Breakfast Cereal Mascots: Beloved and Bizarre

CBS News ^

[nickcarraway]

A 2011 article in Pediatrics magazine found that children who had been asked to taste a "new" cereal reported liking the same cereal more if there were a popular character depicted on the box. "The use of media characters on food packaging affects children's subjective taste assessment," the study concluded.

Little surprise, given the long history of breakfast cereal manufacturers marketing their wares with the help of colorful cartoon characters or figures already familiar from TV, movies and comic books.

The following gallery shows some of the more famous (and infamous) breakfast cereal mascots.

Left: Quisp, introduced in 1965 by Quaker Oats, was discontinued in the 1970s, but in recent years has returned to Earth via online outlets.

[Arthur McGowan]

What they don’t understand is the subjunctive.

Since they don’t understand it, they just look around, and if there is an “if” somewhere in the neighborhood, they say “were,” whether the subjunctive is correct or not.

The reason it’s not correct is that the statement is not contrary to fact. There WAS a popular cartoon character on the box!

[dfwgator]

[Paladin2]

"Breakfast Cereal Mascots"

They're GREAT!

[ConservativeStatement]

No, I have not. I love almonds so this has been my choice of late:

[dfwgator]

[dfwgator]

What you eating?

Nut and Honey.

[VeniVidiVici]

Wow! Go figure! Mean old advertising works!

[ConservativeStatement]

Cookie Crisp didn't make that list?

[RushIsMyTeddyBear]

Anyone remember the cereal called Kaboom (with the clown)? I loved that stuff.

[dfwgator]

Seriously, if I saw this when I was a kid, I would have been scarred for life.

[ConorMacNessa]

On seeing this thread I was instantly reminded of the iconic Wheaties box of my youth, featuring the Olympian pole vaulter Bob Richards. I just ran a search and could not find that box. I found some images of Bob Richards, but not of the famous box I remember from so many breakfasts during my boyhood in the 50's.



"Riamh nár dhruid ó sbairn lann!"

Genuflectimus non ad principem sed ad Principem Pacis!

Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. (Isaiah 49:1 KJV)

[RushIsMyTeddyBear]

I LOVED that stuff!!!

[Squawk 8888]

[fieldmarshaldj]

[Jack Hydrazine]

I wonder if they would do a study of burger joints and burger mascots?

[Kirkwood]

Forget the mascots. I loved sending away for great promotional toys like this one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEGtHxTEMAI

One of the coolest ones I got was an F-100 fighter that had spring loaded missles. I also got several different kinds of submarines and rockets.

[nickcarraway]

I don’t remember it, but check post 23.

[RushIsMyTeddyBear]

I still remember Bruce Jenner on it.