You know, as soon as I saw that, even though my dad is perfectly healthy and I hadn't called him yet today, I was a little creeped out. I couldn't put my finger on why.
The doodles are one thing, but Gmail is supposed to be a tool, and I think people expect different things from that.
I think having a generic banner such as a "Fathers Day" doodle wouldnt really upset as many people. I think there's something more personal about the specific 'Call Dad' that would certainly make me feel more emotional if I saw it pop up in my contacts list.
People get bombarded with "fathers day" "mothers day" "valentines day" every year and it's easy to brush it aside...
The doodles are one thing, but Gmail is supposed to be a tool, and I think people expect different things from that.