1 00:00:03,279 --> 00:00:06,240 Speaker 1: Welcome to Part Time Genius, a production of I Heart Radio. 2 00:00:11,640 --> 00:00:14,000 Speaker 1: I Guess what Will? What's that Mango? So at our 3 00:00:14,040 --> 00:00:16,200 Speaker 1: first week in college, I remember being in line for 4 00:00:16,239 --> 00:00:18,960 Speaker 1: breakfast and and there was just this wall of amazing 5 00:00:19,000 --> 00:00:22,800 Speaker 1: breakfast cereals, remember this, And we were, of course away 6 00:00:22,840 --> 00:00:25,600 Speaker 1: from our parents for the first time and being independent 7 00:00:25,760 --> 00:00:29,440 Speaker 1: and responsible, and so I piled my bowl high with 8 00:00:29,520 --> 00:00:32,200 Speaker 1: Lucky Charms. I mean, I think it was Lucky Charms, 9 00:00:32,280 --> 00:00:34,879 Speaker 1: but whatever was the most nutritious cereal out there. I 10 00:00:34,920 --> 00:00:37,000 Speaker 1: love that when you were finally like free from the 11 00:00:37,040 --> 00:00:39,360 Speaker 1: overside of your parents, like that was the first thing 12 00:00:39,479 --> 00:00:41,280 Speaker 1: you did to express your freedom, was like, get a 13 00:00:41,320 --> 00:00:43,960 Speaker 1: big bowl of cereal. But yes, I do remember that big, 14 00:00:44,000 --> 00:00:47,159 Speaker 1: awesome wall of cereal. Yeah, and the people we were 15 00:00:47,200 --> 00:00:49,720 Speaker 1: with started making fun of me for eating a kid 16 00:00:49,800 --> 00:00:53,080 Speaker 1: cereal instead of musically or whatever. And and right then 17 00:00:53,400 --> 00:00:56,560 Speaker 1: the star basketball recruit Eldon Brand walked up and got 18 00:00:56,560 --> 00:00:58,440 Speaker 1: a bowl of the same thing, and it was just 19 00:00:58,640 --> 00:01:01,560 Speaker 1: pure silent and I felt like such a trend setter. 20 00:01:01,880 --> 00:01:04,080 Speaker 1: And I remember that that's when you became the most 21 00:01:04,120 --> 00:01:08,040 Speaker 1: popular kid on campus. And not really, but part of 22 00:01:08,080 --> 00:01:10,440 Speaker 1: the reason I love breakfast cereals so much. And you know, 23 00:01:10,520 --> 00:01:12,760 Speaker 1: we used to have big serial parties in Metal Flaws 24 00:01:12,760 --> 00:01:14,880 Speaker 1: where everyone would bring a box of their favorite cereal. 25 00:01:14,959 --> 00:01:19,080 Speaker 1: But uh, there's just such a wonderful association with childhood 26 00:01:19,120 --> 00:01:22,160 Speaker 1: and Saturday Morning cartoons, and that's actually why we're talking 27 00:01:22,160 --> 00:01:45,120 Speaker 1: about cereal today. Let's dig in. Hey, their podcast listeners, 28 00:01:45,120 --> 00:01:47,360 Speaker 1: welcome to parts. I'm genius, I'm Will Pearson and as 29 00:01:47,400 --> 00:01:49,919 Speaker 1: always I'm joined by my good friend man Guesh Ticketer 30 00:01:50,280 --> 00:01:52,160 Speaker 1: and the man on the other side of the soundproof 31 00:01:52,200 --> 00:01:55,240 Speaker 1: glass eating a big bowl of frosted many weeks good 32 00:01:55,320 --> 00:01:59,000 Speaker 1: choice today as our producer, Tristan McNeil. But today we're 33 00:01:59,040 --> 00:02:01,320 Speaker 1: heading back to the growth trial for a closer look 34 00:02:01,360 --> 00:02:04,560 Speaker 1: at all things cereal, you know, the most whimsical or 35 00:02:04,680 --> 00:02:08,079 Speaker 1: nutritionally questionable at all of this, at every part of 36 00:02:08,120 --> 00:02:10,760 Speaker 1: a complete breakfast. And so we'll dig into the weird 37 00:02:10,840 --> 00:02:14,520 Speaker 1: stories and surprising facts behind our favorite brands, as well 38 00:02:14,560 --> 00:02:17,080 Speaker 1: as a few of the lesser known breakfast cereals that 39 00:02:17,160 --> 00:02:19,239 Speaker 1: time forgot. And then a little bit later we'll be 40 00:02:19,320 --> 00:02:22,000 Speaker 1: joined by Gay Fonseca. He's a TV writer and he's 41 00:02:22,000 --> 00:02:25,160 Speaker 1: spent more than a decade collecting childhood nostalgia in the 42 00:02:25,200 --> 00:02:29,080 Speaker 1: form of vintage cereal boxes. It's a fascinating collection. Yeah, 43 00:02:29,080 --> 00:02:31,600 Speaker 1: and he's also the host of this really fun YouTube 44 00:02:31,600 --> 00:02:34,640 Speaker 1: series called cereal Time, which is the series on the 45 00:02:34,639 --> 00:02:36,840 Speaker 1: subject of breakfast cereal. I mean, he's been doing it 46 00:02:36,880 --> 00:02:38,600 Speaker 1: for a couple of years now, so I'm super excited 47 00:02:38,600 --> 00:02:40,840 Speaker 1: to just hear how he got started. Yeah, well, we'll 48 00:02:40,880 --> 00:02:43,800 Speaker 1: gabs among the most devout of cereal enthusiasts, but he's 49 00:02:43,840 --> 00:02:46,520 Speaker 1: definitely not alone in this. I mean, lots of people 50 00:02:46,680 --> 00:02:49,800 Speaker 1: love cereals, and in the hundred and fifty plus years 51 00:02:49,800 --> 00:02:52,560 Speaker 1: since it came onto the market, cold breakfast cereal has 52 00:02:52,600 --> 00:02:55,680 Speaker 1: become a staple for millions of people around the world. 53 00:02:55,760 --> 00:02:58,320 Speaker 1: And you know, strangely, this love affair got its start 54 00:02:58,360 --> 00:03:01,560 Speaker 1: in the late nineteenth century kind of as an accident. 55 00:03:01,639 --> 00:03:04,120 Speaker 1: You know, it was this invention of fundamentalist Christians who 56 00:03:04,120 --> 00:03:07,600 Speaker 1: were seeking to promote a healthy, sin free lifestyle. And 57 00:03:08,000 --> 00:03:10,160 Speaker 1: much of this is you know, stories that people have heard, 58 00:03:10,200 --> 00:03:13,280 Speaker 1: but it's still pretty interesting that the bland foods, as 59 00:03:13,320 --> 00:03:15,680 Speaker 1: you know, like toasted corn and oats, where they were 60 00:03:15,680 --> 00:03:19,360 Speaker 1: thought to help suppress sexual urges and prevent arousal. And 61 00:03:19,440 --> 00:03:21,960 Speaker 1: so this thinking led to the creation of a few 62 00:03:22,040 --> 00:03:25,720 Speaker 1: notable foods, including Graham crackers, of course, but the one 63 00:03:25,760 --> 00:03:28,360 Speaker 1: that really caught on what the public was sereal. So 64 00:03:28,480 --> 00:03:31,720 Speaker 1: Dr John Harvey Kellogg, the superintendent of a sanitarium in 65 00:03:31,760 --> 00:03:35,080 Speaker 1: Battle Creek, Michigan, and his younger brother Well they stumbled 66 00:03:35,120 --> 00:03:38,280 Speaker 1: upon the recipe for what would ultimately become corn flakes. 67 00:03:38,800 --> 00:03:40,840 Speaker 1: After allowing some of the cooked wheat to sit out 68 00:03:40,880 --> 00:03:43,720 Speaker 1: for too long, the Kelloggs returned to find the wheat 69 00:03:43,760 --> 00:03:46,480 Speaker 1: had gone stale, but rather than toss it out as 70 00:03:46,520 --> 00:03:48,480 Speaker 1: you might think they would, they decided to roll it 71 00:03:48,520 --> 00:03:51,440 Speaker 1: out into thin flakes and then toast them. And the 72 00:03:51,520 --> 00:03:54,040 Speaker 1: corn flakes were a big hit with their patients, so 73 00:03:54,080 --> 00:03:57,480 Speaker 1: the Kelloggs decided to start marketing them to a broader public. Yeah, 74 00:03:57,520 --> 00:04:00,320 Speaker 1: and as interesting as that early history is, it's pretty 75 00:04:00,320 --> 00:04:02,760 Speaker 1: familiar by this point. So instead of going deep on 76 00:04:02,800 --> 00:04:07,080 Speaker 1: sanitariums and grape nuts were, we're gonna focus mostly on 77 00:04:07,120 --> 00:04:09,600 Speaker 1: the second act of the serial story. That's the period 78 00:04:09,640 --> 00:04:12,560 Speaker 1: from about nineteen fifty to the early nineties when marketing 79 00:04:12,560 --> 00:04:15,800 Speaker 1: to children really took off and sugary cereals really began 80 00:04:15,840 --> 00:04:19,240 Speaker 1: flooding grocery store aisles. Well, before we dive into that 81 00:04:19,240 --> 00:04:21,560 Speaker 1: colorful history, I thought we could take a quick look 82 00:04:21,600 --> 00:04:23,840 Speaker 1: at the state of cereal today, you know, just by 83 00:04:23,839 --> 00:04:27,320 Speaker 1: the numbers, and it's amazing how far cereal has come 84 00:04:27,360 --> 00:04:30,080 Speaker 1: from its early years as this niche product to the 85 00:04:30,120 --> 00:04:33,240 Speaker 1: mammoth industry that it is now. So just looking at 86 00:04:33,279 --> 00:04:37,000 Speaker 1: the US market alone, the breakfast cereal industry now generates 87 00:04:37,000 --> 00:04:40,240 Speaker 1: nearly ten billion dollars in annual revenue. And that that's 88 00:04:40,240 --> 00:04:44,280 Speaker 1: according to mord Or Intelligence. Did you say word or intelligent? 89 00:04:45,240 --> 00:04:48,320 Speaker 1: Feel like a hobbit? It's kind of a jarring name 90 00:04:48,360 --> 00:04:49,920 Speaker 1: if you're a Lord of the Rings fan. But it's 91 00:04:50,000 --> 00:04:53,520 Speaker 1: just the coincidence, unfortunately. But like I was saying, Americans 92 00:04:53,600 --> 00:04:56,640 Speaker 1: lead the world and serial consumption. It ranks fourth on 93 00:04:56,680 --> 00:04:59,000 Speaker 1: the list of the top ten package goods sold in 94 00:04:59,000 --> 00:05:02,760 Speaker 1: the US, and of American households by a box of 95 00:05:02,800 --> 00:05:05,360 Speaker 1: cereal at least once a year. And we're not the 96 00:05:05,400 --> 00:05:08,640 Speaker 1: only ones who love it. Canada, the UK, Australia, they 97 00:05:08,680 --> 00:05:11,320 Speaker 1: all have cereal markets that rival the size of our own. 98 00:05:11,400 --> 00:05:14,320 Speaker 1: And in recent years cereal has also gained in places 99 00:05:14,360 --> 00:05:17,680 Speaker 1: like China and India and Brazil. In fact, the breakfast 100 00:05:17,680 --> 00:05:21,360 Speaker 1: cereal marketing industry rakes and about thirty five billion dollars 101 00:05:21,360 --> 00:05:24,640 Speaker 1: in revenue each year from the foreign markets. So when 102 00:05:24,640 --> 00:05:26,800 Speaker 1: I took my kids to India last year, I remember 103 00:05:26,800 --> 00:05:29,480 Speaker 1: waking up jet lag the first day and they were 104 00:05:29,480 --> 00:05:32,200 Speaker 1: already up watching cartoons and we're wired on a bowl 105 00:05:32,240 --> 00:05:36,360 Speaker 1: of chocos. We didn't have chacos in all my years 106 00:05:36,360 --> 00:05:38,839 Speaker 1: agoing in to India though, we never ate breakfast cereals 107 00:05:38,880 --> 00:05:40,720 Speaker 1: and we never ate in from the TV. So it 108 00:05:40,760 --> 00:05:44,159 Speaker 1: was almost jarring to see this American experience transplanted to India. 