VLAD DIGS THE MONSTER CEREALS

1973 NEWSPAPER ARTICLE ABOUT BOO BERRY AND MARKET RESEARCH

I've always been a fan of General Mills Monster Cereals for as long as I can remember and Boo Berry has always been my favorite of the gang. Below is an article I found about the intro of Boo and some of the market research that went into developing the famous cereal. Click on the article to go big for easier reading.

Back during in 2007, I shared an article about Boo Berry from the pages of Famous Monsters of Filmland. Here's the same article once again.

TASTE TESTING THE MONSTER CEREALS OF 2013

Fall of 2013 will always be remembered as the season of Monster Cereals! Cereal aficionados and monster fanatics were treated with the return of two dearly departed cereal mascots and a collection of retro boxes. Back in September, I thought I was dreaming when I walked into my local Target store and saw the display of retro Monster Cereals!    

A few weeks earlier, I heard about Fruit Brute, (now spelled Frute Brute) and Fruity Yummy Mummy returning to cereal aisles in modern style boxes. Soon after that report, the news hit that retro boxes were coming to Target. The kids over at CerealBits.com have been hoping for retro monster cereal boxes for years, ever since Target started producing exclusive retro boxes for General Mills and Kellogg's. Here's the official announcement for the boxes on the General Mills blog. I posted about my Monster Cereals excitement on 9/7, but neglected to add a taste test to the post. Well...today is that day! 

Really, does the taste of these cereals actually matter? Of course not! I'd buy these boxes if they were on the shelves empty. But none the less, I'll try my best to be a cereal critic. 

Back in the 1970s and 80s, Frute Brute used to be fruity and pretty much tasted like Trix, with marshmallow bits. Today, the werewolf with the technicolor overalls howls for a cherry flavored cereal. The first spoonful was just okay, but nothing too exciting. The cereal did get a little better as I finished the bowl, but overall, I'd probably skip buying Frute Brute if it was packaged as something else. (As you'll see below; this cereal really works better as a mix-in.)   

Even though I never tasted this back in the day, I understand that Fruity Yummy Mummy was pretty much the same as Fruit Brute. In 2013, the cereal is orange cream flavored. Oh yeah, this flavor works and tastes like an orange creamsicle. I found out it tastes even better when the milk is really really ice cold. I like the Frute Brute character better than FYM, but on taste alone, I'd pick this over Brute any day!  

Boo Berry was always my favorite tasting monster cereal and I haven't had a bowl in years. I was anxious to try my favorite again. What the heck, Boo? You've changed. It's like I don't even know you anymore. Oh man, I hate to be critical, but Boo Berry has turned into Boo Berry Bland! Maybe this was a bad crop year for boo berries, but this cereal is missing that sweet Boo Berry pow flavor like before. 

Boo did redeem himself a little bit when I gave him a second chance at my grandma's house. Retro Boo Berry does taste better in a kitchen that hasn't changed much since the 1970s.

As a kid, I was always a fan of strawberry milk and Franken Berry was the best of both worlds. This modern version of the cereal is okay, but like Boo it seems to be missing something. I guess as a 70s & 80s kid, I require more sugar. Frank just isn't as sweet as he used to be. 

Ah, Count Chocula; the go to chocolate cereal. Always in my opinion the perfect chocolate cereal. Hmm...not so much anymore. I will need to compare it to some of the other chocolate cereals out there, but the good Count just didn't seem to be as chocolaty as before. Ooh...I know how to fix that! Pour some chocolate milk on it!

Yep, that's the ticket! Mmm...now Count Chocula tastes almost like it did back in the day! (I should have done the same thing with Franken Berry and poured on strawberry milk.)  

Now here's a discovery that works well and that's mixing Frute Brute and Count Chocula in a bowl. If you like chocolate covered cherries then this is a fun option that's actually really tasty. Ooh! Maybe General Mills can invent a new character for a new cereal. How 'bout a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde character for a cherry chocolate flavored cereal?

Apparently I went all mad scientist for my last monster cereal taste test when I mixed all five cereals in a bowl. Not bad, not bad at all. Not sure why, but I could taste the flavors even more. As a bonus, the milk was kind of gross looking, so that was fun.

Overall, I've come to the conclusion that you just can't go back and that these cereals are best left for the kids of this era. (The kids can enjoy the cereal and us big kids at heart can enjoy the nostalgic boxes.)

Once again, a Big G thanks to General Mills for keeping these fun characters alive for new and old generations! Oh, and one more thing. Could you please add more marshmallow bits to the cereal. Thank you! That is all.

RETRO MONSTER CEREALS AT TARGET: THEY'RE HERE

At Target today, I bumped into some old pals in the Halloween aisle! Yep, I found the new retro Monster Cereals and man was it a glorious sight to behold. For a cereal enthusiast/box collector like me, I had to stand there and gawk at the display. It was like I was standing in front of the Mona Lisa in awe. Right there in Target, my childhood was on display!

Count Chocula probably visited my childhood breakfast table the most. Nice to see him again in his definitive form.

Franken Berry always had the best looking box and is my favorite of this retro bunch.

