MEMORIES:
princessdiana remembers...I love the good Stuff Maynard! the bear comes in,and says,More Malt-o-Meal Please, the dad says Maynard,Close the door. More »
Posted on 03/02/08
PHOTOS:
CATCH PHRASE:
When the name Malt-O-Meal comes up, most imagine a hot cream-of-wheat-like cereal, possibly with a little maple syrup or brown sugar swirled in. Or, perhaps you liked some fruit - such as strawberries, peaches, or canned fruit cocktail - thrown into the mix. Or maybe a bit of milk delicately poured on top was what your taste buds craved. However you chose to prepare it, one thing is for certain - warm memories linger for this cheap and easy to make breakfast that would sit like wet cement at the bottom of your stomach.
All the way back in 1919, John S. Campbell first created his hot wheat cereal in Owatonna, Minnesota, calling it Malt-O-Meal. Unlike most cereals, Malt-O-Meal was packaged in bags, rather than the typical box. Almost 40 years later, the Campbell Cereal Company would expand their line to include a number of “look-alike” cold cereals, offered at a lower price than the competition. Prior to 1998, Malt-O-Meal used a variety of unnamed cartoon characters on their packaging - none of which who received much advertising exposure. In recent years, the lovable mascots, Cool Blue (the kangaroo) and Li’l Oaty (the wallaby) have adorned the packages, finally giving kids some recognizable characters to associate with the breakfast cereal.
In fact, Malt-O-Meal has remained surprisingly low on the publicity radar, with one notable exception - the familiar 80s slogan, “Good stuff, Maynard!” In the 1980s, Malt-O-Meal ran a popular commercial for their hot wheat cereal featuring a little boy and his imaginary friend, Maynard. After being handed a piping-hot bowl of Malt-O-Meal, the boy turned to his invisible pal and proclaimed the now-familiar catchphrase.
Perhaps Malt-O-Meal never had the equivalent of a “Tony the Tiger” or “Toucan Sam.” Luckily, Moms understood that there was no better way to start their kid’s day than with a warm breakfast in their stomachs, especially on a cold winter morning. Malt-O-Meal never let them down. And while some breakfasts might leave you hungry a few hours later, not good and hearty, stick-to-your-ribs, Malt-O-Meal . You were almost certainly guaranteed fulfillment until the beloved lunch bell rang.
