February 3, 2013, was a memorable day for American football fans. Many surprising and amazing things happened when “The Harbaugh Bowl” took the spotlight that day. A power outage suspended over thirty minutes of play, and the 49ers got defeated by the Ravens during Super Bowl XLVII. Of course, it was also the day when an unexpected Super Bowl commercial titled “So God Made a Farmer” suddenly broke America.
Yes, it was the time when Dodge stunned an estimated 108 million viewers with their powerful commercial called “So God Made a Farmer.” For two minutes straight, the millions of people watching the event sat silently, listening to a touching speech about the generations of hard-working American farmers.
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The now legendary commercial features an inspiring narration from Paul Harvey, a legendary and beloved broadcaster who passed away in 2009. “So God Made a Farmer” was Harvey’s speech during the Future Farmers of America Convention in 1978.
The original speech got published in 1986 in Harvey’s syndicated column. That said, the one used in the commercial also contained phrases from Harvey’s article in 1975 for the Gadsden Times.
In the commercial, Harvey speaks over a captivating collection of documentary-style photographs of the farming industry through the years. All of the photos exhibit the hard-working farmers and ranchers of America, as well as the struggles and challenges they face daily.
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The commercial clearly illustrates how devoted farmers are to their line of work. It also shows how loyal and sensitive they are towards their community and family. It was an inspiring and humbling commercial to watch. It deserved all the respect it received from the millions of people watching that day.
So, how did the American farmers react to the “So God Made a Farmer” ad? Well, despite the commercial using what many would consider outdated images for an era of high-tech and large farms, the farmers were happy to see it.
They couldn’t contain their joy at the overwhelmingly positive portrayal of what they do in front of an estimated 108 million viewers. Other than that, the commercial also garnered around 4.6 million views on YouTube.
On top of raising awareness about the farmers’ lives and advertising the Dodge Ram, the commercial also benefited the Indianapolis-based National FFA Organization. The organization received a donation each time the commercial got shared or downloaded.
According to the online farm magazine, Agri-Pulse, the goal of that drive was to raise $1 million for the FFA. People can still see the legendary commercial today. It’s still up on the Ram Truck Site and YouTube.
Although years have passed since the “So God Made a Farmer” commercial stunned Americans, its message still rings true up to this day. No one could have imagined what happened that day. A mere commercial could captivate and inspire a nation. All because of the passion, truth, and value of its message.
Want to see the legendary commercial for yourself? Well, you can do so by clicking the video below.
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