Tony the Tiger is the advertising cartoon mascot for Kellogg's Frosted
Flakes breakfast cereal, appearing on its packaging and advertising. More
recently, Tony has also become the mascot for Tony's Cinnamon Krunchers and
Tiger Power. Since his debut in 1951, the character has spanned several
generations and become a breakfast cereal icon.
History In 1951, Eugene Kolkey, an accomplished
graphic artist and Art Director for Leo Burnett, sketched a character for a
contest to become the official mascot of a Kellogg's brand-new breakfast cereal.
Kolkey designed a tiger named Tony and selected Martin Provensen for the
finished artwork. Tony competed against three other potential mascots for the
public's affection: Katy the Kangaroo, Elmo the Elephant, and Newt the Gnu.
Within the year, the other mascots were dropped, and Tony was given a son, Tony
Jr. Tony the Tiger would eventually become a cereal icon. The final Tony the
Tiger design came from a group of former Disney animators known as Quartet Films,
which also designed The Jolly Green Giant, Snap Crackle Pop, the Hamms Beer
Bear, and the Baltimore Orioles mascot to name a few. Stan Walsh, Art Babbitt,
Arnold Gillesspie, and Michael Lah were the artists/filmmakers that formed the
Quartet Films of Hollywood. A recognizable and distinct voice was
needed for the Tony the Tiger character. Initially, he was voiced by Dallas
McKennon, but shortly after the initial Sugar Frosted Flakes advertisements
aired, McKennon was replaced by Thurl Ravenscroft, who spent the next five
decades providing the characteristic deep bass voice associated with the
character, notably the familiar "They're Grrrrreat!" catchphrase. John E.
Matthews came up with this phrase while working as copywriter for Leo Burnett.
Ravenscroft spoke to an interviewer of injecting his personality into Tony: "I
made Tony a person. For me, Tony was real. I made him become a human being
and that affected the animation and everything."
In 1958, Tony appeared on Kellogg cereal boxes with Hanna-Barbera characters such
as Huckleberry Hound and Snagglepuss. Tony began to be humanized in the 1970s;
he was given an Italian-American nationality and consumers were briefly
introduced to more of Tony's family including Mama Tony, Mrs. Tony, and a
daughter, Antoinette. Tony was a popular figure among the young Italian-American
population and it showed in 1974, where he was deemed "Tiger of the Year" in an
advertising theme taken from the Chinese Lunar Calendar. The advertising theme
declared, "This is the Year of the Tiger and Tony is the Tiger of the Year."
Later that year, Tony graced the covers of Italian GQ and Panorama. In addition
to Tony's success, during this decade, son Tony Jr. was even given his own
short-lived cereal in 1975, Frosted Rice. Provensen's original art design
for the tiger has changed significantly over the years, as Tony the whimsical,
cereal-box-sized tiger with a teardrop-shaped head was replaced by his
fully-grown son Jr., who is now a sleek, muscular sports enthusiast—he was a
coach for the Monster Wrestlers in My Pocket and a referee for the Monster
Sports Stars in My Pocket. Tony the Tiger was never limited to American
cereal boxes, appearing on Kellogg's European brand cereal boxes.
Tony frequently appears in American commercials as an animated character in
a live-action world, frequently with his drawn image rotoscoped over a live
character, such as an extreme sports athlete, allowing Tony to not just
appear in live action, but interact as well.
The longtime voice of Tony, Thurl Ravenscroft, died in 2005. In North
America, he was replaced from 2006 onwards by announcer Lee Marshall, who
maintained the role until his death from cancer in 2014. However, advertisements
for Frosties in the United Kingdom are revoiced locally; the British Tony is
voiced by UK-based Californian voiceover, Tom Clarke-Hill. For some
time in the United Kingdom, the rock song "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor was
used in conjunction with Tony's viewings. In Canada, Tony is voiced by
animation, commercial, and promo voice artist Tony Daniels.
See also Frosted Flakes
List of breakfast cereal advertising characters
List of fictional cats References
^ obituary 2002, Chicago Tribune ^ http:blog.retroplanet.com
utto-su-stan-walsh-di-alberto-becattini/ ^ "He’s Grrrrreat! The Thurl Ravenscroft
Interview," Hogan's Alley #13, 2006 ^ "Thurl Ravenscroft, Voice of Tony the
Tiger, Dies at 91". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-03-23.
External links Kellogg's Company Timeline