Remember when what you got out of cereal boxes seemed important. A Captain Kid treasure map was a real find. That fueled my imagination for a long time. I made a sort of Captain's log in scrawled handwriting which I thought made it look authentic. My Dad asked me why I did that because in reality people often had very beautiful hand writing. I don't know if I agreed but, of course, he was right. It was even taught in school. What a loss that is.
I collected hockey cards and also hockey coins which came from boxes of Jello powder. Each team fit on a plastic shield. We ate so much jello in those days. Eventually I only needed one coin to complete the set and a friend had it. My brother, George, went out and bought it from him for something like $5 so he wouldn't have to eat any more jello.
I just had to look up what Google has on the subject.
During the 60s Sugar Crisp offered a full fidelity record from The Archies.
In Honeycombs you could score a ring with a piece of 24 carat genuine gold.
Sugar Pops fought back with an authentic Colt six-shooter.
Sugar Smacks drew you in with an Underwater USS NAUTILUS Atomic Submarine model.
Kellogg’s, not to be outdone came up with a Superman Krypton Hydro Jet ROCKET with launcher.
In another Kellogg’s box was a US Navy Frogman, free.
And in yet another - for mailing in 25 cents you could become a Space Cadet and form a Space Cadet Squadron. You would get diplomas, certificates, wallet ID cards, and badges.
Looks like Kellogg’s led the pack. They probably threw in more sugar too to keep you hooked.
There was always some little trinket to help sell cereal and I’m sure I used to choose the cereal based on what was inside. It's probably the same today. I'll have to go down the cereal aisle sometime and see what progress has been made.