1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:02,559 Speaker 1: Guess what will what's that mango? So at our first 2 00:00:02,560 --> 00:00:04,960 Speaker 1: week in college, I remember being in line for breakfast 3 00:00:04,960 --> 00:00:07,720 Speaker 1: and and there was just this wall of amazing breakfast 4 00:00:07,720 --> 00:00:11,640 Speaker 1: cereals and we were, of course away from our parents 5 00:00:11,720 --> 00:00:15,280 Speaker 1: for the first time and being independent and responsible, and 6 00:00:15,680 --> 00:00:19,000 Speaker 1: so I piled my bowl high with Lucky Charms. I mean, 7 00:00:19,400 --> 00:00:21,400 Speaker 1: I think it was Lucky Charles, but whatever was the 8 00:00:21,440 --> 00:00:23,680 Speaker 1: most nutritious cereal out there. I love that when you 9 00:00:23,680 --> 00:00:26,439 Speaker 1: were finally like free from the overside of your parents, 10 00:00:26,480 --> 00:00:28,560 Speaker 1: like that was the first thing you did to express 11 00:00:28,600 --> 00:00:30,640 Speaker 1: your freedom, was like, get a big bowl of cereal. 12 00:00:30,680 --> 00:00:34,400 Speaker 1: But yes, I do remember that big, awesome wall of cereal. Yeah, 13 00:00:34,400 --> 00:00:36,479 Speaker 1: and the people we were with started making fun of 14 00:00:36,479 --> 00:00:39,920 Speaker 1: me for eating a kid cereal instead of musically or whatever. 15 00:00:40,040 --> 00:00:43,640 Speaker 1: And and right then the star basketball recruit Eldon Brand 16 00:00:43,680 --> 00:00:45,880 Speaker 1: walked up and got a bowl of the same thing, 17 00:00:46,200 --> 00:00:48,640 Speaker 1: and it was just pure silent and I felt like 18 00:00:48,760 --> 00:00:51,440 Speaker 1: such a trend setter. And I remember that that's when 19 00:00:51,479 --> 00:00:54,960 Speaker 1: you became the most popular kid on campus. And not 20 00:00:55,040 --> 00:00:57,600 Speaker 1: really but part of the reason I love breakfast cereals 21 00:00:57,680 --> 00:00:59,720 Speaker 1: so much. And you know, we used to have big 22 00:00:59,760 --> 00:01:01,960 Speaker 1: cereal parties that metal flaws where everyone would bring a 23 00:01:01,960 --> 00:01:04,880 Speaker 1: box in their favorite cereal. But uh, there's just such 24 00:01:04,880 --> 00:01:09,080 Speaker 1: a wonderful association with childhood and Saturday Morning cartoons, and 25 00:01:09,400 --> 00:01:12,080 Speaker 1: that's actually why we're talking about cereal today. Let's dig 26 00:01:12,080 --> 00:01:34,560 Speaker 1: in Ada. Their podcast listeners, Welcome to parts I'm genius, 27 00:01:34,560 --> 00:01:36,720 Speaker 1: I'm Will Pearson and as always I'm joined by my 28 00:01:36,760 --> 00:01:39,240 Speaker 1: good friend man Gesh Ticketer and the man on the 29 00:01:39,240 --> 00:01:42,160 Speaker 1: other side of the soundproof glass eating a big bowl 30 00:01:42,200 --> 00:01:45,160 Speaker 1: of frosted many weeks good choice today as our producer 31 00:01:45,240 --> 00:01:48,440 Speaker 1: Tristan McNeil. But today we're heading back to the grocery 32 00:01:48,440 --> 00:01:51,400 Speaker 1: all for a closer look at all things cereal, you know, 33 00:01:51,480 --> 00:01:55,240 Speaker 1: the most whimsical or nutritionally questionable at all of this, 34 00:01:55,400 --> 00:01:58,240 Speaker 1: at every part of a complete breakfast. And so we'll 35 00:01:58,240 --> 00:02:01,080 Speaker 1: dig into the weird stories and so rising facts behind 36 00:02:01,080 --> 00:02:03,440 Speaker 1: our favorite brands, as well as a few of the 37 00:02:03,800 --> 00:02:06,720 Speaker 1: lesser known breakfast cereals that time forgot. And then a 38 00:02:06,760 --> 00:02:09,079 Speaker 1: little bit later we'll be joined by Gave Fonseca. He's 39 00:02:09,080 --> 00:02:11,520 Speaker 1: a TV writer and he spent more than a decade 40 00:02:11,560 --> 00:02:15,360 Speaker 1: collecting childhood nostalgia in the form of vintage cereal boxes. 41 00:02:15,440 --> 00:02:18,240 Speaker 1: It's a fascinating collection. Yeah, and he's also the host 42 00:02:18,320 --> 00:02:21,560 Speaker 1: of this really fun YouTube series called cereal Time, which 43 00:02:21,600 --> 00:02:24,560 Speaker 1: is the series on the subject of breakfast cereal. I mean, 44 00:02:24,560 --> 00:02:25,880 Speaker 1: he's been doing it for a couple of years now, 45 00:02:25,880 --> 00:02:29,120 Speaker 1: so I'm super excited to just hear how he got started. Yeah. Well, well, 46 00:02:29,120 --> 00:02:32,040 Speaker 1: Gabs among the most devout of serial enthusiasts, but he's 47 00:02:32,120 --> 00:02:34,760 Speaker 1: definitely not alone in this. I mean, lots of people 48 00:02:34,919 --> 00:02:38,040 Speaker 1: love cereals, and in the hundred and fifty plus years 49 00:02:38,040 --> 00:02:40,840 Speaker 1: since it came onto the market, cold breakfast cereal has 50 00:02:40,840 --> 00:02:44,000 Speaker 1: become a staple for millions of people around the world. 51 00:02:44,040 --> 00:02:46,560 Speaker 1: And you know, strangely, this love affair got its start 52 00:02:46,600 --> 00:02:49,800 Speaker 1: in the late nineteenth century kind of as an accident. 53 00:02:49,880 --> 00:02:52,320 Speaker 1: You know. It was this invention of fundamentalist Christians who 54 00:02:52,360 --> 00:02:55,880 Speaker 1: were seeking to promote a healthy, sin free lifestyle. And 55 00:02:56,240 --> 00:02:58,440 Speaker 1: much of this is you know, stories that people have heard, 56 00:02:58,440 --> 00:03:01,520 Speaker 1: but it's still pretty interesting that the bland foods, as 57 00:03:01,560 --> 00:03:03,920 Speaker 1: you know, like toasted corn and oats, where they were 58 00:03:03,960 --> 00:03:07,600 Speaker 1: thought to help suppress sexual urges and prevent arousal. And 59 00:03:07,720 --> 00:03:10,240 Speaker 1: so this thinking led to the creation of a few 60 00:03:10,280 --> 00:03:13,960 Speaker 1: notable foods, including Graham crackers of course, but the one 61 00:03:14,000 --> 00:03:16,600 Speaker 1: that really caught on what the public was sereal. So 62 00:03:16,720 --> 00:03:19,960 Speaker 1: Dr John Harvey Kellogg, the superintendent of a sanitarium in 63 00:03:20,000 --> 00:03:23,359 Speaker 1: Battle Creek, Michigan, and his younger brother, Well, they stumbled 64 00:03:23,400 --> 00:03:26,560 Speaker 1: upon the recipe for what would ultimately become corn flakes. 65 00:03:27,080 --> 00:03:29,079 Speaker 1: After allowing some of the cooked wheat to sit out 66 00:03:29,120 --> 00:03:32,000 Speaker 1: for too long, the Kellogg's returned to find the wheat 67 00:03:32,000 --> 00:03:34,720 Speaker 1: had gone stale, but rather than toss it out as 68 00:03:34,760 --> 00:03:36,720 Speaker 1: you might think they would, they decided to roll it 69 00:03:36,760 --> 00:03:39,720 Speaker 1: out into thin flakes and then toast them. And the 70 00:03:39,800 --> 00:03:42,280 Speaker 1: corn flakes were a big hit with their patients, so 71 00:03:42,320 --> 00:03:45,760 Speaker 1: the Kelloggs decided to start marketing them to a broader public. Yeah, 72 00:03:45,760 --> 00:03:48,480 Speaker 1: and as interesting as that early history is, it's pretty 73 00:03:48,520 --> 00:03:51,000 Speaker 1: familiar by this point. So instead of going deep on 74 00:03:51,080 --> 00:03:55,440 Speaker 1: sanitariums and grape nuts, we're gonna focus mostly on the 75 00:03:55,480 --> 00:03:58,040 Speaker 1: second act of the serial story. That's the period from 76 00:03:58,040 --> 00:04:00,880 Speaker 1: about ninety to the early nine is when marketing to 77 00:04:01,000 --> 00:04:04,480 Speaker 1: children really took off and sugary cereals really began flooding 78 00:04:04,520 --> 00:04:08,280 Speaker 1: grocery store aisles. Well, before we dive into that colorful history, 79 00:04:08,320 --> 00:04:10,080 Speaker 1: I thought we could take a quick look at the 80 00:04:10,120 --> 00:04:12,880 Speaker 1: state of cereal today, you know, just by the numbers, 81 00:04:12,920 --> 00:04:15,960 Speaker 1: and it's amazing how far cereal has come from its 82 00:04:15,960 --> 00:04:19,400 Speaker 1: early years as this niche product to the mammoth industry 83 00:04:19,400 --> 00:04:22,040 Speaker 1: that it is now. So just looking at the US 84 00:04:22,160 --> 00:04:25,880 Speaker 1: market alone, the breakfast cereal industry now generates nearly ten 85 00:04:26,040 --> 00:04:29,039 Speaker 1: billion dollars in annual revenue. And that that's according to 86 00:04:29,200 --> 00:04:33,880 Speaker 1: mord Or Intelligence. Did you say word or intelligent like 87 00:04:33,960 --> 00:04:36,880 Speaker 1: a hobbit? It's kind of a jarring name if you're 88 00:04:36,880 --> 00:04:40,040 Speaker 1: a Lord of the rings fan. But it's just the coincidence, unfortunately. 89 00:04:40,080 --> 00:04:42,800 Speaker 1: But like I was saying, Americans lead the world and 90 00:04:42,880 --> 00:04:45,480 Speaker 1: serial consumption. It ranks fourth on the list of the 91 00:04:45,480 --> 00:04:49,400 Speaker 1: top ten package goods sold in the US, and of 92 00:04:49,400 --> 00:04:52,320 Speaker 1: American households by a box of cereal at least once 93 00:04:52,360 --> 00:04:55,320 Speaker 1: a year. And we're not the only ones who love it. Canada, 94 00:04:55,440 --> 00:04:58,559 Speaker 1: the UK, Australia, they all have sereal markets that rival 95 00:04:58,640 --> 00:05:01,239 Speaker 1: the size of our own, and in recent years cereal 96 00:05:01,279 --> 00:05:04,520 Speaker 1: has also gained in places like China and India and Brazil. 