(DON THOMPSON / iNFOnews.ca)

OPINION

Americans know more about Canada and its people today than ever before. I didn’t think I’d ever write such a sentence, and have it be, you know, true.

You might ask, did the Biden Administration strike a blow in support of public education, and it’s working? That would be, no. Okay, you say, out of natural curiosity about someone other than themselves, millions of Americans spontaneously sought to expand their horizons. Again, that would be, no.

Americans today know more about Canadians because — drum roll in your mind — a 60-second commercial about things Canadians gave the world. Even the actors in the commercial seem surprised…no, bewildered…when things that Canadians by and large know…are announced as revelatory to most Americans.

The ad was for Crown Royal, a Canadian whiskey company. It aired across the United States during the Super Bowl, with Foo Fighters rockstar Dave Grohl thanking Canada for a number of its innovations. About 113 million Americans saw the commercial.

In addition to hockey, poutine, the paint roller, peanut butter, Hawaiian pizza and other Canadian treasures – the commercial honoured Canadian music and comedic icons like Joni Mitchell, Celine Dion, Oscar Petersen, Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara and Seth Rogen.

Of course, Canadians are still barred from seeing a large number of Super Bowl ads live during the game…but here in Florida, I’m telling you the ad was a hit. Before the ad aired, Crown Royal produced two teasers where Grohl named the wide-ranging innovations, but didn’t explain why they were related.

The rock legend also reveals a football fact…crediting Canadians for the earliest iteration of what later became America’s Game. “Yeah!” Grohl insists to an incredulous associate. “Look it up!” He didn’t mention it but basketball was invented in Springfield, MA, by Canadian-born…James Naismith. Who says education can’t be fun?

Crown Royal ran a few 30-second ads with Grohl on its YouTube channel with equally incredulous reactions to some of Canada’s lesser inventions…like the egg carton (a B.C. innovation by the way).

One of my favourite YouTube segments features Grohl in a studio with Mississauga-born guitarist Donna Grantis playing “Oh, Canada” reminiscent of Jimi Hendrix’s rendition of the “Star-Spangled Banner”.

Grohl stars in the campaign because the Foo Fighters are hot…again…headlining six musical festivals this year, including Harley-Davidson’s 120th Anniversary. Also, he has long professed a taste for Crown Royal.

All of this is good…Canada gets some well-deserved recognition and Americans who didn’t know very much about Canada gain a tiny sliver of knowledge that might possibly spark further curiosity.

Of course, the Crown Royal commercials barely scratch the surface of what defines Canada. Canadians also invented the telephone, the television camera, wireless radio, the electric organ, plexiglas, the snowblower and the zipper…none of which were mentioned in the commercials.

Of course, the Crown Royal Super Bowl commercial only had 60 seconds…and even with the YouTube extras…we can’t assume most Americans necessarily know about extraordinary Canadian athletes like Wayne Gretzky, Terry Fox, Steve Nash and Ferguson Jenkins.

The commercial mentions some fine Canadian actors, but not, for example, Donald Sutherland, William Shatner, Ryan Gosling, Jim Carey and Christopher Plummer. The commercial mentions great musicians, as well, but not Diana Krall, Gordon Lightfoot, The Guess Who, KD Lang, The Band, The Tragically Hip, Neil Young and David Foster.

And then there’s Frederick Banting, who gave the world insulin…he was the first of two dozen Canadian Nobel Prize winners.

I’ve never been one to buy into too many anecdotal references about Canadians by Americans or vice versa. Someone didn’t say, “you’re welcome” in response to your “thank you”? One…or even ten disappointing encounters…doesn’t mean you know a culture…or that you can even make a judgment about everyone who lives in that country.

There are 331 million people in the U.S. and regardless of how many times you go there…you can’t really “know” Americans. Likewise, I’ve been coming to Canada for 55 years…was stationed with the Canadian Air Force for two years…have been to nine provinces and two territories…but I haven’t met anywhere close to 38.5 million Canadians…so, I can’t say I really “know” Canadians.

My point…there’s too much to know…just be humble and enjoy the differences and similarities. As an American who always had a curiosity about Canada, it’s good to see a clever television commercial that actually educates. For many Americans, it’s a good start.

— Don Thompson, an American awaiting Canadian citizenship, lives in Vernon and in Florida. In a career that spans more than 40 years, Don has been a working journalist, a speechwriter and the CEO of an advertising and public relations firm. A passionate and compassionate man, he loves the written word as much as fine dinners with great wines.

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