Jack Sprat originated as a nursery rhyme in England somewhere around the 17th century. It became well-known when it made it into “Mother Goose’s Melody” around 1765. The most popular version is this:

Jack Sprat could eat no fat.
His wife could eat no lean.
And so between them both, you see,
They licked the platter clean.

Also in England, the name Jack Sprat was used to describe small-statured people. This fact, as well as the popularity of the nursery rhyme may have led to the use of this character to advertise tea and other food products.

Jack Sprat Brand Tea features a small elfin-like person on its tea boxes. The little man has rosy cheeks and a large smile with dimples. His hat is tall and he wears a white shirt with a red bowtie. With this outfit, he looks like a person who lived in England during the 1600s.

The brand Jack Sprat is associated with more than just tea. It was on containers of vinegar, oats, and canned corn among other items. The brand was owned by the Consolidated Foods Corporation of Chicago, IL, which eventually became known as Sara Lee Corporation in 1985.

There is little information on the significance of Jack Sprat as an advertising character or why he was chosen as a brand name. If anyone has more information, please write in and let us know. We’re very interested.

Howard Johnson’s restaurants and motor inns once donned highways all over America.  One could always assume that the large house with the orange roof would be there to serve warm food and provide lodging to weary travelers.

The restaurant chain started out in the early 1920’s as a soda fountain in a corner drugstore owned by Howard Deering Johnson.  After a few years, a number of concession stands offering his famous 28 flavors of ice cream were opened.  Toward the end of the 1920s, the first Howard Johnson’s restaurant opened in Quincy, Massachusetts.  By the end of the 1930’s there were over 100 franchised restaurants along highways on the East coast, and the chain kept growing.

The early design for the restaurants was inspired by the New England Colonial house.  Complete with dormer windows, white siding and turquoise trim; there was also a cupola with a weathervane on top of the large orange roof.

The metal weathervanes were in the shape of a man, a boy, and a dog.  This logo, called “Simple Simon and the Pieman” was created by artist John Alcott in the 1930s.  Besides being on the famous weathervane, the logo adorned the signs, menus, and china of every Howard Johnson’s.

This design also appeared on the entranceway of every Howard Johnson’s restaurant next to the front door.  The logo was a small hanging sculpture crafted out of metal.  To make the logo unique to each restaurant, the name of each town where it resided was also made of metal and hung above the logo.  This was to give a personal touch to every restaurant, regardless of the fact that each restaurant looked similar, if not the same.

The Simple Simon and the Pieman logo was used until the 1970’s, when many restaurants were remodeled.  Both the entranceway signs and the weathervanes were no longer a part of the restaurant’s design.  Nowadays, the weathervanes are collector’s items.  The early ones are very rare and valuable because there aren’t many that survived through World War II.  Many were donated to use as scrap metal for the war effort.

From the 1970’s on, Howard Johnson’s restaurants began to slowly disappear, and are no longer a staple on the American highway.  They have almost been completely phased out of business, with the advent of fast-food restaurants that sprung up in every town and rest stop across the country.

Although the restaurants are mostly gone, Howard Johnson’s can be remembered by the collectibles that survived throughout the years.  Besides the weathervanes, people collect pieces of china tableware, as well as the sculptured signs featuring the “Simple Simon and the Pieman” logo.  If anyone has more information on the meaning of this logo, please comment.  We would love to know more!

In 1940, Richard and Maurice McDonald opened the very first McDonald’s restaurant, located in San Bernardino, CA.  The restaurant was a drive-in that offered a large menu, and was known for its bar-b-que items.  Carhops served the food as customers sat in their cars.

In 1948, the McDonald brothers introduced the “Speedee Service System,” which was to become the model for fast-food restaurants all over the world.  This featured a self-service drive-in, where customers walked up to the window to get their own food.  The menu was also reduced to contain most of the items we see today, featuring hamburgers, chips, and soft drinks.  French fries were introduced in 1949, along with Triple Thick Milkshakes.  This smaller menu, along with the quick ways the food was prepared created maximum productivity levels in a short amount of time.

To advertise the fact that McDonald’s was so quick to serve the customer, the company chose to use Speedee as a mascot.  Speedee was a little man who wore a chef’s uniform and had a hamburger-shaped face.  He represented the quick and efficient service that McDonald’s provided to customers.  He was usually displayed on a sign on the front of the building or on a large sign in the parking lot.  Sometimes he was shown carrying a plaque reading, “I’m Here” and other times Speedee just pointed his finger at the restaurant.  A few of the neon signs even featured Speedee moving his little legs, signifying his rush to serve his customers.