109 00:05:44,480 --> 00:05:47,880 Speaker 1: But you know, sugar and grain is obviously this winning combination. 110 00:05:48,360 --> 00:05:51,240 Speaker 1: But I have seen a few reports about sagging sales 111 00:05:51,279 --> 00:05:53,719 Speaker 1: as more and more people opt for, you know, either 112 00:05:53,839 --> 00:05:58,480 Speaker 1: easier or healthier breakfast options, so pop tarts or avocado 113 00:05:58,560 --> 00:06:00,640 Speaker 1: toast or you know, maybe a quick trip to the 114 00:06:00,760 --> 00:06:02,719 Speaker 1: drive through on the way to work. And and of 115 00:06:02,760 --> 00:06:05,680 Speaker 1: course there's this growing segment of the population that just 116 00:06:05,720 --> 00:06:08,320 Speaker 1: doesn't eat breakfast period. So when you were listing those 117 00:06:08,360 --> 00:06:11,080 Speaker 1: easier and healthier options and you said pop tarts, which 118 00:06:11,080 --> 00:06:13,120 Speaker 1: one of them, I'm guessing that's the easier option there. 119 00:06:13,160 --> 00:06:16,080 Speaker 1: But they are delicious well as big as the cereal 120 00:06:16,120 --> 00:06:18,760 Speaker 1: industry is today, There's no question that it used to 121 00:06:18,839 --> 00:06:22,720 Speaker 1: be bigger. According to NPR, serial consumption peaked right around 122 00:06:22,839 --> 00:06:26,720 Speaker 1: nine I guess it was, and has steadily gone downhill 123 00:06:26,839 --> 00:06:30,400 Speaker 1: ever since, generally by a full percentage point each year. 124 00:06:30,800 --> 00:06:32,880 Speaker 1: And while the stuff you mentioned is definitely played a 125 00:06:32,920 --> 00:06:35,719 Speaker 1: part in that decline, it's really due to a combination 126 00:06:35,760 --> 00:06:39,400 Speaker 1: of factors. You know. For example, back in lawmakers passed 127 00:06:39,400 --> 00:06:42,800 Speaker 1: the Nutrition and Labeling Education Act, and that made it 128 00:06:42,839 --> 00:06:46,280 Speaker 1: mandatory for all products to include the now commonplace list 129 00:06:46,320 --> 00:06:49,359 Speaker 1: of nutrition facts on the packaging. And this made it 130 00:06:49,440 --> 00:06:52,719 Speaker 1: easier than ever for consumers to see the nutritional value 131 00:06:52,960 --> 00:06:56,080 Speaker 1: or lack thereof, I guess, and they could look at 132 00:06:56,120 --> 00:06:58,159 Speaker 1: this and all of their cereals now at this point, 133 00:06:58,160 --> 00:07:01,240 Speaker 1: and as more people became edge caated about just how 134 00:07:01,360 --> 00:07:04,080 Speaker 1: much sugar and carves they were eating or feeding to 135 00:07:04,120 --> 00:07:06,760 Speaker 1: their kids, you know, they started to think twice before 136 00:07:06,839 --> 00:07:09,440 Speaker 1: tossing a box in the car whenever they're with grocery store. 137 00:07:09,720 --> 00:07:12,280 Speaker 1: So I looked into just how sugary cereal can be, 138 00:07:12,600 --> 00:07:16,040 Speaker 1: and it's insane, Like the whole cereal industry uses around 139 00:07:16,240 --> 00:07:19,720 Speaker 1: eight hundred sixty million pounds of sugar in its products 140 00:07:19,720 --> 00:07:22,920 Speaker 1: every year, and apparently most of that's going into honey Smacks. 141 00:07:23,680 --> 00:07:26,000 Speaker 1: You know, for some reason, you don't know out there, 142 00:07:26,120 --> 00:07:28,440 Speaker 1: that's the one with the cool frog wearing the backwards 143 00:07:28,480 --> 00:07:30,160 Speaker 1: baseball cap on the box. I thought you were talking 144 00:07:30,160 --> 00:07:32,720 Speaker 1: to me for a second, was like, I know, honey Smacks, mango, 145 00:07:32,840 --> 00:07:36,440 Speaker 1: Come on, Well, honey Smacks is consistently ranked the worst 146 00:07:36,440 --> 00:07:38,600 Speaker 1: cereal for your health because it has less than two 147 00:07:38,720 --> 00:07:41,880 Speaker 1: grams of five or per serving and its ingredients breakdown 148 00:07:41,880 --> 00:07:47,880 Speaker 1: to almost sixty sugar. It's tasty, but according to the 149 00:07:48,000 --> 00:07:51,360 Speaker 1: Environmental and Working Group, there's more sugar in one cup 150 00:07:51,480 --> 00:07:54,480 Speaker 1: serving of honey Smacks than there isn't a Hostess twinkie, 151 00:07:54,480 --> 00:07:57,560 Speaker 1: no way. I know that it's sweet, obviously, and I 152 00:07:57,600 --> 00:08:01,000 Speaker 1: knew it wasn't good for you, But honestly, the taste 153 00:08:01,000 --> 00:08:02,760 Speaker 1: of honey Smacks, I wouldn't have guessed it was the 154 00:08:02,920 --> 00:08:05,360 Speaker 1: most sugary cereal. But it kind of makes my teeth 155 00:08:05,400 --> 00:08:07,640 Speaker 1: are just thinking about that. And you know that that 156 00:08:07,760 --> 00:08:10,960 Speaker 1: sugar to fiber ratio might make us cringe. But there's 157 00:08:11,000 --> 00:08:13,800 Speaker 1: one particular serial leading demographic that you're not going to 158 00:08:13,880 --> 00:08:16,200 Speaker 1: hear complaining about this, and that's kids, or at least 159 00:08:16,240 --> 00:08:19,440 Speaker 1: my kids. Yeah, my kids to Actually, do you remember 160 00:08:19,800 --> 00:08:22,400 Speaker 1: there was this great Calvin and Hobbs where Calvin's eating 161 00:08:22,440 --> 00:08:26,240 Speaker 1: his favorite cereal. I think it's something like chocolate frostage 162 00:08:26,240 --> 00:08:29,600 Speaker 1: sugar bombs, and he gives Hobbs a try, and Hobbs 163 00:08:29,760 --> 00:08:33,040 Speaker 1: just starts shaking, gagging from the sweetness, and Calvin says, 164 00:08:33,480 --> 00:08:35,920 Speaker 1: actually they're kind of blend until he scoops some sugar on. 165 00:08:37,160 --> 00:08:39,800 Speaker 1: But what I find really interesting is how deeply ingrained 166 00:08:39,800 --> 00:08:42,319 Speaker 1: the fondness for breakfast cereal is and so many people, 167 00:08:42,400 --> 00:08:45,800 Speaker 1: and how so much of that seems rooted in their childhood. Yeah. 168 00:08:45,840 --> 00:08:48,040 Speaker 1: I mean, i'd say for most adults serial leaders, it's 169 00:08:48,080 --> 00:08:49,680 Speaker 1: a big part of the allure. I mean, it's what 170 00:08:49,720 --> 00:08:52,400 Speaker 1: you were saying about your kids. There's these memories of 171 00:08:52,400 --> 00:08:55,360 Speaker 1: watching Saturday morning cartoons with a big bowl of Captain 172 00:08:55,400 --> 00:08:58,040 Speaker 1: Crunch in your hand, or maybe indulging in a late 173 00:08:58,120 --> 00:09:00,600 Speaker 1: night fix of Lucky Charms sitting in your college dorm. 174 00:09:00,640 --> 00:09:03,360 Speaker 1: I don't know who you're talking about, right, Well, it's 175 00:09:03,400 --> 00:09:04,880 Speaker 1: sort of a comfort food in a way. I mean, 176 00:09:04,920 --> 00:09:06,880 Speaker 1: it takes us back to simpler days when most of 177 00:09:06,920 --> 00:09:09,360 Speaker 1: us were a little more carefree about what we ate 178 00:09:09,400 --> 00:09:14,120 Speaker 1: and why. Yeah, so nostalgia is definitely a strong factor. Actually, well, 179 00:09:14,120 --> 00:09:16,319 Speaker 1: what are some of the weirdest discontinued cereals you can 180 00:09:16,320 --> 00:09:18,000 Speaker 1: think of? I was trying to think about this earlier, 181 00:09:18,000 --> 00:09:21,280 Speaker 1: and I remember seeing cuber cereal when I was a kid. 182 00:09:21,360 --> 00:09:25,080 Speaker 1: Do you remember Cuberta that video game character? And and 183 00:09:25,120 --> 00:09:28,520 Speaker 1: also eating one with smurfberries. Like, my parents only really 184 00:09:28,520 --> 00:09:30,680 Speaker 1: bought us sugar cereals for maybe a year or two, 185 00:09:30,720 --> 00:09:33,800 Speaker 1: but I remember sampling some weird ones. Yeah, I mean 186 00:09:33,880 --> 00:09:36,600 Speaker 1: I always thought it was completely bonkers that some cereals 187 00:09:36,600 --> 00:09:39,040 Speaker 1: didn't even mask the fact that they were candy, Like 188 00:09:39,280 --> 00:09:42,240 Speaker 1: you know, Kellogg's did a candy corn Pops. But even 189 00:09:42,280 --> 00:09:45,360 Speaker 1: more blatant than that, there was a Nerds Cereal and 190 00:09:45,400 --> 00:09:49,280 Speaker 1: I'm ticked off that I never tried it Nerds Cereal, 191 00:09:50,000 --> 00:09:51,839 Speaker 1: by the way, listeners, I just wanted to break for 192 00:09:51,840 --> 00:09:53,800 Speaker 1: a second because Will and I have been debating what 193 00:09:53,880 --> 00:09:56,400 Speaker 1: the official candy of Part Time Genius should be, and 194 00:09:56,440 --> 00:10:00,240 Speaker 1: Will was saying it should be atomic fireballs, and I 195 00:10:00,320 --> 00:10:03,080 Speaker 1: was thinking Nerds. So if you have any thoughts on this, 196 00:10:03,200 --> 00:10:06,040 Speaker 1: please let us know on Facebook or Twitter. But well, 197 00:10:06,320 --> 00:10:09,320 Speaker 1: you're right, nerds, cereal is insane. But looking back, like 198 00:10:09,360 --> 00:10:12,520 Speaker 1: the box was so cool. It came in these two flavors, 199 00:10:12,520 --> 00:10:14,800 Speaker 1: just like the candies, and you could pour orange out 200 00:10:14,800 --> 00:10:17,280 Speaker 1: of one side and cherry out of the other. Can 201 00:10:17,320 --> 00:10:20,920 Speaker 1: you imagine, Like, who would let their kids buy this? Probably? 