This 9/11 Ad Aired Only Once

Moving Budweiser commercial was broadcast during the 2002 Super Bowl and never since
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 11, 2020 10:58 AM CDT

Some brands should completely stay away from trying to commemorate 9/11, but others have figured out how to appropriately, and movingly, mark that indelible moment. In Budweiser's case, it came up with what's been called "the best 9/11 commercial ever," and it's only officially aired once, nearly two decades ago. The beer company's tribute, which was broadcast during Super Bowl XXXVI on Feb. 3, 2002, just months after the terror attacks, has long been available on YouTube—and a digitally modernized update was created in 2011—but FOX 2 is now re-upping the original after looking back at some of the most powerful spots over the years and deciding it's worth a revisit.

In the one-minute ad, the Clydesdales are seen in a rural barn getting prepped for a journey, then pulling a red wagon through the woods and over cloud-covered fields. Then, suddenly, the horses reach civilization, traveling over the Brooklyn Bridge and straight into NYC's Battery Park. "We filmed in New York City," an ex-executive of Anheuser-Busch's creative team tells the outlet, which notes the group had to get the OK to film in the Big Apple from Congress and then-Mayor Rudy Giuliani. "We had a helicopter going over the Brooklyn Bridge. Mayor Giuliani let us into the city—the only film company of any sort right after 9/11. ... It was amazing ... just amazing." As is the ending, when the Clydesdales honor the city in their own special way. Watch it here. (More 9/11 anniversary stories.)

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