This was my call, entirely. My bosses twice offered me the opportunity to write about something else, if I so chose. And a friend had offered a free ticket and transportation to the Honda Classic golf tournament in Palm Beach Gardens.
But I wanted to be here.
I wanted to be here for what was a spectacular Sunday afternoon and a chance to see the Budweiser Clydesdales parade proudly through the streets of Vero Beach.
I wanted to be part of this Rockwellian, small-town celebration of Americana on our seaside patch of paradise. I wanted to write this column.
Because I haven’t forgotten.
I haven’t forgotten what happened on the horrific morning of Sept. 11, 2001. I haven’t forgotten how I felt seeing those jetliners fly into the World Trade Center’s twin towers and, ultimately, knock them down. I haven’t forgotten how long it took for all of us to come back from such a devastating blow to our national psyche.
But I also remember how much one minute-long television commercial helped us heal.
You know the one – the emotionally charged Budweiser commercial in which the iconic Clydesdales march through the countryside and into New York, crossing the Brooklyn Bridge and eventually arriving at a snow-covered Liberty State Park, where, looking across the river at the site of the fallen towers, the entire eight-horse team bows respectfully before the screen goes black and the words “We’ll Never Forget” appear.
No words were spoken. The spot aired only once during the 2002 Super Bowl and wasn’t shown again until Budweiser ran an updated, slightly tweaked version on the 10th anniversary of 9/11.
Yet, to this day, it remains the most powerful commercial in the history of television.
“We’ve done a lot of terrific commercials over the years, but that one was particularly memorable,” said Peter Busch, the longtime Vero Beach resident whose great-grandfather, Adolphus, joined father-in-law Eberhard Anheuser in 1864 at the beer-brewing company that would become Anheuser-Busch.
“People still ask me about it,” he added. “The fact that it was shown only once certainly added something to its appeal, but I think the timing had a lot to do with it, too. It was only a few months after 9/11.”
In the wake of the terrorist attacks, in fact, Budweiser’s creative marketing team needed to get the approval of New York’s then-mayor, Rudy Giuliani, and members of Congress to fly a helicopter over the city to film segments of the commercial.
“We were the first company they allowed to do something like that after 9/11,” Busch said. “You have to remember: New York was still pretty much in lockdown at that time. But our marketing team explained what we wanted to do and how we planned to do it, and they liked the idea.
“We really wanted to show our respect to the city and honor the victims, and we thought the Clydesdales – with all their tradition, what they stand for and how much they mean to people all across the country – was a great way to do it.”
And just so you know: The horses really did bow.
“That wasn’t a gimmick,” said Busch, the longtime, now-retired president of Southern Eagle Distributing Inc., an Anheuser-Busch wholesaler based in Fort Pierce. “The Clydesdales actually knelt. They spent a few weeks with a trainer and learned to bow.”
The 10th anniversary version of the commercial, which aired only once on an NFL Sunday, was nearly identical.
However, computer enhancements replaced the snow with grass, brightened the picture and showed One World Trade Center under construction.
Budweiser’s creative team said the changes were made to show that America had overcome the heartbreak of 9/11 and moved forward.
The spot still ended, though, with the words, “We Haven’t Forgotten” on a black screen.
Busch, who moved to Vero Beach in 1984, said it was a “privilege” to be connected to the commercials that honored America after the 9/11 attacks, and he’s humbled by any suggestion that the original spot contributed to the nation’s healing.
“We just wanted to pay tribute to the people there and, really, to the whole country,” he said.
Busch grew up with the Clydesdales, who became a part of the Budweiser brand in 1933, when his father, August (better known as “Gussie”), presented a team of the large, majestic horses to his father, August Sr., as a gift to celebrate the repeal of Prohibition.
It wasn’t long before the Clydesdales became the centerpiece of Anheuser-Busch’s marketing plan.
“My dad had a lot to do with that,” Busch said, adding that the company now owns 250 Clydesdales, including brood mares, stallions, yearlings and older horses who have been retired.
“So I was involved with the Clydesdales from the time I was a teenager, working at Grant’s Farm, the family estate outside St. Louis.
“I helped in the breeding barn, took care of the foals and worked with the horses until they were 1, 2 and 3 years old,” he added. “They’re such beautiful, majestic animals, and they represent the long tradition of our company and the legacy of our family.
“People love the Clydesdales. They draw huge crowds wherever they go. And when people see them, they immediately think of Budweiser. It’s a very special connection.”
It’s a connection that Busch’s son, Philip, fully embraces. The younger Busch not only has succeeded his father as president of Southern Eagle, but he also shares the same feelings about the Budweiser legacy … and the Clydesdales.
“I didn’t have the same personal relationship with them as my dad did growing up, but it’s in my blood,” Philip Busch, who also lives in Vero Beach, said before Sunday’s parade. “I got on a hitch when I was 6 years old, and it’s something I’ll never forget.
“This isn’t just a family business. It’s a family tradition.”
That family tradition was at least part of the reason Philip Busch brought the Clydesdales to the Treasure Coast, where their schedule included appearances in Stuart, Fort Pierce and Vero Beach.
He said he’d like to bring them here more often, but the Clydesdales are in such demand that they usually appear where bigger crowds are guaranteed.
“I’d love to do this every year,” he said.
So would I.
If you weren’t at Riverside Park or lining the barrier island streets for the Clydesdales’ appearance Sunday, you missed quite a show. Just seeing these horses up close is a thrill. But to see the size of the crowds and the enthusiastic way people responded to these horses was exhilarating.
The kids, of course, were wide-eyed as the team of eight magnificent horses clopped by, pulling a Budweiser wagon that carried two uniformed drivers and a Dalmatian – the Clydesdales have their own mascots.
But the adults seemed to be equally excited, most of them taking photos and videos with their smartphones, many of them waving to the horses and yelling to the dog, some of them jumping in to follow the parade.
It was a great day for Vero Beach, one of the few places where, despite the huge turnout, little crowd control was necessary.
I’m glad I was there to see it, be a part of it and write about it.
Because I haven’t forgotten.
