On January 30, 1977, reporter Sid Copeland of The Seattle Times reports on the success of an ad campaign of memorably quirky television commercials for Rainier beer. This isn’t surprising news, as the ads have been on the air since 1974, and a few of them have already won awards based on their clever, off-the-wall skits. Particular favorites are commercials featuring the Wild Rainiers, shy humanoid beer bottles who appear in numerous ads and participate in “Running of the Beers” races that mimic the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, Spain. Nearly 100 television ads will run in multiple incarnations until 1988.
A New Look
During the early 1970s, Rainier Brewing was looking with increasing urgency for a new look in its advertising. Sales were down at the historic Seattle-based brewery, and three different ad agencies in five years had not been able to help. Part of the problem was with Rainier’s ads. They were pleasant but staid ads that portrayed the beer mainly on its merits, extoling the virtues of its hops and grains while not really enticing people to drink what was generally described as an average-tasting beer…