Sam Adams: Politician or Beer?
City Commissioner and candidate for Portland Mayor Sam Adams has hit a bewildering bump in his campaign.
From the Oregonian:
A fermenting beer brawl pits Boston's Samuel Adams (brewer, patriot) against Portland's Sam Adams (bicyclist, politician).When Mayor Tom Potter said he wouldn't seek re-election last month, City Commissioner Sam Adams became the likely mayoral heir. Enterprising KEX radio hosts Mark Mason and Dave Anderson registered the Web addresses www.samadamsformayor.com and www.mayorsamadams.com, promising to give Adams those if he discussed his political future on their show. He did.
Everything was swell until last week, when Anderson got a letter from The Boston Beer Co.
"Boston Beer has used the trademarks SAM ADAMS\STRIP and SAMUEL ADAMS\STRIP since 1984," said the letter, which asked Anderson to give up the Web sites.
Portland's Sam Adams is amused and a bit concerned: His campaign staff consulted lawyers Tuesday. The slogan "Sam Adams for Portland Mayor" is already on his Web site (www.samforpdx.com) and soon may grace yard signs and bumper stickers.
"They say they've been using this trademark since 1984," Adams said. "I've been using it since 1963."
Boston Beer says it's all just a big misunderstanding:
Boston Beer's Helen Bornemann said she didn't know there was a real Sam Adams running for mayor when she sent the letter. The brewery has previously run "Sam Adams for President" marketing campaigns, she said, and feared someone was ripping them off. Bornemann said she's willing to discuss Adams' use of the Web sites "probably for the length of the time the election is being held."The radio hosts have taken the fight on-air, even broadcasting the sound of a listener pouring Sam Adams beer in the toilet.
"These big corporations have got to stop bullying people around," Anderson said.
Read the rest. Isn't that nice, Boston Beer is willing to entertain the possibility of Sam Adams using his own name in a website for the length of the Mayoral campaign.
Discuss.
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Oct. 24, 2007
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10:27 a.m.
Oct 24, '07
Hmmm.... It's gotta make 'em crazy - the notion that Sam Adams could be the Mayor of Beertown, and it'd have nothing to do with them or their Boston beer.
Of course, if Asa Lovejoy had won that coin flip, Sam could be the next mayor of Boston, Oregon. That would have really made the Boston (MA) Beer Company people crazy.
Oct 24, '07
That's it! Sam needs to change his name. Sorry Sam. Your name was copy-written already.
Adam Sam is available. How about that? The ballots have not been printed yet. You still have time! :)
10:52 a.m.
Oct 24, '07
Of course, if Asa Lovejoy had won that coin flip, Sam could be the next mayor of Boston, Oregon.
Whoo-boy, that'd be funny.
This is one of those occasions when Boston Beer--who appropriated a historical name--needs to graciously back off. There are two ways it can turn out: a PR catastrophe for the company, or an amusing coincidence that gets some nice press for awhile before disappearing.
10:57 a.m.
Oct 24, '07
Someone needs to get on the stick and brew up a cask of Asa Lovejoy Lager.
With a name like Lovejoy, it's gotta be good. Although perhaps that wouldn't be the best slogan to use.
Oct 24, '07
In reviewing the letter Mark & Dave posted on their page at KEX, I notice that the letter was addressed to "David Andeson". I do believe that his last name is "Anderson", which, if we go by the naming standard Samuel Adams Brewery has for trademark infringment, has been addressed to the wrong person.
Sorry, no Dave Andeson here (it's not a mistake, they did it every time they used his last name). Swing and...whiff...
Samuel John Klein, approximately 33 percent at risk of suit by Samuel Adams Brewing.
11:16 a.m.
Oct 24, '07
This is one of those occasions when Boston Beer--who appropriated a historical name--needs to graciously back off.
Yes, isn't that rather amusing? Unless they've got some original connection to Sam Adams - the brewer and patriot - it seems more than a bit ironic that they'd be throwing around allegations of people ripping off the name.
Oct 24, '07
I think this is just funny. If Sam wants to make hay out of it, I bet he could get some fun national exposure. I can hear Jeannie Moos narrating already.
Oct 24, '07
By the way, the title of this post sounds like a good poll question.
11:46 a.m.
Oct 24, '07
Oh, another wrinkle... Interesting that the Mayor of Boston, Tom Menino, just made a World Series bet with the Mayor of Denver, John Hickenlooper, and didn't bother including any of that Boston Beer.
