Lisa Davis: If it quacks like a duck …

If you're shopping for insurance to protect your home in the event of a disaster, would you buy from a talking lizard?

If a tree falls through your roof, do you think a duck is going to be able to help you?

If your car is totaled, would you expect a quick payout from an emu wearing sunglasses?

Insurance is a serious business, and insurance companies used to make very serious commercials featuring fires and tornadoes and floods. That all changed 25 years ago when the Geico insurance company introduced a little green gecko as its new mascot.

Why a lizard instead of a person? Well, there was an actors strike looming, plus CGI technology had come into its own. And somebody at an ad agency realized "Geico" sounded like "gecko."

The talking gecko inspired a whole new era of funny insurance mascots.

The Aflac Duck: The agitated duck debuted in 2000 after somebody at an ad agency realized "Aflac" sounded like "quack." Unlike the lizard, the duck didn't talk. It just quacked. But it was a very distinctive quack, voiced by late comedian Gilbert Gottfried. Recently, the duck has been starring in commercials with a goat and a couple of famous football coaches. You'd think if the producers could animate a duck and a goat, they could also have animated Nick Saban.

Jake from State Farm: Unlike the gecko and the duck, Jake is real and is also a person. He gets to hang out with the likes of Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce for his commercials. But he's stuck wearing the same pair of khakis with a red shirt.

Jake from State Farm is played by actor Kevin Miles, who took over the role in 2020. The original Jake from State Farm was not an actor. He was literally Jake from State Farm. The company held a casting call for a new commercial in 2011, and the part went to one of their insurance agents, Jake Stone.

In that iconic commercial, a suspicious wife discovers her husband on the phone at 3 a.m., and demands to know who he's talking to. "It's Jake, from State Farm."

Flo: The mildly annoying Flo debuted in a 2008 commercial for Progressive, playing a checkout clerk at an insurance superstore. Like Jake, Flo is stuck wearing the same clothes: white pants, white shirt, white apron. Flo is played by comedian Stephanie Courtney. Fun fact: Before she became Flo, Courtney had a role in the short-lived ABC sitcom "Cavemen," based on the caveman mascots for Geico insurance. She also had a role on the 1950s-era drama "Mad Men," which could explain Flo's dated hairstyle.

Mayhem: In response to Flo's popularity, Allstate wanted to create a character on the other end of the spectrum. Where Flo is unlikeable but helpful, Mayhem is likeable but utterly unhelpful. Created in 2010, Mayhem is played by actor Dean Winters, who has been in everything from "NYPD Blue" to "Sex and the City" to "30 Rock." As the embodiment of chaos, Winters is nonetheless quite charming as he portrays such threats as the raccoon in your attic, the bear who breaks into your car or (shudder) the teen-aged driver with a phone.

LiMu Emu and Doug: Liberty Mutual's animal mascot is a clueless emu paired with a guy named Doug. They look like they came straight from a 1970s buddy cop movie. Unlike the other insurance animal mascots, LiMu gets to wear clothes (yellow dress shirt, tie, sunglasses) and he's also real — sort of. Live emus were filmed for the very first commercial, and the company used that footage to create a digital emu for the other commercials.

Dr. Rick: It's not just Flo pitching Progressive. The insurance company has more recently introduced Dr. Rick, a life coach who helps young homeowners who are turning into their parents. Dr. Rick counsels against excessive throw pillows, posting 800 photos of your dinner party and "printing out the Internet."

I do all of these things. I don't understand why this is considered funny.