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www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Thursday, January 30, 2014 | 8 A Looking back at the Super Bowl's modest and humble roots enough, the Championship Game. In retrospect, we should be glad they christened the game the Super Bowl; the alternative being oated at the time was The Big One. Seriously. Tickets for those early games went for as low as six dollars. Today, $600 might get you an obstructed view of a vendor up in the nose-bleed section. And even at six bucks, some of those games weren't sold out. The tide began to turn in 1969 when quarterback Joe Namath brashly guaranteed his New York Jets would upset the Baltimore Colts. And then Broadway Joe went out and delivered, giving the upstart AFL instant credibility and the giving the Super Bowl an injection of needed chutzpa. Since then, the game has gotten bigger every year. Which, for years, was not a bad thing -- I'm certainly not against growth, prosperity and progress. But in recent years I've begun to fear that The Big One may well have actually outgrown itself. To the point where the game has precious little hope of living up to the hype. To the point where it is in danger of being eclipsed by all this infernal hype, by ashy commercials and bloated halftime shows. Did you know the pre-game show for Sunday's big game starts... on Saturday? Indeed, if you masochistically subjected yourself to the entire pre-game preamble, by the time Sunday's kickoff eventually rolled around you'd be in a TV trance. You'd have watched an estimated 140 hours of coverage. And you'd probably know just how many nose hairs each quarterback has. In each nostril. Lucky you. Meanwhile, TV commercial spots for the game have been sold for upwards of $4 million. For 30 seconds. And the spots were sold out more than two months ago. Celebrities have been secured s we inch toward Sunday's Super Bowl game -- Super Bowl XLVIII, for those keeping score at home, in Roman numerals no less -- I can tell you two things with certainty: I can no longer handle the hype, and bigger is not always better. Kids, you may recall (or your grandparents may have told you), this hugely-hyped game actually has modest and humble roots. In 1967, the established National Football League (NFL) merged with the young American Football League and the new league's championship was born. For the rst two years it wasn't even called the Super Bowl, but, boringly That's Life Andy Juniper Guest Contributor to star in these ads: B-listers enlisted for at least $250,000; A-listers for more than a million. All ads will assuredly be replayed on YouTube and analyzed to death, much like the game itself. Don't get me wrong. I love football. And I love The Big One. But at the end of the last few Super Bowl games I found myself contemplating all this crazy coverage overkill for a game that takes around three hours to play and has, according to studies, about 11 minutes of actual action. I'm already dreading the water cooler conversation come Monday. Hey, did you see the Super Bowl? Oh yeah, I loved the ads, and Bruno Mars was out of this world. Yeah, but what about the game? -- Andy Juniper can be contacted at ajjuniper@ gmail.com, found on Facebook and Twitter . Audiology and Hearing Aid Centre NOISY WORKPLACE? HEARING SCIENCES Shop from 40 local vendors! JANUARY 11TH - APRIL 5TH SATURDAY 10 AM - 3 PM Join TERRA @ Home and local farmers at the TERRA @ Home Farmers'Market! Shop from 40 local vendors for farm fresh items, delicious baked goods and unique artisan goods. If you have spent your working life in noisy areas, you may be eligible for full coverage. Even if you are now retired, you may apply for benefits if your hearing was damaged due to long term noise exposure in the workplace. We are authorized vendors for WSIB, DVA, ADP, ODSP and NIHB. We are experienced in the application process with a very high success rate. The first step to better hearing is a hearing test. If you've forgotten what fair, professional service feels like, call us and prepare to be amazed! SATISFACTION GUARANTEED! Call (905) 465-3277 (EARS) to book your complimentary hearing test ($60 value, Age 55+) BRING THIS AD FOR A COMPLIMENTARY HEARING TEST ($60 VALUE. AGE 55+) MILTON LOCATION ONLY 12800 Britannia Rd. · (905) 876-4000 · www.terragreenhouses.com NEW OWNERSHIP: OAKVILLE 2419 Marine Drive OF ALL MAJOR BRANDS OF LIQUIDATORS MATTRESSES YOUR AUTHORIZED BURLINGTON SERTA MATTRESS DEALER 75 AS MUCH AS % REG. RETAIL BUY US! OFF THE BEST SLEEP OF YOUR LIFE FROM SHOP AROUND AND IS NOW AFFORDABLE! WE PAY THE HST 775 WOODVIEW RD., BURLINGTON OFF FAIRVIEW BEHIND METRO www.Rosehillmattressesandmore.com 905-632-3555