Is Friendly’s being overly friendly?

The phrase “happy ending” has been gaining currency for some time as a way to refer to a massage that offers, shall we say, an extra component of release. There’s even a new movie called Happy Endings, which is being advertised with a shot of what looks like a woman’s bare back and a towel covering her butt. (A man’s butt would make more sense, probably, but a woman’s may be better for ticket sales.) So it’s somewhat curious that Friendly’s is still touting its “Happy Ending” sundae, a product that is prompting the expected insinuations about the family restaurant chain’s commitment to customer service. (See the photo here, for example, which is getting more than a few chuckles on the Internet.) To get their side of the story, we called Friendly’s. They told us they weren’t aware of the connotation and had no plans to change the name. And yet a March press release from the company may, in fact, signal some growing distaste for the phrase. Touting a deal for a free Happy Ending sundae with a SuperMelt sandwich, it read: “A free Happy Ending sundae makes these SuperMelts all the more resistible.” Shouldn’t that be irresistible?

—Posted by Todd Wasserman

July 12, 2005 | Permalink