Thursday’s ad is a baseball-themed ad, because it’s the start of the 2011 season. The ad is for the F & M Schaefer Brewing Co. of New York, Pennsylvania and Maryland. But given the Mets sponsorship, I assume it was for the New York location. My grandparents took me to Shea Stadium when I was a kid to see a Mets game. It was actually the first time I ever saw — and played — pong. There was a stand alone coin-operated pong machine by itself on the concrete walkway. Anyway, I was more of an Orioles fan back then — Brooks Robinson was my favorite player — though these days I’m a Giants fan first, and a Phillies fan second.
Still a bit of a shock to the see the Mets logo side-by-side with Schaefer’s, since during the Mets glory-days of the ’60’s, Rheingold was their sponsor. (I think they’re are quite a few examples out there of their joint advertising- coasters, at least).
Schaefer took over the Yankees sponsorship after Ballantine gave it up (mid-late-60’s) as the latter brewery was sinking into bankruptcy and ultimate oblivion, so it always sort of made some sort of sense for the competing NY area teams to be sponsored by competing local breweries.
Schaefer had been the Brooklyn Dodgers sponsor (the “h” and “e” in the beer’s scoreboard sign would light for “hit” and “error”). Not sure if the Giants had one primary brewery sponsor, but Rupert Knickerbocker seems like it might have been.
Schaefer was our go to beer because we thought budweiser was so ordinary.
A couple of notes for jesskidden (I’ve been derelict in reading these Bulletins the last week or so):
1. If Schaefer was sponsoring the Mets in 1973, they indeed brought home a winner that lost to the Oaklnad A’s in the World Series.
2. I spent a week in NYC in 1972 on $200, which wouldn’t buy an overnight now! Stayed at the Commodore Hotel (might have a different name now – my last NYC visit was ’85), which is atop Grand Central Station. Went to games at both Shea (Mets-SF) & at pre-remodeled original Yankee Stadium (twinite DH vs the A’s; box seat lower deck behind the plate was $6! – same seat now costs close to a grand). There was a lot of Schaefer at both parks; didn’t see much Ballantine (tho it was still easy to find in DC area where I lived then).
There was a vendor strike @ Yankee Stadium the nite I was there, which ended at 7PM (6th-7th inning of the 1st game); once it ended, the beer vendors never had to come down to the stands – they sold out on the concourse as fast as they could reload. I bought a few Schaefers @ 70 cents. At Shea, I think beer was a nickel/dime cheaper. Draft beer was rare at ball parks in 1972 – I saw it 1st a@ the “Vet” in Philly – the vendors in the stands sold Saran Wrap-covered 16-oz cups of Schmidt’s of Philadelphia (horrid stuff which I dubbed “Shits”). In stores, a 6 of 16-oz bottled Shits cost the same as/< 6 12's of the premium brews, & barely more than a sixer of Ballantine/Schaefer/Rheingold/National Boh/Carling/Pabst.
I've been to a lot of ballparks the last 2o yrs; Dodger Stadium SUCKS for craft brew selections compared to SF/Oakland/Seattle; Anaheim is C+. KC, St Louis, Atlanta, Miami & Arlington (TX Rangers) also pretty much suck. Colorado has a brewpub in RF corner (Coors owns it, but the non-"Blue Moon" beer's good) & a wide selection of decent micros & imports at a couple of stands downstairs. Houston has a pub in CF that's damned good. Tampa's the worst baseball field in the majors, but had an excellent beer selection (but beware of "old" bottles – buy draft).
Baseball & beer have been paired forever – the problem now is that the beer is ridiculously overpriced at most MLB parks – I do most of my drinking beforehand at tailgates/decent places beforehand & have no more than 2 inside the park.