Speedee was the advertising mascot until 1962, when he was replaced by Ronald McDonald.  This happened around the same time that Ray Kroc took over the business and formed the McDonald’s Corporation.  Another reason for the change was that the McDonald’s Corporation wanted to remove any possible association that could be seen with Alka-Seltzer’s mascot, Speedy.

McDonalds restaurants have changed their appearance as well as their advertising campaigns over the years, but Speedee will remain the original mascot.  It is a rarity nowadays, but some of the earlier restaurants kept Speedee on their signs.  One of which is Ray Kroc’s first franchised restaurant, located in Des Plaines, Illinois.  This restaurant is still operable, and is also a museum with a gift shop.  One can even see a neon Speedee sign from the Topeka McDonalds on display in the Kansas Museum of History.

Original McDonalds paper cups like the one shown above are collector’s items today.  Other merchandise such as coffee mugs are also collected, and if you look on eBay, you’re sure to find many memorabilia items featuring the original Speedee.

The man we see on Chef Boyardee products is based on a real person.  He came to America from Piacenza, Italy in 1914 as Ettore Boiardi, and made his home in New York City.  At 16 years of age, he worked as a chef in the Plaza Hotel kitchen.  A few years later he moved to Cleveland and worked as head chef at the Hotel Winton.

People began to request samples and recipes for his spaghetti sauce, and his reputation grew by word of mouth.  Boiardi decided to open his own Italian restaurant named Giardino d’Italia, and business was booming.  His sauce was in such high demand he decided to package it and sell it.  In 1928 he opened a factory to keep up with all of the orders, and shortly after, he began to sell the product nationally.  The business expanded to include canned pasta and boxed dinners.

For the sake of business, he changed his name on the product to Chef Boy-Ar-Dee so that Americans would be able to pronounce it easily.  Later on, the hyphens were removed and the brand name became Chef Boyardee, the one we see today.

Americans loved the tasty meals that did not take very long to cook or prepare.  Chef Boyardee pasta came in a box with the sauce and cheese mix included.  This became the example others would follow when creating boxed meals.

Although he moved the factory to Milton, PA and eventually sold the business, he was kept as the face on the front of the packages.  Boiardi’s image is still to this day the face we associate with many kinds of Chef Boyardee canned pasta.

“Thank goodness for Chef Boyardee.”

The first version of the Burger King advertising mascot appeared on the sign for the original Burger King restaurant that opened in Miami Beach in 1954.  The next version of the Burger King was seen on the company logo in 1957.  It showed a cartoon king sitting atop a sign that read “Burger King Home Of The Whopper.”  The logo was used on the restaurant signs as well as the cups and bags the food was served with.

In 1960, the logo received an update and featured a cartoon king sitting on a large “hamburger throne,” shown above.  This logo was used until 1969, when the king and his throne were replaced by the image of two buns with the words “Burger King” in-between the buns.  An updated version of this is used today.

In the late 1960s, Burger King came out with commercials aimed at children.  The commercials featured an animated Burger King who visited Burger King restaurants.  In all the commercials, the Burger King gave the children small gifts or bought them food.  Also, he recited the slogan, “Burger King, where kids are king.”

A few years later, in response to competition from McDonald’s, the animated king was replaced by a human Burger King.  This king was called the “Marvelous Magical Burger King.”  He could perform magic tricks, and ruled over Burger King Kingdom.  He also had friends, Sir Shakes-A-Lot, The Burger Thing, and The Wizard of Fries.  Of course, there was a villain named The Duke Of Doubt.  The new slogan was, “Magic makes it special when you’re with Burger King.”

By the late 1980s, the Magical Burger King ads were phased out and replaced by the BK Kids Club Gang ads.  These ads featured a group of ethnically diverse children created to promote the Burger King Kids Club Meal.  The Burger King would not resurface until the 21st century.

Throughout the 1970s and 80s, Burger King also came out with commercials for adults.  One of the more successful slogans used was “Have It Your Way.”  This slogan would also be used in the 21st century.

In 2003, the advertising company, Crispin Porter + Bogusky (CP+B) was hired to overhaul Burger King’s advertising campaigns.  The first campaign used a caricatured version of the Burger King from the Burger King Kingdom days.  The next campaign, which is still used today, featured a Burger King wearing a large plastic mask that looks like the original Burger King from the 70s.

