The dog is watching
Saturday Night Live , compared with Temple Horses
Couples are put off having sex by their dog staring, and a mock ad sells a product that blocks the pet's view.
Fake ad: couples bothered by watching dogs, solved with a dog-shaped tent. (paraphrase)
SNL — "Pound Puppy" (Don Cheadle episode), 2019▶ watch ↗
A 2011 fake ad for blinders that stop pets from seeing their owners have sex, with similar shots and dog breeds. (paraphrase)
YouTube sketch — "Pet Blinders", 2011▶ watch ↗
Same embarrassing-dog premise and fake-ad format, but different gadgets, which makes this look most like parallel thinking.
- Premise 34/40
- Structure 16/30
- Punchline 8/30
- Premise34/40Both are fake ads selling a fix for dogs watching couples have sex.
- Structure16/30Both follow the mock-ad shape of problem then product; the record notes similar shots and breeds.
- Punchline8/30The products differ, a dog-shaped tent versus pet blinders, and no lines are on record.
Setup
Couples are put off sex by their staring dogs.
Setup
Pets watch their owners have sex.
Turn
A mock ad pitches a product to solve it.
Turn
A mock ad pitches a product to solve it.
Punchline
The product is a dog-shaped tent.
Punchline
The product is blinders worn by the pet.
Scores and beats are our editorial reading of the public record, not a ruling.
Context
When and where
Temple Horses uploaded 'Pet Blinders' to YouTube in September 2011 (about 4,800 views by 2019). SNL aired 'Pound Puppy' in February 2019.
What followed
This was part of the same 2019 legal letter as the pumpkin sketch. NBC said its writers developed the idea independently, and since the gadget is different (a tent rather than blinders), the shared premise looks most like parallel thinking.