202 00:10:22,600 --> 00:10:24,520 Speaker 1: It also makes me wonder like if so much a 203 00:10:24,559 --> 00:10:27,240 Speaker 1: serials appeal is rooted in the past, Like what does 204 00:10:27,320 --> 00:10:29,520 Speaker 1: this say about our future? Well, you know, there's a 205 00:10:29,559 --> 00:10:32,280 Speaker 1: new generation of kids getting hooked on cereal now, and 206 00:10:32,720 --> 00:10:34,720 Speaker 1: many of them will stick with it into adulthood. And 207 00:10:34,720 --> 00:10:36,760 Speaker 1: that's part of the reason there's so many brands duking 208 00:10:36,760 --> 00:10:39,120 Speaker 1: it out, you know, trying to get kids to eat 209 00:10:39,160 --> 00:10:42,679 Speaker 1: these cereal is because people's breakfast routines tend to be 210 00:10:42,760 --> 00:10:45,720 Speaker 1: the same, you know, pretty much every day. But there's 211 00:10:45,760 --> 00:10:48,880 Speaker 1: another point to consider, and those declining sales numbers we 212 00:10:48,880 --> 00:10:52,720 Speaker 1: mentioned earlier also coincide with declining birth rate, So you know, 213 00:10:53,280 --> 00:10:55,040 Speaker 1: it's it's not like the birthrate will ever drop to 214 00:10:55,160 --> 00:10:58,240 Speaker 1: zero or anything like that, but fewer kids does result 215 00:10:58,240 --> 00:11:01,440 Speaker 1: than fewer cereal fans, obviously. Yeah, It's it's funny that 216 00:11:01,559 --> 00:11:04,439 Speaker 1: something that started out as health food became so dependent 217 00:11:04,480 --> 00:11:07,560 Speaker 1: on selling sugar to kids. But I guess that's usually 218 00:11:07,600 --> 00:11:09,920 Speaker 1: how it goes with food trends. Like someone with these 219 00:11:10,040 --> 00:11:14,280 Speaker 1: very altruistic intentions gets the ball rolling, hoping to better society, 220 00:11:14,400 --> 00:11:16,280 Speaker 1: and and then you know, at a certain point, the 221 00:11:16,280 --> 00:11:19,720 Speaker 1: marketing team steps in writing eximally. Yeah. Dr Kellogg used 222 00:11:19,720 --> 00:11:22,920 Speaker 1: to give lectures about his methods for leading a healthy lifestyle, 223 00:11:22,960 --> 00:11:25,360 Speaker 1: and he would sometimes give out the recipes for his 224 00:11:25,440 --> 00:11:27,240 Speaker 1: corn Flix so that people could make them at home. 225 00:11:27,360 --> 00:11:29,920 Speaker 1: And at one talk he told the crowd, you may 226 00:11:29,960 --> 00:11:32,400 Speaker 1: say I'm destroying the health food business here by giving 227 00:11:32,440 --> 00:11:36,200 Speaker 1: these recipes, but I'm not after the business. I'm after reform. 228 00:11:36,320 --> 00:11:38,480 Speaker 1: I mean, yeah. He really did seem to believe and 229 00:11:38,520 --> 00:11:40,719 Speaker 1: what he was selling, sure, But the problem was that 230 00:11:40,760 --> 00:11:43,160 Speaker 1: the same couldn't be said of his brother, Will Kellogg. 231 00:11:43,320 --> 00:11:45,760 Speaker 1: And and Will try for years to convince his brother 232 00:11:45,800 --> 00:11:48,080 Speaker 1: to add sugar to their cereal, believing it would add 233 00:11:48,120 --> 00:11:50,840 Speaker 1: some flavor to what he called horse food. But the 234 00:11:50,840 --> 00:11:53,679 Speaker 1: tipping point came into late forties when their competitor Post 235 00:11:53,720 --> 00:11:57,320 Speaker 1: Cereals released Sugar Crisp. So Posted branched out beyond the 236 00:11:57,320 --> 00:12:00,800 Speaker 1: health food market with its first sugarcoated sea and like 237 00:12:00,920 --> 00:12:04,040 Speaker 1: it or not, Kellogg kind of had to follow the suit. Yeah, 238 00:12:04,080 --> 00:12:06,559 Speaker 1: but it's really post World War Two that the industry 239 00:12:06,559 --> 00:12:09,120 Speaker 1: started to focus on marketing directly to kids. I mean, 240 00:12:09,400 --> 00:12:13,120 Speaker 1: companies had dabbled with these ads before, including Kellogg's use 241 00:12:13,120 --> 00:12:15,840 Speaker 1: of Snap, Crackle and Pop as the characters for Rice Crispies, 242 00:12:15,840 --> 00:12:19,280 Speaker 1: and that marketing began in the nineteen thirties. But even 243 00:12:19,280 --> 00:12:22,200 Speaker 1: with cartoon gnomes pleading their case, you know, these highly 244 00:12:22,240 --> 00:12:26,000 Speaker 1: processed oats and grains were a tough sell without adding something, 245 00:12:26,160 --> 00:12:28,400 Speaker 1: you know, sweet to it. That's crazy though, I like, 246 00:12:28,520 --> 00:12:31,000 Speaker 1: I had no idea that the Rice Christie's trio had 247 00:12:31,000 --> 00:12:33,719 Speaker 1: been around that long. I thought they were post fifties 248 00:12:33,800 --> 00:12:37,200 Speaker 1: like most other cereal mascots. Yeah, Snap cracklin Pop are 249 00:12:37,240 --> 00:12:39,840 Speaker 1: actually one of the longest running ad campaigns in history, 250 00:12:39,880 --> 00:12:41,640 Speaker 1: and as I was looking up at that, they're actually 251 00:12:41,679 --> 00:12:44,640 Speaker 1: the longest for cereal brands. Actually, by the way, did 252 00:12:44,679 --> 00:12:46,520 Speaker 1: you know that their names are on amount of pia 253 00:12:46,640 --> 00:12:49,160 Speaker 1: sounds for what you hear when milk is added to 254 00:12:49,200 --> 00:12:52,880 Speaker 1: the cereal. But apparently Rice Crispies were always marketed as 255 00:12:52,880 --> 00:12:55,280 Speaker 1: the cereal you can hear, and this was even before 256 00:12:55,320 --> 00:12:58,040 Speaker 1: the mascots came along. In fact, the guy who created 257 00:12:58,040 --> 00:13:00,280 Speaker 1: the characters did so after being inspired by one of 258 00:13:00,320 --> 00:13:03,760 Speaker 1: the brand's previous radio jingles. Because I know you're dying 259 00:13:03,760 --> 00:13:06,000 Speaker 1: to know what it was. You're the lyrics, I jotted 260 00:13:06,040 --> 00:13:08,920 Speaker 1: them down, So all right, listen to the fairy song 261 00:13:09,000 --> 00:13:11,840 Speaker 1: of help the Mary Corus sung by Kelloggs Rice Crispies 262 00:13:11,920 --> 00:13:14,560 Speaker 1: as they merrily snap, crackle and pop in a bowl 263 00:13:14,600 --> 00:13:17,840 Speaker 1: of milk. If you've never heard food talking, now is 264 00:13:17,840 --> 00:13:20,040 Speaker 1: your chance. I'm so hungry for a bowl of cereal. Now, 265 00:13:20,080 --> 00:13:21,800 Speaker 1: why didn't we do this before? And also that was 266 00:13:21,800 --> 00:13:24,800 Speaker 1: a jingle like it doesn't even rive. I was I 267 00:13:24,840 --> 00:13:26,600 Speaker 1: was gonna put it to song that I just made 268 00:13:26,679 --> 00:13:29,839 Speaker 1: up sided against it. So, I mean, obviously mascots were 269 00:13:29,840 --> 00:13:32,160 Speaker 1: a smart move, since it's hard to market like a 270 00:13:32,200 --> 00:13:34,720 Speaker 1: fairy song of health without them. But wasn't there also 271 00:13:34,760 --> 00:13:37,000 Speaker 1: a fourth gnome for a while, Yeah, you bet there 272 00:13:37,120 --> 00:13:41,160 Speaker 1: was Pal He stood for the serials nutritional punch, I think, 273 00:13:41,200 --> 00:13:43,920 Speaker 1: And of course he didn't last very long. But let's 274 00:13:43,920 --> 00:13:46,800 Speaker 1: get this back on track. So gradually the Sweden Cereals 275 00:13:46,840 --> 00:13:49,800 Speaker 1: come to dominate the market, thanks, you know, because of 276 00:13:49,920 --> 00:13:53,640 Speaker 1: product placement and children's programming and they've never looked back since. 277 00:13:53,960 --> 00:13:56,320 Speaker 1: And in fact, the breakfast Cereal industry is still one 278 00:13:56,360 --> 00:13:58,839 Speaker 1: of the top spenders for a commercial air time. More 279 00:13:58,880 --> 00:14:01,440 Speaker 1: than a million series adds air on TV each year, 280 00:14:01,480 --> 00:14:04,839 Speaker 1: which cost companies like Posting Kellogg's more than I want 281 00:14:04,880 --> 00:14:08,040 Speaker 1: to say, like half a billion dollars. Yeah, well so, 282 00:14:08,040 --> 00:14:10,240 Speaker 1: so all those old TV ads are a big part 283 00:14:10,240 --> 00:14:12,280 Speaker 1: of why Cold Cereal took such a hold in the 284 00:14:12,320 --> 00:14:15,160 Speaker 1: hearts and minds of baby boomers, and then they of 285 00:14:15,200 --> 00:14:17,800 Speaker 1: course passed on that fondness to their now adult children. 286 00:14:17,880 --> 00:14:20,080 Speaker 1: But you know, there's another element that helped in dear 287 00:14:20,320 --> 00:14:23,120 Speaker 1: entire generations to breakfast Cereal that I want to talk 288 00:14:23,160 --> 00:14:25,800 Speaker 1: about it, and that's the prizes that came packed inside 289 00:14:25,800 --> 00:14:29,040 Speaker 1: those boxes. I mean, the prizes played such a big role. 290 00:14:29,160 --> 00:14:31,400 Speaker 1: Like I might have wanted a box of Cookie Crisp, 291 00:14:31,440 --> 00:14:33,600 Speaker 1: but if the Apple Jacks had one of those wacky 292 00:14:33,600 --> 00:14:35,960 Speaker 1: wall walkers in it, I mean you remember those sticky 293 00:14:35,960 --> 00:14:38,320 Speaker 1: octopuses that were walked down the wall of course. Yeah, 294 00:14:38,360 --> 00:14:40,680 Speaker 1: and then of course that's the box I'd end up with. Yeah, 295 00:14:40,680 --> 00:14:42,400 Speaker 1: I mean, I'm with you on that. Actually I would 296 00:14:42,440 --> 00:14:44,040 Speaker 1: buy a box of cereal for one of those. Now 297 00:14:44,080 --> 00:14:46,280 Speaker 1: it's been years since I played, and they were awesome. 