Michael Jordan first appeared on a Wheaties box in 1988. The famous cereal company has a long history of featuring athletes on its cereal boxes, starting with baseball legend Lou Gehrig in 1934. Jordan’s first box was to celebrate his being named the MVP of the 1987-88 NBA season.
This box was titled “Be Like Mike” and featured a slam dunking MJ. Throughout his career, Michael Jordan appeared on a total of seven Wheaties boxes, the last of which was in 2002.
Who was on the Wheaties box in 1934?
In 1934 the first Wheaties box to feature a person was of Lou Gehrig, an American professional baseball first baseman who played his entire career for the New York Yankees. Gehrig ended his career with a.
340 batting average, 493 home runs, and a. 632 slugging percentage, making him one of the best baseball players to ever play the game. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1939. In 1939, Gehrig was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a degenerative neurological disease that would eventually take his life in 1941.
His farewell address to the crowd at Yankee Stadium on July 4, 1939, is considered one of the most important speeches in baseball history. As a testament to his contributions to the game, the Wheaties box honoring Gehrig was the first to feature an athlete, establishing a long tradition of honoring some of the greatest athletes in history on the cover of the cereal.
Who was the first basketball player on a Wheaties box?
The first basketball player to be featured on a Wheaties box was Earvin “Magic” Johnson. An iconic figure of the NBA and one of the most dominant players in the history of the sport, Johnson broke inordinate amounts of records and won five NBA Championships with the Los Angeles Lakers.
He also won an Olympic gold medal in the 1992 Olympic Games and was the point guard for the Dream Team.
Johnson was first featured on a Wheaties box in the early 1990s. This recognition by the cereal manufacturer cemented Magic Johnson as a pop culture icon of the sport. The box featured Johnson in his famous Lakers purple and gold uniform, with a proud display of his upper body and an intense gaze.
Magic Johnson was the perfect candidate for the “Breakfast of Champions” and it started a trend of featuring various athletes on Wheaties boxes thereafter. To this day, Magic Johnson remains one of the most recognizable faces on any Wheaties box.
Has Lebron ever been on a Wheaties box?
Yes, LeBron James has been on a Wheaties box. In 2003, Wheaties collaborated with LeBron and his mother Gloria James to create a commemorative box that featured an image of LeBron on the front. The box also included an inspirational letter from Gloria on the back encouraging athletes to set goals, work hard, and dream big.
The commemorative box was sold alongside the standard Wheaties box in stores all over the country, and proceeds from the sales benefited the LeBron James Family Foundation. Since then, LeBron has appeared on several Wheaties boxes to promote accomplishments such as being named NBA MVP, teaming up with teammates Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh to win a championship in Miami, and helping the Cleveland Cavaliers to defeat the Golden State Warriors in the 2016 NBA Finals.
What athletes have been on the Wheaties cereal box?
The Wheaties breakfast cereal has featured many athletes on their iconic cereal boxes over the years. Some of the most recognizable athletes on the Wheaties box include: Michael Jordan; Ryan Lochte; Mia Hamm; Roger Bannister; Mary Lou Retton; Jim Thorpe; Bob Richards; Babe Didrikson Zaharias; Mark Spitz; Jesse Owens; Steve Prefontaine; Jackie Joyner-Kersee; Bruce Jenner; Carl Lewis; Edwin Moses; and Kristi Yamaguchi.
Some non-athletes have been featured on the classic Wheaties box as well, such as Wiffle ball player Wally Amos, musicians Dave Matthews Band, and actor George Eads. For a time, Wheaties also featured a “puzzle series” which included cartoon characters like Scooby-Doo, The Simpsons and Flintstones.
What was Wheaties original name?
Wheaties was originally known as Washburn’s Gold Medal Whole Wheat Flakes when it was launched in 1924. The cereal, which was created by the Washburn Crosby Company in Minneapolis, was inspired by a rejected cake batter mixture.
The company noticed that the mixture had a unique flavor when it was heated and put it into flakes, creating Washburn’s Gold Medal Whole Wheat Flakes. While the cereal had a unique taste, it proved to be a challenge to market and was successfully sold only in Minneapolis at first.
