February 19. On this day in 1913, Cracker Jack put their very first prize in a box of the caramel corn treat. Cracker Jack was actually “invented” in the U.S back in 1896 – but it wasn’t until 1913 that the famous toy prizes were added. My human remembers the toy prizes when SHE was a kid- she said they were VERY cool. Today she thinks they are pretty boring – a sticker or fake tattoo. But I suppose – what kid wants a toy in a box of food, when they have an iPad to play with?
In 1916, the Cracker Jack packaging included the logo of a sailor, Jack and his dog, Bingo. The sailor boy was modeled after the grandson of one of the inventors and Bingo was modeled after a dog who had been a stray – and who had been adopted by the man who created the unique wax packaging for the product. Frankly, I think it was Bingo who sold people on the stuff. I mean we dogs CAN sell anything. The other day, I talked about the Superbowl commercials with dogs, and through the years, we canines have been in lots of different advertising. Here are a few examples:
· The terrier, Nipper was a well-known figure in RCA Victor advertising.
· The symbol for Hush Puppy shoes was a basset hound.
· Spuds Mackenzie, a bull terrier, was used in advertising Anheuser-Busch brewing for many years, until those Clydesdales took over.
· Since 1999, a bull terrier has been the mascot and symbol for Target stores.
· Gidget, the Chihuahua was famous in Taco Bell ads.
I’m sure there are others. However, I have searched for PONs in advertising and had very little luck. The CLOSEST I could come was this commercial- but I don’t think it’s really a PON. I actually resent that the CLOSEST thing to a PON is an advertisement for stinky dogs. Mind you, the car IS kind of funny…
And speaking of PONs being ignored, what’s with this Westminster thing? I mean has a PON EVER won? I admit the German Shorthaired Pointer was cute – and there WERE some nice dogs in the grand finale at the end -but my money was on either the German Shepherd – since we herding breeds need to stick together – OR the Skye terrier – because if you saw one from FAR away – you could think it was a PON. If he had longer legs, you changed his coat and his body shape. OK. Maybe he doesn’t bear any resemblance to a PON, but since he came in Number 2 last year, I thought he deserved to win this year. I mean WHO would go back to that thing twice? Anyway, that’s over for THIS year. Congrats to all the winners. Which means congrats to EVERY single dog – since we are ALL winners in the hearts of our humans. And if you REALLY want a prize, and you didn’t get one of those fancy ribbons, go and buy a box of Cracker Jack. A prize is always GUARANTEED!
© Linda Wozniak
Viktorsviews. The Next Chapter. 