298 00:14:46,320 --> 00:14:48,160 Speaker 1: But you know, let's talk a little bit about how 299 00:14:48,200 --> 00:14:51,200 Speaker 1: toys and games ended up inside the boxes, as well 300 00:14:51,240 --> 00:14:53,280 Speaker 1: as some of the coolest and strangest ones to come 301 00:14:53,320 --> 00:14:55,640 Speaker 1: along over the years. But before we do that, let's 302 00:14:55,640 --> 00:15:04,080 Speaker 1: break for a quiz. Then we've got Gabe Fonseca on 303 00:15:04,120 --> 00:15:07,080 Speaker 1: the program. Now, gabees an accomplished TV writer, but he's 304 00:15:07,160 --> 00:15:10,800 Speaker 1: also got the best unboxing series on YouTube. It's called 305 00:15:10,880 --> 00:15:14,000 Speaker 1: Serial Time TV, and this is where he unboxes and 306 00:15:14,040 --> 00:15:18,000 Speaker 1: reviews incredible breakfast cereals. Welcome to Part Time Genius, Gabe, 307 00:15:18,240 --> 00:15:20,720 Speaker 1: Thanks for having me. I'm I'm a fan of the podcast, 308 00:15:20,760 --> 00:15:22,360 Speaker 1: so I'm honored to be on the show. Thank you 309 00:15:22,440 --> 00:15:24,360 Speaker 1: so much. Now, I know you're out in Los Angeles. 310 00:15:24,400 --> 00:15:26,840 Speaker 1: Man Guesh is actually on vacation today. He's out on 311 00:15:26,880 --> 00:15:30,320 Speaker 1: your coast in Portland's so he sends his best But 312 00:15:30,600 --> 00:15:32,600 Speaker 1: but I hope you're still willing to chat with me today, 313 00:15:33,160 --> 00:15:35,600 Speaker 1: of course, of course. All right, now, so, Gay, we've 314 00:15:35,600 --> 00:15:38,520 Speaker 1: read that you have over three hundred Cereal boxes in 315 00:15:38,520 --> 00:15:41,000 Speaker 1: your collection, and I have to ask, like, how did 316 00:15:41,040 --> 00:15:44,280 Speaker 1: you get into this? In the first place, and what 317 00:15:44,400 --> 00:15:47,800 Speaker 1: are some of your more prized cereal boxes. You know, 318 00:15:47,800 --> 00:15:49,760 Speaker 1: I've always been a collector, and I think at one 319 00:15:49,800 --> 00:15:51,840 Speaker 1: point I saw Old Spider Man, So I think that 320 00:15:51,880 --> 00:15:55,440 Speaker 1: was my first box. Um, it was from Zerio and 321 00:15:55,560 --> 00:15:57,440 Speaker 1: I saw it on eBay when I was just browsing, 322 00:15:57,480 --> 00:15:59,320 Speaker 1: and I was like, that'd be cool to have on 323 00:15:59,360 --> 00:16:02,800 Speaker 1: my bookshelf, and I bought it and then uh, and 324 00:16:02,800 --> 00:16:04,120 Speaker 1: then I was like, well, you know what, there are 325 00:16:04,120 --> 00:16:05,800 Speaker 1: some other ones that I remember from back in the day, 326 00:16:05,840 --> 00:16:07,560 Speaker 1: and and then it kind of just turned into this 327 00:16:07,640 --> 00:16:10,440 Speaker 1: black hole on eBay where I just was was scouring 328 00:16:10,480 --> 00:16:12,560 Speaker 1: and finding old cereals that that brought back to these 329 00:16:12,560 --> 00:16:15,440 Speaker 1: nostalgic memories to me. Wow. Wow, Now I think I've 330 00:16:15,440 --> 00:16:17,720 Speaker 1: read that you've tried some even some like thirty year 331 00:16:17,720 --> 00:16:21,360 Speaker 1: old cereals. Is this right? Yeah? Yeah. When I first 332 00:16:21,400 --> 00:16:24,160 Speaker 1: started this unboxing channel on YouTube, and I started it 333 00:16:24,160 --> 00:16:26,360 Speaker 1: because I started to run out a room of just 334 00:16:26,400 --> 00:16:29,080 Speaker 1: having these unopened cereal boxes on my shelf and it 335 00:16:29,120 --> 00:16:30,840 Speaker 1: was like, you know, this is just taking up space 336 00:16:30,840 --> 00:16:33,320 Speaker 1: and this is kind of silly. I could just flatten 337 00:16:33,400 --> 00:16:36,560 Speaker 1: them out, so I I decided like, well, let's for posterity. 338 00:16:36,640 --> 00:16:39,520 Speaker 1: Let's just record myself opening these boxes and and you know, 339 00:16:39,600 --> 00:16:41,760 Speaker 1: recording with the cereal looks like and documenting it so 340 00:16:41,800 --> 00:16:45,200 Speaker 1: I'll have it, you know, for posterity. And uh. And 341 00:16:45,240 --> 00:16:46,960 Speaker 1: I never thought I was like going to try him, 342 00:16:46,960 --> 00:16:49,640 Speaker 1: and then I'd opened some boxes and uh, I'd be like, well, 343 00:16:49,720 --> 00:16:51,600 Speaker 1: let me just see if it holds up. I think 344 00:16:51,600 --> 00:16:54,120 Speaker 1: the oldest one I might have tried was a grim 345 00:16:54,240 --> 00:16:58,200 Speaker 1: smiles giggles and last cereal, which was from the seventies, 346 00:16:58,240 --> 00:17:00,800 Speaker 1: I believe, and it was pretty grass guessing. Oh man, 347 00:17:00,800 --> 00:17:04,000 Speaker 1: they're terrible. They just don't you know. It tastes mostly 348 00:17:04,040 --> 00:17:06,040 Speaker 1: like it tastes like the plastic in a way. It 349 00:17:06,000 --> 00:17:09,000 Speaker 1: takes great toxic and disgusting. But I would I definitely 350 00:17:09,040 --> 00:17:11,640 Speaker 1: do not recommend it. I can't imagine now. In terms 351 00:17:11,640 --> 00:17:13,440 Speaker 1: of cereals, are there any that you wish you could 352 00:17:13,520 --> 00:17:16,440 Speaker 1: have tasted if you could go back in time? Yeah. Absolutely. 353 00:17:16,480 --> 00:17:19,080 Speaker 1: There's one from before my time, in the seventies called 354 00:17:19,080 --> 00:17:21,600 Speaker 1: It's a Great Fellow. It was actually, um they released 355 00:17:21,640 --> 00:17:24,000 Speaker 1: a Great Fellow and Baron von red Berry. There were 356 00:17:24,000 --> 00:17:26,720 Speaker 1: General Mills cereals and uh, this is a Great Fellow 357 00:17:26,760 --> 00:17:30,040 Speaker 1: one tasted like you know, grape the grape cereal or 358 00:17:30,119 --> 00:17:32,199 Speaker 1: grape kool aid, I imagine I never actually got to 359 00:17:32,200 --> 00:17:34,560 Speaker 1: try it, but I'm a I'm a sucker for great 360 00:17:34,600 --> 00:17:37,600 Speaker 1: flavored things. And uh and even though I got a 361 00:17:38,040 --> 00:17:40,320 Speaker 1: Nerds cereal which came out in the eighties, which I 362 00:17:40,359 --> 00:17:42,320 Speaker 1: which I got to try back and back then, I 363 00:17:42,920 --> 00:17:45,760 Speaker 1: it just wasn't the same, you know, it wasn't it 364 00:17:45,840 --> 00:17:47,879 Speaker 1: wasn't that great great flavor. It was kind of it 365 00:17:48,000 --> 00:17:50,760 Speaker 1: wasn't a great cereal, and Sir, great fellow, just just 366 00:17:50,880 --> 00:17:52,719 Speaker 1: like I look at the ad campaigns I see on 367 00:17:52,720 --> 00:17:55,280 Speaker 1: YouTube and I'm just like this, this was like, this 368 00:17:55,320 --> 00:17:57,440 Speaker 1: is great. I really wish I was alive for this one. 369 00:17:57,480 --> 00:17:59,480 Speaker 1: I could I could try that one. Yeah yeah, Now, 370 00:17:59,480 --> 00:18:01,320 Speaker 1: how about any boxes you'd love to add to your 371 00:18:01,320 --> 00:18:04,080 Speaker 1: collection but haven't been able to get ahold of? For me? 372 00:18:04,160 --> 00:18:06,199 Speaker 1: I I kind of at this point, I feel like 373 00:18:06,200 --> 00:18:08,280 Speaker 1: I'm at peace and I've kind of completed my collection 374 00:18:08,359 --> 00:18:12,399 Speaker 1: and kind of everything I want. There is one really 375 00:18:12,480 --> 00:18:15,320 Speaker 1: random cereal from General Mills in the nineties. It was 376 00:18:15,359 --> 00:18:18,280 Speaker 1: called Buen Alitos, and I remember it. It was on 377 00:18:18,320 --> 00:18:21,160 Speaker 1: shelves for a limited time, and I just can't find 378 00:18:21,160 --> 00:18:23,560 Speaker 1: a box of that anywhere, and that's probably like the 379 00:18:23,640 --> 00:18:26,159 Speaker 1: last you know, my great you know, white whale that 380 00:18:26,200 --> 00:18:28,640 Speaker 1: I'm trying to obtain. Still, I don't know, Gabe. I'm 381 00:18:28,640 --> 00:18:30,600 Speaker 1: hearing in your voice that maybe you're not quite at 382 00:18:30,600 --> 00:18:33,720 Speaker 1: piece yet until you find that so off, if if, 383 00:18:34,000 --> 00:18:35,920 Speaker 1: if any of our listeners out there know how to 384 00:18:35,960 --> 00:18:38,800 Speaker 1: get ahold of some did you say bueno altos? Yes, 385 00:18:39,480 --> 00:18:41,040 Speaker 1: all right, we'll see what we can do for you. 386 00:18:41,359 --> 00:18:43,879 Speaker 1: There'll be a free part time Genius t shirt on 387 00:18:43,920 --> 00:18:46,760 Speaker 1: the line for these people. But but before we let 388 00:18:46,840 --> 00:18:50,320 Speaker 1: you go, Mango did leave me a quiz titled the 389 00:18:50,359 --> 00:18:53,560 Speaker 1: Most Important Meal Quiz of the Day. So I'm gonna 390 00:18:53,560 --> 00:18:56,400 Speaker 1: ask you a few questions if you obscure serial questions, 391 00:18:56,400 --> 00:18:57,800 Speaker 1: and all you gotta do is answer them. How does 392 00:18:57,800 --> 00:19:00,840 Speaker 1: that sound? All right? I'll give it my best, alright? 393 00:19:00,920 --> 00:19:04,199 Speaker 1: Question number one. According to a nineteen fifty six confidential 394 00:19:04,240 --> 00:19:08,440 Speaker 1: magazine report, what breakfast cereal was supposedly responsible for Frank 395 00:19:08,520 --> 00:19:14,000 Speaker 1: Sinatra's success with women? It is Wheaties. Yeah. The article 396 00:19:14,000 --> 00:19:17,320 Speaker 1: claimed that Sinatra could thank Wheati's for his reputation as 397 00:19:17,359 --> 00:19:23,000 Speaker 1: the quote Tarzan of the Boudoir. So yes, congratulations there, alright? 398 00:19:23,040 --> 00:19:27,000 Speaker 1: One for one. Question number two. Before a certain tiger 399 00:19:27,040 --> 00:19:29,800 Speaker 1: became spokes animal for this breakfast cereal, he had to 400 00:19:29,840 --> 00:19:33,399 Speaker 1: beat out three other contenders, Elmo the Elephant, Newt the 401 00:19:33,400 --> 00:19:37,560 Speaker 1: new and Katie the Kangaroo. What cereal are we talking about? 