97 00:05:04,960 --> 00:05:07,880 Speaker 1: In fact, the breakfast cereal marketing industry brakes and about 98 00:05:07,880 --> 00:05:11,080 Speaker 1: thirty five billion dollars in revenue each year from the 99 00:05:11,120 --> 00:05:13,960 Speaker 1: foreign markets. So when I took my kids to India 100 00:05:14,040 --> 00:05:16,480 Speaker 1: last year, I remember waking up jet lag the first 101 00:05:16,560 --> 00:05:19,560 Speaker 1: day and they were already up watching cartoons and we're 102 00:05:19,560 --> 00:05:23,120 Speaker 1: wired on a bowl of chocos. We didn't have chacos 103 00:05:22,839 --> 00:05:26,120 Speaker 1: in all my years agoing to India though. We never 104 00:05:26,279 --> 00:05:28,479 Speaker 1: ate breakfast cereals and we never ate in from the TV. 105 00:05:28,640 --> 00:05:31,240 Speaker 1: So it was almost jarring to see this American experience 106 00:05:31,320 --> 00:05:34,520 Speaker 1: transplanted to India. But you know, sugar and grain is 107 00:05:34,560 --> 00:05:38,080 Speaker 1: obviously this winning combination, but I have seen a few 108 00:05:38,080 --> 00:05:41,120 Speaker 1: reports about sagging sales as more and more people opt for, 109 00:05:41,480 --> 00:05:45,520 Speaker 1: you know, either easier or healthier breakfast options, so pop 110 00:05:45,560 --> 00:05:48,320 Speaker 1: tarts or avocado toast, or you know, maybe a quick 111 00:05:48,320 --> 00:05:50,240 Speaker 1: trip to the drive through on the way to work. 112 00:05:50,279 --> 00:05:53,000 Speaker 1: And and of course there's this growing segment of the 113 00:05:53,000 --> 00:05:55,919 Speaker 1: population that just doesn't eat breakfast period. So when you 114 00:05:55,920 --> 00:05:58,479 Speaker 1: were listing those easier and healthier options and you said 115 00:05:58,520 --> 00:06:00,320 Speaker 1: pop tarts, which one of them, I guess that's the 116 00:06:00,360 --> 00:06:03,800 Speaker 1: easier option there, but they are delicious. Well. As big 117 00:06:03,839 --> 00:06:06,560 Speaker 1: as the cereal industry is today, there's no question that 118 00:06:06,600 --> 00:06:10,080 Speaker 1: it used to be bigger. According to NPR, serial consumption 119 00:06:10,120 --> 00:06:13,680 Speaker 1: peaked right around ninete I guess it was, and has 120 00:06:13,680 --> 00:06:17,640 Speaker 1: steadily gone downhill ever since, generally by a full percentage 121 00:06:17,640 --> 00:06:20,240 Speaker 1: point each year. And while the stuff you mentioned has 122 00:06:20,320 --> 00:06:23,120 Speaker 1: definitely played a part in that decline, it's really due 123 00:06:23,120 --> 00:06:25,800 Speaker 1: to a combination of factors. You know. For example, back 124 00:06:25,800 --> 00:06:30,600 Speaker 1: in lawmakers passed the Nutrition and Labeling Education Act, and 125 00:06:30,600 --> 00:06:33,320 Speaker 1: that made it mandatory for all products to include the 126 00:06:33,360 --> 00:06:37,120 Speaker 1: now commonplace list of nutrition facts on the packaging. And 127 00:06:37,160 --> 00:06:39,640 Speaker 1: this made it easier than ever for consumers to see 128 00:06:39,680 --> 00:06:43,800 Speaker 1: the nutritional value or lack thereof, I guess, and they 129 00:06:43,800 --> 00:06:45,800 Speaker 1: could look at this and all of their cereals now 130 00:06:45,800 --> 00:06:48,880 Speaker 1: at this point, and as more people became educated about 131 00:06:48,960 --> 00:06:51,919 Speaker 1: just how much sugar and carbs they were eating or 132 00:06:51,960 --> 00:06:54,360 Speaker 1: feeding to their kids, you know, they started to think 133 00:06:54,360 --> 00:06:56,800 Speaker 1: twice before tossing a box in the car whenever they're 134 00:06:56,839 --> 00:06:59,680 Speaker 1: with grocery store. So I looked into just how sugary 135 00:06:59,760 --> 00:07:03,200 Speaker 1: cereal can be. And it's insane, Like the whole cereal 136 00:07:03,240 --> 00:07:07,240 Speaker 1: industry uses around eight hundred sixty million pounds of sugar 137 00:07:07,320 --> 00:07:09,920 Speaker 1: in its products every year, and apparently most of that's 138 00:07:09,920 --> 00:07:13,560 Speaker 1: going into honey smacks, you know, for some reason, you 139 00:07:13,600 --> 00:07:15,480 Speaker 1: don't know out there, that's the one with the cool 140 00:07:15,560 --> 00:07:17,840 Speaker 1: frog wearing the backwards baseball cap on the box. I 141 00:07:17,840 --> 00:07:19,320 Speaker 1: thought you were talking to me for a second, was like, 142 00:07:19,400 --> 00:07:22,840 Speaker 1: I know, Honey Smacks, man, come on, well, honey Smacks 143 00:07:22,880 --> 00:07:25,800 Speaker 1: is consistently ranked the worst cereal for your health because 144 00:07:25,800 --> 00:07:28,400 Speaker 1: it has less than two grams of fiber per serving 145 00:07:28,760 --> 00:07:34,680 Speaker 1: and its ingredients breakdown to almost sixty percent sugar. It's tasty, 146 00:07:35,200 --> 00:07:38,240 Speaker 1: but according to the Environmental and Working Group, there's more 147 00:07:38,320 --> 00:07:41,360 Speaker 1: sugar in one cup serving of honey Smacks than there 148 00:07:41,440 --> 00:07:44,640 Speaker 1: isn't a Hostess twinkie, no way. And I know that 149 00:07:44,680 --> 00:07:46,720 Speaker 1: it is sweet, obviously, and I knew it wasn't good 150 00:07:46,760 --> 00:07:49,880 Speaker 1: for you. But honestly, like the taste of honey Smacks, 151 00:07:49,880 --> 00:07:52,400 Speaker 1: I wouldn't have guessed it was the most sugary cereal. 152 00:07:52,480 --> 00:07:54,239 Speaker 1: But it kind of makes my teeth are just thinking 153 00:07:54,240 --> 00:07:56,960 Speaker 1: about that. But you know that that sugar to fiber 154 00:07:57,080 --> 00:08:00,400 Speaker 1: ratio might make us cringe. But there's one particular serial 155 00:08:00,440 --> 00:08:03,120 Speaker 1: eleating demographic that you're not going to hear complaining about this, 156 00:08:03,160 --> 00:08:05,680 Speaker 1: and that's kids, or at least my kids. Yeah, my 157 00:08:05,760 --> 00:08:08,880 Speaker 1: kids do. Actually, do you remember there was this great 158 00:08:08,920 --> 00:08:12,200 Speaker 1: Calvin and Hobbs where Calvin's eating his favorite cereal I 159 00:08:12,240 --> 00:08:16,040 Speaker 1: think it's something like chocolate frostage sugar bombs, and he 160 00:08:16,080 --> 00:08:19,480 Speaker 1: gives Hobbs to try, and Hobbs just starts shaking, gagging 161 00:08:19,480 --> 00:08:22,760 Speaker 1: from the sweetness, and Calvin says, actually they're kind of 162 00:08:22,760 --> 00:08:25,800 Speaker 1: bland until he scoops some sugar off. But what I 163 00:08:25,840 --> 00:08:28,680 Speaker 1: find really interesting is how deeply ingrained the fondness for 164 00:08:28,680 --> 00:08:31,560 Speaker 1: breakfast cereal is and so many people, and how so 165 00:08:31,640 --> 00:08:34,280 Speaker 1: much of that seems rooted in their childhood. Yeah. I mean, 166 00:08:34,320 --> 00:08:36,640 Speaker 1: i'd say for most adults seal leaders, it's a big 167 00:08:36,679 --> 00:08:38,160 Speaker 1: part of the allure. I mean, it's what you were 168 00:08:38,160 --> 00:08:41,480 Speaker 1: saying about your kids. There's these memories of watching Saturday 169 00:08:41,520 --> 00:08:44,080 Speaker 1: morning cartoons with a big bowl of Captain Crunch in 170 00:08:44,120 --> 00:08:46,760 Speaker 1: your hand, or maybe indulging in a late night fix 171 00:08:46,800 --> 00:08:49,160 Speaker 1: of Lucky Charms sitting in your college dorm. I don't 172 00:08:49,160 --> 00:08:51,920 Speaker 1: know who you're talking about, right, Well, it's sort of 173 00:08:51,960 --> 00:08:53,480 Speaker 1: a comfort food in a way. I mean, it takes 174 00:08:53,520 --> 00:08:55,440 Speaker 1: us back to simpler days when most of us were 175 00:08:55,440 --> 00:08:59,000 Speaker 1: a little more carefree about what we ate and why. Yeah, 176 00:08:59,040 --> 00:09:02,360 Speaker 1: so in nostalgia is definitely a strong factor. Actually, well, 177 00:09:02,400 --> 00:09:04,560 Speaker 1: what are some of the weirdest discontinued cereals you can 178 00:09:04,600 --> 00:09:06,280 Speaker 1: think of? I was trying to think about this earlier, 179 00:09:06,280 --> 00:09:09,199 Speaker 1: and I remember seeing a Cuber Cereal when I was 180 00:09:09,240 --> 00:09:12,679 Speaker 1: a kid. Do you remember Cuber? Yeah, that video game character, 181 00:09:12,960 --> 00:09:16,200 Speaker 1: and and also eating one with smurfberries. Like my parents 182 00:09:16,280 --> 00:09:18,520 Speaker 1: only really bought a sugar cereals for maybe a year 183 00:09:18,640 --> 00:09:21,560 Speaker 1: or two, but I remember sampling some weird ones. Yeah, 184 00:09:21,600 --> 00:09:24,240 Speaker 1: I mean, I always thought it was completely bonkers that 185 00:09:24,320 --> 00:09:27,040 Speaker 1: some cereals didn't even mask the fact that they were candy, 186 00:09:27,120 --> 00:09:29,960 Speaker 1: Like you know, Kellogg's did a candy corn Pops. But 187 00:09:30,240 --> 00:09:33,200 Speaker 1: even more blatant than that, there was a Nerds Cereal 188 00:09:33,520 --> 00:09:37,520 Speaker 1: and I'm ticked off that I never tried it. Nerd Cereal. 189 00:09:38,280 --> 00:09:40,079 Speaker 1: By the way, listeners, I just wanted to break for 190 00:09:40,120 --> 00:09:42,080 Speaker 1: a second because Will and I have been debating what 191 00:09:42,160 --> 00:09:44,679 Speaker 1: the official candy of Part Time Genius should be, and 192 00:09:44,679 --> 00:09:48,520 Speaker 1: Will was saying it should be atomic fireballs, and I 193 00:09:48,559 --> 00:09:51,320 Speaker 1: was thinking Nerds. So if you have any thoughts on this, 194 00:09:51,440 --> 00:09:54,240 Speaker 1: please let us know on Facebook or Twitter. But well, 195 00:09:54,559 --> 00:09:57,560 Speaker 1: you're right, Nerds Cereal isn't sane. But looking back, like 196 00:09:57,640 --> 00:10:00,760 Speaker 1: the box was so cool. It came in these two flavors, 197 00:10:00,800 --> 00:10:03,040 Speaker 1: just like the candies, and you could pour orange out 198 00:10:03,040 --> 00:10:05,559 Speaker 1: of one side and cherry out of the other. Can 199 00:10:05,600 --> 00:10:09,200 Speaker 1: you imagine, Like, who would let their kids buy this? Probably? 