"My Dad Was Tough..."

While digging through some research material, I came across a copy of the Budweiser commercial which was created shortly after the death of Dale Earnhardt.

Anheuser-Busch had major media plans for the 2001 season, and had hoped to shoot at least two big-budget, humorous commercials starring father/team-owner and son/driver. After meetings at Daytona that fateful week, both of the scripts were given the "go ahead" and all seemed good. Until the sad Sunday changed everything.

Several weeks following the fatal crash, Anheuser-Busch approached Dale Jr. to see if he would like to do a tribute to his father. It was decided to utilize a paraphrased version of the tribute Dale Jr. had written for his father only months before as a script. The production team was rushed into action to shoot the video in secret and for Dale Jr. to record his narration in a local recording studio.

The day of the shoot at the North Carolina Motor Speedway (better known as Rockingham), the weather was bone-chilling cold, overcast and very windy. (While they added the wind sound effects in the editing room, it was close to accurate for the day.) Unfortunately for Dale Jr., his new firesuit was designed to allow increased airflow and circulation. When it's a hot summer day, that's an air-conditioning feature which is welcome, but on a windy winter day in North Carolina, Dale Jr. was miserable.

"It's like I'm standing out there naked..." he murmured.

So, miles from civilization, a production assistant was dispatched to find long underwear or another option for Dale Jr. to put on under his uniform to avoid shivering during shooting. After each shot, he was wrapped in coats and blankets by the crew. (I don't recall if they found appropriate long underwear anywhere nearby. I think we ended up wrapping him as best we could between each take.) Each shot seems poignant, and the close-ups of his eyes not only echo his father's eyes, but show their deep, sobering hurt.

The final shot when Dale Jr. "peels out," was a one-take wonder. The crew had placed bits of rubber and dirt under the rear tires for maximum effect. The showcar looked nice, but apparently didn't have a very sturdy transmission - which snapped during the first take. It seemed to be the highlight of the day for Dale Jr. as he seemed to get a lot of laughs out of the fluids and broken metal hanging beneath the car following the shot. Luckily, we were able to shoot the remainder of the spot with a stationary car. It meant it had to be pushed from spot to spot around the track as the shooting continued.

The commercial was shown only a few times (three or four at the most). It was aired during the race telecasts - always the first commercial to run after the green flag, and only once per telecast. It was an expensive proposition for Budweiser to create a commercial which would be seen so few times. The only way to tell it was a Budweiser ad were the legal credits which run at the bottom of the opening shot. It was a heartfelt and sincere effort to show support for Dale Jr. and honor his father. Seven years later, I think the tagline remains relevant: "His inspiration lives on."