15 Breakfast Cereals With Mascots No One Remembers
Some breakfast cereals faded from memory, and their forgotten mascots disappeared along with them.
- Chris Graciano
- 4 min read
Cereal mascots used to be everywhere. They were bright and quirky characters meant to grab kids’ attention in the grocery aisle. However, while Tony the Tiger and Toucan Sam still live on, plenty of others have vanished into obscurity. Here are 15 breakfast cereals with mascots most people barely remember today.
1. King Vitaman
Joe Mud on Flickr
King Vitaman tried to bring a touch of royalty to breakfast, with a cartoon king in a crown inviting kids to eat a “healthier” cereal option. The branding promised adventure and fun, but the flavor didn’t quite live up to its majestic presentation.
2. Big Yella
Wikimedia Commons
Big Yella was General Mills’ attempt to blend cowboy charm with breakfast crunch. The towering, cheerful cowboy mascot promoted a corn-based cereal that was supposed to be hearty and fun. Unfortunately, neither his western flair nor his oversized personality could save the cereal from fading fast.
3. Quisp
Gustavo Barros on Pinterval
Quisp, the quirky pink alien with a propeller on his head, was one of the most eccentric cereal mascots ever created. He sold a crunchy, saucer-shaped corn cereal that aimed to blend space-age fun with sugary satisfaction.
4. Smaxey the Seal
~ tOkKa on Flickr
Before Dig’em Frog hopped into fame, Sugar Smacks had another face — Smaxey the Seal. This cheerful, juggling seal appeared in early ads, balancing cereal bowls and beach balls with a big grin. His playful personality fit the fun-loving tone of kids’ cereals, but he didn’t last long enough to make a mark.
5. Linus the Lionhearted
Wikimedia Commons
Linus the Lionhearted wasn’t just a cereal mascot; he was a full-blown cartoon character. Promoting Post cereals like Crispy Critters, he starred in his own Saturday morning TV show in the 1960s, surrounded by a cast of other cereal mascots.
6. So-Hi
engin akyurt on Unsplash
So-Hi was the ill-fated mascot for Kellogg’s Rice Krinkles in the 1960s; a character based on outdated Asian stereotypes that didn’t age well. Portrayed as an “Oriental” boy who spoke broken English, he reflected a very different era of advertising.
7. Sir Grapefellow
GenastCreatesArt on DeviantArt
Sir Grapefellow, a daring British pilot, once soared through cereal aisles representing grape-flavored puffs. His rival, Baron von Redberry, promoted a competing berry cereal, creating one of the first breakfast “duels” in advertising history.
8. Crazy Cow
~ tOkKa on Flickr
Crazy Cow was a hyper, cartoonish mascot who made breakfast feel like a science experiment. He represented a cereal that came in chocolate and strawberry flavors — both designed to turn milk into a new color.
9. O.J.’s Orange Bird
Ethan Michael on Pexels
O.J.’s Orange Bird was an ambitious but short-lived attempt to bring orange flavor to the cereal world. The mascot, a chipper cartoon bird, was cute enough, but the product itself was confusing. A cereal that tasted like orange juice was just too strange for most breakfast tables.
10. Ice Cream Jones
evankirby2 on Wikimedia Commons
Ice Cream Jones promised a cereal that captured the fun of ice cream for breakfast, complete with cone-shaped pieces and a smiling soda-jerk mascot. His enthusiasm was contagious; commercials showed him zipping around in an ice cream truck, delivering sugary joy to kids.
11. Klondike Pete
Yvens Banatte on Unsplash
Klondike Pete, a grizzled prospector with a giant hat, mined for gold and breakfast fans with his cereal, Klondike Pete’s Crunchy Nuggets. The rustic theme stood out in a sea of cartoon animals and talking fruit, but the flavor didn’t strike it rich.
12. Newton the Owl
John Matychuk on Unsplash
Newton the Owl was the face of Post’s Fruit & Fibre cereal, aimed at adults who wanted something “smart” for breakfast. He wore glasses, spoke wisely, and gave the cereal an air of sophistication that didn’t quite click with the morning crowd.
13. Dig’Em Frog (Early Years)
MANYBITS on Flickr
Before becoming the smiling, recognizable mascot we know today, Dig’Em Frog looked, well, different. His early design for Honey Smacks was rough, with awkward proportions and a less appealing face. The cereal was solid, but the mascot didn’t connect with kids right away.
14. The Freakies
Phil Aicken on Unsplash
The Freakies weren’t just one mascot; they were a whole squad of oddball, blob-like creatures representing the 1970s cereal Freakies. Each character had its own name and personality, from Goody-Goody to Hamhose, creating a weirdly detailed cereal universe.
15. Mr. Wonderfull’s Surprize
Llana on Unsplash
Mr. Wonderfull’s Surprize (yes, with a “z”) was a short-lived cereal from the 1970s featuring a magician mascot who promised magic and hidden prizes inside every box. The concept was ambitious — part breakfast, part treasure hunt, but the execution fell flat.