200 00:10:10,880 --> 00:10:12,760 Speaker 1: It also makes me wonder like if so much a 201 00:10:12,840 --> 00:10:15,480 Speaker 1: serials appeal is rooted in the past, Like, what does 202 00:10:15,559 --> 00:10:17,800 Speaker 1: this say about our future? Well, you know, there's a 203 00:10:17,800 --> 00:10:20,520 Speaker 1: new generation of kids getting hooked on cereal now, and 204 00:10:20,960 --> 00:10:22,920 Speaker 1: many of them will stick with it into adulthood. And 205 00:10:23,000 --> 00:10:25,000 Speaker 1: that's part of the reason there's so many brands duking 206 00:10:25,040 --> 00:10:27,360 Speaker 1: it out, you know, trying to get kids to eat 207 00:10:27,440 --> 00:10:30,960 Speaker 1: these cereal is because people's breakfast routines tend to be 208 00:10:31,000 --> 00:10:34,000 Speaker 1: the same, you know, pretty much every day. But there's 209 00:10:34,000 --> 00:10:37,120 Speaker 1: another point to consider, and those declining sales numbers we 210 00:10:37,160 --> 00:10:40,960 Speaker 1: mentioned earlier also coincide with declining birth rate, So you know, 211 00:10:41,520 --> 00:10:43,720 Speaker 1: it's not like the birthrate will ever drop to zero 212 00:10:43,840 --> 00:10:46,640 Speaker 1: or anything like that, but fewer kids does result than 213 00:10:46,720 --> 00:10:50,120 Speaker 1: fewer cereal fans, obviously. Yeah, It's it's funny that something 214 00:10:50,160 --> 00:10:52,800 Speaker 1: that started out as health food became so dependent on 215 00:10:52,840 --> 00:10:56,000 Speaker 1: selling sugar to kids, but I guess that's usually how 216 00:10:56,040 --> 00:10:58,480 Speaker 1: it goes with food. Trends, like someone with these very 217 00:10:58,520 --> 00:11:02,559 Speaker 1: altruistic intentions gets the ball rolling, hoping to better society, 218 00:11:02,640 --> 00:11:04,520 Speaker 1: and and then you know, at a certain point, the 219 00:11:04,559 --> 00:11:07,960 Speaker 1: marketing team steps in, right, exactly. Yeah. Dr Kellogg used 220 00:11:08,000 --> 00:11:11,160 Speaker 1: to give lectures about his methods for leading a healthy lifestyle, 221 00:11:11,200 --> 00:11:13,640 Speaker 1: and he would sometimes give out the recipes for his 222 00:11:13,679 --> 00:11:15,520 Speaker 1: corn Flix so that people could make them at home. 223 00:11:15,600 --> 00:11:18,199 Speaker 1: And at one talk he told the crowd, you may 224 00:11:18,200 --> 00:11:20,680 Speaker 1: say I'm destroying the health food business here by giving 225 00:11:20,679 --> 00:11:24,440 Speaker 1: these recipes, but I'm not after the business. I'm after reform. 226 00:11:24,600 --> 00:11:26,760 Speaker 1: I mean. Yeah. He really did seem to believe and 227 00:11:26,760 --> 00:11:29,000 Speaker 1: what he was selling, sure, but the problem was that 228 00:11:29,040 --> 00:11:31,520 Speaker 1: the same couldn't be said of his brother, Will Kellogg. 229 00:11:31,559 --> 00:11:34,000 Speaker 1: And and Will try for years to convince his brother 230 00:11:34,040 --> 00:11:36,360 Speaker 1: to add sugar to their cereal, believing it would add 231 00:11:36,400 --> 00:11:39,080 Speaker 1: some flavor to what he called horse food. But the 232 00:11:39,120 --> 00:11:41,920 Speaker 1: tipping point came into late forties when their competitor Post 233 00:11:41,960 --> 00:11:45,560 Speaker 1: Cereals released Sugar Crisp, so Posted branched out beyond the 234 00:11:45,600 --> 00:11:49,040 Speaker 1: health food market with its first sugarcoated cereal, and like 235 00:11:49,160 --> 00:11:52,320 Speaker 1: it or not, Kellogg kind of had to follow suit. Yeah, 236 00:11:52,320 --> 00:11:54,800 Speaker 1: but it's really post world War two that the industry 237 00:11:54,800 --> 00:11:57,360 Speaker 1: started to focus on marketing directly to kids. I mean, 238 00:11:57,679 --> 00:12:01,360 Speaker 1: companies had dabbled with these ads before, including Kellogg's use 239 00:12:01,400 --> 00:12:04,080 Speaker 1: of Snap Cracklin Pop as the characters for Rice Crispies, 240 00:12:04,120 --> 00:12:07,520 Speaker 1: and that marketing began in the nineteen thirties. But even 241 00:12:07,559 --> 00:12:10,440 Speaker 1: with cartoon gnomes pleading their case, you know, these highly 242 00:12:10,480 --> 00:12:13,800 Speaker 1: processed oats and grains were a tough sell without adding 243 00:12:13,880 --> 00:12:16,680 Speaker 1: something you know, sweet to it. That's crazy though, I like, 244 00:12:16,760 --> 00:12:19,240 Speaker 1: I had no idea that the Rice Christie's trio had 245 00:12:19,240 --> 00:12:22,000 Speaker 1: been around that long. I thought they were post fifties 246 00:12:22,040 --> 00:12:25,480 Speaker 1: like most other Cereal mascots. Yeah, Snap Cracklin Pop are 247 00:12:25,480 --> 00:12:28,080 Speaker 1: actually one of the longest running ad campaigns in history, 248 00:12:28,120 --> 00:12:29,880 Speaker 1: and as I was looking up at that, they're actually 249 00:12:29,960 --> 00:12:32,880 Speaker 1: the longest for Cereal brands. Actually, by the way, did 250 00:12:32,920 --> 00:12:34,760 Speaker 1: you know that their names are on amount of pia 251 00:12:34,880 --> 00:12:37,400 Speaker 1: sounds for what you hear when milk is added to 252 00:12:37,440 --> 00:12:41,120 Speaker 1: the cereal. But apparently Rice Crispies were always marketed as 253 00:12:41,160 --> 00:12:43,560 Speaker 1: the cereal you can hear, and this was even before 254 00:12:43,559 --> 00:12:46,280 Speaker 1: the mascots came along. In fact, the guy who created 255 00:12:46,280 --> 00:12:48,520 Speaker 1: the characters did so after being inspired by one of 256 00:12:48,520 --> 00:12:52,000 Speaker 1: the brand's previous radio jingles, because I know you're dying 257 00:12:52,040 --> 00:12:54,280 Speaker 1: to know what it was. Here the lyrics, I jotted 258 00:12:54,280 --> 00:12:57,200 Speaker 1: them down, So all right, listen to the fairy song 259 00:12:57,240 --> 00:12:59,920 Speaker 1: of help the Mary Corus sung by Kelloggs Rice Crispi 260 00:13:00,200 --> 00:13:02,839 Speaker 1: as they merrily snap, crackle and pop in a bowl 261 00:13:02,840 --> 00:13:06,080 Speaker 1: of milk. If you've never heard food talking, now is 262 00:13:06,120 --> 00:13:08,320 Speaker 1: your chance. I'm so hungry for a bowl of cereal? Now, 263 00:13:08,320 --> 00:13:10,040 Speaker 1: why didn't I do this before? And also that was 264 00:13:10,080 --> 00:13:13,160 Speaker 1: a jingle like it doesn't even rive? Was I was 265 00:13:13,160 --> 00:13:15,000 Speaker 1: gonna put it to song that I just made up 266 00:13:15,600 --> 00:13:18,800 Speaker 1: against it? So, I mean, obviously mascots were a smart move, 267 00:13:18,920 --> 00:13:21,160 Speaker 1: since it's hard to market like a fairy song of 268 00:13:21,200 --> 00:13:23,839 Speaker 1: health without them. But wasn't there also a fourth gnome 269 00:13:23,920 --> 00:13:27,120 Speaker 1: for a while, Yeah, you bet there was Pal He 270 00:13:27,120 --> 00:13:29,840 Speaker 1: stood for the cereals nutritional punch, I think, And of 271 00:13:29,880 --> 00:13:32,440 Speaker 1: course he didn't last very long. But let's get this 272 00:13:32,480 --> 00:13:35,360 Speaker 1: back on track. So gradually the Sweden Cereals come to 273 00:13:35,400 --> 00:13:38,960 Speaker 1: dominate the market, thanks, you know, because of product placement 274 00:13:38,960 --> 00:13:42,360 Speaker 1: and children's programming, and they've never looked back since. And 275 00:13:42,440 --> 00:13:44,680 Speaker 1: in fact, the breakfast cereal industry is still one of 276 00:13:44,679 --> 00:13:47,240 Speaker 1: the top spenders for a commercial air time. More than 277 00:13:47,320 --> 00:13:49,960 Speaker 1: a million Cereal ads air on TV each year, which 278 00:13:50,000 --> 00:13:53,079 Speaker 1: cost companies like Post and Kelloggs more than I want 279 00:13:53,120 --> 00:13:56,280 Speaker 1: to say, like half a billion dollars. Yeah, well so, 280 00:13:56,280 --> 00:13:58,480 Speaker 1: so all those old TV ads are a big part 281 00:13:58,480 --> 00:14:00,520 Speaker 1: of why Cold Cereal took such a hold in the 282 00:14:00,559 --> 00:14:03,400 Speaker 1: hearts and minds of baby boomers, and then they of 283 00:14:03,440 --> 00:14:06,040 Speaker 1: course passed on that fondness to their now adult children. 284 00:14:06,120 --> 00:14:08,360 Speaker 1: But you know, there's another element that helped the dear 285 00:14:08,559 --> 00:14:11,360 Speaker 1: entire generations to breakfast Cereal that I want to talk 286 00:14:11,400 --> 00:14:14,040 Speaker 1: about it, and that's the prizes that came packed inside 287 00:14:14,080 --> 00:14:17,319 Speaker 1: those boxes. I mean, the prizes played such a big role. 288 00:14:17,400 --> 00:14:19,640 Speaker 1: Like I might have wanted a box of Cookie Crisp, 289 00:14:19,680 --> 00:14:21,840 Speaker 1: but if the Apple Jacks had one of those wacky 290 00:14:21,880 --> 00:14:24,240 Speaker 1: wall walkers in it. I mean you remember those sticky 291 00:14:24,240 --> 00:14:26,520 Speaker 1: octopuses that were walked down the wall of course, Yeah, 292 00:14:26,640 --> 00:14:28,920 Speaker 1: and then of course that's the box I'd end up with. Yeah, 293 00:14:28,960 --> 00:14:30,640 Speaker 1: I mean, I'm with you on that. Actually I would 294 00:14:30,680 --> 00:14:32,280 Speaker 1: buy a box of Cereal for one of those. Now 295 00:14:32,320 --> 00:14:34,560 Speaker 1: it's been years since I played one. They were awesome. 