Tony The Tiger

Have you ever sat eating a bowl of Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes and wondered why there was a tiger promoting the cereal? How on earth did they come up with Tony The Tiger to sell boxes of sugar-covered corn flakes?

Well, in 1952, there was a contest to decide who would grace the front of the box of Sugar Frosted Flakes. A competition was held between Tony the Tiger, Katy the Kangaroo, Elmo the Elephant, and Newt the Gnu. (A wildebeest!) The competition was to see who would be most popular with the American public. Tony the Tiger won, and has been the mascot for Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes ever since.

Martin Provensen, an illustrator of children’s books, created the design for Tony. Originally, the tiger started out with a football-shaped head and he walked on all fours. This was replaced by a Tony figure that walked upright and could sing songs and dance. At this time, the cereal was called Sugar Frosted Flakes, which changed to Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes when sugar started to get a reputation for being unhealthy and leading to obesity.

As the nation became more health conscious, Tony’s physique became stronger and leaner, and he grew in stature from a small cereal box-sized cat to a 6 foot tall figure showing kids how to better themselves through sports.

Tony even went through a period where he had a family. His son, Tony Jr. is the best-known family member, but at one time there was a mother, wife, and daughter Antoinette. These characters fell by the wayside, as Tony became the face associated with Frosted Flakes and the Kellogg’s company itself.

Although Tony has been redrawn many times, some things have remained the same. Always present is the red kerchief he wears around his neck and his famous line “They’re Grrrrrrrreat!” Tony’s signature voice comes from Thurl Ravenscroft, an actor and voice artist also known for his songs in the movie “The Grinch.”

Tony the Tiger is an American advertising icon. He has lasted for 56 years as the mascot for Frosted Flakes, and shown no signs of slowing down. Nowadays, he is featured in Frosted Flakes commercials as the driving force behind kids achieving their dreams by being active and playing sports.

Tony the Tiger has been a favorite character for many years. Over his lifetime many objects were created in his likeness. There are dolls, coin banks, vinyl figures, signs, and many more items available for collectors. You can see a variety of these Tony the Tiger collectibles and Kellogg’s memorabilia on our website.

Posted Thursday, June 19th, 2008 at 7:24 am EST by Nicole
Read more in Character of the Week

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