Brewery Art From the Land of Sky Blue Waters Up For Auction

Before there were the Budweiser Frogs or Stroh's Alex the Dog, there was the Hamm's Beer Bear. First launched in a black and white television commercial in 1952, the animated character hawked Hamm's beer from Minnesota, or as the spots said "from the land of sky blue waters."

An auction is scheduled for Feb. 15th in Medina, Minn., of nearly 100 drawings of the Beer Bear by Bill Stein, an illustrator for the St. Paul brewery. The work includes pencil sketches and finished drawings showing the famous Beer Bear in action. The auction will also put 20 other pieces of Hamm's memorabilia up for bid.

More information on the sale and the chance to bid online is available at www.schultzauctioneers.com.