296 00:14:34,560 --> 00:14:36,440 Speaker 1: But you know, let's talk a little bit about how 297 00:14:36,480 --> 00:14:39,440 Speaker 1: toys and games ended up inside the boxes, as well 298 00:14:39,480 --> 00:14:41,560 Speaker 1: as some of the coolest and strangest ones to come 299 00:14:41,560 --> 00:14:43,880 Speaker 1: along over the years. But before we do that, let's 300 00:14:43,880 --> 00:14:52,160 Speaker 1: break for a quiz. They we've got Gabe fon Sica 301 00:14:52,240 --> 00:14:55,040 Speaker 1: on the program now. Gabs an accomplished TV writer, but 302 00:14:55,120 --> 00:14:58,800 Speaker 1: he's also got the best unboxing series on YouTube. It's 303 00:14:58,800 --> 00:15:02,160 Speaker 1: called Serial Time TV and this is where he unboxes 304 00:15:02,160 --> 00:15:06,240 Speaker 1: and reviews incredible breakfast cereals. Welcome to part time Genius, Gabe. 305 00:15:06,480 --> 00:15:09,040 Speaker 1: Thanks for having me. I'm I'm a fan of the podcast, 306 00:15:09,040 --> 00:15:10,480 Speaker 1: so I'm on it to be on the show. Thank 307 00:15:10,520 --> 00:15:12,560 Speaker 1: you so much. Now, I know you're out in Los Angeles. 308 00:15:12,640 --> 00:15:15,080 Speaker 1: Man Guesh is actually on vacation today. He's out on 309 00:15:15,120 --> 00:15:18,560 Speaker 1: your coast in Portland's so he sends his best but 310 00:15:18,840 --> 00:15:20,840 Speaker 1: but I hope you're still willing to chat with me today, 311 00:15:21,400 --> 00:15:23,840 Speaker 1: of course, of course. All right now, so, Gay, we've 312 00:15:23,880 --> 00:15:26,760 Speaker 1: read that you have over three hundred cereal boxes in 313 00:15:26,800 --> 00:15:29,280 Speaker 1: your collection, and I have to ask, like, how did 314 00:15:29,320 --> 00:15:32,560 Speaker 1: you get into this in the first place, and what 315 00:15:32,640 --> 00:15:36,040 Speaker 1: are some of your more prized cereal boxes. You know, 316 00:15:36,080 --> 00:15:38,040 Speaker 1: I've always been a collector and I think at one 317 00:15:38,040 --> 00:15:40,080 Speaker 1: point I saw Old Spider Man Surreal. I think that 318 00:15:40,120 --> 00:15:43,680 Speaker 1: was my first box. Um it was from zero and 319 00:15:43,800 --> 00:15:45,680 Speaker 1: I saw it on eBay when I was just browsing, 320 00:15:45,760 --> 00:15:47,560 Speaker 1: and I was like, that'd be cool to have on 321 00:15:47,600 --> 00:15:51,040 Speaker 1: my bookshelf, and I bought it and then uh, and 322 00:15:51,080 --> 00:15:52,360 Speaker 1: then I was like, well, you know what, there are 323 00:15:52,360 --> 00:15:54,040 Speaker 1: some other ones that I remember from back in the day, 324 00:15:54,080 --> 00:15:55,840 Speaker 1: and and then it kind of just turned into this 325 00:15:55,880 --> 00:15:58,720 Speaker 1: black hole on eBay where I just was was scouring 326 00:15:58,720 --> 00:16:01,320 Speaker 1: and finding old cereals that that brought back these nostalgic 327 00:16:01,360 --> 00:16:03,840 Speaker 1: memories to me. Wow. Wow, now I think I've read 328 00:16:03,880 --> 00:16:06,720 Speaker 1: that you've tried some even some like thirty year old cereals. 329 00:16:06,840 --> 00:16:10,160 Speaker 1: Is this right? Yeah? Yeah. When I first started this 330 00:16:10,320 --> 00:16:13,200 Speaker 1: unboxing channel on YouTube, and I started it because I 331 00:16:13,200 --> 00:16:15,240 Speaker 1: started to run out a room of just having these 332 00:16:15,400 --> 00:16:17,600 Speaker 1: unopened Cereal boxes on my shelf and it was like, 333 00:16:17,640 --> 00:16:19,240 Speaker 1: you know, this is just taking up space and this 334 00:16:19,400 --> 00:16:21,960 Speaker 1: is kind of silly. I could just flatten them out, 335 00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:25,080 Speaker 1: So I I decided like, well, let's for posterity, let's 336 00:16:25,080 --> 00:16:27,800 Speaker 1: just record myself opening these boxes and and you know, 337 00:16:27,840 --> 00:16:30,000 Speaker 1: recording with the Cereal looks like and documenting it so 338 00:16:30,040 --> 00:16:33,440 Speaker 1: I'll have it, you know, for posterity, and uh, and 339 00:16:33,520 --> 00:16:35,200 Speaker 1: I never thought I was like going to try him, 340 00:16:35,240 --> 00:16:37,880 Speaker 1: and then I'd opened some boxes and uh, I'd be like, well, 341 00:16:37,960 --> 00:16:39,840 Speaker 1: let me just see if it holds up. I think 342 00:16:39,840 --> 00:16:42,360 Speaker 1: the oldest one I might have tried was a grim 343 00:16:42,520 --> 00:16:46,440 Speaker 1: smiles giggles and last cereal, which was from the seventies, 344 00:16:46,520 --> 00:16:49,040 Speaker 1: I believe, and it was pretty grass. I'm guessing, Oh man, 345 00:16:49,080 --> 00:16:52,240 Speaker 1: they're terrible. They just don't you know. It tastes mostly 346 00:16:52,280 --> 00:16:54,280 Speaker 1: like it tastes like the plastic in a way. It 347 00:16:54,280 --> 00:16:57,280 Speaker 1: takes very toxic and disgusting. But I would I definitely 348 00:16:57,320 --> 00:16:59,880 Speaker 1: do not recommend it. I can't imagine now. In terms 349 00:16:59,880 --> 00:17:01,760 Speaker 1: of cereals, are there any that you wish you could 350 00:17:01,760 --> 00:17:04,720 Speaker 1: have tasted if you could go back in time? Yeah? Absolutely. 351 00:17:04,720 --> 00:17:07,320 Speaker 1: There's one from before my time in the seventies called 352 00:17:07,480 --> 00:17:09,960 Speaker 1: a Great Fellow. It was actually, um they released a 353 00:17:10,040 --> 00:17:12,560 Speaker 1: Great Fellow and Baron von red Berry. There were General 354 00:17:12,560 --> 00:17:15,160 Speaker 1: Mills cereals and uh, this is a Great Fellow. One 355 00:17:15,160 --> 00:17:18,560 Speaker 1: tasted like you know, grape the grape cereal or great 356 00:17:18,720 --> 00:17:20,760 Speaker 1: kool Aid. I imagine I never actually got to try it, 357 00:17:20,800 --> 00:17:23,600 Speaker 1: but I'm a I'm a sucker for great flavored things. 358 00:17:23,720 --> 00:17:26,960 Speaker 1: And uh and even though I got a Nerds cereal 359 00:17:27,040 --> 00:17:28,919 Speaker 1: which came out in the eighties, which I which I 360 00:17:28,920 --> 00:17:31,520 Speaker 1: got to try back and back then, I it just 361 00:17:31,720 --> 00:17:34,480 Speaker 1: wasn't the same, you know, it wasn't it wasn't that 362 00:17:34,560 --> 00:17:36,560 Speaker 1: great great flavor. It was kind of it wasn't a 363 00:17:36,600 --> 00:17:39,439 Speaker 1: great cereal, And Sir, great fellow, just just like I 364 00:17:39,480 --> 00:17:41,480 Speaker 1: look at the ad campaigns I see on YouTube and 365 00:17:41,480 --> 00:17:43,920 Speaker 1: I'm just like this, this was like, this is great. 366 00:17:43,960 --> 00:17:45,800 Speaker 1: I really wish I was alive for this one. I 367 00:17:45,840 --> 00:17:47,840 Speaker 1: could I could try that one. Yeah, yeah, Now, how 368 00:17:47,880 --> 00:17:49,919 Speaker 1: about any boxes you'd love to add to your collection 369 00:17:49,960 --> 00:17:52,320 Speaker 1: but haven't been able to get ahold of For me? 370 00:17:52,440 --> 00:17:54,439 Speaker 1: I I kind of at this point, I feel like 371 00:17:54,480 --> 00:17:56,560 Speaker 1: I'm at peace and that's kind of completed my collection 372 00:17:56,600 --> 00:18:00,640 Speaker 1: and kind of everything I want. There is one really 373 00:18:00,720 --> 00:18:03,560 Speaker 1: random cereal from General Mills in the nineties. It was 374 00:18:03,600 --> 00:18:06,439 Speaker 1: called Buen You Litos, and I remember it. It was 375 00:18:06,440 --> 00:18:09,200 Speaker 1: on shelves for a limited time, and I just can't 376 00:18:09,200 --> 00:18:11,679 Speaker 1: find a box of that anywhere. And that's probably like 377 00:18:11,720 --> 00:18:14,359 Speaker 1: the last you know, my great you know, white whale 378 00:18:14,359 --> 00:18:16,720 Speaker 1: that I'm trying to obtain. Still, I don't know, Gabe. 379 00:18:16,760 --> 00:18:18,720 Speaker 1: I'm hearing in your voice that maybe you're not quite 380 00:18:18,760 --> 00:18:21,679 Speaker 1: at piece yet until you find that so off, if 381 00:18:21,760 --> 00:18:24,120 Speaker 1: if if any of our listeners out there know how 382 00:18:24,119 --> 00:18:27,000 Speaker 1: to get ahold of some did you say boren Alito's yes, 383 00:18:27,720 --> 00:18:29,320 Speaker 1: all right, we'll see what we can do for you. 384 00:18:29,440 --> 00:18:32,040 Speaker 1: So there'll be a free part time genius t shirt 385 00:18:32,040 --> 00:18:34,840 Speaker 1: on the line for these people. But but before we 386 00:18:34,920 --> 00:18:38,480 Speaker 1: let you go, Mango did leave me a quiz titled 387 00:18:38,480 --> 00:18:41,560 Speaker 1: the most Important Meal Quiz of the Day. So I'm 388 00:18:41,560 --> 00:18:44,159 Speaker 1: gonna ask you a few questions if you obscure serial 389 00:18:44,280 --> 00:18:46,040 Speaker 1: questions and all you gotta do is answer them. How's 390 00:18:46,080 --> 00:18:49,080 Speaker 1: that sounds? All right? I'll give it my best, alright. 391 00:18:49,200 --> 00:18:52,439 Speaker 1: Question number one. According to a nineteen fifty six confidential 392 00:18:52,480 --> 00:18:56,720 Speaker 1: magazine report, what breakfast cereal was supposedly responsible for Frank 393 00:18:56,800 --> 00:19:00,919 Speaker 1: Sinatra's success with women. It's got to be wheat It 394 00:19:01,040 --> 00:19:03,800 Speaker 1: is Wheaties. Yeah. The article claimed that Sinatra could thank 395 00:19:03,840 --> 00:19:07,680 Speaker 1: Wheatie's for his reputation as the quote Tarzan of the Boudoir. 396 00:19:08,280 --> 00:19:12,880 Speaker 1: So yes, congratulations there, all right? One for one? Question 397 00:19:12,960 --> 00:19:16,600 Speaker 1: number two. Before a certain tiger became spokes animal for 398 00:19:16,640 --> 00:19:19,880 Speaker 1: this breakfast cereal. He had to beat out three other contenders, 399 00:19:20,040 --> 00:19:23,359 Speaker 1: Elmo the Elephant, Newt the new and Katie the Kangaroo. 