402 00:19:38,320 --> 00:19:40,960 Speaker 1: That's right, it's frosted flakes. Now. Katie actually appeared on 403 00:19:41,000 --> 00:19:44,159 Speaker 1: boxes in the nineteen fifties before Tony the Tiger started 404 00:19:44,160 --> 00:19:47,359 Speaker 1: out selling her. All Right, here we go. Question number three. 405 00:19:47,880 --> 00:19:51,240 Speaker 1: What popular breakfast cereal created by John Harvey Kellogg was 406 00:19:51,320 --> 00:19:58,000 Speaker 1: eating aboard the Apollo eleven cereal? Christie. It's a pretty 407 00:19:58,000 --> 00:20:00,640 Speaker 1: good guess. It was actually Kellogg's corn legs, and so 408 00:20:01,080 --> 00:20:03,440 Speaker 1: the cereal was mixed up with fruit and formed into 409 00:20:03,560 --> 00:20:08,240 Speaker 1: cube since eating it with milk was impossible without gravity. Alright, 410 00:20:08,320 --> 00:20:11,280 Speaker 1: two for three the last question here the big prize 411 00:20:11,440 --> 00:20:15,080 Speaker 1: is on the line. While Saddam Hussein loved Raisin brand 412 00:20:15,160 --> 00:20:20,360 Speaker 1: and requested it for breakfast in prison, he detested this cereal. Oh, 413 00:20:20,440 --> 00:20:24,159 Speaker 1: I actually read the article about that fruit. Yes, it 414 00:20:24,280 --> 00:20:26,520 Speaker 1: is fruit looks and according to US soldiers, one of 415 00:20:26,520 --> 00:20:29,639 Speaker 1: the few times he actually looked defeated in prison was 416 00:20:29,680 --> 00:20:33,280 Speaker 1: when a bowl of the fruity cereal was brought to him. 417 00:20:33,320 --> 00:20:36,760 Speaker 1: But so congratulations you got three out of four, which 418 00:20:36,880 --> 00:20:39,560 Speaker 1: qualifies you for our top prize, which is a note 419 00:20:39,600 --> 00:20:42,879 Speaker 1: to your mom or your boss singing your praises. So, Gabe, 420 00:20:43,240 --> 00:20:45,920 Speaker 1: congratulations and thanks so much for joining us on Part 421 00:20:45,920 --> 00:20:48,240 Speaker 1: Time Genius. Well thanks for having me. Well it's been 422 00:20:48,280 --> 00:21:03,520 Speaker 1: it's great. Thank you very much. You're listening to Part 423 00:21:03,560 --> 00:21:06,399 Speaker 1: Time Genius and we're talking about the heyday of breakfast cereal. 424 00:21:06,480 --> 00:21:09,520 Speaker 1: You know, when kids became the target market, and nutrition 425 00:21:09,600 --> 00:21:12,679 Speaker 1: kind of took a backseat to things like marshmallows and prizes, 426 00:21:12,800 --> 00:21:15,439 Speaker 1: and you know, speaking of cereal box prizes, you know, 427 00:21:15,520 --> 00:21:18,359 Speaker 1: those were another way that Kelloggs tried to attract kids 428 00:21:18,359 --> 00:21:21,800 Speaker 1: to cereal in the pre sugar days and three the 429 00:21:21,840 --> 00:21:25,280 Speaker 1: company started putting pen back buttons inside boxes of their 430 00:21:25,320 --> 00:21:28,080 Speaker 1: pep cereal. So they started with a series of thirty 431 00:21:28,119 --> 00:21:31,399 Speaker 1: six pins that featured World War two squadron insignia from 432 00:21:31,440 --> 00:21:34,480 Speaker 1: the US military. And this was before switching over to 433 00:21:34,520 --> 00:21:38,439 Speaker 1: fictional heroes like comic book characters. Yeah, so those are 434 00:21:38,480 --> 00:21:41,080 Speaker 1: some of the earliest inbox prizes we know about. But 435 00:21:41,160 --> 00:21:44,320 Speaker 1: if we're talking buttons, my favorites are the Urkel for 436 00:21:44,359 --> 00:21:47,159 Speaker 1: President campaign buttons they were giving out during the Clinton 437 00:21:47,200 --> 00:21:49,840 Speaker 1: Bush Senior campaign. Do you remember those? We're talking Steve 438 00:21:49,920 --> 00:21:52,840 Speaker 1: Urkel from family that I can't say I remember him 439 00:21:52,880 --> 00:21:55,840 Speaker 1: running for president? But what what cereal was that? Kels? 440 00:21:56,600 --> 00:21:59,080 Speaker 1: Of course, it was one of those short lived novelty 441 00:21:59,080 --> 00:22:02,040 Speaker 1: cereals that crops up for a few months and then disappears, 442 00:22:02,080 --> 00:22:05,320 Speaker 1: like basically it was a sweeter version of cheerios, but 443 00:22:05,440 --> 00:22:09,520 Speaker 1: wackier with banana and strawberry flavors. But uh, obviously we're 444 00:22:09,520 --> 00:22:11,600 Speaker 1: getting ahead of ourselves with all these in the box 445 00:22:11,680 --> 00:22:14,639 Speaker 1: buttons because Kellogg's actually got into the prize game long 446 00:22:14,720 --> 00:22:18,119 Speaker 1: before that. In the earlier days, the prizes, or premiums 447 00:22:18,119 --> 00:22:20,080 Speaker 1: as they're called in the industry, weren't in the box 448 00:22:20,119 --> 00:22:22,240 Speaker 1: at all. And as far as we know, the first 449 00:22:22,280 --> 00:22:25,760 Speaker 1: prize used to market cereal was this nine nine children's book. 450 00:22:26,000 --> 00:22:29,240 Speaker 1: It was called the Funny Jungle Land Moving Pictures Book, 451 00:22:29,280 --> 00:22:32,280 Speaker 1: and it was given to customers who bought two boxes 452 00:22:32,280 --> 00:22:36,200 Speaker 1: of Kellogg's corn flakes that they're participating grocery stores. After 453 00:22:36,240 --> 00:22:38,440 Speaker 1: a couple of years, of course, Kellogg's decided to stop 454 00:22:38,440 --> 00:22:41,199 Speaker 1: handing out the books on location instead offered them as 455 00:22:41,240 --> 00:22:44,080 Speaker 1: mail and offer, and within four years the company had 456 00:22:44,080 --> 00:22:48,120 Speaker 1: distributed two point five million copies of the book, Isn't 457 00:22:48,119 --> 00:22:50,840 Speaker 1: that insane? Like? It was obviously a hit with customers, 458 00:22:50,840 --> 00:22:54,040 Speaker 1: so Kellogg's kept releasing new editions, and they kept going 459 00:22:54,040 --> 00:22:56,040 Speaker 1: on with jungle Land books all the way up until 460 00:22:56,119 --> 00:23:00,159 Speaker 1: ninety seven. I mean, I guess that's pretty cool. I 461 00:23:00,200 --> 00:23:01,880 Speaker 1: have to say I was never a fan of those 462 00:23:01,920 --> 00:23:04,000 Speaker 1: mail in prizes. I mean, I was all about the 463 00:23:04,119 --> 00:23:06,800 Speaker 1: instant gratification. You don't want to dig in there, like 464 00:23:06,840 --> 00:23:09,399 Speaker 1: get elbow deep and some cocoa puffs or something and 465 00:23:09,400 --> 00:23:11,399 Speaker 1: then just be able to like fish around and find 466 00:23:11,440 --> 00:23:14,240 Speaker 1: that cellophane bag. Yeah, and then you got to eat 467 00:23:14,280 --> 00:23:17,160 Speaker 1: the cereal dust off your arm. But those were definitely 468 00:23:17,200 --> 00:23:19,600 Speaker 1: the days. But I never really minded the mail ins, 469 00:23:19,600 --> 00:23:21,600 Speaker 1: like I think it was partly the joy of receiving 470 00:23:21,640 --> 00:23:23,600 Speaker 1: any kind of mail as a kid. The fact that 471 00:23:23,640 --> 00:23:26,560 Speaker 1: anyone was sending me anything was exciting enough, even if 472 00:23:26,600 --> 00:23:28,520 Speaker 1: I had to save up like a bunch of box 473 00:23:28,560 --> 00:23:30,960 Speaker 1: tops and wait six to eight weeks to make it happen. 474 00:23:31,440 --> 00:23:33,679 Speaker 1: Though that was mostly dying out by the time we 475 00:23:33,680 --> 00:23:35,879 Speaker 1: were kids. I only remember doing it a few times. 476 00:23:36,240 --> 00:23:38,520 Speaker 1: But you know that the real reason the cereal industry 477 00:23:38,560 --> 00:23:41,320 Speaker 1: stepped up its game and the prize game specifically in 478 00:23:41,320 --> 00:23:44,760 Speaker 1: the nineteen fifties is pretty interesting. And it's it's thanks 479 00:23:44,800 --> 00:23:47,440 Speaker 1: to this invention of what was called the screw injection 480 00:23:47,600 --> 00:23:50,880 Speaker 1: molding machine and and and that's what made plastic prizes 481 00:23:51,040 --> 00:23:54,400 Speaker 1: faster and cheaper to produce. And this wasn't the only 482 00:23:54,400 --> 00:23:56,960 Speaker 1: time the inventor of injection molding his name was James 483 00:23:56,960 --> 00:24:00,240 Speaker 1: Watson Henry would lend a hand to cereal prizes. So 484 00:24:00,280 --> 00:24:03,280 Speaker 1: in the nineteen seventies, Henry's developed the first gas assistant 485 00:24:03,320 --> 00:24:06,640 Speaker 1: injection molding process, and this is what made it possible 486 00:24:06,640 --> 00:24:10,600 Speaker 1: to produce these finally detailed hollow plastic objects, you know, 487 00:24:10,640 --> 00:24:13,720 Speaker 1: the ones that environmental groups love so much. This cut 488 00:24:13,720 --> 00:24:16,320 Speaker 1: cost even more and paved the way to a golden 489 00:24:16,359 --> 00:24:19,640 Speaker 1: age of these in box serial prizes. That explains why 490 00:24:19,640 --> 00:24:21,440 Speaker 1: so many of the cool prizes I found were from 491 00:24:21,480 --> 00:24:23,919 Speaker 1: the sixties and seventies. And and of course I'd be 492 00:24:23,960 --> 00:24:27,600 Speaker 1: remiss if we didn't mention the Boson's whistle that came 493 00:24:27,640 --> 00:24:29,880 Speaker 1: inside the box of Captain Crunch in the early seventies. 