CHA-CHING! How a Young Seth Green Gave Saints Fans a New Cheer

In 1991, the hamburger chain Rally’s aired a commercialOpens in new tab starring then little-known teen actor Seth Green as a drive-through operator for a fictional burger chain called “Pricey’s.” In the ad, each transaction was celebrated with a “CHA-CHING” or a “BADA-BING.” The commercial became wildly popular in New Orleans and the “CHA-CHING” catchphrase caught on among the Saints faithful. Excitement was so high that the team flew the 17 year old to New Orleans and to perform his moves on the field at the halftime show of their December 16 game with the Los Angeles Raiders.

Before his meteoric rise to NOLA fame, Green had done some movies and made appearances on the television series “The Facts of Life,” but he was still years away from his breakthrough role as Dr. Evil’s son, Scott, in the Austin Powers trilogy (1997).

Photographs from the game show Green dancing in front of the Saintsations cheerleaders on the 50-yard line for a slew of TV news cameras with “CHA-CHING” displayed on the scoreboard in the background. Green was also given the key to the city at a pre-game pep rally for hundreds of Saints fans.

Whether it was the presence of the “CHA-CHING” pitchman that helped or the performance of Hall-of-Famer Ricky Jackson and the rest of the vaunted “Dome Patrol” defense, the Saints overcame a slow first half to shut out the Raiders 27–0 in front of a national TV audience. That season, the team went on to win its division with a 10–6 record and reach the playoffs for the second consecutive year, where they lost to the Atlanta Falcons.

In a news segment on local Fox affiliate WVUE, Green is described as a “struggling teen actor,” and he can be seen chatting with dancer Chris Owens, walking through the French Quarter, and shouting the catchphrase for anyone who asks. The video also features a male cheerleader doing a backflip and shouting “CHA-CHING” and Mr. Bingle casually walking by on the sidelines. In the video, Green says, “The spirit here is amazing . . . CHA-CHING . . . man, I’m very happy, I’m very welcome here.”

“WHO DAT” is here to stay, but thanks to an unlikely hero, “CHA-CHING” definitely cashed in on its moment.