Then again, maybe he knows he'd lose in any beer comparison. Mayor Hickenlooper actually is a brewer and a patriot. (He's the founder of Denver's excellent Wynkoop Brewing. Imagine! A barkeep elected mayor of a major American city! Oh wait, nevermind.)
12:06 p.m.
Oct 24, '07
Okay, Kari, now you've GONE TOO FAR. It's all fun and games until someone starts badmouthing my beloved Sox. I have tried to be generous-spirited with your SC loyalties, but back off my Sox.
However, I think there's a great opportunity here for Sam. I'd be happy to teach him how to brew beer. You see where I'm going with this, right? Mayoral candidates with connections to the people's drink have fared pretty well in Portland.
Sam Adams: brewer, patriot. You could do worse as a campaign slogan.
Oct 24, '07
Why would anyone, under any circumstances, in a city like Portland with its wonderful local breweries as well as store shelves lined with much of the rest of the world’s beer, drink swill like Sam Adams?
Here’s a campaign slogan:
Sam Adams: Great Mayor, Lousy Beer.
12:24 p.m.
Oct 24, '07
Good thing Portland has at least a dozen breweries that make considerably better beer than Sam Adams (the company...I have no sources on quality of homebrew that the commissioner may or may not make).
Portland should just challenge Boston to a brew-off for the rights to the trademark.
Oct 24, '07
There's already a movement to boycott the Boston Beer Company. See here, here, and here.
Oct 24, '07
When I was running for council, my supporters were dubbed "Listerines". I was hoping Proctor and Gamble would snark about copyright infringement; it would have been great publicity.
(It might not be Proctor and Gamble, but you get the gist.)
Oct 24, '07
You'd expect with such a long history Boston would have better beer and more World Series wins.
Oct 24, '07
Kari:
Where's the full disclsoure after this statement?:
"He's the founder of Denver's excellent Wynkoop Brewing."
Either you will need to explain this coincidnece to your devoted blog readers or I may have to bring this full circle and contact Wynkoop Brewing to explain they may have a claim against a certain Wynkoop connected to Blue Oregon who is using their trademarked beer name here in Portland. Best to her by the way - Scott Shorr
1:30 p.m.
Oct 24, '07
Our Sam should hold firm. He is engaged in the most highly protected form of political speech (which enjoys significantly more First Amendment protection than commercial speech, i.e. the kind Boston Beer Company is engaging in) and no reasonable person could be misled into thinking he was promoting a Massachusetts beer brand. He should not enter into any kind of settlement or other "agreement" with them that restricts his ability to use his name.
For example, if he becomes Mayor, he may want to make public statements promoting and supporting local beers, which is the kind of thing mayors do all the time for local products, and he needs to make sure he isn't prevented from doing so.
1:42 p.m.
Oct 24, '07
Ah, yet another reason to buy local brew. Poor us. If we only had some to choose from...
Maybe we can revive the discussion about the beer tax, only this time apply it only to Sam Adams (beer, that is).
Oct 24, '07
I've been boycotting Sam Adams beer for years now; I'm protesting the fact that it's terrible.
Holly has the best point. Perhaps Commissioner Adams should sue Boston Beer for besmirching his good name with their vile concoction.
2:54 p.m.
Oct 24, '07
I also think it's funny that they act as if they're being gracious in allowing him to use his own name for the length of the campaign.
Like he said, he's registered with that name a lot longer than they have.
Oct 24, '07
I looked up the email for the board of directors and sent the following message:
To the Board of Directors,
As a resident of Portland Oregon and formerly of Boston, and as a faithful consumer of your products since 1989, I would respectfully request that you cease your legal actions in regard to the Portland, Oregon campaign of Sam Adams for Mayor of our city. While you may have a claim to a trademark, as a mayoral candidate surely Mr. Adams has a reasonable claim to the use of his own name in campaigning on the web. There is very little likelihood of any resident of this city confusing our current city counsellor with your trade label or your product. He is well known here as a living person. Your product is well known here as a beverage. The two are not considered synonymous in Portland.
The address is: [email protected]
I think we should offer them some constructive criticism.
3:16 p.m.
Oct 24, '07
Okay, first of all, lay of the Sox, youse all.
Secondly, Boston Beer makes exceptional beer. Boston Lager's not a Oregon-style beer, but it's a fantastic lager. We don't get a huge amount of the beer they brew, but they make some of the most innovative beer in the country--and also some of the most traditional, like their Black Lager.
