Halloween is at an end. Have you had enough monsters yet? No? Good thing, for indeed that is the theme for today’s post. We present here a creepy compendium of commercialized creatures, some nice, some not so nice. Why are so many of these spots for breakfast cereal? What better way is there to start the day after a long night of being terrorized by the monsters under your bed?
Frankenberry and Count Chockula
An early example of the series directed by Bill Melendez and animated by Bill Littlejohn.
Fruit Brute
One of the spin-off monster cereals. Animated by Bob Taylor.
Quisp
It was probably the rivalry of Quisp and Quake that inspired General Mills to create Frankenberry and Count Chockula. Other less successful rivalries followed (Sir Grapefellow vs. Baron Von Redberry anyone?) Featuring the voices of Daws Butler, Bill Scott, Bill Conrad, and Paul Frees. Gerard Baldwin and Phil Duncan are among the animators here. From Jay Ward Productions.
Sugar Bear
Over the years they tried a number of different gimmicks and adversaries in these Sugar Bear commercials. Here’s a typically weird one with him facing off against the hapless “Blob.”
Cocoa Pebbles
Produced by Hanna-Barbera in 1973. Directed by Art Babbitt. Animation by Phil Duncan. With the voices of Alan Reed, Mel Blanc, Jean Vander Pyl, and Lennie Weinrib.
Sunkist
After all that sugary cereal, we should have something more healthy. Animated by Fred Wolf. Paul Frees can be heard at the end.
Mike Kazaleh is a cartoonist and animator whose work can be seen in comic books like Bongo’s The Simpsons, Futurama and Papercutz’ Gumby – and on screen in Warner Bros. Tiny Toon Adventures, Ralph Bakshi’s Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures and Cool World.
Of course I’m not sure, but the kid in that Sunkist commercial (who doesn’t believe the orange is for real) sounds like Linus or Charlie Brown from the Melendez TV specials.
Fondly remembered opening of a Quake/Quisp commercial:
Nell clone: Marry you, Simon LeGreedy? I’d rather die!
Snidely clone: Precisely what I had in mind!
Who did the voices in the Sugar Bear spot there?
Re: Quake
I could be the one who’s wrong about this, but you may have miscredited Bill Conrad as playing Quake in this commercial when it actually sounds more like Martin Miller.
Does anybody know who did the voice of Fruit Brute?