There are some things that are so iconic that even if you don't buy/use/whatever-appropriate-verb them, you still love them anyway. Rainier Beer is one of those things for me. I've never been a drinker, and I was just a child at the height of its popularity, so I obviously wasn't using their product back then. Still, though, it's Seattle, and I always have and always will love Seattle. Rainier Beer commercials were on TV all the time, and as a youngster, didn't I just love to mimic the commercials and say,"Raaaaaaaiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiier Beeeeeeeeeer."
Along with the commercials, which were legendary, the Rainier "R" sign was iconic. The red neon sign was practically parked on the shoulder of southbound I-5 just past the downtown Seattle exits, marking the site of the Rainier brewery. Now it's a Tully's factory, along with other uses, and the company has a large green T marking the building (and I always wondered if that was a nod to the previous occupants). The Museum of History and Industry acquired the R sign and for a while it was the backdrop of the gift shop area, until MOHAI began its move to a new location this year.
So anyway, there's now a MOHAI/Rainier "Restore the R" campaign in preparation for MOHAI's reopening and the restoration of the iconic sign. The campaign's website features 258 challenges to do involving Rainier Beer or the R (find a cloud that looks like the R, take a bath in Rainier Beer, "Make a Mt. Rainier replica entirely of Rainier cans and/or bottles," etc.). As each challenge is completed and submitted to the website, a lightbulb on the virtual R will be lit up. It's a pretty cute little idea and looks like a lot of fun, especially if you have friends who like to do wacky things.
And now, in honor of the big, red R, some videos:
Frogs
Cycle
Raaaaaaaiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiier Beeeeeeeeeer
Home Fresh Home
These always creeped me out a little when I was young. Something about the legs coming out of those bottles.
Rainier Crossing
MOHAI Minute: Rainier R
King5 story: "Rainier Beer invites fans to restore iconic 'R'"
Restore the R
