Thursday, July 9, 2009

Stomps for the Stamps


Media Moment: Calgary Herald
Queen Related: Lyrics from WWRY used in political cartoon

This is an old one from the ’90s but I thought I’d dust it off and post it nonetheless. It’s a political cartoon that appeared in our local newspaper the day after our football team (“The Calgary Stampeders”) won the Grey Cup, Canada’s version of the Superbowl.

It’s one thing to attend a sporting event and hear We Will Rock You played as a means to kickstart home game excitement, but to see it referenced in the print media elevates it to a higher significance, in my opinion.

Obviously, the song is popular enough even amongst non-sporting enthusiasts that Vance Rodewalt, the cartoonist, was comfortable assuming that the newspaper’s readers would understand the reference.

In hindsight, any other sports anthem probably wouldn’t work in print form because the lyrics wouldn’t be descriptive enough to communicate a win. WWRY does, however, and between the song’s message and it's primal beat, it’s become a shared memory for millions around the world.

Photo: Calgary Herald/Vance Rodewalt

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