 Count
Chocula - In the 1970s, General Mills, Inc. resurrected some frightfully
classic movie characters like Frankenstein, Dracula, Wolfman and the Mummy for a
series of TV commercials that advertised its new line of monster cereal for
children. The first character debuted in 1971 as Count Chocula, a bucktoothed
vampire who talked like Bela Lugosi (voiced by Larry Kenney) and always argued
over who had the tastiest cereals. The Count Chocula cereal had little chocolate
marshmallows in it and 119 calories per cup (30g). Constantly pushing his
product, the Count -speaking in a Transylvanian accent - proclaimed: "I vant to
eat your cereal!"
Soon other mascots followed including FrankenBerry, a pink
monster with a voice like Boris Karloff; Boo Berry, a Peter Lorre sounding
ghost; Fruit Brute, a howling Wolfman, and a friendly bandaged Egyptian monster
called the Yummy Mummy.
The ads were created by Dancer, Fitzgerald and Sample ad
agency. The Monster Cereals have been featured in movies like Pulp Fiction and
on TV shows like THE SIMPSONS.
TRIVIA NOTE: In 1987, a
box
of Count Chocula cereal featured the image of
Bela
Lugosi as Dracula holding a lit candle in his
right hand and sporting a six-pointed medallion on his chest. Some claimed it
was the Star of David and insulted the Jewish faith. Jewish groups soon
complained to General Mills, and after some news coverage, the medallion was
removed. Ironically, the Count Chocula character was created by a Jewish
copyrighter named Laura Levine. Some sources claimed that the medallion,
however, was the Maltese Cross from the Order of the Thelemic Knights or the
Order of Saint John. The controversial Dracula box has now become a sought after
collectible item.
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Cast of Cereal Characters Who Competed with Count Chocula |
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