The commercials featuring the masked King are wildly popular.  The King appears in random places such as in bed with people, or pops up in windows once the blinds are opened, to give people Burger King products.  He does not speak, and relies on his large plastic smile to communicate.  The King has become known as the “Creepy King” because of his weird appearances and mime-like behavior.

Advertising campaigns have changed throughout the years, but they have come full circle.  The Burger King is the image that comes to mind when thinking about Burger King restaurants. From cheery caricature to creepy masked man, the Burger King is an advertising icon that will continue to evolve and stay current with the tastes of the public.  As one of the most recognizable advertising mascots in history, he is sure to be around for years to come.

In 1940, Ovaltine, owned by The Wander Company, became the official sponsor of the very popular radio show, “Captain Midnight.”  It was during the World War II years, and The Wander Company had been looking for a heroic figure to sell their product, Ovaltine, a cocoa malt powder used as a flavoring for milk.  They could not have picked a better venue.

Originally, Captain Midnight was the alias for aircraft pilot Jim “Red” Albright, who worked undercover trying to gather information on a criminal gang led by Ivan Shark and his daughter, Fury.  When Ovaltine took over sponsorship, the story changed.  Albright was known only as Captain Midnight, and he became the head of the Secret Squadron; an aviation group that fought espionage and sabotage in the years before the US officially entered World War II.  After the US entered the war, Axis villains were introduced into the show.  Captain Midnight and his Secret Squadron fought the wartime activities of Baron von Karp, Admiral Himakito and von Schrecker throughout Europe, South America, the Pacific, and continental Asia.

As the official sponsor of “Captain Midnight,” The Wander Company used advertising gimmicks to promote Ovaltine.  Ovaltine’s foil tops and labels offered the chance to join the Secret Squadron.  The proofs-of-purchase from the jars could be used to get premiums like decoder rings, patches, and various other souvenirs from the shows, such as the plastic mug pictured above.  Often, the decoder objects would be used to crack messages within the “Captain Midnight” show broadcasts.

Ovaltine and The Wander Company brought the “Captain Midnight” show to a national level, broadcasting on the Mutual Radio Network.  In 1942 the show moved to the Blue Network, and then it moved back to Mutual in 1945, where it remained until it went off the air in 1949.  Although the “Captain Midnight” show became a film series and a television show in the 1950s, Ovaltine was no longer the sponsor.

The “Captain Midnight” radio show was a great way to advertise Ovaltine.  With an audience of millions and the premiums that could be sent away for, Ovaltine grew in popularity and became a household name.  Although most people today don’t know about “Captain Midnight,” people all around the world know of Ovaltine, and it is still a popular drink today.

The Esso Oil Drop Man is an advertising character that was first seen in campaigns by Esso’s Danish company during World War II.  He was created to explain the reason behind shortages in petroleum products during the war.  Soon after his debut, other European affiliates began to use this cute character in their advertising campaigns.

In 1958, the Esso Oil Drop Man was introduced in the United States for Standard Oil, the larger company that owned Esso.  In 1959, Esso and Standard Oil were incorporated by Humble Oil, but continued to sell gasoline under the Esso name.

The Esso Oil Drop Man was paired with the trademark slogan, “Happy Motoring!”  This may be the reason he was named “Happy.”  Happy the Oil Drop Man appeared in print ads and publications, but was most well known for his appearances on Esso’s service station maps.  These maps could be purchased for a modest fee, and one could get a map, or “Travel Aid”, for many countries in Western Europe, North Africa, the USA and Canada.

Sometimes, Happy appeared with an oil drop woman, but little is known about her or her name.  They often appeared together driving in a red convertible.

In the 1960’s, Happy’s popularity began to slide and eventually became nonexistent after the domination of the Humble Tiger in the advertising campaigns.

Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, there was a lot of different merchandise created featuring the Esso Oil Drop Man.  The selection ranged from very popular key chains to figurines, and from maps to containers and booklets.  The merchandise was created and sold in countries around the world, with many different styles available.  Today, much of this merchandise is treated as valuable collector’s items.

If anyone has more information about the Esso Oil Drop Man or his Oil Drop Girlfriend, please comment and let us know!

Colonel Sanders was born Harland Sanders in Indiana in 1890.  At the age of six, his father died, and his mother had to go to work.  Sanders was responsible for feeding the family, and this began his lifetime love of cooking.

After a few years, Sanders ran away from home and began working a series of odd jobs.  For example, he worked as a streetcar conductor, a steamboat pilot, and an insurance salesman.  It was when he was working at a service station in Corbin, Kentucky in 1930, that he was able to use his love of cooking.  Sanders would cook for travelers that stopped by the station.  He had no room to serve them, so he would serve their meals in his own living quarters.

