Real Men of Genius

Sequence

Each sixty-second ad gives mock glorification in the form of a tribute to men in overlooked professions or with humorous or eccentric traits or habits. The language is very observational in style, in part parodying Budweiser's earlier This Bud's for You campaign.

The advertisement is set to early 1990s style anthemic music. The announcer (Pete Stacker) reads the mock tribute straight. Humor in part is derived from juxtaposing over-the-top vocals sung by Dave Bickler. Sometimes these vocals are augmented by a female gospel-style chorus.

In addition to providing humor, the music is an effective jingle.

2001/02 redaction and renaming

In mid-2001, Anheuser-Busch ordered another 17 Real American Hero ads be made. These ads were pulled from circulation after the 9/11 attacks as mocking American heroism then seemed questionable. The campaign relaunched in 2002 with the title and lyrics changed from Real American Heroes to Real Men of Genius.

Release and reception

Anheuser-Busch were initially reluctant to air the ads because of their irreverent style. Consumer testing, however, proved them to be very popular.

The ads not only received tremendous consumer response, but also won more than 100 awards, including the prestigious Grand Prix for Radio (twice, in 2005 and 2006) as well as Gold and Bronze Lions at the Cannes International Advertising Festival and, in 2003, a Grand Clio, making it the most awarded campaign in history.

The popularity of the series led to many of the commercials being traded on peer-to-peer file sharing networks and bootleg recordings of the ads being sold on eBay.

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. Each volume contained 20 spots.

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.

Demise

While never officially canceled, funding for the ads was cut in June 2008. At the time, Anheuser-Busch denied the cost savings were part of a defense against hostile takeover from then-competitor InBev. In July 2008, InBev successfully purchased Anheuser Busch.

Internet Heroes of Genius

On June 18, 2019, Anheuser-Busch InBev resurrected a new version of the ad campaign for the social media age called Internet Heroes of Genius, which will run on streaming audio platforms. The new series was created by Red Interactive, a division of Endeavor Global Marketing, and the brewer’s in-house agency, Draftline, and feature Brandon Beilis (singing) and Dave Steele (VO).

Stay At Home Humans of Genius

In 2020, Bud Light released the Stay at Home Humans of Genius series on its YouTube channel. The series consists of four ads.

References

References

1. Schiller directed the 2001 TV spots "Mr. Horsedrawn Carriage Driver", "Mr. Nudist Colony Activities Coordinator", "Mr. Pro Wrestling Wardrobe Designer" and "Mr. Really Bad Toupee Wearer". Kuntz & Maguire co-directed "Mr. Foot-Long Hot Dog Inventor", also in 2001. In 2003 Murro helmed "Mr. Grocery Store Cart Wrangler ", "Mr. Way Too Much Cologne Wearer" and "Mr. Wedding Band Guitar Player" while Popp & Immesoete co-directed "Mr. Male Football Cheerleader", "Mr. Giant Taco Salad Inventor", "Mr. Really, Really, Really Bad Dancer" and "Mr. Silent Killer Gas Passer". Title and director of the sixth UK TV commercial are not known.
2. "2002 Television/Cinema Finalists". London International Awards.
3. "Pete Stacker's Comedy Demo". Pete Stacker.
4. Mae Anderson. (December 1, 2003). "'Genius' Gets Promotion". [[Adweek]].
5. (February 23, 2008). "Real American Heroes/Real Men of Genius Campaign". Marketing Campaign Case Studies.
6. Jeremy Mullman. (June 30, 2008). "A-B Slashes Radio Spending". [[Advertising Age]].
7. (6 November 2007). "The WGN Morning News".
8. (May 28, 2001). "Radio - Category Winner: Bud Light". Advertising Age.
9. Doug Zanger. (September 12, 2007). "The Big 5 For Radio Success: Part 3 (Entertain 'em)". Advertising Age.
10. William Hageman. (November 16, 2003). "Here's to you, Mr. Funny Commercial Maker". Chicago Tribune.
11. (February 2014)
12. (June 27, 2005). "Bud Light's 'Real Men Of Genius' Wins Grand Prix at Cannes Lion Ad Festival.". Anheuser-Busch / [[PR Newswire]].
13. (June 21, 2006). "'Real Men of Genius' Radio Campaign Wins Grand Prix at Cannes Advertising Festival". Anheuser-Busch.
14. "John Immesoete Biography". [[:it:Filmmaster Group.
15. "Real men of genius torrent".
16. (7 January 2024). "Volume 1". [[Last.fm]].
17. "Volume 2". Last.fm.
18. (November 6, 2007). "Bud Light Real Men of Genius on WGN Morning News". [[WGN-TV.
19. (June 18, 2019). "Bud Light Brings Back 'Real Men of Genius' With New Twist for Digital Age". Adage.
20. (18 June 2019). "Bud Light Reincarnates Classic 'Real Men' Campaign as 'Internet Heroes of Genius'".
21. "Dave Steele Voicing New Digital Version of Bud Light 'Real Men of Genius' Campaign".
22. Gibson, Michael. (May 22, 2020). "Bud Light's Real Men of Genius Commercials for the Quarantine".
23. (13 May 2020). "Balcony Sing-Along Starter: Stay at Home Humans of Genius".