This doesn't mean they should be let off the hook for looking thuggish on this issue, but good beer's good beer.
3:27 p.m.
Oct 24, '07
One of our local brewers should really ruffle some feathers by brewing a special "Sam Adams Campaign Ale" or something. Put his name on a bottle as a campaign endorsement. The First Amendment debate would be dynamite.
Oct 24, '07
Sam should just love all the free media he'll get if the beer company continues to put up a fight. If they were smart they'd sponsor the campaign by donating free beer to the eventual campaign staffers (those 21 and older, of course).
11:20 p.m.
Oct 24, '07
Where's the full disclsoure after this statement?:
"He's the founder of Denver's excellent Wynkoop Brewing."
Either you will need to explain this coincidnece to your devoted blog readers or I may have to bring this full circle and contact Wynkoop Brewing to explain they may have a claim against a certain Wynkoop connected to Blue Oregon who is using their trademarked beer name here in Portland. Best to her by the way - Scott Shorr
Oh, Scott, how I wish that my wife... Carrie Wynkoop... were related to the Wynkoop Brewing people. I wish, I wish, I wish...
We were there a few years ago, and asked if - given her name - we might get a free beer or something. No, they told us, but we'd be welcome to buy a t-shirt or mug in the gift shop. It seems that lots of Wynkoops flock to the place trying to get free beer.
Ah well.
Oct 25, '07
This is the response I got to my complaint submitted to their website: "Thank you for getting in touch. This story has really taken on a life of its own, and we'd like to take a minute to give you a little background.
First, let me say that if City Councilor Sam Adams had registered a web site using his name, we would not have an issue with it. Of course, he has a right to use his name. Our namesake, the patriot Samuel Adams stood for public service and free speech, and we do too.
However, an individual named Dave Anderson registered two domain names: www.mayorsamadams.com and www.samadamsformayor.com. We could find no residential telephone listing for him at the address listed, so we wrote to him. There have been occasions in the past where people have attempted to use our name for commercial purposes, and this clearly is against the law. After he received our letter, we had a call from the legal department at Clear Channel and learned that Dave Anderson was a radio personality at Clear Channel's News radio 1190 KEX in Portland and that he had registered both domain names with the intent to give them to Councilor Sam Adams. Once we learned more about what was going on, we agreed that they could continue to use www.mayorsamadams.com. We asked them (and we thought we had their agreement) not to use www.samadamsformayor.com because it creates confusion on the Web.
While we understand that kicking up a controversy makes good radio, I hope you'll understand that it was never our intent to thwart the efforts of Councilor Sam Adams in his run for Mayor. We have no issue with him using his own name. A more extensive Google search on our part for “Sam Adams Mayor” was in order and might have turned up information about the race for Mayor in Portland before we sent off that letter.
We appreciate your taking the time to write to us and to give us a chance to explain how this all came about.
Sincerely,
Todd Bellomy
Consumer Relations Representative
The Boston Beer Company
www.samueladams.com"
Oct 25, '07
Universal Hub (A Boston Blog) has been following this too.
www.universalhub.com
Look under: Sam Adams faces revolt over Sam Adams
Oct 25, '07
Come visit http://samadamssucks.org to sign the petition sending Boston Beers a message that Mark and Dave should be able to keep those domain names.
9:17 p.m.
Oct 25, '07
Once we learned more about what was going on, we agreed that they could continue to use www.mayorsamadams.com. We asked them (and we thought we had their agreement) not to use www.samadamsformayor.com because it creates confusion on the Web.
Once again that response shows that they just don't get it. A person shouldn't have to get permission to use their name.
It doesn't create confusion. It may mean that the web site gets more hits than usual because some people may hit the site, only to realize that it's for a candidate in Portland and not a promo thing for beer. So what. They're not having to buy anything. They can click off at any time. And it in no way affects Sam Adams the beer.
I think people who get to the site will understand very quickly that they're on a site for a politician and not beer. There will be no confusion.
I feel sorry for anyone named Sam Adams around the country who decides to run for office.
Oct 26, '07
It makes it even more ridiculous because Sam Adams is such a common name. I can think of five other Sam Adamses, including me, who are at least somewhat in the public eye.
Oct 26, '07
The Revolution will be blogovised. The Boycott keeps rolling. If you agree with me that this is just freakin' ridiculous, come here: http://rustypdx.blogspot.com/search/label/Sam%20Adams%20Boycott
<h2>Grab the boycott picture, check out other sites discussing the topic, and make your voice heard.</h2>