He marketed his food to busy families as “home meal replacement” and called them “Sunday Dinner, Seven Days a Week.”  Sanders’ meals grew in popularity, and he soon moved his business into a restaurant across the street from the service station.  Over the next few years, he worked on perfecting his cooking process and recipe for fried chicken.  He developed his secret blend of 11 herbs and spices.

Sanders’ meals continued to grow in popularity, and in 1935, Governor Ruby Laffoon made Sanders a Kentucky Colonel in recognition of his excellence in contributions to the state’s cuisine.  After this, Sanders referred to himself as “Colonel” and began wearing a Southern gentleman style of dress with his white suit and black string tie.

He used this image as self-promotion as he began to develop his chicken franchising business.  By 1955, he had over 600 Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants in the US and Canada, and each of them used the Colonel as the advertising icon and spokesperson.

Although he sold his corporation for $2,000,000 to a group of Kentucky businessmen in 1964, he remained the official face for KFC and continued to visit franchises and act as the spokesman for the company.

Colonel Sanders passed away in 1980, but he will never be forgotten.  His legacy lives on with his “secret recipe” and the many KFC restaurants around the world.  The Colonel is part of our culture, and will forever remain one of the most recognizable faces in advertising history.

In 1948, Nestle developed a chocolate powder mix that easily turned milk into chocolate milk.  In the US, it was called Nestle Quik.  In 1973, the Nestle Quik Bunny, named Quiky, was introduced as the company’s mascot in the US.

In other countries in Europe, he was known as Quicky, the Nesquik Bunny.  In France and Greece, a completely different character represented the company.  He was a yellow monster named Groquik. (Fat Quik)  By 1999, the chocolate powder was renamed Nesquik, and the different advertising characters around the world were replaced by the US mascot, Quiky.

Quiky is a brown cartoon bunny that originally wore a “Q” around his neck.  His letter was changed to an “N” when the product was renamed Nesquik, and his name was changed to the Nesquik Bunny.  In several commercials, a jingle was played; “It’s so rich and thick and choco-lick! But you can’t drink it slow if it’s Quik!”  The bunny’s voice was provided by Barry Gordon, an American actor.

Quiky was also seen in print ads in several magazines and newspaper coupon circulars.  One such ad in the 1980s was created with DC Comics, called “Superman Meets the Quik Bunny,” and it showed Quiky riding on the shoulders of Superman.

Nestle keeps with the times, as shown in the print advertisements through the years.  The ads always stress the delicious flavor and nutritional qualities to market to the adults.  To appeal to children over the decades, Nesquik has shown the rabbit engaging in sports activities such as skateboarding, stressing the ability of Nesquik to provide energy and nutrition while children have fun and enjoy the chocolatey taste.

The Nesquik Bunny is a popular icon, and merchandise such as dolls, bobble heads, and mugs have been created in his likeness.  The merchandise made before his “Q” changed to an “N” and containers produced before the name change are collector’s items today.

For over 35 years Quiky, the Nesquik Bunny, has been the advertising icon for Nesquik, and he is still going strong.  He is sure to be around for another few decades, showing us the fun we can have while sipping on yummy chocolate drinks.

Flying A was owned by Tidewater Petroleum, and was a major gasoline brand from the 1930s to the 1960s.  The Flying A Dog, named Axelrod, was an advertising character for Flying A Service Stations in the 1960s.  He starred in a few commercials, appearing in his A-shaped doghouse with a worried facial expression.  Axelrod was the perfect mascot for these commercials because as a basset hound, his natural demeanor was one of a worrisome hound dog.

The commercials featured sayings like, “When it comes to your car…oooh, do we worry!”  Also heard was “The house that worry built.”  Sometimes there was the catchy jingle, “At Flying A we worry … about your carburetor … your sparkplugs, muffler, tail lights and your voltage regulator.”

The commercials featuring Axelrod ran during broadcasts of the New York Yankees baseball games because Flying A was a sponsor.  Tidewater Petroleum also owned the rights to Pacific Coast Conference, so Flying A advertisements ran during west coast football and basketball games. Axelrod the Flying A Dog also appeared in print ads featured in “Saturday Evening Post.”

In 1966, the western US stations of Tidewater Petroleum were bought out by Phillips Petroleum Co. and were rebranded with Phillips 66.  In the eastern US, Flying A was replaced by Getty, and later, Texaco.  Axelrod The Flying A Dog was phased out, but he remains alive in collectible merchandise that was made in his likeness.