Frosted Flakes in 50 Years

They're Greaaaaaaat

Frosted Flakes were introduced to the United States in 1951, with mascot Tony The Tiger.  Frosted Flakes are a sugar-coated corn flake breakfast cereal produced by Kellogg Company.  Originally called Sugar Frosted Flakes, the name was changed to Frosted Flakes in 1980 to create a more appealing and healthier title for parents who were purchasing breakfast cereals for their children.  Being such an older cereal, commercials advertising Frosted Flakes date back to 1960 and have taken off since then.  Tony the Tiger has become the face of the box and a recognized mascot.  Here is an example of what a Frosted Flakes commercial looked like in 1960. 

1960s Flakes

This commercial that was produced in 1960, features Tony the Tiger and Tony Jr.  Beside the obvious black and white picture, things seem to have changed in commercial making since this was created.  In general, this specific Frosted Flakes commercial seemed to go for a cartoon show like feel.  Each commercial for this cereal that was produced in this era had another story line with Tony the Tiger and his son Jr. almost establishing a sitcom like approach.  Always added to this was, the box which was showed at the end with Tony's face filling the front, and his famous catch line, They'reeeee GREAT.  Most commercials did not feature anything else but these two famous tigers.  Most of the time, Jr. received some super power from eating the Frosted Flakes, that usually ended up with Tony the Tiger shocked and in a messy situation.  In this commercial that was posted earlier, Jr. cracks the safe that contains the secret recipe for Frosted Flakes. Following this Tony, goes to retrieve the recipe and Jr. locks him in the safe.  Finally, like how many of the other commercials end Jr. blows the safe door open leaving Tony injured.  This example reminds me of watching the cartoon show Tom and Jerry as a child where Jerry (mouse) always fooled Tom (cat) into getting hurt.  These type of commercials appeal to children because they first are interested in the story.  They later figure out that its for a food (cereal) and all of a sudden they are hooked on it because they love the mascot and stories.  The advertising of this cereal fell solely on Tony the Tiger and JR.  The hope was to have kids fall in love with these characters and doing so also fall in love with the cereal.

Fast Forward the Flakes

Its 2012 and Frosted Flakes are as popular as ever.  The advertising and commercials have not ended and more and more people are familiar with this cereal.  Tony the Tiger is still the face of the franchise, and THEY'REEE GREAATTT is alive and well.  Somewhere in the middle of all of this success, Jr. Tony's little friend was left behind.  Commercials now a days, feature Just Tony the Tiger and usually kids, playing different sports such as football, soccer, tennis, etc. Along with the famous slogan, put into the commercials are lines that show the nutrition facts for Frosted Flakes.  Unlike the 60s, where the cartoon had a story behind it.  Present day commercials are more for showing off the nutritional facts, and what ingredients are in the cereal.  The pitch for Frosted Flakes is for people of all ages interests.  While, Kelloggs shows it off as a childs cereal.  In most cases, parents are purchasing it for these kids.  When parents buy breakfast cereals for their kids, they want something that their kids like, but they also want something that is a healthy option to start the morning. That is exactly what Frosted Flakes is a nutritious and delicious breakfast.

What Were You Watching?

WISCONSIN vs. NEBRASKA "the showdown"

       Saturday night college football showcased some of the top teams in the nation.  Wisconsin entered the season as a favorite to win the Big 10, after a star studded performance last season that left Quarterback Russell Wilson starting for the Seattle Seahawks.  They opened the season as everyone expected with a win, but got off to a slow start in a week two matchup with Oregon State and became a victim of "overlooking an opponent.  Now they have gotten back on track and our ready for a week five show down with the Nebraska Cornhuskers who entered the game ranked number 22 in the nation.   This matchup should have provided for excellent ratings and a big night of football.  The ratings of this game according to TVbythenumbers were 1.2 million watching which was actually a step down from the last weeks 1.8 million.  Ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by the Nielson company.  This was an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the U.S.  On the other hand, a share is the percentage of television sets in use tuned to the program.  The share number for this given game was 4 million.  These ratings and shares were the highest of the night and earned ABC the top spot for the evening.  In this crazy comeback performance the Nebraska Cornhuskers edged the Wisconsin Badgers on a late 4th quarter field goal after trailing by as much as 17 points throughout the game.

Quarterback Taylor Martinez, fighting his way out of a sack late in a fourth quarter showdown with Wisconsin.

The Middle is Back!

After a break from shows like Modern Family, Two and a Half Men, and The Middle they are back to ABC.  The Middle made its season 4 premier Wednesday night at 8 P.M.  The Middle features your average American family who resides in Orson, Indiana.  Three kids Axl, Sue, and Brick just like any other siblings fight, get into trouble, and are a handful for parents (Mike and Frankie).  In its season premier the Middle had a rating of 2.8 (million) with a share of 9.  These ratings are a bit below the 3.1 rating received after last seasons premier.

Why The Difference

Football has become a sport that is watched world wide.  While people in other countries do not have the capabilities to watch these events live, these games have now become available through live streaming on laptops, desktops, Ipads, and even Iphones.  The ratings for sports events have gone up at a rapid rate due to the streaming with these different accessories.  With the technology constantly changing it has left a positive effect on TV ratings for sports and other shows because people are more inclined to tune into shows while on the go or stuck somewhere without cable.