Molson Canadian
Molson Canadian is a brand of 5% abv lager beer (4% in Ireland) brewed by Molson Brewing, the Canadian division of Molson Coors Brewing Company. The beer was introduced in 1959.
Awards
Molson Canadian has won several beer industry awards, inclu ...
beer from 1994 until 1999 (via
ad agencies
An advertising agency, often referred to as a creative agency or an ad agency, is a business dedicated to creating, planning, and handling advertising and sometimes other forms of promotion and marketing for its clients. An ad agency is generally ...
Maclaren Lintas, then MacLaren McCann), and between 2000 and 2005 (by
Bensimon Byrne
Bensimon Byrne is a Canada's largest independent advertising agency, based in Toronto, Canada.
History
The company was founded in 1994 by Jack Bensimon and Peter Byrne with Eaton’s department store as its first client. The firm later acquire ...
). It was also the subject of a popular ad campaign centred on
Canadian nationalism
Canadian nationalism seeks to promote the unity, independence, and well-being of Canada and the Canadian people. Canadian nationalism has been a significant political force since the 19th century and has typically manifested itself as seeking t ...
, the most famous examples of which are "The Rant" and "The Anthem". The ads aired in both English Canada and the United States. In 2005, shortly after Molson's merger with American brewer Coors, it announced it was retiring the "I Am Canadian" campaign. In 2017, Molson's "red beer fridge" ad, created as part of its "I Am Canadian" campaign, had a resurgence in social media as a result of the United States' immigration and refugee ban.
"The Rant"
In March 2000, using nationalism as a platform, the ad starred a man named Joe: an average Canadian, standing in a movie theatre, with a cinema screen behind him showing different images relating to
Canadian culture
The culture of Canada embodies the artistic, culinary, literary, humour, musical, political and social elements that are representative of Canadians. Throughout Canada's history, its culture has been influenced by European culture and traditi ...
. Joe proceeds to give a speech about what is it to be a Canadian and what it is not to be a Canadian, making particular efforts to distinguish himself both from common Canadian stereotypes of Americans ("I believe in peacekeeping, not policing") and common American stereotypes of Canadians ("I don't live in an igloo," "I say 'about,' not 'aboot'").
It was performed by Nova Scotian/Canadian actor
Jeff Douglas
Jeffrey Lloyd Douglas (born June 8, 1971) is a Canadian actor and broadcaster, best known as the cohost of CBC Radio One's daily news program ''As It Happens'' from 2011 to 2019. He has hosted the mainland Nova Scotia afternoon show "Mainstreet" s ...
and directed by an American, Kevin Donovan, but written by a Canadian, Glen Hunt. The commercial won local, national and international success.
The ad was tested live in front of movie goers in theatres in Ottawa and deemed successfully enough to run on-air.
It was the work of the public relations agency Thornley Fallis together with Molson that helped garner local, national and International awards. Director, Kelly Swinney(Donovan),and team successfully won the Canadian Public Relations award, the national Gold Quill award & the prestigious International Public Relations award in 2001.
In addition to the commercial “Joe Canada” as he was called did a cross rogue tour on Canada Day crossing the Nation in 26 hours and visiting Provinces to recite the rant. Beginning in Newfoundland and ending in Vancouver.
In 2002,
John Robert Colombo
John Robert Colombo, CM (born March 24, 1936) is a Canadian author, editor, and poet. He has published over 200 titles, including major anthologies and reference works.
Early life
Colombo was born in Kitchener, Ontario, in 1936. He attended ...
included the Rant in the ''
Penguin
Penguins (order (biology), order List of Sphenisciformes by population, Sphenisciformes , family (biology), family Spheniscidae ) are a group of Water bird, aquatic flightless birds. They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere: on ...
Treasury of Popular Canadian Poems and Songs''. Colombo acknowledged that it was unusual to include the text of a beer commercial in a poetry collection, but emphasized that "the open-minded reader will respond to the power of the words that express a human need to affirm an identity in the face of ignorance and indifference," and compared it to the works of
Christopher Smart
Christopher Smart (11 April 1722 – 20 May 1771) was an English poet. He was a major contributor to two popular magazines, ''The Midwife'' and ''The Student'', and a friend to influential cultural icons like Samuel Johnson and Henry Fie ...
,
Ebenezer Elliot Ebenezer may refer to:
Bible
* Eben-Ezer, a place mentioned in the Books of Samuel
People
* Ebenezer (given name), a male given name
Places Australia
* Ebenezer, New South Wales
* Ebenezer, Queensland, a locality in the City of Ipswich
* Ebeneze ...
, and
Vachel Lindsay
Nicholas Vachel Lindsay (; November 10, 1879 – December 5, 1931) was an American poet. He is considered a founder of modern ''singing poetry,'' as he referred to it, in which verses are meant to be sung or chanted.