Later, the Washburn Crosby Company was absorbed into General Mills and the cereal was launched nationally in 1926, renamed Wheaties. The name was inspired by the “wheat” of the flaked ingredients, and the slogan, “the Breakfast of Champions” was adopted soon after.
While the cereal has undergone numerous changes over the years, it has remained an iconic American breakfast food.
What year was Larry Bird on the Wheaties box?
Larry Bird was featured on the Wheaties box in 1988. This was the first time an NBA player appeared on the box since Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 1983. Bird had an incredible season in the 1987-1988 season, being named MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and leading the Boston Celtics to the NBA championships.
It was a fitting honor to feature him on the iconic Wheaties box and it is a fondly remembered moment in his NBA career.
What is the oldest cereal?
The oldest cereal is a breakfast food called Granula which was created in 1863 by James Caleb Jackson, an innovator and religiously conservative health-food advocate. Granula was the first breakfast cereal and the predecessor of the more popular Granola.
Granula consisted of graham flour and other whole-grain ingredients that were boiled, dried, and baked into hard, biscuit-like lumps. Jackson instructed people to soak it in milk overnight before consuming it as a breakfast cereal.
This breakfast food was popularized in health food stores in the mid to late 1800s. In the late 1960s, Gurney & Hubbard Company came up with the slightly modified form of Granula, which was named Granola.
Since then, cereal has become such an integral part of breakfast around the world that its meager beginnings have been mostly forgotten.
Why was Wheaties discontinued?
Wheaties was discontinued in 2020 due to a combination of consumer preferences and declining sales. Wheaties was a popular breakfast cereal in the US for many years and was originally introduced by General Mills in 1924.
The cereal contained the slogan “Breakfast of Champions” and it was known for its nutritional value and iconic packaging.
Despite its popularity, Wheaties sales began to decline in the late 1990s and early 2000s. As consumer preferences shifted away from traditional breakfast cereals filled with sugar, Wheaties faced a difficult market to compete in.
Additionally, more nutritionally focused breakfast food became more popular and this further contributed to Wheaties’ declining sales. In 2020, General Mills announced that the cereal would be discontinued to focus the company’s resources on other products that were more popular with consumers.
What is the selling breakfast cereal of all time?
The most successful and best-selling breakfast cereal of all time is Kellogg’s Corn Flakes. Created in 1906 by Dr. John Harvey Kellogg of the Battle Creek Sanitarium, Kellogg’s Corn Flakes quickly rose to become the most popular and recognizable breakfast cereal in the world, a title which it still holds.
Kellogg’s Corn Flakes have been enjoyed by people of all ages across the globe, and have become synonymous with breakfast time. It has remained popular thanks to its crunchy texture and sweet taste, making it one of the most versatile breakfast cereals.
The cereal has also been adapted to suit different cultural tastes by releasing a variety of flavors and versions, including honey nut, chocolaty, and fruity.
Kellogg’s Corn Flakes is not just limited to breakfast, as it has been used in a variety of recipes, such as bread crumbs and coating for fried chicken, adding an extra crunchy texture. While other cereal manufacturers have come and gone, Kellogg’s Corn Flakes has stood the test of time and remains an iconic breakfast food.
What old cereal boxes are worth the money?
Certain old cereal boxes can be highly sought after and quite valuable. The most popular and valuable examples usually come from old-time favorites like Kellogg’s and Post Cereals. From Kellogg’s, some of the most popular and valuable cereal boxes include early examples from Rice Krispies, Corn Flakes and Frosted Flakes.
From Post, boxes from Grape Nuts, Fruity Pebbles, Sugar Smacks and Grape-Nut Flakes are all highly sought after. Also, boxes from the now-defunct cereal brands like Sugar Crisp and Waffle Crisp can also bring a large return if in excellent condition.
Cereal boxes featuring rare licenses like Muppets, Star Wars and Disney are also seeing a resurgence in high value. If you are unsure if a box is valuable, research the cereal name, vintage, and condition online to get an estimate of the value.