Boo Berry was always my favorite tasting Monster Cereal. Looking at this box, I can hear the Peter Lorre style voice.  

Frute Brute returns from extinction three decades later and has dropped the letter I from his name. 

Fruity Yummy Mummy showed up in the late 80s and disappeared in the early 90s. Glad he's returned to join his friends!

A Big G thanks to General Mills for reintroducing Frute Brute & Fruity Yummy Mummy and releasing retro boxes of the Monster Cereals.

Now I can't wait for breakfast!

---Update---
Click here for my taste test of the Monster Cereals!

WITH THIS SUPERMAN CRUSADER RING, I'M A MEMBER OF SUPERMAN'S GANG

Great Scott! The other day, I felt like a 1940s kid when my Superman Crusader ring came in the mail from Hake's Americana and Collectibles!

Way back in the fall of 1946, kids had to mail in a thin dime and one Kellogg's Pep cereal boxtop to get a Superman Crusader ring. In 2013, this big kid didn't need any boxtops, but instead just the winning bid in Hake's auction #208. The good folks over at Hake's made available a $100 shopping spree to two lucky members of the League of Extraordinary Bloggers. (Click here to visit my Hake's LOEB post with updates.) I was one of the lucky winners and used my Hake's credit to pick up this swell ring. 

Instead of waiting for weeks and weeks like some poor kid had to do in 1946, my Superman ring dropped in my mailbox only a few business days after the auction. The original ring from Kellogg's was shipped to kids in a stiff envelope. (View the original mailer in a 2012 Hake's auction.) My ring was protected much better and was shipped safely in a heavy duty box. I've been aware of Hake's for a long time and have enjoyed their price guides, but this was the first time I've ever participated in one of their auctions. It was a breeze dealing with Hake's and their bidding system is smooth and easy. I had my eye on a lot of cool items that ended out of my reach, but it was still fun and exciting to watch. Plus the Superman ring fits in nicely with my small radio/comic character premium collection.  

A fun fact about the Superman Crusader ring is that it was written into the Adventures of Superman radio show. In the episode Counterfeit Money that aired from 10-17-46 to 11-5-46, the Crusader ring is featured prominently in the episode. As a member of Superman's Crusader gang, the ring is a symbol of good citizenship, tolerance and good sportsmanship. The commercial for the Crusader ring offer premiered in episode eight of Counterfeit Money.

One last big thanks to Hake's Americana and Brian from Cool & Collected! Okay, I gotta run because Superman needs my help. Whew! Now that I'm a member of Superman's Crusader gang, I'm so busy fighting off no-gooders. Up up and away!

FOUND PHOTO: G.I. WITH A BOX OF KIX CEREAL

Today's Found Photo post is dedicated to all the veterans! Thank you for all that you do and Happy Veterans Day!

In this found photo we have a G.I. acting silly for the camera. He's ready to eat a big bucket of Kix cereal!

Here's a magazine advertisement showing the same Kix box from a 1944 issue of Saturday Evening Post. This ad comes from the amazing Flickr archive of Wishbook.

Here's another snap taken before he got the milk for his cereal!

RIP JACKIE END: THE CREATOR OF FREAKIES CEREAL

I was sad to hear about the passing of Jackie End, the creator of Freakies cereal. She was an amazing talent that helped shape a generation of kids through her various advertising creations throughout the 1970s. (Visit Freakies.com for a special message about Jackie from the Freakies.)

Here's the award winning first Freakies commercial.

I have fond memories of eating Freakies cereal and playing with the Freakies cars and figures. Most of my jeans were covered in the patches like the one seen above. Jackie's crazy characters from Freakies and from her other cereals, really had an impact on my imagination.  

Unfortunately, I never had the chance to meet Jackie, but was introduced to her in the pages of Kevin Meisner's 1990s cereal fanzine, The Freakie Magnet. Click here for a PDF of FM #2 and scroll down to page 10 for Jackie's article, The Real Freakies. 

In three parts, here's a video interview with Jackie produced by Kevin back during The Freakie Magnet days.

Besides her work for Ralston cereal, she has a large resume in the world of advertising. Here's a classic commercial for Safeguard soap that was written by Jackie and stars Tom Selleck.

Another childhood favorite created by Jackie is the Bic Banana crayons and pens campaign. Watch this over the top and funny commercial starring Charles Nelson Reilly.

Jackie was a true ad wizard and continued to create quality advertising work!

Click here to read Jackie's obituary from the New York Times.

Thanks Jackie for creating so many wonderful characters!

Rest in peace.

CELEBRATING 30 YEARS OF TRON WITH A BOX OF CEREAL

Thirty years ago today, Walt Disney's Tron premiered in movie theaters. To help celebrate, here's one of my favorite items from my Tron collection. It's the elusive Tron Mini Flying Disc Shreddies cereal box. This box was only available in Canada, making this a hard box to find for us USA kids. My good pal and fellow cereal box collector Jason Liebig, the CollectingCandy.com guy, surprised me with this box a couple of years ago. Here's Jason's hi-res scan from his flickr archive. (Click on the box for a closer look.)

Jason also included the complete set of Mini Flying Discs and I've scanned these below.

