Franken Berry was brought to life in late 1971 by General Mills. It was the second Monster cereal General Mills produced after Count Chocula, and preceded Boo Berry.
Due to the popularity of Monster movies since the 1950s and 60s, General Mills saw an opportunity to benefit from the monster phenomenon. Hence, the Monster cereals were born. Franken Berry is obviously styled after Frankenstein's Monster, but this gentle giant wouldn't hurt a fly. This most timid of the General Mills monster cereal mascots would often get spooked very easily in the commercials.
Franken Berry's voice was reminiscent of Boris Karloff's (The original actor who portrayed Frankenstein) and the person who provided his eerie yet kind sounding voice, was voice over specialist Bob McFadden. Sadly, Mr. McFadden died on Jan. 7, 2000 at the age of 76. McFadden also used his talent to sell Geritol, Campbell's soup, Wisk, Mountain Dew, as well as numerous other products. He also did voice overs for many cartoon characters. One you may remember, was Snarf from the 80's cartoon "Thundercats". You can see a great tribute to Bob McFadden here that is 23 years old at this point.
I'll never forget when I first discovered Franken Berry. The year was around 1976, and I was watching Saturday morning cartoons when a commercial came on for General Mills Monster cereals. I couldn't believe it, a Monster cereal? Furthermore, one of the cereal mascots was based on one of my favorite movie monsters... Frankenstein's Monster. I immediately knew that I MUST satisfy my palate with these strawberry and chocolate delicacies. I sampled the BIG THREE, being Count Chocula, Franken Berry, and Boo-Berry, but Franken Berry won me over with its strawberry taste.
Unfortunately (in this case) my mom was a very caring parent, and would not allow me to regularly eat cereals that would "rot my teeth out" so the times I was able to enjoy eating it, were a bit sporadic. Nonetheless, I looked forward to watching the new Monster cereal commercials, and trading various toys with my friends for their in box surprises. I actually came to enjoy collecting the toys, and watching the commercials every bit as much as eating the cereal. Once I started to earn my own money from mowing lawns, I was then able to buy all the Franken Berry I wanted.
Fast forward forty some odd years later. While I can still satisfy my craving for this great cereal, it's only on shelves around Halloween. However, a few things just aren't the same..
1.) I'm a big fan of the old Franken Berry box art and animation from the 70's and 80's. That being said, while I didn't much care for the facelift that General Mills gave old Frankie in 1995, they have recently been releasing retro box art for the last several years. Hopefully the keep up the throwback marketing, because the masses seem to love it.
2.) There's also the issue of the in-box surprises being pretty much non-existent. Mazes and puzzles printed on the backs of boxes are amusing, but it just isn't the same as having to dig through a box of cereal for that in box surprise. Children of the 60s, 70s and 80s know exactly what I'm talking about.
3.) The lack of imagination that goes into marketing for this cereal (and most cereals for that matter) simply disappoints. You just don't see ingenious commercials, advertisements, and merchandise that uniquely promote breakfast cereal anymore. When I was a kid, there was a slew of promotional items that you could buy right off of the shelves in the grocery stores, like vinyl figures, school supplies, etc. based on many of the General Mills cereal mascots.
3.) The lack of imagination that goes into marketing for this cereal (and most cereals for that matter) simply disappoints. You just don't see ingenious commercials, advertisements, and merchandise that uniquely promote breakfast cereal anymore. When I was a kid, there was a slew of promotional items that you could buy right off of the shelves in the grocery stores, like vinyl figures, school supplies, etc. based on many of the General Mills cereal mascots.
4,) Finally, the taste is not the same as it was back in the day. It's a entirely different cereal than the one we used to enjoy in the 70s and 80s, and I don't think anyone can deny this. Just check out the 70s ingredients vs. today's recipe..
I remember instantly getting strawberry flavor in every bite years ago. Now.. the only thing that is vaguely reminiscent of that great flavor is the marshmallows. The throwback boxes used to be enough to get me to buy a box every Halloween, but I haven't even bothered for the last few years. Last year in 2022, I would have bought a box if not for the artistic liberties taken with the Monster Cereal characters. Some people dug them, but they just weren't my cup of tea.
2022 Franken Berry Cereal Box
They even had me excited for a minute with the mention of 70s style cereal premium figures of the Monster Cereal characters. However, once I learned you were only offered a chance to win them in a sweepstakes, I immediately put the box back on the shelf. I walked away shaking my head, disgusted at General Mills for taking the cheap way out.
The monster cereals of today are only mere shells of what they once were, but I'm very thankful that they are still available. Some people really get excited to see them every year. I do still pay attention and check in every year, hoping to see if the newest boxes and promotions will coax me into parting with a few bucks. It remains to be seen if that will happen in 2023.
I know I can probably find the box art out there right now, but I prefer to be surprised as I peruse the cereal aisle as Halloween gets closer. Whether or not I buy a box this year, I still may cover the newest incarnation of Franken Berry and his pals. We'll see..