400 00:19:23,720 --> 00:19:26,960 Speaker 1: What cereal are we talking about? Frosted flakes? That's right, 401 00:19:27,000 --> 00:19:29,680 Speaker 1: it's frosted flakes. Now. Katie actually appeared on boxes in 402 00:19:29,720 --> 00:19:33,080 Speaker 1: the nineteen fifties before Tony the Tiger started out selling her. 403 00:19:33,359 --> 00:19:36,719 Speaker 1: All right, here we go question number three. What popular 404 00:19:36,760 --> 00:19:40,320 Speaker 1: breakfast cereal created by John Harvey Kellogg was eating aboard 405 00:19:40,359 --> 00:19:46,720 Speaker 1: the Apollo eleven cereal? Christ, It's a pretty good guess. 406 00:19:46,720 --> 00:19:49,879 Speaker 1: It was actually Kellogg's corn flakes, And so the cereal 407 00:19:49,960 --> 00:19:52,480 Speaker 1: was mixed up with fruit and formed into cube since 408 00:19:52,480 --> 00:19:56,800 Speaker 1: eating it with milk was impossible without gravity. Alright, two 409 00:19:56,840 --> 00:19:59,760 Speaker 1: for three. The last question here the big prize is 410 00:20:00,040 --> 00:20:03,520 Speaker 1: on the line. While Saddam Hussein loved Raisin brand and 411 00:20:03,600 --> 00:20:08,600 Speaker 1: requested it for breakfast in prison, he detested this cereal. Oh, 412 00:20:08,720 --> 00:20:12,600 Speaker 1: I actually read the article about that. Yes, it is 413 00:20:12,640 --> 00:20:14,840 Speaker 1: fruit looks and according to US soldiers, one of the 414 00:20:14,920 --> 00:20:18,040 Speaker 1: few times he actually looked defeated in prison was when 415 00:20:18,080 --> 00:20:21,560 Speaker 1: a bowl of the fruity cereal was brought to him. 416 00:20:21,600 --> 00:20:25,000 Speaker 1: But so, congratulations, you've got three out of four, which 417 00:20:25,119 --> 00:20:27,800 Speaker 1: qualifies you for our top prize, which is a note 418 00:20:27,840 --> 00:20:31,159 Speaker 1: to your mom or your boss singing your praises. So, Gabe, 419 00:20:31,520 --> 00:20:34,160 Speaker 1: congratulations and thanks so much for joining us on Part 420 00:20:34,200 --> 00:20:36,479 Speaker 1: Time Genius. Well thanks for having me. Well it's been 421 00:20:36,560 --> 00:20:51,800 Speaker 1: it's great. Thank you very much. You're listening to Part 422 00:20:51,800 --> 00:20:54,679 Speaker 1: Time Genius and we're talking about the heyday of breakfast cereal. 423 00:20:54,720 --> 00:20:57,800 Speaker 1: You know, when kids became the target market, and nutrition 424 00:20:57,840 --> 00:21:00,919 Speaker 1: kind of took a backseat to things like marshmallows and prizes, 425 00:21:01,040 --> 00:21:03,719 Speaker 1: and you know, speaking of cereal box prizes, you know, 426 00:21:03,760 --> 00:21:06,600 Speaker 1: those were another way that Kelloggs tried to attract kids 427 00:21:06,640 --> 00:21:10,040 Speaker 1: to cereal in the pre sugar days and three the 428 00:21:10,080 --> 00:21:13,520 Speaker 1: company started putting pen back buttons inside boxes of their 429 00:21:13,560 --> 00:21:16,320 Speaker 1: pep cereal. So they started with a series of thirty 430 00:21:16,359 --> 00:21:19,680 Speaker 1: six pens that featured World War two squadron insignia from 431 00:21:19,680 --> 00:21:22,720 Speaker 1: the US military. And this was before switching over to 432 00:21:22,760 --> 00:21:26,719 Speaker 1: fictional heroes like comic book characters. Yeah, so those are 433 00:21:26,720 --> 00:21:29,320 Speaker 1: some of the earliest inbox prizes we know about. But 434 00:21:29,400 --> 00:21:32,560 Speaker 1: if we're talking buttons, my favorites are the Urkel for 435 00:21:32,640 --> 00:21:35,399 Speaker 1: President campaign buttons they were giving out during the Clinton 436 00:21:35,440 --> 00:21:38,080 Speaker 1: Bush Senior campaign. Do you remember those? We're talking Steve 437 00:21:38,160 --> 00:21:41,400 Speaker 1: Urkel from Family. I can't say I remember him running 438 00:21:41,440 --> 00:21:45,280 Speaker 1: for president? But what what cereal was that? Kels? Of course, 439 00:21:45,520 --> 00:21:47,879 Speaker 1: it was one of those short lived novelty cereals that 440 00:21:47,920 --> 00:21:50,439 Speaker 1: crops up for a few months and then disappears, Like 441 00:21:50,840 --> 00:21:54,280 Speaker 1: basically it was a sweeter version of cheerios, but wackier 442 00:21:54,359 --> 00:21:58,040 Speaker 1: with banana and strawberry flavors. But uh, obviously we're getting 443 00:21:58,040 --> 00:22:00,680 Speaker 1: ahead of ourselves with all these in the box because 444 00:22:00,840 --> 00:22:03,560 Speaker 1: Kellogg's actually got into the prize game long before that. 445 00:22:03,840 --> 00:22:06,680 Speaker 1: In the earlier days, the prizes, or premiums as they're 446 00:22:06,680 --> 00:22:08,680 Speaker 1: called in the industry, weren't in the box at all. 447 00:22:08,960 --> 00:22:11,160 Speaker 1: And as far as we know, the first prize used 448 00:22:11,160 --> 00:22:14,320 Speaker 1: to market cereal was this nine nine children's book. It 449 00:22:14,440 --> 00:22:17,639 Speaker 1: was called the Funny Jungle Land Moving Pictures Book, and 450 00:22:17,960 --> 00:22:20,600 Speaker 1: it was given to customers who bought two boxes of 451 00:22:20,680 --> 00:22:24,560 Speaker 1: Kellogg's corn flakes that they're participating grocery stores. After a 452 00:22:24,600 --> 00:22:26,920 Speaker 1: couple of years, of course, Kelloggs decided to stop handing 453 00:22:26,920 --> 00:22:29,680 Speaker 1: out the books on location. Instead offered them as mail 454 00:22:29,760 --> 00:22:32,919 Speaker 1: and offer, and within four years the company had distributed 455 00:22:33,119 --> 00:22:37,119 Speaker 1: two point five million copies of the book, isn't that insane? Like, 456 00:22:37,200 --> 00:22:40,200 Speaker 1: it was obviously a hit with customers, so Kelloggs kept 457 00:22:40,200 --> 00:22:42,879 Speaker 1: releasing new editions, and they kept going on with jungle 458 00:22:42,920 --> 00:22:46,320 Speaker 1: Land books all the way up until ninety seven. I mean, 459 00:22:46,680 --> 00:22:48,880 Speaker 1: I guess that's pretty cool. But I have to say 460 00:22:48,880 --> 00:22:51,080 Speaker 1: I was never a fan of those mail in prizes. 461 00:22:51,119 --> 00:22:53,760 Speaker 1: I mean, I was all about the instant gratification. You 462 00:22:53,760 --> 00:22:56,040 Speaker 1: don't want to dig in there, like get elbow deep 463 00:22:56,040 --> 00:22:58,080 Speaker 1: and some cocoa puffs or something and then just be 464 00:22:58,119 --> 00:23:01,640 Speaker 1: able to like fish around and find that all aphane bag. Yeah, 465 00:23:01,680 --> 00:23:03,760 Speaker 1: and then you gotta eat the cereal dust off your arm. 466 00:23:03,840 --> 00:23:06,920 Speaker 1: But those were definitely the days. But I never really 467 00:23:06,960 --> 00:23:08,840 Speaker 1: minded the mail ins like I think it was partly 468 00:23:08,880 --> 00:23:11,040 Speaker 1: the joy of receiving any kind of mail as a kid, 469 00:23:11,320 --> 00:23:14,320 Speaker 1: The fact that anyone was sending me anything was exciting enough, 470 00:23:14,440 --> 00:23:16,320 Speaker 1: even if I had to save up like a bunch 471 00:23:16,359 --> 00:23:18,600 Speaker 1: of box tops and wait six to eight weeks to 472 00:23:18,600 --> 00:23:21,560 Speaker 1: make it happen. Though that was mostly dying out by 473 00:23:21,560 --> 00:23:23,440 Speaker 1: the time we were kids. I only remember doing it 474 00:23:23,480 --> 00:23:25,879 Speaker 1: a few times. But you know that the real reason 475 00:23:25,920 --> 00:23:28,199 Speaker 1: the cereal industry stepped up its game and and the 476 00:23:28,240 --> 00:23:31,680 Speaker 1: prize game, specifically in the nineteen fifties is pretty interesting 477 00:23:32,080 --> 00:23:34,399 Speaker 1: and it's it's thanks to this invention of what was 478 00:23:34,440 --> 00:23:37,800 Speaker 1: called the screw injection molding machine, and and that's what 479 00:23:37,920 --> 00:23:41,840 Speaker 1: made plastic prizes faster and cheaper to produce. And this 480 00:23:42,000 --> 00:23:44,440 Speaker 1: wasn't the only time the inventor of injection molding his 481 00:23:44,560 --> 00:23:47,119 Speaker 1: name was James Watson Henry would lend a hand to 482 00:23:47,240 --> 00:23:50,439 Speaker 1: cereal prizes. So in the nineteen seventies, Henry's developed the 483 00:23:50,440 --> 00:23:54,119 Speaker 1: first gas assisted injection molding process, and this is what 484 00:23:54,200 --> 00:23:58,720 Speaker 1: made it possible to produce these finally detailed hollow plastic objects, 485 00:23:58,720 --> 00:24:00,760 Speaker 1: you know, the ones that environmental group love so much. 486 00:24:01,560 --> 00:24:03,840 Speaker 1: This cut costs even more and paved the way to 487 00:24:03,920 --> 00:24:07,320 Speaker 1: a golden age of these in box serial prizes. That 488 00:24:07,320 --> 00:24:09,240 Speaker 1: explains why so many of the cool prizes I found 489 00:24:09,320 --> 00:24:12,080 Speaker 1: were from the sixties and seventies. And of course I'd 490 00:24:12,080 --> 00:24:15,639 Speaker 1: be remiss if we didn't mention the Boson's whistle that 491 00:24:15,720 --> 00:24:18,120 Speaker 1: came inside the box of Captain Crunch in the early seventies. 492 00:24:18,440 --> 00:24:21,440 Speaker 1: We're talking about things we'd remiss not mentioning about Captain Crunch. 493 00:24:21,480 --> 00:24:25,639 Speaker 1: What about Gen Lafoote which was Captain Crunch's stinky, barefooted rival. 