494 00:24:30,119 --> 00:24:32,280 Speaker 1: If we're talking about things, we'd be remiss not mentioning 495 00:24:32,320 --> 00:24:35,240 Speaker 1: about Captain Crunch, what about Gen Lafoote, which was Captain 496 00:24:35,280 --> 00:24:41,040 Speaker 1: Crunch's stinky, barefooted rival. But anyway, going with your whistle story, well, 497 00:24:41,080 --> 00:24:44,000 Speaker 1: obviously the whistles just like really high pitched little whistle, 498 00:24:44,280 --> 00:24:47,159 Speaker 1: and the Boson's whistle was one that was historically used 499 00:24:47,200 --> 00:24:50,720 Speaker 1: on naval ships when commanders need to pass orders to 500 00:24:50,720 --> 00:24:53,120 Speaker 1: the crew but couldn't be heard because of the waves 501 00:24:53,200 --> 00:24:55,960 Speaker 1: or weather or whatever. And these days it's mostly used 502 00:24:55,960 --> 00:24:58,480 Speaker 1: in naval ceremonies. But in Captain Crunch's case, it turned 503 00:24:58,480 --> 00:25:00,280 Speaker 1: out that when you covered one of the whisp those 504 00:25:00,320 --> 00:25:04,960 Speaker 1: holes in blue, it produced this frequency of hurts, which 505 00:25:05,000 --> 00:25:07,359 Speaker 1: was the exact tone a T and T used to 506 00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:10,760 Speaker 1: control its long distance lines. And basically, this legendary hacker, 507 00:25:10,840 --> 00:25:13,520 Speaker 1: John Thomas Draper, who was also known as Captain Crunch 508 00:25:13,600 --> 00:25:16,040 Speaker 1: or Crunch or crunch Man, he learned that he could 509 00:25:16,080 --> 00:25:18,080 Speaker 1: use one of the whistles to hack the phone system 510 00:25:18,160 --> 00:25:20,920 Speaker 1: and get free long distance calls. I love that they 511 00:25:20,960 --> 00:25:24,760 Speaker 1: figured that. It's why that old hacking magazine was actually 512 00:25:24,760 --> 00:25:28,280 Speaker 1: called hundred, and then why Steve Jobs and Steve Woes 513 00:25:28,600 --> 00:25:31,239 Speaker 1: even tracked down the whistle and built a box that 514 00:25:31,320 --> 00:25:34,600 Speaker 1: replicated the frequency to try and prank call the Pope. 515 00:25:34,840 --> 00:25:37,000 Speaker 1: I love that as I love that they pretended to 516 00:25:37,000 --> 00:25:39,680 Speaker 1: be Henry Kissinger. And it almost got there until this 517 00:25:39,840 --> 00:25:42,840 Speaker 1: like suspicious bishop caught on like and and then the 518 00:25:42,840 --> 00:25:45,800 Speaker 1: Pope didn't get on those pesky bishops. And you know, 519 00:25:45,800 --> 00:25:49,640 Speaker 1: while injection molding allowed for all kinds of awesome plastic toys, 520 00:25:50,040 --> 00:25:51,960 Speaker 1: you know, some of the funniest ones that came across 521 00:25:52,040 --> 00:25:54,880 Speaker 1: were actually even like metal, or some of them even paper. 522 00:25:55,520 --> 00:25:58,200 Speaker 1: Like in nineteen fifty four, Wheaties gave away these miniature 523 00:25:58,280 --> 00:26:01,280 Speaker 1: state license plates and they were made of solid steel, 524 00:26:01,800 --> 00:26:03,840 Speaker 1: and you got one in each box, but you could 525 00:26:03,880 --> 00:26:06,760 Speaker 1: also buy them in four sets of twelve by mailing 526 00:26:06,800 --> 00:26:09,959 Speaker 1: in a box top and a quarter a whopping quarter. 527 00:26:10,280 --> 00:26:12,080 Speaker 1: And that was the only hitch to this was that 528 00:26:12,280 --> 00:26:15,040 Speaker 1: Alaska and Hawaii had not yet become states, so there 529 00:26:15,040 --> 00:26:17,879 Speaker 1: were actually only forty eight plates and all man So 530 00:26:18,080 --> 00:26:20,240 Speaker 1: do you think people were like pissed when those two 531 00:26:20,280 --> 00:26:22,800 Speaker 1: states got statehood a few years later and suddenly their 532 00:26:22,800 --> 00:26:26,320 Speaker 1: collections were incomplete? Well, actually, Post Serials did release a 533 00:26:26,359 --> 00:26:29,640 Speaker 1: set of the full fifty later on, but apparently wed 534 00:26:29,800 --> 00:26:33,600 Speaker 1: still gets letters about the original campaign to this day. 535 00:26:33,640 --> 00:26:36,120 Speaker 1: So maybe there's still a few determined fans out there 536 00:26:36,119 --> 00:26:38,760 Speaker 1: just pestering them about their missing plates or something. I 537 00:26:38,800 --> 00:26:41,639 Speaker 1: hope so. But one of the most unique prizes I 538 00:26:41,640 --> 00:26:44,600 Speaker 1: read about was this paper prize. It was a deed 539 00:26:44,680 --> 00:26:47,960 Speaker 1: to one inch of land in the Yukon, so like 540 00:26:48,400 --> 00:26:51,920 Speaker 1: a serial company was giving away land by the inch. Yeah, 541 00:26:51,960 --> 00:26:54,639 Speaker 1: it's a great idea, right, So Quaker Oaths sponsored a 542 00:26:54,680 --> 00:26:57,480 Speaker 1: show in the fifties called Sergeant Preston of the Yukon. 543 00:26:57,760 --> 00:27:00,639 Speaker 1: You remember Sergeant President of the Yukon, And this was 544 00:27:00,720 --> 00:27:02,919 Speaker 1: their way of linking the show to the product and 545 00:27:03,040 --> 00:27:05,399 Speaker 1: full disclosure, this was a mail in prize, but this 546 00:27:05,440 --> 00:27:08,080 Speaker 1: one was totally worth the weight. So for just a 547 00:27:08,200 --> 00:27:10,960 Speaker 1: single box top kids would receive a deed for one 548 00:27:11,040 --> 00:27:13,639 Speaker 1: square inch of the nineteen acres of Yukon territory that 549 00:27:13,720 --> 00:27:16,720 Speaker 1: Quaker purchased, and they actually purchased this from the Canadian 550 00:27:16,760 --> 00:27:20,640 Speaker 1: government for a thousand dollars. The promotion was this massive success, 551 00:27:20,680 --> 00:27:23,320 Speaker 1: and Quaker actually sent out more than twenty one million 552 00:27:23,440 --> 00:27:25,639 Speaker 1: deeds in just a few weeks away. Yeah, and then 553 00:27:25,760 --> 00:27:27,679 Speaker 1: lots of people would write the company or even the 554 00:27:27,680 --> 00:27:29,800 Speaker 1: Canadian government from time to time to check in on 555 00:27:29,840 --> 00:27:33,439 Speaker 1: their property, but sadly the reply was not good news. 556 00:27:33,760 --> 00:27:37,119 Speaker 1: Apparently none of the deed holders were actually landowners because 557 00:27:37,119 --> 00:27:40,800 Speaker 1: the individual deeds were never formally registered after the recipients 558 00:27:40,840 --> 00:27:44,320 Speaker 1: signed them, I know. And in the end, Canada repossessed 559 00:27:44,359 --> 00:27:47,320 Speaker 1: all the land in nineteen sixty five due to non 560 00:27:47,359 --> 00:27:51,040 Speaker 1: payment of get this, thirty seven dollars and twenty cents 561 00:27:51,080 --> 00:27:55,119 Speaker 1: in property taxes. You know. I mean. It also reminds 562 00:27:55,119 --> 00:27:57,080 Speaker 1: me of the time during the eighties when General Mills 563 00:27:57,080 --> 00:28:00,080 Speaker 1: started giving out actual one dollar bills as prizes and 564 00:28:00,160 --> 00:28:02,680 Speaker 1: boxes of cherios, which it just sounds kind of like lazy, 565 00:28:02,720 --> 00:28:04,480 Speaker 1: like let's let's just put a dollar in there, and 566 00:28:04,640 --> 00:28:07,520 Speaker 1: except in this case the prize was actually worth something. Yeah, 567 00:28:07,520 --> 00:28:09,879 Speaker 1: and it's way better than the promotion Cheerios offered in 568 00:28:09,880 --> 00:28:12,960 Speaker 1: the fifties when they gave away color reproductions of Confederate 569 00:28:13,000 --> 00:28:15,160 Speaker 1: money and an album to keep them in. Oh, that's 570 00:28:15,200 --> 00:28:17,280 Speaker 1: so strange. I actually I think I'd rather have the 571 00:28:17,320 --> 00:28:20,800 Speaker 1: phony d than But we sort of transition into these 572 00:28:20,840 --> 00:28:24,240 Speaker 1: more lackluster I don't know, dare I say, like crappy prizes, 573 00:28:24,280 --> 00:28:27,480 Speaker 1: but honestly, at least they're still prizes. And and much 574 00:28:27,520 --> 00:28:30,439 Speaker 1: like serial sales, serial premiums seemed to be on the 575 00:28:30,440 --> 00:28:33,280 Speaker 1: decline these days. Yeah, so I noticed last time I 576 00:28:33,320 --> 00:28:36,320 Speaker 1: was in cerealisles there seemed to be fewer boxes advertising 577 00:28:36,320 --> 00:28:39,200 Speaker 1: physical prizes, but there were a bunch of boxes offering 578 00:28:39,240 --> 00:28:41,840 Speaker 1: some kind of digital prize, like access to an online 579 00:28:41,920 --> 00:28:45,160 Speaker 1: video game. And I I guess serial premiums changed to 580 00:28:45,200 --> 00:28:47,680 Speaker 1: reflect the times and and most kids these days would 581 00:28:47,720 --> 00:28:50,440 Speaker 1: prefer some type of like instant online entertainment over a 582 00:28:50,440 --> 00:28:54,720 Speaker 1: plastic figure. But I also read a report from the 583 00:28:54,760 --> 00:28:58,040 Speaker 1: Center for Science and the Public Interest and it determined 584 00:28:58,080 --> 00:29:00,040 Speaker 1: that it was far cheaper to make an online and 585 00:29:00,160 --> 00:29:03,560 Speaker 1: then to produce a traditional plastic premium, and that definitely 586 00:29:03,600 --> 00:29:06,920 Speaker 1: figures into the decision to scale back the physical prizes. Yeah, 587 00:29:07,080 --> 00:29:08,959 Speaker 1: I think you're right. And not to mention that there 588 00:29:09,000 --> 00:29:11,200 Speaker 1: have been a few safety scares that lead to recalls 589 00:29:11,200 --> 00:29:14,080 Speaker 1: on millions and millions of these plastic prizes that were 590 00:29:14,080 --> 00:29:17,080 Speaker 1: deemed choking hazards, and that's actually the reason prizes were 591 00:29:17,120 --> 00:29:19,240 Speaker 1: moved from the inside of the Cereal bag itself to 592 00:29:19,440 --> 00:29:21,760 Speaker 1: between the bag and the box lining. This happened in 593 00:29:21,760 --> 00:29:24,800 Speaker 1: the early nineties. Is you know Sereal companies saw that 594 00:29:24,880 --> 00:29:26,720 Speaker 1: this was kind of a risk or a great risk 595 00:29:26,760 --> 00:29:30,800 Speaker 1: if kids accidentally started gobbling up these prizes. It's it's 596 00:29:30,800 --> 00:29:33,840 Speaker 1: funny because Crackerjack went through like a similar adjustment with 597 00:29:33,880 --> 00:29:37,200 Speaker 1: the prizes inside their boxes and concerns about safety and 598 00:29:37,320 --> 00:29:40,440 Speaker 1: rising cost of production next anything but paper prizes, whereas 599 00:29:40,440 --> 00:29:42,000 Speaker 1: they used to have really cool stuff in there, like 600 00:29:42,080 --> 00:29:45,960 Speaker 1: Dakota rings and tin soldiers mixed in. And and since 601 00:29:46,000 --> 00:29:49,000 Speaker 1: Crackerjack was the first food to actually offer box prizes 602 00:29:49,040 --> 00:29:52,280 Speaker 1: way back in, it kind of seems fitting that cereal 603 00:29:52,280 --> 00:29:55,320 Speaker 1: premiums would follow suit. Yeah, I mean that's true. But 604 00:29:55,320 --> 00:29:57,040 Speaker 1: but but all is not lost for these in the 605 00:29:57,080 --> 00:29:59,960 Speaker 1: box cereal prizes. I mean there's still some physical knickknacks 606 00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:02,800 Speaker 1: sprinkled in there, but most of these are just tie 607 00:30:02,840 --> 00:30:06,440 Speaker 1: in with usually like big media events or maybe movie releases. 