“KIRIN LAGER BEER × HARRISON FORD” (1993) – ORIGINAL JAPANESE B2 ADVERTISING POSTER – “MR. BEER” CAMPAIGN (STORE‑USE / 非売品)
Extremely Rare | In‑Store Display (Not for Sale) | First Issue 1993 | 51 × 73 cm (B2)
This is an original Japanese B2 poster printed in 1993 for Kirin Lager Beer’s nationwide “Mr. Beer” campaign starring Harrison Ford. Kirin Lager is one of Japan’s oldest beer brands (first marketed in 1888; Kirin Brewery founded 1907), and beer demand exploded through Japan’s post‑war boom—context for the brand’s ’90s dominance.
Japan‑only design & credit
Agency/photographer are uncredited (typical for ’90s store POP), but the sheet is a true store‑use, non‑retail poster (非売品)—the very material displayed in convenience stores and liquor shops. Comparable Kirin in‑store items are still catalogued domestically as 店頭用／非売品.
Poster design (what you see here)
A bright studio white sets the ’90s tone: Harrison Ford embraces an oversize Kirin Lager bottle, with the vertical headline 「キリンラガービール、日本一、ください。」 (“Kirin Lager Beer, Japan’s No.1—please.”). Bottom right reads 「ミスター・ビール。キリンラガービール」 beside a can pack‑shot; legal line notes Kirin Lager’s 1993 No.1 sales claim. Clean, witty, and instantly nostalgic.
Beer & celebrity in Japan
Kirin’s heritage stretches back to the Japan Brewery Company (1885) and the launch of German‑style lager under the Kirin name in 1888; Kirin Lager remains a flagship label.
Japan has long embraced celebrity endorsements: a study found 47% of Japanese TV ads in 1998 used celebrities (vs. 20% in the U.S.), a phenomenon playfully echoed by Lost in Translation’s “Suntory Time” (and yes—Sean Connery really fronted Suntory ads).
Ford’s own Kirin Lager Beer commercials ran in the early ’90s—the same era as this poster—cementing this campaign’s pop‑culture pedigree.
About the B2 format (size & rarity)
Japanese theatrical/advertising posters commonly use B2 (approx. 51 × 73 cm). While ubiquitous in cinemas, brewery POP posters were printed for short store runs and not sold—survivors in top condition are scarce.
Why this example is extraordinary (rarity & market)
’90s beer POP was handled hard and discarded after campaigns. Finding this Harrison Ford sheet unused and mint is exceptional—especially with the full “Mr. Beer” copy, massive bottle visual, and period micro‑text intact.
Condition
Mint/Unused. Rolled; vivid color; clean margins; no folds; only the slightest handling visible under raking light. Please review our detailed images.
It is over 30 years old.
It is not a reproduction or a reprint.
Certificate of Authenticity included.
A rare, nostalgia‑rich 1993 Kirin Lager poster starring Harrison Ford—a pristine, store‑use (非売品) survivor that captures Japan’s golden age of beer advertising and the enduring appeal of Hollywood stars in Japanese campaigns.
