Real Men of Genius
| Real Men Of Genius | |
|---|---|
| Client | Anheuser-Busch |
| Product | Light Beer |
| Agency | DBB Worldwide |
| Starring | Pete Stacker and Dave Bickler[1] |
| Music by | Scandal Music Chicago[2] |
| Release date(s) | 1998 (US Radio), 2001 (UK TV), 2003 (US TV) |
| Running time | 60 seconds (US Radio and UK TV). 30 seconds (US TV) |
| Country | .svg){kind=small} United States,  United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Official website | http://www.budlight.com/ |
Real Men of Genius is a series of advertisements, primarily 60-second American radio spots, for Bud Light beer. The campaign was originally created by Bob Winter,[3] a copywriter at DDB Chicago. The ad campaign, which began in 1998[4] under the title Real American Heroes consisted of 12 spots. To date over 200[5] installments have been made. In 2001 the radio version was adapted for television in the UK,[6] advertising Budweiser beer instead of Bud Light (Bud Light is not officially distributed in the UK). The UK version maintained the same one minute format. In 2003, thirty second abbreviated versions were produced for US Television.[7] Anheuser-Busch is reported to have spent $38 million per year airing just the radio version.[8]
Contents |
Sequence [edit]
Each sixty-second ad gives mock glorification[9] in the form of a tribute to men in overlooked professions or with humorous or eccentric traits or habits.[10] The language is very Observational in style, in part parodying Budweiser's earlier This Bud's for you campaign.[11]
The advertisement is set to 1980s style anthemic music. The announcer (Pete Stacker) reads the mock tribute straight.[12] Humour in part is derived from juxtaposing over-the-top vocals sung by Dave Bickler.[13] Sometimes these vocals are augmented by a female gospel-style chorus. In addition to providing humour the music is an effective jingle.[14]
2001/2 redaction and renaming [edit]
In mid-2001 Anheuser-Busch ordered another 17[15] Real American Hero ads be made. These ads were pulled from circulation after the 9/11 attacks as mocking American heroism now seemed questionable.[16] The campaign relaunched in 2002 with the title and lyrics changed from Real American Heroes to Real Men Of Genius.[17]
Release and reception [edit]
Anheuser-Busch were initially nervous of the irreverent style of the ads. Consumer testing however proved them to be very popular.[18] The ads not only received tremendous consumer response, but also won many awards including the prestigious Grand Prix for Radio at the Annual International Advertising Festival in Cannes.[19] The popularity of the series led to many of the commercials being traded on peer to peer file sharing networks.[20] Bootleg recordings of the ads were sold on eBay.[21]
In 2003, Anheuser-Busch released a collection of 20 ads on CD titled, Bud Light Salutes Real Men of Genius, Vol 1 to be sold in the company's online store Two additional volumes were released soon after. In 2005 a limited edition compilation combined all prior volumes into one release: Bud Light Salutes Real Men of Genius Volumes 1, 2 and 3.
Volume 1,[22] Volume 2,[23] & Volume 3 contained 20 radio spots. All versions have since gone out of print.
In late 2006, Anheuser-Busch sponsored a comedy tour titled "Real Men of Comedy" starring John Heffron, Joe Rogan, and Charlie Murphy. This tour featured the announcer (Stacker) and singer (Bickler) performing several of their famous commercials live at the beginning of the show. Stacker and Bickler performed regional versions of the spots to support Budweiser's comedy tour at radio stations and concert-sponsored venues such as Lollapalooza.[24]
As late as 2010 American Comedy Network was producing parodies of the commercials.[25]
Demise [edit]
While never officially canceled, funding for the ads was cut in June 2008.[26] At the time, Anheuser-Busch denied the cost savings were part of a defense against hostile takeover from then competitor InBev.[27] In July 2008 InBev successfully purchased Anheuser Busch.
List of commercials [edit]
“We had 8 spots and now it’s 160.” Said Pete Stacker in a 2006 interview. “In fact, we’re going to go into the studio later this week and do more.”[28]
158 commercials (both audio and video) are available on the Internet. I[29]
References [edit]
- ^ "PeteStacker.com".
- ^ "LiaAwards.com.com".
- ^ "Adweek".
- ^ "PeteStacker.com".
- ^ "PeteStacker.com".
- ^ "AdWeek".
- ^ "Marketing Case Studies".
- ^ http://adage.com/article/news/a-b-slashes-radio-spending/128084/
- ^ http://adage.com/article/news/radio-category-winner-bud-light/54616/
- ^ http://marketing-case-studies.blogspot.com/2008/02/real-american-heroesreal-men-of-genius.html
- ^ http://www.adweek.com/aw/esearch/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=2042447
- ^ http://www.adweek.com/aw/esearch/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=2042447
- ^ http://marketing-case-studies.blogspot.com/2008/02/real-american-heroesreal-men-of-genius.html
- ^ http://adage.com/article/small-agency-diary/big-5-radio-success-part-3/120410/
- ^ "Marketing Case Studies".
- ^ "Marketing Case Studies".
- ^ "Marketing Case Studies".
- ^ http://www.adweek.com/aw/esearch/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=2002066
- ^ "Goliath Business News".
- ^ http://isohunt.com/torrents/?ihq=real+men+of+genius
- ^ http://marketing-case-studies.blogspot.com/2008/02/real-american-heroesreal-men-of-genius.html
- ^ "Volume 1 Tracklist".
- ^ "Volume 2 Tracklist".
- ^ "Bud Light Real Men of Genius On WGN Morning News".
- ^ http://americancomedynetwork.com/results.html?search=real%20american%20hero&sortby=rating&pagenumber=2
- ^ http://adage.com/article/news/a-b-slashes-radio-spending/128084/
- ^ http://adage.com/article/news/a-b-slashes-radio-spending/128084/
- ^ "Bud Light Real Men of Genius On WGN Morning News".
- ^ "Bud Light Real Men of Genius Commercials ... Listen Now!".