Early years
Lindsay was born ...
.The Penguin treasury of popular Canadian poems and songs, edited by
John Robert Colombo
John Robert Colombo, CM (born March 24, 1936) is a Canadian author, editor, and poet. He has published over 200 titles, including major anthologies and reference works.
Early life
Colombo was born in Kitchener, Ontario, in 1936. He attended ...
, published 2002 by
Penguin Books
Penguin Books is a British publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year.Quebec sovereignist.
William Shatner
William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1965 debut as the captain of the starship USS Enterpri ...
performed his own variation on the idea in a Just for Laughs appearance. He announced to the world: "I am not a
Starfleet
Starfleet is a fictional organization in the ''Star Trek'' media franchise. Within this fictional universe, Starfleet is a uniformed space force maintained by the United Federation of Planets ("the Federation") as the principal means for conduc ...
commander, ...or
T.J. Hooker
''T. J. Hooker'' is an American police drama television program starring William Shatner in the title role as a 15-year veteran police sergeant. The series premiered as a mid-season replacement on March 13, 1982, on ABC and ran on the network un ...
." The rant continues, making fun of
Trekkie
A Trekkie or Trekker is a fan of the '' Star Trek'' franchise, or of specific television series or films within that franchise.
History
Many early Trekkies were also fans of ''The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' (1964–1968), another show with scienc ...
s and his own
typecasting
In film, television, and theatre, typecasting is the process by which a particular actor becomes strongly identified with a specific character, one or more particular roles, or characters having the same traits or coming from the same social or ...
as
James T. Kirk
James Tiberius Kirk is a fictional character in the ''Star Trek'' media franchise. Originally played by Canadian actor William Shatner, Kirk first appeared in ''Star Trek'' serving aboard the starship USS ''Enterprise'' as captain. Kirk leads ...
.
Weasel, the lead character of ''
I Am Weasel
''I Am Weasel'' is an American animated television series created by David Feiss for Cartoon Network and produced at Hanna-Barbera. It is the fourth of the network's Cartoon Cartoons. The series centers on I. M. Weasel (voiced by Michael Dorn), a ...
'', parodied the advertisement in a promotional ad for the series' home,
Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, Car ...
. The ad later aired on a similar Canadian outlet,
Teletoon
Teletoon (stylized as TELETOON) is a Canadian English-language specialty channel owned by Teletoon Canada, Inc., a subsidiary of Corus Entertainment. Its name is a portmanteau of "television" and " cartoon". The channel primarily broadcasts ...
Swiss National Bank
The Swiss National Bank (SNB; german: Schweizerische Nationalbank; french: Banque nationale suisse; it, Banca nazionale svizzera; rm, Banca naziunala svizra) is the central bank of Switzerland, responsible for the nation's monetary policy an ...
pavilion featured an "Ich bin Schweizer" adaptation of the ad, using stereotypes held by Germans about the Swiss.
At the
Juno Awards of 2022
The Juno Awards of 2022 were held on May 15, 2022 in Toronto, Ontario.
The awards were presented at the Budweiser Stage, an outdoor venue, and was hosted by actor Simu Liu.David Friend"Actor Simu Liu to host first outdoor Juno Awards at Toronto ...
, actor and host
Simu Liu
Simu Liu ( ; ; born 19 April 1989) is a Canadian actor. He is known for portraying Shang-Chi in the 2021 Marvel Cinematic Universe film ''Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings''. He also played Jung Kim in the CBC Television sitcom ''Kim's ...
Toronto Star
The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...
'', May 15, 2022.
Trivia
This commercial premiered during the
Academy Awards
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
, which, in that year, included
Robin Williams
Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian. Known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and come ...
singing the song "
Blame Canada
"Blame Canada" is a satirical song from the 1999 animated film '' South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut'', written by Trey Parker & Marc Shaiman. In the song, the parents of the fictional ''South Park'', led by Sheila Broflovski (Mary Kay Bergman), ...
This ad features famous moments from Canadian history (including the pounding of the Last Spike and the raising of the
Maple Leaf flag
The national flag of Canada (french: le Drapeau national du Canada), often simply referred to as the Canadian flag or, unofficially, as the Maple Leaf or ' (; ), consists of a red field with a white square at its centre in the ratio of , in ...
), as well as a variety of average Canadians (including
William Shatner
William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1965 debut as the captain of the starship USS Enterpri ...
), singing a song extolling the virtues of Canada and its citizens.
See also
{{Portal, Canada
*
Canadian beer
Beer was introduced to Canada by European settlers in the seventeenth century. The first commercial brewery was La Brasseries du Roy started by New France Intendant Jean Talon, in Québec City in 1668. Many commercial brewers thrived until pro ...