494 00:24:25,800 --> 00:24:29,800 Speaker 1: But anyway, gone with your whistle story. Well, obviously the 495 00:24:29,840 --> 00:24:32,960 Speaker 1: whistles just like really high fished little whistle, and the 496 00:24:33,000 --> 00:24:36,399 Speaker 1: Boson's whistle was one that was historically used on naval 497 00:24:36,400 --> 00:24:39,399 Speaker 1: ships when commanders needed to pass orders to the crew 498 00:24:39,440 --> 00:24:41,920 Speaker 1: but couldn't be heard because of the waves or weather 499 00:24:42,040 --> 00:24:45,280 Speaker 1: or whatever. And these days it's mostly used in naval ceremonies. 500 00:24:45,280 --> 00:24:47,160 Speaker 1: But in Captain Crunch's case, it turned out that when 501 00:24:47,160 --> 00:24:49,800 Speaker 1: you covered one of the whistles holes in blue, it 502 00:24:49,880 --> 00:24:54,040 Speaker 1: produced this frequency of twenty hurts, which was the exact 503 00:24:54,119 --> 00:24:56,400 Speaker 1: tone a T and T used to control its long 504 00:24:56,440 --> 00:25:00,000 Speaker 1: distance lines. And basically, this legendary hacker, John Thomas Drape, 505 00:25:00,200 --> 00:25:02,480 Speaker 1: who was also known as Captain Crunch or Crunch or 506 00:25:02,480 --> 00:25:04,639 Speaker 1: crunch Man, he learned that he could use one of 507 00:25:04,680 --> 00:25:07,240 Speaker 1: the whistles to hack the phone system and get free 508 00:25:07,280 --> 00:25:11,080 Speaker 1: long distance calls. I love that they figured that. It's 509 00:25:11,080 --> 00:25:14,399 Speaker 1: why that old hacking magazine was actually called hundred, and 510 00:25:14,440 --> 00:25:17,720 Speaker 1: then why Steve Jobs and Steve Wosna even tracked down 511 00:25:17,760 --> 00:25:21,040 Speaker 1: the whistle and built a box that replicated the frequency 512 00:25:21,119 --> 00:25:23,720 Speaker 1: to try and prank call the Pope. I love that 513 00:25:23,960 --> 00:25:26,160 Speaker 1: as I love that they pretended to be Henry Kissinger. 514 00:25:26,359 --> 00:25:29,360 Speaker 1: And it almost got there until this like suspicious bishop 515 00:25:29,400 --> 00:25:31,720 Speaker 1: caught on like and and then the Pope didn't get 516 00:25:31,720 --> 00:25:35,159 Speaker 1: on those pesky bishops. And you know, while injection molding 517 00:25:35,160 --> 00:25:38,480 Speaker 1: allowed for all kinds of awesome plastic toys, you know, 518 00:25:38,600 --> 00:25:40,800 Speaker 1: some of the funniest ones that came across were actually 519 00:25:40,840 --> 00:25:43,840 Speaker 1: even like metal, or some of them even paper. Like 520 00:25:43,880 --> 00:25:47,360 Speaker 1: in nineteen four, Wheaties gave away these miniature state license 521 00:25:47,400 --> 00:25:50,240 Speaker 1: plates and they were made of solid steel, and you 522 00:25:50,320 --> 00:25:52,680 Speaker 1: got one in each box, but you could also buy 523 00:25:52,680 --> 00:25:55,240 Speaker 1: them in four sets of twelve by mailing in a 524 00:25:55,280 --> 00:25:58,720 Speaker 1: box top and a quarter a whopping quarter, and that 525 00:25:58,720 --> 00:26:01,080 Speaker 1: would be The only hitch to the was that Alaska 526 00:26:01,080 --> 00:26:03,399 Speaker 1: and Hawaii had not yet become states, so there were 527 00:26:03,440 --> 00:26:06,119 Speaker 1: actually only forty eight plates and all. Oh man, So 528 00:26:06,359 --> 00:26:08,480 Speaker 1: do you think people were like pissed when those two 529 00:26:08,520 --> 00:26:11,040 Speaker 1: states got statehood a few years later and suddenly their 530 00:26:11,040 --> 00:26:14,560 Speaker 1: collections were incomplete? Well, actually, Post Serials did release a 531 00:26:14,600 --> 00:26:17,760 Speaker 1: set of the full fifty later on, but apparently we 532 00:26:18,080 --> 00:26:21,840 Speaker 1: still gets letters about the original campaign to this day, 533 00:26:21,880 --> 00:26:24,360 Speaker 1: so maybe there's still a few determined fans out there 534 00:26:24,400 --> 00:26:27,000 Speaker 1: just pestering them about their missing plates or something. I 535 00:26:27,040 --> 00:26:29,840 Speaker 1: hope so. But one of the most unique prizes I 536 00:26:29,920 --> 00:26:32,840 Speaker 1: read about was this paper prize. It was a deed 537 00:26:32,920 --> 00:26:36,680 Speaker 1: to one inch of land in the Yukon. So a 538 00:26:36,840 --> 00:26:40,160 Speaker 1: serial company was giving away land by the inch. Yeah, 539 00:26:40,200 --> 00:26:42,920 Speaker 1: it's a great idea, right, So Quaker Oaths sponsored a 540 00:26:42,960 --> 00:26:45,720 Speaker 1: show in the fifties called Sergeant Preston of the Yukon. 541 00:26:46,040 --> 00:26:48,879 Speaker 1: You remember Sergeant President of the Yukon, And this was 542 00:26:48,960 --> 00:26:51,159 Speaker 1: their way of linking the show to the product and 543 00:26:51,280 --> 00:26:53,639 Speaker 1: full disclosure, this was a mail in prize, but this 544 00:26:53,680 --> 00:26:56,359 Speaker 1: one was totally worth the weight. So for just a 545 00:26:56,440 --> 00:26:59,240 Speaker 1: single box top kids would receive a deed for one 546 00:26:59,280 --> 00:27:01,879 Speaker 1: square inch at the nineteen acres of Yukon territory that 547 00:27:01,960 --> 00:27:05,000 Speaker 1: Quaker purchased, and they actually purchased this from the Canadian 548 00:27:05,000 --> 00:27:08,920 Speaker 1: government for a thousand dollars. The promotion was this massive success, 549 00:27:08,920 --> 00:27:11,560 Speaker 1: and Quaker actually sent out more than twenty one million 550 00:27:11,680 --> 00:27:13,960 Speaker 1: deeds in just a few weeks away. Yeah, and then 551 00:27:14,000 --> 00:27:15,919 Speaker 1: lots of people would write the company or even the 552 00:27:15,960 --> 00:27:18,040 Speaker 1: Canadian government from time to time to check in on 553 00:27:18,080 --> 00:27:21,680 Speaker 1: their property. But sadly the reply was not good news. 554 00:27:22,000 --> 00:27:25,359 Speaker 1: Apparently none of the deed holders were actually landowners because 555 00:27:25,400 --> 00:27:29,040 Speaker 1: the individual deeds were never formally registered after the recipients 556 00:27:29,080 --> 00:27:32,600 Speaker 1: signed them, I know. And in the end, Canada repossessed 557 00:27:32,600 --> 00:27:36,040 Speaker 1: all the land in nineteen five due to non payment 558 00:27:36,119 --> 00:27:39,399 Speaker 1: of get this, thirty seven dollars and twenty cents in 559 00:27:39,480 --> 00:27:43,439 Speaker 1: property taxes. You know. I mean. It also reminds me 560 00:27:43,480 --> 00:27:45,639 Speaker 1: of the time during the eighties when General Mills started 561 00:27:45,680 --> 00:27:48,719 Speaker 1: giving out actual one dollar bills as prizes and boxes 562 00:27:48,720 --> 00:27:51,040 Speaker 1: of cherios. It just sounds kind of like lazy, like 563 00:27:51,119 --> 00:27:53,240 Speaker 1: let's let's just put a dollar in there, and except 564 00:27:53,240 --> 00:27:55,760 Speaker 1: in this case the prize was actually worth something. Yeah, 565 00:27:55,800 --> 00:27:58,119 Speaker 1: and it's way better than the promotion Cherios offered in 566 00:27:58,160 --> 00:28:00,520 Speaker 1: the fifties when they gave away color rep productions of 567 00:28:00,560 --> 00:28:03,160 Speaker 1: Confederate Money and an album to keep them in. Oh 568 00:28:03,280 --> 00:28:05,439 Speaker 1: that's so strange. I actually I think I'd rather have 569 00:28:05,480 --> 00:28:08,880 Speaker 1: the phony d than But we sort of transition into 570 00:28:08,920 --> 00:28:11,399 Speaker 1: these more lackluster I don't know, dare I say, like 571 00:28:11,480 --> 00:28:15,200 Speaker 1: crappy prizes, but honestly, at least they're still prizes and 572 00:28:15,200 --> 00:28:18,399 Speaker 1: and much like serial sales, Serial Premium seemed to be 573 00:28:18,480 --> 00:28:21,280 Speaker 1: on the decline these days. Yes, so I noticed last 574 00:28:21,280 --> 00:28:23,280 Speaker 1: time I was in Cereal aisles there seemed to be 575 00:28:23,320 --> 00:28:26,640 Speaker 1: fewer boxes advertising physical prizes, but there were a bunch 576 00:28:26,640 --> 00:28:29,520 Speaker 1: of boxes offering some kind of digital prize, like access 577 00:28:29,520 --> 00:28:33,000 Speaker 1: to an online video game. And I guess serial premiums 578 00:28:33,080 --> 00:28:35,440 Speaker 1: changed to reflect the times and and most kids these 579 00:28:35,520 --> 00:28:38,480 Speaker 1: days would prefer some type of like instant online entertainment 580 00:28:38,480 --> 00:28:41,800 Speaker 1: over a plastic figure. But I also read a report 581 00:28:42,000 --> 00:28:45,200 Speaker 1: from the Center for Science and the Public Interest, and 582 00:28:45,680 --> 00:28:47,760 Speaker 1: it determined that it was far cheaper to make an 583 00:28:47,760 --> 00:28:51,240 Speaker 1: online game than to produce a traditional plastic premium, and 584 00:28:51,360 --> 00:28:53,640 Speaker 1: that definitely figures into the decision to scale back the 585 00:28:53,640 --> 00:28:56,680 Speaker 1: physical prizes. Yeah, I think you're right. And not to 586 00:28:56,720 --> 00:28:58,520 Speaker 1: mention that there have been a few safety scares that 587 00:28:58,600 --> 00:29:01,000 Speaker 1: lead to recalls on mill millions and millions of these 588 00:29:01,040 --> 00:29:04,440 Speaker 1: plastic prizes that were deemed choking hazards, and that's actually 589 00:29:04,440 --> 00:29:06,400 Speaker 1: the reason prizes were moved from the inside of the 590 00:29:06,440 --> 00:29:09,480 Speaker 1: Cereal bag itself to between the bag and the box lining. 591 00:29:09,520 --> 00:29:11,840 Speaker 1: This happened in the early nineties. Is you know, Sereal 592 00:29:11,880 --> 00:29:14,240 Speaker 1: companies saw that this was kind of a risk, or 593 00:29:14,280 --> 00:29:17,680 Speaker 1: a great risk if kids accidentally started gobbling up these prizes. 