Tag: PopIcon

By Heather Taylor Welcome to the first day of #AWNewYork with Advertising Week! On Monday September 23, 2019, brand mascots celebrated Advertising Week’s 16th Annual Madison Avenue Walk of Fame by inducting two beloved characters and iconic brand slogans. Meet The Winning Mascots! 2019’s nominees included fresh faces and longtime favorites in the advertising industry. Our winners were the Oscar…

By Heather Taylor The truth is out there… and it tastes really good, too. Starting September 19th, alien believers and Kool-Aid enthusiasts get to sip on Kool-Aid’s limited-edition “UFO-Yeah Intergalactic Green” drink mix — for free. How Do I Get My Free Kool-Aid? Unfortunately, the aliens themselves will not be descending down on Earth to pass out this drink mix…

By Heather Taylor Orville Redenbacher was destined to lead an a-maize-ing life. Today, when we see his bespectacled, bowtie-clad, smiling face on packages of Orville Redenbacher classic popcorn many of us may not know much about his story behind the snack. Redenbacher put decades of dedication into developing the perfect popcorn hybrid that changed the way we savor popcorn forever.…

By Heather Taylor Horatio Magellen Crunch has encountered more than a few unusual personalities in his time spent sailing the Milk Sea on the S.S. Guppy! The Cap’n Crunch icon spent his 1960s voyages often accompanied by crew mates like Sea Dog and Crunchberry Beast. Occasional journeys included a swashbuckling showdown with the nefarious pirate Jean LaFoote to protect boxes…

By Heather Taylor We’re big fans of brand mascots at PopIcon, but how does our love for characters measure up to the rest of the United States? Crestline, a custom promotional products company, recently conducted a survey to uncover advertising’s most memorable mascots. The survey consisted of responses from 1,630 participants covering 82 different characters in high school yearbook-esque superlatives.…

By Heather Taylor Oh yeah? Oh no! On Monday March 9th, Kool-Aid tweeted that their beloved brand mascot has gone missing. The initial tweet said “The big red pitcher has left the building!” and was full of red alarm emojis. Not since the auto theft of the NUTmobile in 2017 has there been such a need to put out an…

By Heather Taylor Is Halloween canceled? Not when the Kool-Aid Man is on your side! In 2020, the Kool-Aid Man is encouraging kids stuck at home on October’s most spooktacular night to reverse trick-or-treat alongside the iconic pitcher. What’s Reverse Trick-or-Treating? The CDC has advised against traditional trick-or-treating amid the COVID-19 pandemic. This means, at least in 2020, that kids…

By Heather Taylor Kevin the Carrot, the adventurous brand mascot for Aldi UK, has a penchant for getting into mishaps during the holidays. Ad agency McCann UK gets a kick out of creating teaser spots of blockbuster proportions leading up to Aldi UK’s final holiday commercial. Kevin the Carrot, much like 2020 itself, is struggling to navigate a year full…

By Heather Taylor Nobody has a thicker skin in the advertising industry than a brand mascot. Iconic characters like Cap’n Crunch, the Pillsbury Doughboy, and the Aflac Duck wear an absurd amount of hats. They have to constantly sell a product, but never ask for a raise, benefits, or PTO. As they age, characters like the Green Giant and Keebler…

By Heather Taylor Advertising Week’s nominees for the 2019 Madison Avenue Walk of Fame Awards have arrived! Cast your vote for your favorite advertising icon and join us at #AWNewYork 2019 as we announce the two winners inducted into the Madison Avenue Walk of Fame! Who will win? Will it be longtime icons like McGruff the Crime Dog or the…

By Heather Taylor Crestline, a custom promotional products company, recently revealed the results of a survey about the most memorable brand mascots in the United States. The survey broke down memorable icons by various age groups including baby boomers and Gen Z. Who’s the most memorable character for baby boomers? Miss Blue Bonnet from Blue Bonnet butters and margarine spreads…

By Heather Taylor Legend — or rather, Drake’s Cakes lore — has it that a duck named Webster was born to be the face of the snack brand. You can’t miss him on Drake’s Cakes snack packaging. Webster is clad in a chef’s hat with an orange neckerchief, bright orange beak, and giant grin across his face. How did such…

By Heather Taylor Few characters have mastered the art of crashing quite like Kool-Aid’s iconic Kool-Aid Man. After spending his early years in advertising as the “Pitcher Man,” an ice-cold pitcher full of the flavored drink mix, Kool-Aid brought their business to Grey Advertising in 1975. Under the guidance of creative director Robert Skollar, the Pitcher Man became the Kool-Aid…

By Heather Taylor For six decades, the Clio Awards have awarded the crème de la crème in advertising campaigns and celebrated the industry as a whole. With the next awards ceremony slated for September 25th, the Clios are embracing the golden age of advertising. Illustrator Sam Spratt has captured some of the ad world’s most famous creatives, and their respective…

By Heather Taylor Killing the star in advertising usually applies to characters we love to hate, like the Raid Bugs. Hingie, the new face of dating app Hinge, is a character made for feeling the warm fuzzies. He’ll do anything for love including die. Repeatedly. Over and over again all in the name of true romance. Hinge: The Dating App…

By Heather Taylor In 1944, Smokey Bear made his debut in a new PSA ad campaign from the USDA Forest Service, Ad Council, and National Association of State Foresters (NASF) in partnership with ad agency FCB. Designed by USFS employee Rudolph Wendelin, Smokey wore a ranger’s hat and belted blue jeans. He carried a shovel in one paw. Three years…

By Heather Taylor Sixty years ago, the world met a rabbit that had a problem. This rabbit didn’t like to eat carrots. He loved munching on Trix, the corn cereal with fruit flavors. It was the Trix Rabbit, a rabbit that loved Trix so much he could eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. However, children were always there to…

By Heather Taylor The world lost a very special character talent this weekend with the passing of Russi Taylor. For more than 30 years, the voiceover actress was Disney’s iconic Minnie Mouse. Taylor was also known for her work on The Simpsons as Bart Simpson’s nerdy classmate Martin Prince. In the advertising landscape, Taylor lent her vocal range to another…