Our Prince Will Come

After the Heidelberg mural disaster, Tacoma’s favorite ghost comes back to life.

You know the bad news: in May, workmen accidentally erased the beloved historic “Everybody Knows It’s Better Alt Heidelberg” beer ad from the side of the University of Washington Tacoma’s Joy Building by power-washing it. It was the best “ghost sign” in town. The Portland project architects for the restoration, who promised to find out what went wrong, did not return City Arts’ calls.

Fresh Prince: Karl Biber’s rediscovered 1930s brewery frieze in its original location. Courtesy of Gary E. Flynn

Heidelberg was Tacoma’s great gift to the beer world, and the ad featured its corporate symbol, the Student Prince, whose happy face blanketed the Northwest. The Student Prince was popularized by Sigmund Romberg’s 1924 operetta and Ernst Lubitsch’s 1927 film about suds-loving German students. Northwest students used to croon its tunes “Gaudeamus igitur” and “Drink! Drink! Drink!”

But the missing Prince is back. Michael Sullivan, Tacoma’s prince of historic preservation, reports that a much better relic of the Alt Heidelberg Prince has been found. “It’s a carved sandstone portrait,” says Sullivan, “a bas-relief carving that was above the entry of the brewery. Basically it’s similar to the wall sign that was lost.” The News Tribune reported that it had likely been sold, but the piece is not gone: it turns out the owner had just taken it down to preserve it.

“It’s considered to be the last remaining image of the Student Prince in Tacoma,” says UWT spokesman Mike Wark. “We were heartbroken that the ghost had been lost. I think we could find a way to protect the Prince [carving] and still make it visible to the public. We’re excited about the concept, but it’s a concept at this point.” Probably funds would have to be raised to install the Prince.

Our guess: he’ll be back. That calls for a drink. Gaudeamus! •