Breakfast with a Great Man

They’re Gr-r-reat 

Tony the Tiger is an important symbol for me. He has appeared on packaging of Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes for years. Since his debut in 1951, the character has spanned several generations and become a breakfast cereal icon. As it happens Frosted Flakes were a favorite breatkfast choice of my father. He didn’t eat them every day, but he did eat them often enough to leave an impression on me. The voice of Tony told us emphatically and repeatedly in TV commercials that the cereal was Gr-r-reat. I was growing up in a world of possibilities and Tony was a source of positive reinforcement. My Dad prepared his breakfast cereal with slices of banana and whole milk. Fortified with Kellogg’s Sugar Frosted Flakes and information gleaned from the Today Show on NBC and the daily newspaper (The Cleveland Plain Dealer), he looked forward to each day with incredible enthusiasm. It was a simpler time to be sure. TV now offers more than a handful of choices. The daily newspaper has a lot of competition from the internet. Tony is now more politically correct and the folks at Kellogg’s downplay the sugar content. But it is still indelible in my mind how you can start each and every day feeling Gr-r-reat! Never mind the product. I really felt the confidence and the energy. It had nothing to do with the cereal and everything to do with the circumstances. I was lucky. My Dad was (and still is) every bit a Gr-r-reat man. There is an important message here. I hope you will also be inspired to make each and every day Gr-r-reat! Gr-r-reat! Grrr-r-reat! 

Incidentally my Dad started his business, Morgan Studio, in 1951. You can ask any of his former clients, the work was Gr-r-reat because he approached his life and work with such vigor.