Maybe it's time to bring Spuds MacKenzie out of retirement
I miss the ultimate party animal.
A few weeks ago, I wrote about the Coors Beer Wolf. While doing so, it got me thinking about the more famous of the beer canines, Spuds MacKenzie ("The Original Party Animal"). Spuds broke big in 1987, when he appeared in a Bud Light ad for Super Bowl XXI, but his first appearance was a few years earlier. Played by female, bull terrier, Evie, she made her earliest appearances in 1985, and was an almost instant hit. Quickly more ads were run, but Spuds also began appearing on shirts, calendars, posters, and much more. I had no interest in beer myself, but I still had two Spuds’ posters on my bedroom wall as a kid.
Evie’s full name was Honey Tree Evil Eye. She was born on October 7, 1983 in Woodstock Illinois. Entering the beer business while she was still below the drinking age, in dog years. Her spokesdog status would last until 1989, when Anheuser-Busch decided to retire the character, mentioning that the fame of Spud’s was overshadowing the product. Evie lived another four years before passing away in 1993.
The character was briefly brought out of retirement for the Super Bowl a few years ago. I was hoping that was the start of a renaissance, but that was just a one time thing. Will Spuds ever push suds again? I would think so, it is an adorable mascot with broad appeal and even after all these years, still has name recognition. Now, if only Bud Light had a reason for bringing the party animal back out as the face of their product.
(If you have retro finds you would like for me to share, I want to hear them. What old useful website are still lurking on the web? Some old TV show streaming online? Old tech being brought back? Let me know.)
ONE COOL VIDEO
If we are going to talk about Spuds, we need to feature one of his commercials. But which one was these Robin Leach narrated ads was most memorable? Was it the Olympics? The muscle beach one? Nah, for me, it was this Halloween-themed one where you could win an opportunity to party with Spuds at the Psycho Hotel.
TEN THINGS RETRO
⚙️ Technology - Have you heard of the Atari Video Music? It was an early music visualizer you hooked up to your stereo and TV. While it was really cool and loved by collectors, it was a flop at the time.
🎵 Music - Hear New Order’s Blue Monday as it was meant to be heard, performed completely on Vintage Casio Instruments by Polaroids of the Pyramids.
💾 Floppy - The floppy is still out there getting the job done. The German Navy still uses them on systems on their Brandenburg-class F123 warships, but they are looking for a new solution.
🥣 Food - Keep your lead out of my Lunchables and my Cocoa Puffs!
📀 DVD - In a world of streaming, how do you get people back to physical media? How about you offer them a high quality product with features they cannot get through streaming services?
🎥 Movie - In 1905, Einstein first published his Special Theory of Relativity, which describes his ideas about light, time, and energy. Just under two decade later a science film was made that explains the theory. It’s one of the first of the first science films and it is very enjoyable.
🖥️ Computer - Did you ever see a movie featuring a computer and wonder about the software system running on that computer? Ever wish you could recreate it? Well, someone did just that for the James Bond film, A View to a Kill.
🏀 Basketball - How big of a Michael Jordan fan are you? Big enough, and wealthy enough, to pay $2.9 million dollars for a trading card?
🍟 Fast Food - McDonald’s has been leaning into nostalgia to sell food lately, and this month they are going to release a Collector’s Meal that comes with a collectible glass. They will have six glasses and be available during breakfast hours and the rest of the day. I am guessing it will be pricey.
🔗 Website - History in Kodachrome is a site dedicated to sharing small moments from history captured and shared via transcribed love letters, View-Master history, and other ephemera.
FROM THE RETROIST ARCHIVE
Let's take a moment to look back at four posts from the Retroist's past. I have been at this a long time.
One Year Ago…
👾 A Visit to the Funspot Arcade
Five Years Ago…
Ten Years Ago…
Fifteen Years Ago…
🔪 Retroist Friday the 13th Podcast
My household had a Spuds MacKenzie stuffed animal. That charming dog really was a pop culture phenomenon.
Honey Tree Evil Eye has to be the greatest pet name of all time.