amHave found your web page. My pal mentioned it to me before, yet never got around to checking it out until now. I must express, I’t floored. I really enjoyed reading through your posts and will absolutely be back to get more.
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