Cheeri O'Leary
This cartoon character, a cheery young girl, was seen in 1942–1943 magazine advertising and Sunday newspaper's comics sections. These ads were multi-panel cartoons where Cheeri O'Leary interacted with entertainers of the day, including Charlotte Greenwood, Barbara Stanwyck, Dick Powell, Joan Blondell, Johnny Mack Brown,[12] Betty Hutton,[13] and Claudette Colbert.[14] The character disappeared from ads in 1944, but reappeared in 1946 in ads that mostly featured Joe.[15]
Joe
Beginning in 1944, a cartoon boy, simply named "Joe" appeared in ads placed in Sunday newspaper comics sections.[16]
The Cheerios Kid
Beginning in the mid-1950s and continuing through the early 1960s, "The Cheerios Kid" was a mainstay in Cheerios commercials. The Kid, after eating Cheerios, quickly dealt with whatever problem presented in the commercial, using oat-produced "Big-G, little-o" "Go-power." By the late 1960s, there was a jingle called "Get Yourself Go" (written by Neil Diamond), which played as the two used power to solve the problem. The character was revived briefly in the late 1980s in similar commercials. In 2012, The Cheerios Kid and his sidekick Sue were revived in an internet video that showed how Cheerios "can lower cholesterol."[17][18] Video clips of "the Kid" and Sue are part of a montage included in a 2014 TV commercial, along with clips of the Honey Nut Cheerios bee's early commercials.
Peanuts
In 1984 and 1985, characters from the comic strip Peanuts were featured in many Cheerios commercials. In the commercials, the characters become tired in the middle of performing an activity (e.g. taking a dance lesson, or playing tennis), but then another character tells them that they did not have a healthy Cheerios breakfast. Then, at the end of the commercial, the character would be energized, followed by children singing "You're on your toes with Cheerios!"
Spoonfuls of Stories
The Spoonfuls of Stories program, begun in 2002, is sponsored by Cheerios and a 50/50 joint venture of General Mills and Simon & Schuster. Mini-sized versions of Simon & Schuster children's books are published within the program when the book drive occurs.[19][20] The program also includes a New Author contest; winners' books are published in miniature inside boxes of Cheerios.[21][22]
Shawn Johnson
In 2009, Olympic gold medalist and World Champion gymnast Shawn Johnson became the first athlete to have her photo featured on the front of the Cheerios box. The limited edition was distributed in the Midwestern region of the United States by the Hy-Vee grocery store chain.[23][24]
Just Checking
In 2013, a Cheerios commercial aired, titled "Just Checking," showcasing an interracial family in which a daughter asks her mother (white) if Cheerios is good for the heart, as her father (black) mentioned. The mother says the cereal is suitable according to the box which states that whole grain oats lower cholesterol. The next scene features the father waking up as a pile of Cheerios spills down his chest, which the daughter placed there having taken her father's words literally. The commercial received unintentional notoriety due to intense backlash. This was so extreme that General Mills disabled further comments on the video.[25]
In 2014, General Mills released a Super Bowl ad titled "Gracie," featuring the same family: in the commercial, the father, using Cheerios to illustrate his meaning, tells the daughter that a new baby is coming, that her mother is pregnant, and the daughter accepts this—as long as they also get a puppy—and the father agrees, while the mother looks a little surprised.
Vortexx
To promote the premiere of the Vortexx Saturday morning block on The CW Television Network in August 2012, special boxes of Cheerios were branded as "Vortexx O's," complete with the schedule on the back, and the wordmark plastered on one of the Vortexx promotional backgrounds. Toys were also included in the box, featuring John Cena, Iron Man, and the Pink Power Ranger.
Good Goes Around
In 2017, Latrell James was hired to sing a song for a new Cheerios commercial, with the refrain "Good goes around and around and around."[26]
Murray the Brave
In May 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, it partnered with Food Banks Canada to do a tribute to food bank workers.[27]
Return of "Cheerioats" for 80th Anniversary
Beginning in July 2021, a limited re-release of Cheerios cereal was made across North American markets by reusing the original-brand name "Cheerioats" instead of "Cheerios." Cheerioats used the same ingredients as modern-day Cheerios but were repackaged in a throwback campaign to celebrate the 80th anniversary of Cheerios cereals being sold (1941–2021).[28]
