LOOK: These 4 Classic Cereals from the 1980s are Making a Comeback
Growing up here in East Texas, one of my favorite memories from childhood is of waking up on Saturday mornings and watching cartoons with an enormous bowl of cereal.
Oh, wouldn't it be nice to visit the past for just a little while? But alas. Until someone finally invents that time machine I guess we just have to hope the past will visit us instead. Thankfully, General Mills is making that happen--well, at least when it comes to some of our favorite breakfast cereals.
Recently, we read something that seems to confirm that at least four of our favorite 1980s breakfast cereals are making a comeback and I gotta say it's making me pretty excited today. These are cereals you and I haven't seen on the shelves in more than ten years. And why has General Mills decided to invest in this culinary nostalgia? I like the way TheStreet.com explains it:
"Brands know this aspect of human psychology well and will regularly use it to bring back long-gone products and flavors as part of limited-period promotions or campaigns."
That makes a bunch of sense to me. After all, after these last several years, many of us have been seeking more "comfort foods" than ever. And for some of us, what we consider comfort food is often connected to our childhoods.
Which breakfast cereals are rumored to be making a comeback in the near future?
Whatever the reason they're doing it, we can't wait. These were the cereals referred to by our elders as the "Monster Cereals" which were introduced back in 1971. (Ringing any bells now?) Without further ado, let's take a look at this vintage cereal collection:
FRUTE BRUTE
This cereal was on shelves until it was discontinued by General Mills in 1982--much earlier than a couple of the other ones in this group. Like the others, though, it is a mixture of little sweetened wheat pieces filled with that signature "marshmallow" that so many of us grew up on.
I've actually never tried it. Have you? Maybe this old commercial from years ago will jog our memories.
FRANKEN BERRY
Oh, I loved this cereal! Well, the couple of times I had it. Even back when I was little bitty, this one was always harder to find than the next two we'll mention. Similar to Frute Brute as far as the wheat bits/marshmallow mix, but this one was more of a "strawberry" flavor. Yeah...I put that in quotes. ;) I always loved this monster, though.
Here's a vintage commercial from 1986:
COUNT CHOCULA
Now this one could be found on some grocery store shelves as recently as 2009 and it was arguably the most popular of the group. I often wasn't allowed to get this one because for some reason my parents thought the fact that it was chocolate-ish made it slightly less healthy. Gosh, now I'm craving little chocolate marshmallows.
Here's a fun Count Chocula commercial from 1979 that is sure to bring back memories:
BOO BERRY
If you watched the commercial above, you noticed another Monster Cereal Collection figurehead that brings us to the last in our old-school breakfast cereal lineup. I loved Boo Berry--when we could find it. It was supposed to have a bit more of a "blueberry" vibe. I dunno about that, but it sure was yummy! (Ya know, in the I'm about to have a sugar crash in 3, 2, 1...kind of way.
Here's the first Boo Berry commercial that ever aired back in 1973:
Oh, I can't wait! Although I wonder if they'll taste as good to me now as they did back when I was 3 and 4 years old. Quite unlikely. But I promise you I'll be smiling nonetheless between giant spoonfuls some Saturday morning in the near future.
Which one was your favorite?
And now that we're all in a "watch old commercials all day" kinda mood, take a look at this longer compilation featuring what were likely some of your faves:
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