594 00:29:18,720 --> 00:29:21,480 Speaker 1: It's it's funny because Crackerjack went through like a similar 595 00:29:21,520 --> 00:29:24,840 Speaker 1: adjustment with the prizes inside their boxes and concerns about 596 00:29:24,880 --> 00:29:28,400 Speaker 1: safety and rising cost of production next anything but paper prizes, 597 00:29:28,400 --> 00:29:30,160 Speaker 1: whereas they used to have really cool stuff in there, 598 00:29:30,200 --> 00:29:33,960 Speaker 1: like Dakota rings and tin soldiers mixed in. And and 599 00:29:34,000 --> 00:29:36,800 Speaker 1: since Crackerjack was the first food to actually offer box 600 00:29:36,880 --> 00:29:40,080 Speaker 1: prizes way back in, it kind of seems fitting that 601 00:29:40,160 --> 00:29:43,360 Speaker 1: cereal premiums would follow suit. Yeah, I mean that's true. 602 00:29:43,400 --> 00:29:45,160 Speaker 1: But but but all is not lost for these in 603 00:29:45,240 --> 00:29:47,719 Speaker 1: the box cereal prizes. I mean there's still some physical 604 00:29:47,760 --> 00:29:50,640 Speaker 1: knickknacks sprinkled in there, but most of these are just 605 00:29:50,760 --> 00:29:53,680 Speaker 1: tie in with usually like big media events or maybe 606 00:29:53,720 --> 00:29:57,000 Speaker 1: movie releases. You know, the new Star Wars movie had 607 00:29:57,040 --> 00:29:59,960 Speaker 1: some of these accompany that. And besides, there's another serial 608 00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:02,400 Speaker 1: philosophy that suggests it's what's on the outside of the 609 00:30:02,440 --> 00:30:06,520 Speaker 1: box that matters, not the inside. Okay, Mango, So we've 610 00:30:06,520 --> 00:30:09,160 Speaker 1: covered the actual cereal as well as the cool prizes 611 00:30:09,200 --> 00:30:11,600 Speaker 1: that you find inside the bag or just outside it. 612 00:30:11,920 --> 00:30:14,400 Speaker 1: So how about we conclude our anatomical tour of the 613 00:30:14,440 --> 00:30:17,680 Speaker 1: cereal box by focusing on the box itself. Yeah, that 614 00:30:17,720 --> 00:30:19,720 Speaker 1: sounds good. So I'll start us off with a little 615 00:30:19,760 --> 00:30:23,440 Speaker 1: cereal box psychology. Back in two thousand fourteen, researchers from 616 00:30:23,440 --> 00:30:26,520 Speaker 1: the Cornell Food and Brand Lab study eighty six different 617 00:30:26,560 --> 00:30:30,160 Speaker 1: cereal box mascots and ten grocery stores throughout New York 618 00:30:30,160 --> 00:30:33,240 Speaker 1: in Connecticut, and from this whirlwind tour, they found that 619 00:30:33,560 --> 00:30:37,400 Speaker 1: boxes are strategically positioned to make eye contact with children. 620 00:30:37,800 --> 00:30:40,360 Speaker 1: On average, the kid targeted cereal boxes are placed on 621 00:30:40,400 --> 00:30:43,040 Speaker 1: the lower shelves, usually at a height of twenty three inches, 622 00:30:43,280 --> 00:30:45,920 Speaker 1: while adult am cereals tend to sit higher at forty 623 00:30:45,960 --> 00:30:49,000 Speaker 1: eight inch shelves. And UH to capitalize on this ideal, 624 00:30:49,080 --> 00:30:51,240 Speaker 1: like the mascots on the kids cereal boxes tend to 625 00:30:51,280 --> 00:30:54,760 Speaker 1: feature mascots with eyes pointing downward an average angle of 626 00:30:54,880 --> 00:30:58,200 Speaker 1: nine point six degrees, but the spokes characters on boxes 627 00:30:58,200 --> 00:31:01,600 Speaker 1: of adult cereal generally looks straight at head. Wow, that's 628 00:31:01,720 --> 00:31:05,040 Speaker 1: almost kind of creepy. So both the manufacturer and the 629 00:31:05,080 --> 00:31:07,640 Speaker 1: retailer in on this scheme, and and they wanted to 630 00:31:07,720 --> 00:31:11,400 Speaker 1: make eye contact with their target markets. But so why 631 00:31:11,560 --> 00:31:13,920 Speaker 1: is that? I mean, I understand wanting your product as 632 00:31:14,000 --> 00:31:17,240 Speaker 1: visible as possible, so it attracts more attention. But why 633 00:31:17,360 --> 00:31:20,360 Speaker 1: is making eye contact with the character or the spokesperson 634 00:31:20,480 --> 00:31:23,160 Speaker 1: matter that much? Yeah, well, that was the question behind 635 00:31:23,200 --> 00:31:25,760 Speaker 1: a second study where researchers looked into how much eye 636 00:31:25,800 --> 00:31:29,520 Speaker 1: contact with Cereal box characters influences people's feelings towards the brand, 637 00:31:29,960 --> 00:31:33,320 Speaker 1: and they asked sixty three participants from a private Northeastern 638 00:31:33,440 --> 00:31:36,640 Speaker 1: university to examine a box of Tricks Cereal and rate 639 00:31:36,720 --> 00:31:39,680 Speaker 1: their feelings of trust and connection to the brand. And 640 00:31:39,840 --> 00:31:42,040 Speaker 1: the catch was that some participants were given a box 641 00:31:42,080 --> 00:31:44,440 Speaker 1: where the tricks rabbit was looking straight ahead and others 642 00:31:44,440 --> 00:31:46,360 Speaker 1: had this box where the rabbit was looking away or 643 00:31:46,400 --> 00:31:50,320 Speaker 1: down from the view. And I'm guessing people preferred, you know, 644 00:31:50,360 --> 00:31:52,920 Speaker 1: whichever rabbit was looking their way or Yeah, but by 645 00:31:52,960 --> 00:31:56,440 Speaker 1: a wide margin. It's really incredible. So the finding showed 646 00:31:56,480 --> 00:31:59,440 Speaker 1: that participants who had eye contact with the rabbit felt 647 00:31:59,560 --> 00:32:04,200 Speaker 1: six percent more brand trust probas silly rabbit, and their 648 00:32:04,240 --> 00:32:06,760 Speaker 1: feeling of connection to the brand was twenty eight percent 649 00:32:06,920 --> 00:32:09,280 Speaker 1: higher than participants who looked at a box of tricks 650 00:32:09,560 --> 00:32:12,400 Speaker 1: with the rabbit looking away. And not only that, for 651 00:32:12,560 --> 00:32:15,520 Speaker 1: participants who made eye contact with rabbit actually said they 652 00:32:15,720 --> 00:32:19,160 Speaker 1: enjoyed the serial more compared with another cereal that lacked 653 00:32:19,160 --> 00:32:22,080 Speaker 1: eye contact component. Oh way, I mean, that's so creepy, 654 00:32:22,240 --> 00:32:24,240 Speaker 1: like it's it's also notes that looking at a picture 655 00:32:24,280 --> 00:32:26,840 Speaker 1: of a cartoon rabbit in the eyes can generate so 656 00:32:26,920 --> 00:32:29,320 Speaker 1: much good will and actually cause us to buy the party, 657 00:32:29,440 --> 00:32:31,880 Speaker 1: And and the fact that they chose this crazy rabbit 658 00:32:32,000 --> 00:32:35,240 Speaker 1: that it works is just baffling. Yeah, but there's an 659 00:32:35,320 --> 00:32:38,200 Speaker 1: upside to the research because now healthy cereals that are 660 00:32:38,240 --> 00:32:41,880 Speaker 1: well intentioned can actually make mascots that do the same thing. Yeah. 661 00:32:41,880 --> 00:32:43,719 Speaker 1: But you know, I don't want to leave this subject 662 00:32:43,800 --> 00:32:46,520 Speaker 1: of tricks because actually I found some interesting stuff during 663 00:32:46,520 --> 00:32:48,920 Speaker 1: our research here. So for instance, did you know that 664 00:32:48,960 --> 00:32:51,840 Speaker 1: before he was an animated character, the Tricks Rabbit was 665 00:32:51,920 --> 00:32:55,120 Speaker 1: this really like Jankee looking hand puppet, and I guess 666 00:32:55,120 --> 00:32:57,280 Speaker 1: General Mills it was. You know, they were unsure early 667 00:32:57,360 --> 00:32:59,719 Speaker 1: on of how to sell the concept of a serial 668 00:32:59,840 --> 00:33:02,680 Speaker 1: of cessed rabbit, because you know, the original slogan for 669 00:33:02,680 --> 00:33:05,560 Speaker 1: the serial was I'm a rabbit and rabbits are supposed 670 00:33:05,600 --> 00:33:07,760 Speaker 1: to like carrots, but I hate carrots. I like tricks. 671 00:33:08,200 --> 00:33:11,520 Speaker 1: That really rolls off the tongue. Yeah, and it also 672 00:33:11,560 --> 00:33:14,200 Speaker 1: makes the whole silly Rabbit Tricks are for Kids campaign 673 00:33:14,240 --> 00:33:17,280 Speaker 1: sound like poetry, Yeah, but that campaign had problems of 674 00:33:17,320 --> 00:33:19,160 Speaker 1: its own. I mean, for one thing, it made General 675 00:33:19,160 --> 00:33:21,560 Speaker 1: Mills worry that they were sending a bad message, you know, 676 00:33:21,600 --> 00:33:24,840 Speaker 1: by having this rabbit continually failed to achieve his goal. 677 00:33:25,640 --> 00:33:28,200 Speaker 1: You know, but where Charles Schultz concluded that Charlie Brown 678 00:33:28,280 --> 00:33:30,840 Speaker 1: missing the football was what made the whole thing work. 679 00:33:31,240 --> 00:33:34,680 Speaker 1: General Mills took the more democratic round in nineteen seventy six. 680 00:33:34,720 --> 00:33:37,720 Speaker 1: They put this question to a vote, should the tricks 681 00:33:37,800 --> 00:33:40,880 Speaker 1: rabbit finally get to eat the cereal? He craves and 682 00:33:40,960 --> 00:33:43,680 Speaker 1: kids also turned out to be more merciful than Schultza, 683 00:33:43,800 --> 00:33:46,600 Speaker 1: so almost a hundred percent of the votes were in 684 00:33:46,680 --> 00:33:49,920 Speaker 1: favor of giving the rabbit his long awaited bowl. And 685 00:33:49,960 --> 00:33:52,280 Speaker 1: that same verdict came again during a campaign I think 686 00:33:52,280 --> 00:33:55,040 Speaker 1: it was in nineteen eighty, which was the last time 687 00:33:55,080 --> 00:33:57,560 Speaker 1: the rabbit got his own bowl of tricks. That's been 688 00:33:57,600 --> 00:33:59,360 Speaker 1: a long time. I mean, you can tell why he's 689 00:33:59,440 --> 00:34:01,960 Speaker 1: jonesing for a bowl, No kidding, I mean, so these 690 00:34:02,000 --> 00:34:05,280 Speaker 1: cereal mascots tend to break down into two camps. So 691 00:34:05,680 --> 00:34:09,880 Speaker 1: there's the more laid back, confident, relaxed characters like Tony 692 00:34:09,920 --> 00:34:13,440 Speaker 1: the Tiger or like Golden Crisp Bear, and they mostly 693 00:34:13,520 --> 00:34:16,400 Speaker 1: sell cereal on the basis of their friendly demeanor and 694 00:34:16,880 --> 00:34:21,360 Speaker 1: cool look. I mean, how cool is tony bandana jacket? Awesome? 