A group of pale, skinny teenagers lie on the floor of a living room, their hands pressed to their foreheads, pained expressions on their beautiful young faces. As the camera pans slowly over their lanky frames, a halting, dramatic voice-over starts up: ‘Longing … Absence … Desire … I feel this burning sensation …’ The ad is shot in black and white. All of a sudden the voice-over stops and a fat middle-aged guy steps into frame. He’s in colour and he has a tip for the teenagers: ‘Try eating something … That burning sensation? It’s hunger.’ He goes on to suggest they’d all feel less alienated if they hoed into a box of Pete’s Greasy Cheesy Tummy Pleasers.

The commercial, which was aired in the United States early in 1997, is a parody of a well-known ad for Calvin Klein’s Obsession perfume. The Klein ad featured model Kate Moss looking pale and interesting and a pseudo-poetic voice-over discoursing on the anxieties of love. It was one of a string of commercials featuring Moss that caused fierce debate in the US and Australia about the damage ultra-thin supermodels supposedly do to teenage girls’ esteem.