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This web page contains reference information and photos regarding the following:
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3.) The 1967 Pan-American Games (Winnipeg) "Pepsi-Cola Premium" Plastic Sports Figures
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5.) Canadian Cereal Toy Premiums
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(TEMPORARILY UNDER CONSTRUCTION)
This section is currently being revised.
New text and pictures to soon follow.
(TEMPORARILY UNDER CONSTRUCTION)
This section is currently being revised.
New text and pictures to soon follow.
3.) 1967 Pan-American Games (Winnipeg) "Pepsi-Cola Premium" Sports Figures
In 1967, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada played host to the Pan-American Games and athletes from all parts of the Western Hemisphere were invited to compete for their countries in Olympic-style competition. In honour of these Games, Pepsi-Cola of Canada offered, for a limited time, a series of ten different gold-colored plastic sports figures as a premium when purchasing certain Pepsi products.
The above photo displays the ten different figures in this series. They are (from top left to bottom right): a discus thrower, a boxer, a swimmer, a sharpshooter, a runner, a javelin thrower, a soccer player, a weightlifter, a diver (or a gymnast, take your pick) and a fencer. The figures were approximately 60mm in height.
Figures were individually attached to Pepsi bottles (one figure per bottle) and, if all ten figures were collected, one could send away for a special "green and gold" plastic wall plaque, with ledges that each figure sat upon while on display.
The underside of each figure was simply marked "Tome, Pepsi-Cola" which translates to "Drink Pepsi-Cola" in Spanish. The photo below illustrates this.
We have seen other identical vintage plastic sports figures to these, molded in different colors (usually in gray), and given this, we are uncertain as to whether or not these 1967 figures were the first to be produced. Be that as it may, we are confident that only the ones molded in this quasi-gold color, with the above printing under their base, are authentic "Pepsi-Cola" premium Pan-Am Games figures.
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This section is currently being revised.
New text and pictures to soon follow.
5.) Canadian Cereal Toy Premiums
For 1960's youngsters (especially boys), roaming up and down a supermarket cereal aisle was the next best thing to being in a toy store. Cereal manufacturers were constantly trying to attract the attention of children by offering a wide range of free toy premiums inside their products, thus putting pressure on parents to purchase them.
Inside local Safeway, Solo, Dominion, IGA and Loblaw's stores, Canadian consumers had direct access to the full range of Kellogg's, Post, Quaker, Nabisco, General Mills and other breakfast cereal product brands.
i.) Kellogg's Big Game Hunter's Wild Animals
One of the more memorable cereal premium offerings, found in boxes of Kellogg's Corn Flakes, was the "Big Game Hunter's Wild Animals" series. The photo below shows my collection of these Lido-brand plastic animal figures in a wide range of colors. We have been told that the figures that could be found inside Canadian Kellogg's cereal boxes only came in four colors; either brown, tan, cream or soft green. The other various colors shown below were likely made by Lido (the manufacturer) for sale in retail stores, but the other colors were not originally found in Kellogg's boxes in the 1960's.
But trying to collect a complete set in any one matching color can be quite the challenge.
The photo below shows the back of a Canadian (bilingual) Kellogg's Corn Flakes cereal box. There were 10 different figures that could be collected. The photo beneath it shows all ten different figures.
The 10 different animals in this series, as listed on the back of cereal boxes, were: 1.) bear, 2.) gorilla, 3.) bison (buffalo), 4.) camel, 5.) moose, 6.) elephant, 7.) lion, 8.) rhinoceros, 9.) giraffe, 10.) hippopotamus.
ii.) Kellogg's "Marx" Robin Hood Cereal Premium Figures
In Canadian Kellogg's cereal boxes during the 1960s, some of the plastic toy premium figures given away were made from "Marx Toys" molds. Shown below are a number of vintage "Robin Hood" cereal premium figures. In the next photo beneath it, we have contrasted these Canadian figures against a batch of "Made in U.S.A." Marx Robin Hood figures that came from an original 1950's/60's Marx Playset. Notice the difference in the color of the original "blue-green" U.S. figures versus the Canadian ones. Also, note that none of the Canadian cereal premiums came in a "tan" color, all of the Canadian cereal figures were green.
iii.) "Marx" Eskimo Cereal Premium Figures
Shortly following the release of the "Marx" Robin Hood figures in Canadian cereal boxes, a series of "Marx" Eskimo figures was also offered. The photo below shows a small sampling of these Eskimo cereal premiums. Like the Robin Hood figures, there was a color variation between the Canadian figures and the original Marx playset figures. U.S. made figures are of a much lighter blue tone than the Canadian premium figures, which are brighter blue.
iv.) "Ajax" Dinosaur Cereal Premiums
In the 1960's, dinosaurs were of just as much interest to kids as they are today. A series of dinosaurs based on the "Ajax" toy company molds were given away in Canadian cereal boxes and the photo below illustrates the eight different versions then available. These cereal premium figures came in four assorted colors (dark chocolate brown, gray, dark green and tan) as displayed in the photo below (however, the Triceratops figure shown in bright blue is a much more recent recast and is not an original figure). When I was young, I had the Tyrannosaurus Rex (in gray), the Brontosaurus (in brown), and several of the Pterodactyls in both gray and brown.
v.) Kellogg's "Lido" Hockey Players
These plastic hockey players were manufactured from "Lido" toy molds and distributed as premiums in the late 1950's and early 1960's in Canadian cereal boxes. These cereal figures came in three basic colors: a dark cherry red, very dark blue and bright white. (N.B. These figures were also manufactured for other forms of distribution as well and the tip-off that they may not be 1960's Canadian cereal premium figures is if the blue and red colors are lighter in tone, and when compared to the Canadian cereal premium figures, are slightly smaller in scale.)
