QUISP VS QUAKE (1965-1973)

Previously, Balladeer’s Blog examined the Big Five Monster Cereals (Count Chocula, Frankenberry, Boo Berry, Fruit Brute and Yummy Mummy), now I’m taking a look at the forgotten Cereal War between two Quaker Oats brands – Quisp and Quake.

As a sign of the times, Quaker Oats had developed two new types of breakfast cereals but rather than name the pair themselves, they went to advertising agencies and Jay Ward Productions, creators of Cap’n Crunch, to come up with two advertising mascots for the new cereals.

Ward, famous for Bullwinkle and Rocky plus other characters, quasi-cannibalized his own Moon Men figures from his most famous series. The result was Quisp, a zany alien, as the name and mascot for one of the new cereals. For the other cereal, Ward came up with Quake, a muscular miner in a hardhat.

In a gimmick that the General Mills Monster Cereals mentioned above would later imitate, the animated Quisp and Quake would be rivals, each one insisting that their cereal was clearly the superior product. That tongue-in-cheek rivalry was even more successful than the Quaker Oats people had hoped.

The series of cartoon Quisp vs Quake commercials so appealed to their target audience of children that a true Battle of the Boxes broke out in grocery stores across the nation. Kids, as kids will do, badgered their parents to get the cereal represented by their preferred mascot even though there really wasn’t all that much difference between Quisp and Quake cereal.

Merchandising also figured in, as toy figures and mini-posters of the two mascots proved popular. 

THE EARLIEST CARTOONS: 1965

BEST – Yes, the title of this ad was simply Best. Viewers and potential customers were introduced to Quisp, the hyperactive alien with a propeller on his head and a Scrooch Gun in his holster; and to Quake, the mighty, stentorian miner who always emerged from the ground preceded by a mild earthquake.

Quisp flew through outer space in his cereal bowl spaceship, boasting that his was the favorite cereal from Saturn to Alpha Centauri. Quake, in turn, dove underground to show his cereal factory at the center of the Earth and called his product the greatest from INNER space. 

The cartoon “mediator” encouraged the kids at home to choose which cereal was really better, and amid mild slapstick tussling between Quisp and Quake the pattern for the rivalry was set.

THE DAM HAS BUSTED – The continuing saga of Quisp, “the Quazy energy cereal” and Quake, “the cereal with the power of an earthquake.” While flying along, Quisp sees that a dam has busted and among the victims will be Grandma Peachy and her Wildflower Preserve.

We get the feel of a 1-minute long Bullwinkle and Rocky episode as the alien from Planet Q warns Quake about the dam burst. Quake eats some of his own cereal, gaining the strength to get a replacement dam in front of Grandma Peachy’s place before the flood waters can hit.

THE GIANT SAW – The announcer introduced this ad like an old-time serial but called it Your Breakfast Serial. Our heroine Little Lucy is about to be fed to a buzz saw in typical serial fashion. She cries out for help and is heard by Quisp and Quake.

They arrive at the same time and fight over which of their cereals had better empowered them to save Lucy. For a mock cliffhanger they tell Lucy to choose who she wants to save her as the narrator says the next (non-existent) chapter will be titled The Great Divide.

METEOR MITES – At his factory in outer space, Quisp must save his fleet of spaceships from the Meteor Mites, living meteors that are bombarding his facilities. Eating Quisp cereal empowers him to defeat the Meteor Mites.

A new wrinkle was added this time around in that, rather than end in a draw, this one ended with Quisp the clear victor. He even prevented Quake from plugging his cereal at the end. Don’t worry, though – Quake would get his victories as the rivalry continued.  

The 1966 commercials began with a special guest. Bewitched star Elizabeth Montgomery, in live action, interrupted the arguing between Quisp and Quake over their respective cereals. She hyped the alleged health benefits of both brands, then let the cartoon characters resume their bickering.

This time, though, the pair argued over which one of them loved Elizabeth Montgomery more.

*** Soon, I’ll review some more of the several dozen commercials for Quake and Quisp, including the eventual new look for the former, plus the addition of a Quangaroo cereal to the mix.