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Halloween Promotional Items of the 80s and 90s
While Back to the Future single-handedly caused me to fantasize and yearn for the imminent invention of flying cars and hover boards, it has become clear that the past simply did some things better. Sure, we have high definition televisions and instantly streaming digital content, but with their arrival we’ve lost video stores. And okay, sure, we have video game systems light-years ahead of our old Nintendo, but we’ve also lost most of the arcades. My point is this: Progress comes with a price. Things get left behind, and often, they are things we loved.
It’s no wonder that many of us, rather than simply enjoying the holidays, strive to recreate holidays of old. We do this through traditions that often, in and of themselves, help to relive the past, like watching old Halloween TV specials. Notice, as you peruse the store displays in October, how many of these “new” products are simply throwbacks. The General Mills Monster Cereals are a perfect example of taking the old and releasing it to the delight of retro-hounds.
This is not a complaint. The corporations caught on to the trend, and Halloween-lovers benefit. However, this example demonstrates that no matter how advanced our society becomes in some areas (vacuuming robots anyone?), other areas were perfected long ago. One such area is the glory of the Halloween Promotional Item.
Pretend you’re eight years old again. Now, quick, answer without thinking: What’s the best part of Halloween?
Did you say trick or treating? Did you say candy? I know those would have been my answers. And somewhere along the line, the business people behind the largest corporations in the world figured this out too. Their answer was to include free “treats” in products, thereby recreating the magic of Halloween night.
Hardee's had these little suckers in their Kids Meals.
In 1986, McDonalds released their cherished Halloween pails, which continued for many years after, getting makeovers every now and then. While they are certainly not toys, and probably at the time, not very impressive to our young eyes, most of us now realize how amazing these giveaways were.
The Halloween McNugget Buddies came out in 1993. Nothing more than a plastic McNugget with a detachable costume, these are still arguably many people’s favorite Happy Meal giveaway. Luckily, getting Halloween toys in Happy Meals hasn’t changed much over the years, unlike cereal promotions.
While we may still have our beloved monster cereals, what we have lost over the intervening years are the toys that would come in the box. Don’t even mention the interactive digital boxes or cutout castles; it’s just not the same.
If we slide all the way back to the 70s, we’ll find one of the coolest cereal box toys to hit the scene: Freakies figures.
And lest we forget, there was a time ecstatic children could score a Monster in My Pocket in a box of Frosted Flakes!
How about a sweet Monster Cereal bike spinner?
I’d happily give back every single pumpkin spice flavored product on the market today if Kellogg’s brought back the glow in the dark monster heads in their cereal.
Let's not forget all of the great giveaways drugstores and supermarkets would do during Halloween as well. I remember going into a Genovese Drug Store in Brooklyn and receiving a free treat with every purchase over five dollars. Some stores would even put out special branded promo items to give away.
My greatest wish for our retro resurgence is that corporations start packaging promo items with their products once again, and what better time to start than Halloween? With the next iteration of the Monster Cereals, there should be glow in the dark figures packed inside.
No matter how much progress we
achieve as time marches forward, for me, the Halloween season will always
benefit when we recognize and relive the wonder of the past.
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mscreepyx Posted on Nov 30, 2015 at 06:31 PM
I just recently found some of those Halloween McNugget Buddies at a yard sale! I was so happy about it, haha. Great article!
onipar Posted on Oct 19, 2015 at 12:13 PM
Nope, no more prizes in cereal as far as I know. :-(
jkatz Posted on Oct 16, 2015 at 08:40 PM
Do they even put physical prizes in cereal anymore? It's like they've all been replaced with movie tickets and access codes to game sites and such.
Probably considered a choking hazard or something.
Those pails are a classic, almost iconic. McDonald's should bring them back.
onipar Posted on Oct 15, 2015 at 11:31 PM
I actually didn't have any of that stuff as a kid. I didn't get to go to fast food places very often. But I made up for it as an adult! :-p
NLogan Posted on Oct 15, 2015 at 09:29 PM
I had the Hardee's ghost and it is still in a box of junk at my mom's house. I had several of the monster cereal prizes as a kid. We did have a few Mc Donald's pails Mc Boo, Mc Goblin, and Mc Punk'n around 1986 or so.
onipar Posted on Oct 15, 2015 at 08:06 PM
Thanks! Were the McRobots the ones that transformed? I used to love those. I really just want toys in cereal boxes again. :-p
kidcoffee Posted on Oct 15, 2015 at 06:13 PM
As a kid I hated those cursed McDonalds trick or treat buckets as I felt I was gypped an actual toy, but looking back now those were super cool. In fact I still have my original collection somewhere in my house gathering dust. I really should give them a proper display. As for the McNugget monsters, those I loved. Probably my second favorite McDonald's toy of all time with the first being the McRobots. Both of which have caused me a lot of wasted time on Ebay trying to buy back a piece of my childhood. Great article. It brought back a lot of fantastic memories.
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