608 00:30:07,000 --> 00:30:09,000 Speaker 1: You know, the new Star Wars movie had some of 609 00:30:09,000 --> 00:30:12,320 Speaker 1: these accompany that. And besides, there's another serial philosophy that 610 00:30:12,360 --> 00:30:15,120 Speaker 1: suggests it's what's on the outside of the box that matters, 611 00:30:15,240 --> 00:30:19,080 Speaker 1: not the inside. Okay, mango, So we've covered the actual 612 00:30:19,200 --> 00:30:21,400 Speaker 1: cereal as well as the cool prizes that you find 613 00:30:21,440 --> 00:30:24,160 Speaker 1: inside the bag or just outside it. So how about 614 00:30:24,160 --> 00:30:27,000 Speaker 1: we conclude our anatomical tour of the cereal box by 615 00:30:27,040 --> 00:30:30,080 Speaker 1: focusing on the box itself. Yeah, that sounds good, So 616 00:30:30,280 --> 00:30:33,120 Speaker 1: I'll start us off with a little cereal box psychology. 617 00:30:33,160 --> 00:30:35,960 Speaker 1: Back in two thousand fourteen, researchers from the Cornell Food 618 00:30:35,960 --> 00:30:39,560 Speaker 1: and Brand Lab study eighties six different cereal box mascots 619 00:30:39,600 --> 00:30:43,160 Speaker 1: and ten grocery stores throughout New York in Connecticut. And 620 00:30:43,320 --> 00:30:46,600 Speaker 1: from this whirlwind tour, they found that boxes are strategically 621 00:30:46,640 --> 00:30:50,160 Speaker 1: positioned to make eye contact with children. On average, the 622 00:30:50,240 --> 00:30:52,920 Speaker 1: kid targeted cereal boxes are placed on the lower shelves, 623 00:30:53,040 --> 00:30:55,680 Speaker 1: usually at a height of twenty three inches, while adult 624 00:30:55,680 --> 00:30:58,800 Speaker 1: and cereals tend to sit higher at forty eight inch shelves. 625 00:30:58,880 --> 00:31:01,120 Speaker 1: And uh to capital is on this ideal. Like the 626 00:31:01,160 --> 00:31:03,960 Speaker 1: mascots on the kids cereal boxes tend to feature mascots 627 00:31:03,960 --> 00:31:07,160 Speaker 1: with eyes pointing downward an average angle of nine point 628 00:31:07,280 --> 00:31:10,320 Speaker 1: six degrees, but the spokes characters on boxes of adult 629 00:31:10,360 --> 00:31:14,479 Speaker 1: cereal generally looks straight ahead. Wow, that's almost kind of creepy. 630 00:31:14,520 --> 00:31:17,640 Speaker 1: And so both the manufacturer and the retailer in on 631 00:31:17,680 --> 00:31:20,000 Speaker 1: this scheme, and and and they wanted to make eye 632 00:31:20,080 --> 00:31:23,480 Speaker 1: contact with their target markets. But so why is that? 633 00:31:23,480 --> 00:31:26,239 Speaker 1: I mean, I understand wanting your product as visible as 634 00:31:26,280 --> 00:31:29,480 Speaker 1: possible so it attracts more attention, but why is making 635 00:31:29,560 --> 00:31:33,800 Speaker 1: eye contact with the character or the spokesperson matter that much? Yeah, well, 636 00:31:33,840 --> 00:31:36,560 Speaker 1: that was the question behind a second study where researchers 637 00:31:36,560 --> 00:31:39,120 Speaker 1: looked into how much eye contact with Cereal box characters 638 00:31:39,200 --> 00:31:42,959 Speaker 1: influences people's feelings towards the brand, and they asked sixty 639 00:31:43,000 --> 00:31:46,240 Speaker 1: three participants from a private Northeastern university to examine a 640 00:31:46,280 --> 00:31:49,520 Speaker 1: box of Tricks Cereal and rate their feelings of trust 641 00:31:49,560 --> 00:31:52,320 Speaker 1: and connection to the brand. And the catch was that 642 00:31:52,360 --> 00:31:54,720 Speaker 1: some participants were given a box where the tricks rabbit 643 00:31:54,760 --> 00:31:56,880 Speaker 1: was looking straight ahead and others had this box where 644 00:31:56,880 --> 00:31:58,880 Speaker 1: the rabbit was looking away or down from the view. 645 00:32:00,160 --> 00:32:02,960 Speaker 1: And I'm guessing people preferred, you know, whichever rabbit was 646 00:32:03,000 --> 00:32:05,640 Speaker 1: looking their way or Yeah, but by a wide margin. 647 00:32:05,760 --> 00:32:09,200 Speaker 1: It's really incredible. So the finding showed that participants who 648 00:32:09,200 --> 00:32:13,640 Speaker 1: had eye contact with the rabbit felt more brand trust 649 00:32:14,080 --> 00:32:16,960 Speaker 1: Proba Shilly rabbit, and their feeling of connection to the 650 00:32:16,960 --> 00:32:20,160 Speaker 1: brand was twenty eight percent higher than participants who looked 651 00:32:20,160 --> 00:32:23,120 Speaker 1: at a box of tricks with the rabbit looking away 652 00:32:23,240 --> 00:32:25,760 Speaker 1: and not only that were participants who made eye contact 653 00:32:25,840 --> 00:32:29,560 Speaker 1: with rabbit actually said they enjoyed the serial more compared 654 00:32:29,600 --> 00:32:32,800 Speaker 1: with another cereal that lacked eye contact component. Way, I mean, 655 00:32:32,840 --> 00:32:35,560 Speaker 1: that's so creepy, like it's it's also notes that looking 656 00:32:35,560 --> 00:32:37,760 Speaker 1: at the picture of a cartoon rabbit in the eyes 657 00:32:37,840 --> 00:32:40,239 Speaker 1: can generate so much good will and actually cause us 658 00:32:40,240 --> 00:32:42,240 Speaker 1: to buy their party, and the fact that they chose 659 00:32:42,280 --> 00:32:46,280 Speaker 1: this crazy rabbit that it works is just baffling. Yeah, 660 00:32:46,320 --> 00:32:49,320 Speaker 1: but there's an upside to the research because now healthy 661 00:32:49,360 --> 00:32:51,840 Speaker 1: cereals that are well intentioned can actually make mascots that 662 00:32:51,960 --> 00:32:54,560 Speaker 1: do the same thing. Yeah, but you know, I don't 663 00:32:54,560 --> 00:32:56,480 Speaker 1: want to leave the subject of Tricks because actually I 664 00:32:56,480 --> 00:32:59,760 Speaker 1: found some interesting stuff during our research here. So for 665 00:32:59,800 --> 00:33:01,440 Speaker 1: as that, did you know that before he was an 666 00:33:01,480 --> 00:33:05,040 Speaker 1: animated character, the Tricks rabbit was this really like Jankee 667 00:33:05,040 --> 00:33:07,760 Speaker 1: looking hand puppets, and I guess General Mills it was. 668 00:33:07,800 --> 00:33:09,680 Speaker 1: You know, they were unsure early on of how to 669 00:33:09,760 --> 00:33:13,280 Speaker 1: sell the concept of a serial obsessed rabbit, because you know, 670 00:33:13,320 --> 00:33:16,280 Speaker 1: the original slogan for the cereal was I'm a rabbit, 671 00:33:16,320 --> 00:33:18,840 Speaker 1: and rabbits are supposed to like carrots, but I hate carrots. 672 00:33:18,880 --> 00:33:22,640 Speaker 1: I like tricks. That really rolls off the tongue. Yeah, 673 00:33:22,760 --> 00:33:25,080 Speaker 1: and it also makes the whole silly Rabbit Tricks Are 674 00:33:25,080 --> 00:33:28,280 Speaker 1: for Kids campaign sound like poetry. Yeah. But that campaign 675 00:33:28,280 --> 00:33:30,280 Speaker 1: had problems of its own. I mean, for one thing, 676 00:33:30,320 --> 00:33:32,360 Speaker 1: it made General Mills worry that they were sending a 677 00:33:32,360 --> 00:33:35,400 Speaker 1: bad message, you know, by having this rabbit continually failed 678 00:33:35,440 --> 00:33:38,680 Speaker 1: to achieve his goal. You know, but where Charles Schultz 679 00:33:38,760 --> 00:33:41,640 Speaker 1: concluded that Charlie Brown missing the football was what made 680 00:33:41,640 --> 00:33:44,719 Speaker 1: the whole thing work. General Mills took the more democratic 681 00:33:44,800 --> 00:33:47,600 Speaker 1: round in nineteen seventy six. They put this question to 682 00:33:47,720 --> 00:33:50,840 Speaker 1: a vote, should the tricks rabbit finally get to eat 683 00:33:50,880 --> 00:33:53,920 Speaker 1: the cereal? He craves and kids also turned out to 684 00:33:53,920 --> 00:33:57,240 Speaker 1: be more merciful than Schultza, so almost a hundred percent 685 00:33:57,320 --> 00:33:59,720 Speaker 1: of the votes were in favor of giving the rabbit 686 00:33:59,800 --> 00:34:02,920 Speaker 1: his long away bowl. And that same verdict came again 687 00:34:03,000 --> 00:34:05,160 Speaker 1: during a campaign I think it was in nineteen eighty, 688 00:34:05,520 --> 00:34:08,040 Speaker 1: which was the last time the rabbit got his own 689 00:34:08,080 --> 00:34:10,279 Speaker 1: bowl of tricks. That's been a long time. I mean, 690 00:34:10,280 --> 00:34:12,160 Speaker 1: you can tell why he's jones in for a bowl, 691 00:34:12,280 --> 00:34:15,040 Speaker 1: No kidding, I mean, so these sereal mascots tend to 692 00:34:15,080 --> 00:34:19,480 Speaker 1: break down into two camps. So there's the more laid back, confident, 693 00:34:19,680 --> 00:34:23,960 Speaker 1: relaxed characters like Tony the Tiger or the Golden Crisp Bear, 694 00:34:24,400 --> 00:34:26,839 Speaker 1: and they mostly sell cereal on the basis of their 695 00:34:26,880 --> 00:34:30,120 Speaker 1: friendly demeanor and cool look. I mean, how cool is 696 00:34:30,160 --> 00:34:34,919 Speaker 1: Tony know, bandana jacket awesome? You know. And then that's 697 00:34:35,160 --> 00:34:38,120 Speaker 1: these unhinged cereal junkies who looked like they just, I 698 00:34:38,160 --> 00:34:40,160 Speaker 1: don't know, like busted out of the looney bin. So 699 00:34:40,239 --> 00:34:43,600 Speaker 1: these are your tricks Rabbits and Sonny the Cuckoo Bird 700 00:34:43,719 --> 00:34:47,080 Speaker 1: and like all of these crazy characters. Yeah, those guys 701 00:34:47,080 --> 00:34:49,600 Speaker 1: are pretty terrifying and and most of their designs have 702 00:34:49,680 --> 00:34:52,000 Speaker 1: only gotten more over the top as time's gone by. 703 00:34:52,280 --> 00:34:54,200 Speaker 1: What do you mean by that? So too can Sam 704 00:34:54,320 --> 00:34:57,080 Speaker 1: used to have the proportions of an actual bird, but 705 00:34:57,280 --> 00:34:59,760 Speaker 1: you know his body, shave, wings and feet have slowly 706 00:35:00,080 --> 00:35:02,560 Speaker 1: more human like, and and the colors too, like they're 707 00:35:02,600 --> 00:35:06,600 Speaker 1: all super exaggerated and brighter and bolder, and it's crazy. 