695 00:34:21,920 --> 00:34:25,480 Speaker 1: You know? And then that these unhinged cereal junkies who 696 00:34:25,480 --> 00:34:27,560 Speaker 1: looked like they just don't know, like busted out of 697 00:34:27,600 --> 00:34:30,480 Speaker 1: the looney bin. So these are your tricks Rabbits and 698 00:34:30,640 --> 00:34:34,919 Speaker 1: Sonny the Cuckoo Bird and like all of these crazy characters. Yeah, 699 00:34:34,960 --> 00:34:37,319 Speaker 1: those guys are pretty terrifying and and most of their 700 00:34:37,320 --> 00:34:39,839 Speaker 1: designs have only gotten more over the top as time's 701 00:34:39,880 --> 00:34:41,839 Speaker 1: gone by. What do you mean by that? So too 702 00:34:41,920 --> 00:34:44,760 Speaker 1: can Sam used to have the proportions of an actual bird, 703 00:34:45,200 --> 00:34:47,600 Speaker 1: but you know his body, shave, wings, and feet have 704 00:34:47,680 --> 00:34:50,359 Speaker 1: slowly become more human like, and and the colors too, 705 00:34:50,520 --> 00:34:53,759 Speaker 1: like they're all super exaggerated and brighter and bolder, and 706 00:34:53,760 --> 00:34:57,399 Speaker 1: it's crazy. And actually, have you seen Captain Crunch's latest look? 707 00:34:57,680 --> 00:35:00,600 Speaker 1: Like he used to be this old, weary he captain, 708 00:35:00,719 --> 00:35:03,360 Speaker 1: but now he has these huge popping eyes and wide 709 00:35:03,440 --> 00:35:06,400 Speaker 1: grim and even his eyebrows have gotten more excited, like 710 00:35:06,440 --> 00:35:10,000 Speaker 1: their way up over his hat. Now his hat has eyebrows. 711 00:35:10,400 --> 00:35:13,600 Speaker 1: It's very impressive. Well, I mean, there's always been something 712 00:35:13,640 --> 00:35:16,000 Speaker 1: suspect about that guy anyway, if we're being honest that 713 00:35:16,080 --> 00:35:18,640 Speaker 1: did you hear the controversy a few years back somebody 714 00:35:18,640 --> 00:35:21,160 Speaker 1: had noticed that the sleeves of his uniform only had 715 00:35:21,280 --> 00:35:23,719 Speaker 1: three yellow stripes instead of four. I love that people 716 00:35:23,719 --> 00:35:26,279 Speaker 1: were paying this close attention to it, But apparently that 717 00:35:26,320 --> 00:35:29,120 Speaker 1: pegs him as a commander in the Navy, not a captain. 718 00:35:29,480 --> 00:35:32,040 Speaker 1: So to his credit, when fans called him out, Crunch 719 00:35:32,120 --> 00:35:34,520 Speaker 1: took to Twitter to plead his case. And so here's 720 00:35:34,520 --> 00:35:38,200 Speaker 1: what he said, all hearsay and misunderstandings. I captain the 721 00:35:38,360 --> 00:35:41,520 Speaker 1: ss Guppy with my crew, which makes an official captain 722 00:35:41,520 --> 00:35:44,880 Speaker 1: in my book. Besides, it's the crunch, not the clothes, 723 00:35:44,960 --> 00:35:50,480 Speaker 1: that make a man. It almost gives me goose. It's 724 00:35:50,480 --> 00:35:52,759 Speaker 1: always been my belief that the facts make the man. 725 00:35:53,000 --> 00:35:54,839 Speaker 1: So I think it's time for a little fact off. 726 00:36:04,400 --> 00:36:08,239 Speaker 1: All right, let's do it. I'll go first here. So um, alright, So, 727 00:36:08,520 --> 00:36:10,520 Speaker 1: speaking of Captain Crunch, did did you know that in 728 00:36:10,560 --> 00:36:13,440 Speaker 1: two thousand nine, a woman in California filed a class 729 00:36:13,440 --> 00:36:16,840 Speaker 1: action suit against the maker of Captain Crunch's crunch Berries 730 00:36:17,360 --> 00:36:19,840 Speaker 1: and she did this because she said, for four long 731 00:36:19,960 --> 00:36:22,680 Speaker 1: years she'd been eating these crunch berries and thinking they 732 00:36:22,680 --> 00:36:25,520 Speaker 1: were real fruit. I mean, you know, you've got strawberries 733 00:36:25,520 --> 00:36:28,600 Speaker 1: and blueberries, raspberries and of course crunch berries. But of 734 00:36:28,640 --> 00:36:30,839 Speaker 1: course the judge and Sacramento did not see it her 735 00:36:30,840 --> 00:36:33,680 Speaker 1: way and quickly dismissed the suit. So, according to one 736 00:36:33,719 --> 00:36:37,080 Speaker 1: study commissioned by Kellogg, more than ten percent of Americans 737 00:36:37,080 --> 00:36:40,280 Speaker 1: had tried eating cereal with orange juice or coffee instead 738 00:36:40,280 --> 00:36:42,520 Speaker 1: of milk. I mean, is that true, Like, have you 739 00:36:42,520 --> 00:36:44,279 Speaker 1: ever done that? I have never done. I don't or 740 00:36:44,320 --> 00:36:48,400 Speaker 1: that would ruin a ball? No? Absolutely not? All right, Well, 741 00:36:48,440 --> 00:36:51,240 Speaker 1: according to a different study, women who regularly ate cereal 742 00:36:51,280 --> 00:36:54,799 Speaker 1: before conception are slightly more likely to have boys. There's 743 00:36:54,840 --> 00:36:58,160 Speaker 1: something about having a high energy intake before conceiving that 744 00:36:58,280 --> 00:37:00,840 Speaker 1: leads to these greater odds, and the food that seemed 745 00:37:00,840 --> 00:37:04,160 Speaker 1: to increase the odds the most was cereal. That's crazy. 746 00:37:04,239 --> 00:37:07,319 Speaker 1: So you're an oatmeal leader, right, well, I mean sometimes yeah, yeah, 747 00:37:07,360 --> 00:37:10,360 Speaker 1: Well did you know that the quote strawberries and peaches 748 00:37:10,400 --> 00:37:14,680 Speaker 1: and quicker instant oatmeal are actually dehydrated apples and the 749 00:37:14,719 --> 00:37:18,279 Speaker 1: blueberries are dehydrated figs and for a quicker sake. I 750 00:37:18,320 --> 00:37:21,080 Speaker 1: hope that the crunch Ferry Lady doesn't find out. But 751 00:37:21,239 --> 00:37:23,719 Speaker 1: at least the real fruits, that's true, They're real fruits, yeah, 752 00:37:23,800 --> 00:37:26,839 Speaker 1: unlike the crunchberries. So well. As kids, we always heard 753 00:37:26,840 --> 00:37:29,080 Speaker 1: that we should eat a good breakfast anytime we need 754 00:37:29,120 --> 00:37:32,279 Speaker 1: to do anything important that day, and studies do back 755 00:37:32,360 --> 00:37:35,000 Speaker 1: that up, often showing that breakfast eaters will perform about 756 00:37:35,040 --> 00:37:37,840 Speaker 1: ten percent better on memory tests than those who skipped. 757 00:37:38,120 --> 00:37:40,880 Speaker 1: But it also appears that eating not just breakfast, but 758 00:37:40,960 --> 00:37:44,799 Speaker 1: specifically cereal leads to a better mood. So according to 759 00:37:44,840 --> 00:37:47,719 Speaker 1: research from Bristol University, there are long term effects of 760 00:37:47,800 --> 00:37:52,240 Speaker 1: eating cereal for breakfast, and their findings quote people feel 761 00:37:52,320 --> 00:37:56,360 Speaker 1: better cereals boosted their mood. So I mean that's just 762 00:37:56,400 --> 00:37:58,560 Speaker 1: the kind of support we needed as cereal leaders. And 763 00:37:58,600 --> 00:38:01,200 Speaker 1: what a happy way to end this episode. I'm gonna 764 00:38:01,280 --> 00:38:03,480 Speaker 1: let you take over the trophy this week, and listeners, 765 00:38:03,520 --> 00:38:05,840 Speaker 1: if there are any great serial facts we forgot, please 766 00:38:05,920 --> 00:38:07,640 Speaker 1: let us know. You can always write us at part 767 00:38:07,640 --> 00:38:10,000 Speaker 1: time genius at how stuff works dot com or call 768 00:38:10,080 --> 00:38:13,239 Speaker 1: us on our seven fact hotline one eight for a 769 00:38:13,320 --> 00:38:16,040 Speaker 1: four pt genius. You know we love hearing from you well, 770 00:38:16,080 --> 00:38:17,799 Speaker 1: and don't forget to join us again next week when 771 00:38:17,800 --> 00:38:21,360 Speaker 1: we published episodes asking the questions how big is the U. S? Military? 772 00:38:21,520 --> 00:38:24,400 Speaker 1: And what are the worst jobs in the world, including 773 00:38:24,400 --> 00:38:28,120 Speaker 1: a peek into the important world of Wales not collecting. 774 00:38:28,200 --> 00:38:31,440 Speaker 1: That's gonna be pretty interesting. Are you sure that's right? Yeah, 775 00:38:31,520 --> 00:38:33,880 Speaker 1: that's right. All right. Well that's it for today's episode. 776 00:38:33,880 --> 00:38:50,280 Speaker 1: Thanks for listening, Thanks again for listening. Part Time Genius 777 00:38:50,320 --> 00:38:52,239 Speaker 1: is a production of how stuff works and wouldn't be 778 00:38:52,239 --> 00:38:55,160 Speaker 1: possible without several brilliant people who do the important things 779 00:38:55,200 --> 00:38:58,040 Speaker 1: we couldn't even begin to understand. Tristan McNeil does the 780 00:38:58,160 --> 00:39:00,560 Speaker 1: editing thing. Noel Brown made the theme song and does 781 00:39:00,600 --> 00:39:03,600 Speaker 1: the MIXI MIXI sound thing. Jerry Rowland does the exact 782 00:39:03,640 --> 00:39:06,800 Speaker 1: producer thing. Gay Bluesier is our lead researcher, with support 783 00:39:06,840 --> 00:39:09,640 Speaker 1: from the Research Army including Austin Thompson, Nolan Brown and 784 00:39:09,719 --> 00:39:11,800 Speaker 1: Lucas Adams and Eve Jeff Cook gets the show to 785 00:39:11,880 --> 00:39:14,359 Speaker 1: your ears. Good job, Eves. If you like what you heard, 786 00:39:14,400 --> 00:39:16,440 Speaker 1: we hope you'll subscribe, And if you really really like 787 00:39:16,520 --> 00:39:18,360 Speaker 1: what you've heard, maybe you could leave a good review 788 00:39:18,400 --> 00:39:21,000 Speaker 1: for us. Do we do? We forget Jason. Jason who