Hoornstra: Why is Jackie Robinson selling beer in a new ad?
From J.P. Hoornstra at the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin on April 18, 2019:
Ian Fraser Kilmister, the heavy metal icon better known as Lemmy, was recently the star of a milk commercial in Finland. Fred Astaire once pitched for Dirt Devil by dancing with a vacuum. Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney and Louis Armstrong teamed up to sell Diet Coke. For each of them, death was no obstacle to starring in a commercial.
So, what’s the problem with Jackie Robinson scoring a run in a Budweiser ad?
That’s been a burning question for a couple weeks since a Spike Lee-directed commercial, starring Robinson, landed on the internet.
The answer is, well, nothing, if you ask his family.
I had the chance to catch up with Sharon Robinson, Jackie’s daughter, on Monday at Dodger Stadium, Major League Baseball’s annual “Jackie Robinson Day.” Her perspective is important. Rachel Robinson created the Jackie Robinson Foundation in 1973, the year her after her husband’s death. Sharon is now the vice-chair of the foundation, which is benefiting directly from the Budweiser campaign.
The foundation aims to open a physical Jackie Robinson Museum in lower Manhattan later this year. It’s a massive undertaking. Among the “Founding Donors” listed on the museum’s official website: the Dodgers’ owners, the Mets, the Yankees and Major League Baseball itself. According to the site, the Foundation has already raised $28 million toward a goal of $42 million, which includes the museum’s operating endowment.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of Robinson’s birth. That helps answer the “when” of Jackie Robinson selling beer.
Read the full article here: https://www.dailybulletin.com/2019/04/17/why-is-jackie-robinson-selling-beer-why-not/
Originally published: April 18, 2019. Last Updated: April 18, 2019.