By. Jim Crooks
Narragansett Beer has been racking up screen credits for the past 35 years in everything from Hollywood blockbusters to long running TV series to ones that only lasted a few episodes (remember Cavemen?). In fact, we should probably have our own Screen Actors Guild card by now. While we’re busy lobbying for that, here’s a short list of Gansett’s more prominent film and TV roles in chronological order...
Jaws - 1975 - Steven Speilberg’s breakout 2nd film (bonus points if you can name his first film) about 3 members of the fictitious New England small town of Amity who set out to stop a shark that has been terrorizing the community in the surrounding waters. Narragansett Beer plays itself as the favored beer of local fisherman Captain Quint. One of the iconic scenes in the movie occurs when Quint attempts to intimidate the marine biologist played by Richard Dreyfus by crushing his empty can of Narragansett in the scientist’s face. No actual full cans of Gansett were harmed during the filming of this movie, however, many were likely consumed.
Cheers - 1983 - Season 2 / Episode 24 "Little Sister Don’t Cha" - Carla orders "a couple a Gansetts for the lovely couple over there" from Sam as she laments the fact that her latest pregnancy is dragging on beyond 9 months.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7agxF93e3U&feature=PlayList&p=7B9A95FCE4715D60&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=3
Outside Providence - 1999 - Peter Farrelly movie about a slacker from Pawtucket, RI named Jackie Dunphy growing up in the early 80’s. He gets into trouble with the law one too many times and gets sent off to prep school by his dad played by Alec Baldwin. Pops Dunphy likes to hang out in his easy chair and sling life lessons at his son while swigging from, you guessed it, his Narragansett 40oz "Giant Imperial Quart".
A Perfect Storm - 2000 - Narragansett only gets a reference in this New England film classic about an ill-fated Gloucester fishing boat that suares off against a once in a lifetime storm. One of the crew members is hanging out in the bar before the voyage and talks about Sully getting banged up on Gansetts and whiskey.
Brotherhood - 2006 - 2009 Rarely an episode goes by in this Showtime Original series where Gansett can’t be seen in one of the Providence bar scenes. In one memorable episode bottles of Gansetts are actually poured onto a group of private dancers at one characters birthday party, but we do not condone that application of our product...especially when the bottle still has beer left in it.