We received 168 entries correctly identifying the Fake Ad for Tillerman’s Tea on page 71 of the October Observer, with the name of the previous month’s winner, “Jennings,” hidden in one of the varieties of tea.
Many Fake Adders, including the Fake Ad Czar’s very own cousin-in-law, commented on the ad’s not-so-subtle references to Cat Stevens. “The very first ‘music video’ I saw was for a song called ‘banapple gas’ by Cat Stevens,” Rick Mintz wrote. “It was really weird, but the memory stuck with me all these years and that’s the first thing I think of when I see Tillerman’s Tea.”
The Urban Dictionary defines “banapple gas” as “an illegal substance that contains traces of LSD given a fruity flavour. It was first discovered in 1968 and popularised (sic) by the famous singer, Cat Stevens (now known as Yusuf Islam), in his song ‘Banapple Gas.’ It is classified as a class-A drug.” Ah, the seventies were a different time. (Incidentally, the street address for Tillerman’s Tea, 1223, corresponds to December 23–the date, in 1977, of Stevens’ official conversion to Islam.)
Our favorite pun in the email bag came from Margaret Hannon, who wrote, “This month’s Fake Ad is for Tillerman’s tea. (It didn’t take ‘oolong’ to find it. Ha ha.)”
David Karl won our drawing. He is taking his gift certificate to Zingerman’s.
To enter this month’s contest, find the fake ad in the November issue, identify it by name and page number, and follow the instructions in the box at the bottom of the Back Page. The fake ad always contains the name of last month’s winner in some form.