Hopefully Tron will continue to play frisbee for another thirty years! Happy Birthday Tron!!

CROONCHY STARS CEREAL

Bork! Bork! Bork! Back in 1988, Post cereals released Croonchy Stars with a famous celebrity chef, The Swedish Chef! The actual cereal was less than appetizing, but the box was one of the best boxes to grace the cereal aisle.

Jim Henson's fingerprints are all over the box especially with the silly gags on the back. It was the perfect box to read while you ate your cereal. Check out this post from Jim Henson's Red Book about Croonchy Stars here and then a Croonchy morsel can be found in this Red Book entry here.

As a cereal box collector, this is one of my favorite boxes in my collection. Take a look at Jason's two boxes from his collection here and here. Next, head over to view the neato send away doll that Gregg has shared here and here.

Now let's watch that wacky Swedish Chef cook up a batch of his Croonchy Stars cereal!

KELLOGG'S CORN FLAKES SNOZALOONYS MASK AD

From my collection of cereal newspaper ads, is this mid-1950's Kellogg's Corn Flakes Snozaloonys mask ad. Now this is one crazy ad!

KELLOGG'S CEREAL SNACK-PAK AD FROM THE MID 1950'S

"Hey, that's not fair 50's kids! It's just not fair that you got cereal snack-paks in your trick or treat bags when us 70's kids only got apples with razor blades."

CATCH THE NEW ISSUE OF PLANET-Q: THE SUGAR-CHARGED 'ZINE

The newest issue of Robb Zenner’s fantastic cereal and pop culture magazine, Planet-Q is out and is ready for purchase! Just like the past four issues, number five packs a mean pop culture punch in the classic fanzine fashion.


Thirty-eight pages in glorious black & white will entertain and educate the reader about a fun variety of topics. As shown on the color cover, the ‘zine’s main feature is a ten-page history behind the short lived 1970's Ralston cereal, Grins & Smiles & Giggles & Laughs. (One of my favorite cereals from childhood!) Plus you get an interview with animator Dean Yeagle talking about his involvement with Ralston’s animated cereal commercials including Freakies and G&S&G&L.

7-11 Slurpee cup collectors will be happy to know that there’s a three-page checklist gallery of Rock musical performers cups from 1976!

Yours truly has an article about good ol’ Stretch Armstrong and Stretch Monster.

Big time collector Gregg Koenig is interviewed about his cereal and pop culture collection.

As a cereal box & prize collector myself - I really enjoy hearing about other collector’s finds and success stories. Robb devotes a few pages to some amazing discoveries in the cereal collecting hobby, picturing many never before seen boxes.

Mikal Vollmer, of Topher’s Castle fame returns with his Magic Q Ball article predicting which current cereal boxes in grocery store shelves will remain collectible years later.

The ‘zine ends with a letters page and Q’s News.

For information how to get your very own copy, click here. Robb also sells excellent reproduction cereal boxes with hundreds of classic boxes to choose from. Info can be found here or in this current issue of Planet-Q.

For more info on the cereal collecting hobby, please check out these websites -
CerealBits.com
The Boxtop
Topher's Breakfast Cereal Character Guide
The Imaginary World Cereal Box Archive
Sugar Frosted Cereal Museum
Honey Frosted Cereal Museum

CAPTAIN CHOCO'S CEREAL

Who remembers Captain Choco’s Cereal? If you didn’t shop at Save-A-Lot stores in the 1990's chances are you don’t know Captain Choco. Luckily I managed to save a couple of boxes.


Distributed by Moran Foods, Captain Choco appeared on the cereal shelf sometime in the mid-90's. This box is from 1995. Captain Choco looks like he could be the third cousin twice removed of another square jawed hero popular on kid’s TV at the time. “Hey Captain Choco, the Tick is calling and he wants his chin back.”

Even tho he might be a bit of a rip-off, that’s ok - I still like the big lug. Hey, anyone who has a cool looking ray gun that shoots out chocolate is ok in my book!

On the back of every box you got one episode of Captain Choco’s Cereal Serial in comic book form along with the players introduced on the side panel.

First, here’s the serial players and then followed by the two serial episodes. Don't forget to click the images for easier viewing.






This second episode didn’t start showing up on the back of boxes until 1999. Looks like the Captain lost his comb, but he did find a new Choco Board to help him defeat the Chocodon.

Unfortunately, these were the only two episodes that I ever found and I wonder if any more were ever created.

A smaller single serving box showed up in a variety pack sans the comic serial.


I guess being a cereal mascot was not enough for the captain, so he started hocking this -


Yeah, that’s the stuff, Captain Choco’s Chocolate Flavored Drink-Mix!

In the early 2000's Captain Choco turned in his Choco gun and Choco board and retired from the store shelves. Rumor has it that he returned a few years ago trying to sell his cereal in a bag.

Wherever you are Captain Choco, I just want to let you know that you are missed by your many adoring fans? Ooh, maybe I shouldn’t use the word many, but instead say you are missed by a few adoring fans. Hmm... ok. You’re probably missed by just one adoring fan, me. Hey, at least that’s better than none. Right? Keep that chocolate chin up!