Miller apologizes for its logo on poster parodying 'The Last Supper'

Published: 2007-10-29

SAN FRANCISCO (CNS) -- Milwaukee-based Miller Brewing Co. has issued a formal apology for "the offense caused by the use of Miller brand logos on a poster promoting the Folsom Street Fair in San Francisco with an irreverent take on Leonardo da Vinci's "The Last Supper." In an Oct. 26 statement the company said it completed "an exhaustive audit of its marketing procedures for approving local marketing and sales sponsorships" and will tighten "compliance procedures" to ensure such an incident will not happen again. The New York-based Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights and other Christian groups expressed outrage over the poster, which had what critics described as a sadomasochistic theme. It carried the Miller trademark as well as those of other sponsors of the Sept. 30 event. A center figure in the poster is a muscled, shirtless man flanked by men and women in leather fetishistic garb, some in flowing wigs and in poses echoing da Vinci's mural. The table is strewn with sex toys. In an Oct. 29 statement, the Catholic League, which has called for a boycott of Miller products, said the apology was inadequate because it is limited to the use of its logo, and was not an apology "for the anti-Catholic nature of the event itself." The league has said it would drop the boycott if the company "pledges not to sponsor another anti-Catholic event." The league said its objections go beyond the poster, repeating its criticism that "sacred symbols were sold as sex toys at the Miller-sponsored event."

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