708 00:35:06,680 --> 00:35:09,480 Speaker 1: And actually, have you seen Captain Crunch's latest look? Like 709 00:35:09,520 --> 00:35:12,560 Speaker 1: he used to be this old, weary sea captain but 710 00:35:12,600 --> 00:35:15,480 Speaker 1: now he has these huge popping eyes and wide grin 711 00:35:15,640 --> 00:35:18,359 Speaker 1: and even his eyebrows have gotten more excited, like their 712 00:35:18,440 --> 00:35:21,759 Speaker 1: way up over his hat. Now his hat has eyebrows. 713 00:35:22,120 --> 00:35:25,359 Speaker 1: That's very impressive. Well, I mean there's always been something 714 00:35:25,400 --> 00:35:27,719 Speaker 1: suspect about that guy anyway, if we're being honest that 715 00:35:27,840 --> 00:35:30,360 Speaker 1: did you hear the controversy a few years back somebody 716 00:35:30,360 --> 00:35:33,000 Speaker 1: had noticed that the sleeves of his uniform only had 717 00:35:33,040 --> 00:35:35,439 Speaker 1: three yellow stripes instead of four. I love that people 718 00:35:35,480 --> 00:35:38,040 Speaker 1: are paying this close attention to it, but apparently that 719 00:35:38,080 --> 00:35:40,880 Speaker 1: pegs him as a commander in the Navy, not a captain. 720 00:35:41,239 --> 00:35:43,800 Speaker 1: So to his credit, when fans called him out, Crunch 721 00:35:43,880 --> 00:35:46,239 Speaker 1: took to Twitter to plead his case. And so here's 722 00:35:46,280 --> 00:35:49,960 Speaker 1: what he said, all hearsay and misunderstandings. I captain the 723 00:35:50,120 --> 00:35:53,280 Speaker 1: SS Guppy with my crew, which makes an official captain 724 00:35:53,280 --> 00:35:56,600 Speaker 1: in my book. Besides, it's the Crunch, not the clothes 725 00:35:56,719 --> 00:35:59,560 Speaker 1: that make a man. It almost gives me goose behind. 726 00:36:00,080 --> 00:36:03,280 Speaker 1: It's a great speech. But it's always been my belief 727 00:36:03,320 --> 00:36:05,480 Speaker 1: that the facts make the man. So I think it's 728 00:36:05,480 --> 00:36:17,160 Speaker 1: time for a little fact off. All right, let's do it. 729 00:36:17,280 --> 00:36:20,719 Speaker 1: I'll go first here. So all right, so, speaking of 730 00:36:20,800 --> 00:36:22,880 Speaker 1: Captain Crunch, did did you know that in two thousand 731 00:36:23,000 --> 00:36:25,839 Speaker 1: nine a woman in California filed a class action suit 732 00:36:25,880 --> 00:36:29,440 Speaker 1: against the maker of Captain Crunch's crunch Berries. And she 733 00:36:29,520 --> 00:36:32,279 Speaker 1: did this because she said, for four long years she 734 00:36:32,360 --> 00:36:34,640 Speaker 1: had been eating these crunch berries and thinking they were 735 00:36:34,640 --> 00:36:37,920 Speaker 1: real furuit. I mean, you know, you've got strawberries and blueberries, 736 00:36:38,040 --> 00:36:40,640 Speaker 1: raspberries and of course crunch berries. But of course the 737 00:36:40,719 --> 00:36:42,880 Speaker 1: judge and Sacramento did not see it her way and 738 00:36:42,960 --> 00:36:46,440 Speaker 1: quickly dismissed the suit. So, according to one study commissioned 739 00:36:46,440 --> 00:36:49,239 Speaker 1: by Kellogg, more than ten percent of Americans had tried 740 00:36:49,280 --> 00:36:52,400 Speaker 1: eating cereal with orange juice or coffee instead of milk. 741 00:36:52,719 --> 00:36:54,719 Speaker 1: I mean, is that true, Like, have you ever done that? 742 00:36:54,880 --> 00:36:57,560 Speaker 1: I have never done that before. That would ruin a ball. No, 743 00:36:58,200 --> 00:37:01,719 Speaker 1: absolutely not all. Well, according to a different study, women 744 00:37:01,760 --> 00:37:05,200 Speaker 1: who regularly ate cereal before conception are slightly more likely 745 00:37:05,280 --> 00:37:08,120 Speaker 1: to have boys. There's something about having a high energy 746 00:37:08,160 --> 00:37:11,880 Speaker 1: intake before conceiving that leads to these greater odds, And 747 00:37:11,880 --> 00:37:13,759 Speaker 1: the food that seemed to increase the odds the most 748 00:37:14,040 --> 00:37:17,640 Speaker 1: was cereal. That's crazy. So you're an oatmeal leader, right, well, 749 00:37:17,680 --> 00:37:20,160 Speaker 1: I mean sometimes yeah, yeah, Well do you know that 750 00:37:20,200 --> 00:37:23,480 Speaker 1: the quote strawberries and peaches and quicker instant oatmeal are 751 00:37:23,520 --> 00:37:27,200 Speaker 1: actually dehydrated apples. I didn't know, and the blueberries are 752 00:37:27,200 --> 00:37:30,400 Speaker 1: dehydrated figs. And for a quicker sake, I hope that 753 00:37:30,800 --> 00:37:33,359 Speaker 1: the crunch Ferry Lady doesn't find out. But at least 754 00:37:33,360 --> 00:37:35,799 Speaker 1: the real fruits, that's true. They're real fruits, yeah, unlike 755 00:37:35,840 --> 00:37:38,640 Speaker 1: the crunchberries. So well, as kids, we always heard that 756 00:37:38,680 --> 00:37:40,960 Speaker 1: we should eat a good breakfast anytime we need to 757 00:37:40,960 --> 00:37:44,440 Speaker 1: do anything important that day, and studies do back that up, 758 00:37:44,480 --> 00:37:47,320 Speaker 1: often showing that breakfast eaters will perform about ten percent 759 00:37:47,440 --> 00:37:50,120 Speaker 1: better on memory tests than those who skipped. But it 760 00:37:50,239 --> 00:37:53,960 Speaker 1: also appears that eating not just breakfast, but specifically cereal 761 00:37:54,120 --> 00:37:57,080 Speaker 1: leads to a better mood. So according to research from 762 00:37:57,080 --> 00:38:00,440 Speaker 1: Bristol University, there are long term effects of eating cereal 763 00:38:00,520 --> 00:38:05,240 Speaker 1: for breakfast, and their findings quote, people feel better, serials 764 00:38:05,280 --> 00:38:08,399 Speaker 1: boosted their mood. So I mean, that's just the kind 765 00:38:08,400 --> 00:38:10,600 Speaker 1: of support we needed as serial leaders. And what a 766 00:38:10,680 --> 00:38:13,200 Speaker 1: happy way to end this episode. I'm gonna let you 767 00:38:13,239 --> 00:38:15,480 Speaker 1: take home the trophy this week, and listeners, if there 768 00:38:15,480 --> 00:38:18,080 Speaker 1: are any great seial facts we forgot, please let us know. 769 00:38:18,239 --> 00:38:20,040 Speaker 1: You can always write us at Part Time Genius at 770 00:38:20,040 --> 00:38:22,200 Speaker 1: How Stuff Works dot com or call us on our 771 00:38:22,840 --> 00:38:26,400 Speaker 1: seven fact hotline one eight for four pt Genius. You 772 00:38:26,440 --> 00:38:28,359 Speaker 1: know we love hearing from you well, and don't forget 773 00:38:28,400 --> 00:38:30,440 Speaker 1: to join us again next week when we publish episodes 774 00:38:30,520 --> 00:38:33,400 Speaker 1: asking the questions how big is the US military and 775 00:38:33,520 --> 00:38:36,200 Speaker 1: what are the worst jobs in the world, including a 776 00:38:36,239 --> 00:38:40,120 Speaker 1: peek into the important world of Wales not collecting. That's 777 00:38:40,120 --> 00:38:43,200 Speaker 1: gonna be pretty interesting. Are you sure that's right? Yeah, 778 00:38:43,239 --> 00:38:45,600 Speaker 1: that's right. All right. Well that's it for today's episode. 779 00:38:45,640 --> 00:39:02,040 Speaker 1: Thanks for listening, Thanks again for listening. Part Time Genius 780 00:39:02,080 --> 00:39:03,960 Speaker 1: is a production of how stuff works and wouldn't be 781 00:39:04,000 --> 00:39:06,919 Speaker 1: possible without several brilliant people who do the important things 782 00:39:06,960 --> 00:39:09,799 Speaker 1: we couldn't even again to understand. Tristan McNeil does the 783 00:39:09,920 --> 00:39:12,319 Speaker 1: editing thing. Noel Brown made the theme song and does 784 00:39:12,320 --> 00:39:15,360 Speaker 1: the mixy mixy sound thing. Jerry Rowland does the exact 785 00:39:15,400 --> 00:39:18,719 Speaker 1: producer thing. Gabluesier is our lead researcher, with support from 786 00:39:18,719 --> 00:39:21,840 Speaker 1: the Research Army including Austin Thompson, Nolan Brown and Lucas 787 00:39:21,840 --> 00:39:24,080 Speaker 1: Adams and Eve Jeff Cook gets the show to your ears. 788 00:39:24,120 --> 00:39:26,200 Speaker 1: Good job, Eves. If you like what you heard, we 789 00:39:26,239 --> 00:39:28,360 Speaker 1: hope you'll subscribe, and if you really really like what 790 00:39:28,400 --> 00:39:30,480 Speaker 1: you've heard. Maybe you could leave a good review for us. 791 00:39:30,560 --> 00:39:32,799 Speaker 1: Do we do we forget Jason? Jason who