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| Peppy as he looked back in the late 1950s when he was introduced |
That's because even though he's currently not on the package, he's still around. Unfortunately, like many advertising mascots that have been around a long time, he's been regressed to a younger, "hipper" version.
A quick stroll around the internet reveals that this new Peppy can found roosting all over the place.
Here he is on some window signage.
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| Courtesy homehealthandspirit.com |
A costumed Peppy also makes personal appearances for Wise Snacks, wearing his "cool" baseball cap on backwards. (At least the cap covers up the un-owl-like mohawk.)
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| Courtesy momeefriendsli.com |
Peppy also shows up on some web ads.
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| Courtesy nysnacks.com |
Peppy was even made into a special nodder (or bobble-head if you prefer) that was a tie-in with a promotion for Major League Baseball's Mets. It's quite nice, actually.
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| Courtesy Worthpoint.com |
Let's hope that when Wise Snacks celebrates its 100th Anniversary in 2021, the real Peppy is restored to his rightful place on the potato chip bag.
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Interestingly, Peppy was briefly replaced in the mid-80s with a different, more generic, owl. This feathery, bespectacled impostor was supposed to be Peppy, but we all knew better.
This version of Peppy was even made into a doll. I wouldn't be surprised if the owl doll came first, and the logo was based on it.
Happily, the original Peppy was bag on the bags by the 1990s.
Ah, the good old days – when pop came in glass returnable bottles. And since we didn't guzzle pop back then, it was necessary to put a cap on the bottle to keep it nice and fizzy for next time. Fortunately, Wise issued these Peppy promotional caps to remind you to eat some thirst-provoking salty chips!
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Hey, I just remembered I had these: vintage Wise Potato Chip plastic soda bottle caps, featuring Peppy!
Who didn't guzzle pop back then?😉
ReplyDeleteHi Alan,
ReplyDeleteWe didn’t guzzle it in our house when I was a kid. We only had pop on weekends, usually a glass of Pepsi with our Yala’s pizza on Friday night and maybe a Pepsi or root beer float on Saturday night.
My great uncle was the artist that drew the original Wise Owl. Unfortunately a Google search seems to have him lost in history. His last name was Hutchinson. He was my Grandfathers brother. I would like very much to give him the recognition he deserves. If anyone can help me with this. Please email me at FoxyFunko777@gmail.com Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI have a cardboard owl with a cowboy hat c.1940, a store ad display of what looks like Peppy. But I can’t find anything on the net that resembles him.
ReplyDeleteWhy are other websites stating Wise potato chips were started in Europe in the 2010s when I used to purchase them in the early 2960s.
ReplyDelete