King Vitaman
King Vitaman was a brand of sweetened breakfast cereal produced by Quaker Oats and sold in the United States. The cereal entered the marketplace in 1968, and changed mascots several times. The cereal was discontinued in 2019 according to Quaker Oats.
King Vitaman Cereal boasted high vitamin and iron content, in addition to a more modest amount of sugar (only 6 grams per serving—more popular breakfast cereals, such as Cap'n Crunch and Lucky Charms contain 13 grams or more). The early television commercials for the cereal were animated by Jay Ward Productions, the creators of Rocky and Bullwinkle. The advertising featured King Vitaman (voiced by character actor Joe Flynn) and his knights, Sir Laffitup and Sir Cravenleigh, and their foes the Blue Baron (voiced by Paul Frees) and the Not-So-Bright Knight. Subsequent non-animated advertisements ended with a jingle inviting children to "Have Breakfast with the King."
From 1971 until his death in 1977, actor George Mann, an ex-vaudevillian in the comedic dance act Barto and Mann, depicted King Vitaman on the cereal box and in television commercials.[1] In 2000, Quaker Oats returned to an illustrated character on their King Vitaman cereal boxes.
References
- "King Vitaman Commercial". Quaker. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
Further reading
- Kevin Scott Collier. Jay Ward's Animated Cereal Capers. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2017. ISBN 1976576849