The first photo below shows a few of the original "dark blue" and "cherry red" premium figures and the second photo shows a grouping of the "bright white" cereal premiums.
vi.) Kellogg's "Lido" Baseball Player Cereal Premium Figures
During the early 1960's, Canadian Kellogg's Frosted Flakes cereal boxes contained a series of "baseball player" plastic toy premiums. They were made from "Lido" baseball player molds and, in terms of size, quality and design, they were very similar. The ones that I recall having were all molded in "gray" plastic, but they may have been available in tan color, too; of that, I'm uncertain. (Note: The light gray pitcher in the back row is not a "Lido" figure, but a "Marx" sports character and the bright blue figure is a much later recast and not a cereal premium figure.)
vii.) Walt Disney "Spoon Sitters" and "Jungle Book" Cereal Premiums
Shown below is a set of four brightly-colored "Disney" cereal premium figures. These characters could either be used as "spoon sitters" (they had a groove located underneath each figure for a spoon's handle to slide through) or as "cereal bowl sitters" (hanging on to the edge of the bowl with their two curved hands) or as "pencil toppers." The four Disney characters in the first series were: Pluto, Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy.
Following this, a second series of four additional figures, based on the Disney "Pinocchio" animated movie, were released in cereal boxes. Shown in the back row (l to r) are: Geppetto, Pinocchio and Jiminy Cricket (Figaro, the cat, is missing from the photo).
Later still, yet another series of "spoon sitter" figures was released, based on the Disney "Winnie-the-Pooh" movie. Those figures were also distributed as premiums inside of Canadian cereal boxes.
With the popularity of these "spoon sitters" as cereal premiums, McDonald's Restaurants also issued their own series of similar-scale "spoon sitters" as fast food premiums, based on Ronald McDonald and the other McDonald's characters.
A different design of "bowl sitters" was manufactured following the release of the 1967 Disney "Jungle Book" movie. These premiums were similar in nature to the figures found in the then popular "Barrel of Monkeys" game, as they possessed curved appendages with which to link onto objects, or to one another. Shown below are the six figures in this series: Baloo, the Bear; Buzzie, the Vulture; Kaa, the Snake; Bagheera, the Panther; King Louie, the Orangutan; and Mowgli, a young boy.
viii.) Kellogg's "Soldiers of the Ages" Cereal Premium Figures
Shown below are nine Kellogg's "Soldiers of the Ages" figures in 7 different poses. These premium figures were molded in either "gold" or "silver" plastic. The photo depicts (back row to front): 1 Swiss Crossbowman, 2 Foreign Legionnaires, 1 U.S. 7th Cavalryman, 1 Zulu Warrior, 1 Mexican Warrior, 1 Spanish Conquistador and 2 Vikings.
Note: Pictured on the far left in the photo is a white "Nabisco" Davy Crockett figure which I purchased in the U.S. and was never offered as a premium inside a Canadian cereal box (to the best of my knowledge.)
ix.) Kellogg's "Lido" Cowboys and Indians
Yet another series of plastic cereal premium figures that was available on both sides of the border was the colorful Kellogg's "Cowboys and Indians" toy line. The photo below depicts seven of these figures in five different poses. The back cover of a vintage cereal box is shown next to them.
x.) Kellogg's "Rice Krispies" Farmyard Animals
During the 1960s, Kellogg's "Rice Krispies" cereal boxes contained one of eight different plastic farmyard animals. The photo below displays these animals in assorted colors. Also shown below is the back of a Rice Krispies box illustrating them.
They farmyard animals were: 1.) a chicken, 2.) a duck, 3.) a baby pig, 4.) an adult pig, 5.) a rooster, 6.) a calf, 7.) a sheep, 8.) a horse.
The plastic farm animals pictured above were identical to "Reliable Toys" brand farm animals that were sold at the time in retail stores. They were modelled after the "Auburn Toys" farm animals of identical design, but both the cereal premium animals and the Reliable animals were made from poly-plastic while the earlier Auburn animals were made from a soft and bendable vinyl plastic.
(TEMPORARILY UNDER CONSTRUCTION)
This section is currently being revised.
New text and pictures to soon follow.
(TEMPORARILY UNDER CONSTRUCTION)
This section is currently being revised.
New text and pictures to soon follow.
Shown above are: Get Smart Series: T-103 (#4803) Get Smart, T-119 (#4819) Sorry, Chief, T-121 (#4821) Get Smart Once Again, T-140 (#4840) Max Smart and the Perilous Pellets, T-154 (#4854) Missed It By That Much, T-159 (#4859) And Loving It, T-174 (#4874) Max Smart, The Spy Who Went Out to the Cold; Win Hadley Sports Series: T-8 (#4708) Winning Pitcher, T-113 (#4813) Set Point, T-145 (#4845) Duel on the Cinders; Sandy Steele Adventure Series: T-22 (#4722) Black Treasure, T-36 (#4736) Danger at Mormon Crossing, T-57 (#4757) Stormy Voyage, T-125 (#4825) Troubled Waters; Rod Serling's Twilight Zone Series: T-89 (#4789) Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone, T-171 (#4871) Rod Serling's Twilight Zone Revisited; Connie Blair Mystery Series: T-99 (#4799) The Clue in Blue, T-100 (#4800) The Riddle in Red, T-101 (#4801) Puzzle in Purple, T-116 (#4816) The Yellow Warning.
"THANKS FOR DROPPING BY AND, PLEASE, COME BACK AGAIN SOON!"
