I recall an executive telling me that when he was young, his family was quite poor and Kellogg's Corn Flakes cereal was regarded as a remote luxury. Later on as an adult, he would occasionally celebrate by wolfing down a big bowl of the stuff.
Breakfast cereals spark flash-backs of childhood. I confess that I've never tasted Cap'n Crunch and a few of the other cereals which have cult-like followings. The closest I got to a real sugary cereal was Cocoa Puffs which by today's standards may be a health food.
But taste and sugar once were secondary concerns. My fortunate childhood was during the Golden Age of Cereal when many of those colorful boxes held bribes/prizes. Indeed, anyone who got to the box late could rest assured that greedy hands had already pawed through the flakes or puffs in search of a treasure which was usually found on the bottom of the container. There were, among other things, plastic scuba divers and submarines which, when filled with baking soda, would bob and weave in the sink. Who could resist?
One cereal line even had a "Guns of the Old West" series; a grand offering which would freak out some granola-eating parents today but could still be a hit with kids. After all, who doesn't want a small plastic replica of a pepperbox? Take it to school. Wave it around. Have a chat with a nervous principal about the Old West.
We were made of sterner stuff.
Later, when the drab days of adulthood closed in, most of us moved on to more sophisticated fare: oatmeal, English muffins, and the like. Not one of those had neat toys.
I wonder how many adults hang onto the old ways. Not every box of Rice Krispies is bought for the kids.
Snap, crackle, and pop may bring back a lot of memories but I doubt if there's a prize.
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