The Power of Advertising

Chilly October mornings require a hot breakfast cereal.

Back in the day, three cereals divided the market. There was oatmeal, granular, sticky, and reminiscent of those oatmeal baths that we kids had to take when poison ivy attacked. Not my favorite. I had nightmares about drowning in that gelatinous mass. There was shredded wheat, not the glazed, bite size chunks that you see today, but cakes of the stuff. Mom would pour water or hot milk over the shredded wheat to soften it up, but it would be either gloppy like paste or still hard and scratchy when swallowed. Not a taste treat. Finally, there was Cream of Wheat, smooth, consistent, and great with cinnamon or raisins.

You would think that, of the three, Cream of Wheat would be the big seller nowadays. Yet, McDonald's features oatmeal on its breakfast menu. I blame it all on Wilfred Brimley. When a cranky old guy tells you that oatmeal is good for your heart, you believe him. "I'll have oatmeal instead of Cream of Wheat this morning, Alice. I know it tastes like crap and I'm never sure whether to chew it before I swallow, but it kept old Wilfred going all these years."

That is the power of advertising. We pass up Cream of Wheat that tastes better and is probably just as nutritious for oatmeal because an old coot with a white mustache told us so.

Stand up for your rights, America! Eat Cream of Wheat. As an old coot with a white mustache (and a goatee to boot), I volunteer for the advertising campaign.