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Got milk? You're going to need it! Join us as we count down our picks for the most nostalgic cereals that have been taken off the market. Our countdown includes Pop-Tarts Crunch, Cap'n Crunch's Oops! Choco Donuts, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Cereal, Nintendo Cereal System, and more! Which discontinued cereal has you longing for one more spoonful? Let us know!
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00:00U.E.T. Cereal, a glowing part of this good breakfast.
00:05Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most nostalgic cereals
00:10that have been taken off the market.
00:11We're including brands that got a second life just to vanish from store shelves again.
00:16We're leaving off seasonal brands like Count Chocula, however.
00:19Part of your complete breakfast, Batman Cereal.
00:25Number 20, Nerd Cereal.
00:27We guess some cereals are about as healthy as candy,
00:30so starting the day with a bowl of Nerds wasn't a huge stretch.
00:33Three years after Nerds was launched as a candy in 1982,
00:36the brand was given the cereal treatment.
00:39Following the candy's example,
00:40a box of Nerds cereal was split down the middle into two flavors.
00:44I can't design!
00:45New Nerd cereal is the fruity good part of your complete breakfast.
00:48Which side are you gonna eat first?
00:50Which side are you gonna eat first?
00:53Also available in grape and strawberry!
00:55Some boxes contained orange and cherry Nerds,
00:58while others combined strawberry and grape.
01:00If you wanted a little bit of multiple flavors,
01:02you could order a special bowl divided in two.
01:05Reportedly, some kids preferred eating the cereal straight from the box,
01:09finding it tasted soggy with milk.
01:11Maybe that's why Nerds cereal only lasted a year,
01:13but the concept still made for a fun breakfast.
01:16And you get two flavors in a box.
01:18Quite handy if you have a split personality.
01:20Number 19.
01:22Crunchy Stars
01:22We think he was trying to say crunchy stars,
01:26but much of what the Swedish chef says gets lost in translation.
01:29Whether or not you can make out what he's saying,
01:31the cinnamon sensation of Crunchy Stars spoke a universal language,
01:35one that all of our taste buds could understand.
01:37Released from the Muppet Test Kitchen in 1988,
01:40the cereal's time on the market flew by faster than a shooting star.
01:43It's the Swedish chef's super silly, fast and funny,
01:47mix-em-up, match-em-up crazy recipes game
01:49in specially marked boxes of Crunchy Stars cereal from Post.
01:53After its initial year-long run,
01:56Crunchy Stars returned in 1992.
01:58Once more, though, it wasn't long for this world.
02:01Beyond the cereal itself,
02:03Crunchy Stars is remembered for a memory card game that came in boxes.
02:07Unfortunately, that's all Crunchy Stars is now,
02:09a memory that we can still taste.
02:11I mean, crunchy and deliciously scrumptious.
02:14Finally!
02:15Great-tasting Crunchy Stars cereal,
02:17part of this nutritious breakfast from Post.
02:19My compliments to the chef!
02:21Number 18.
02:22Crispy Critters
02:23Resembling animal crackers,
02:25Crispy Critters was unleashed in the early 60s.
02:28The mascot behind this cereal was Linus the Lionhearted,
02:31who got his own Saturday morning cartoon around the same time.
02:34What is this?
02:38Well, here's a clue.
02:40We are in the middle of an onion patch.
02:43Although Linus was the star,
02:45one of the show's supporting players had a longer shelf life.
02:48Recognize this bear?
02:50That's right, it's Sugar Bear of Golden Crisp fame.
02:53Whereas Golden Crisp, or Sugar Crisp,
02:55is still keeping Sugar Bear busy robbing grannies,
02:58Linus was retired along with Crispy Critters.
03:00There was an attempt to revive the cereal in 1987,
03:03albeit without Linus.
03:05Instead, the mascot was a puppet named Crispy,
03:08who was a, um, giraffe-slash-moose-slash-Jimmy Durante hybrid?
03:13Whatever he was, the revival was short-lived,
03:16putting the animals back in their cages.
03:18The low-sugar cereal with lots of crutch!
03:21Yes, it's indubitably!
03:23Indubitably!
03:24Indubitably!
03:26Indubitably!
03:26Indubitably!
03:27Indubitably!
03:31You know what pairs even better with cereal
03:33than Saturday morning cartoons?
03:35Ms. Mojo's 24-7 live stream.
03:37Scan the QR code on screen to join us live
03:39for non-stop nostalgic fun.
03:41I want one of this, and one of this, and one of this,
03:43and one of this.
03:44I'd want one of everything in the store.
03:47And of course I couldn't have it.
03:48Nobody can have everything.
03:50Number 17.
03:52Kaboom!
03:52Before Stephen King forever cemented clowns
03:55as nightmare fuel, they were used to market products
03:58geared towards kids.
03:59One such example was the mascot for Kaboom cereal.
04:02While it had marshmallows that matched the circus theme,
04:05the cereal possessed some nutritional value,
04:07highlighting the amount of vitamins and iron in every box.
04:10Debuting in the late 60s,
04:12Kaboom! became a cereal staple of the 70s and 80s.
04:15But I guess the memory is gone forever,
04:17like Kaboom cereal.
04:19Kaboom!'s popularity dwindled over the following decades,
04:22perhaps not coincidentally coinciding with Pennywise's creation.
04:26Nevertheless, Kaboom! managed to stick around until 2010,
04:30capping off a respectable run.
04:32We wouldn't accept a paper boat from a sewer clown,
04:35but if it was a box of Kaboom,
04:37well, that's a risk worth taking.
04:39Kaboom! Sugar sweet fruit flavor!
04:41It's a ball!
04:44Kaboom!
04:44Number 16.
04:46Rocky Road Cereal
04:47A lot of cereals already incorporate chocolate,
04:50marshmallows, and even nuts.
04:51Basing one around Rocky Road seems like a no-brainer.
04:54Rather than lean into the ice cream angle,
04:56the marketing emphasized the rock in Rocky Road.
04:59The mascots were a diverse trio of rockers.
05:02Choco the chocolate corn puff,
05:04Van the vanilla corn puff,
05:05and Marsha the chocolate-covered marshmallow.
05:08New Rocky Road cereal!
05:09Little marshmallows with a chocolatey, nutty coating
05:11mixed with vanilla and chocolatey puffs.
05:13Part of this complete breakfast.
05:15Despite the clever advertising,
05:17the cereal also attracted some bad press in 1986
05:20when a man from Charleroi, Pennsylvania
05:22cut his tongue on a piece of glass after pouring a bowl.
05:25It's unclear how the glass got there
05:28or if the incident impacted sales.
05:30Either way, Rocky Road Cereal was gone by the 90s.
05:33Its history might have been rocky,
05:35but the taste straight up rocked.
05:36That's like saying there's only one flavor
05:39of ice cream for you.
05:40Let me tell you something, Ross.
05:42There's lots of flavors out there.
05:44There's Rocky Road.
05:46Number 15.
05:46Sprinkle Spangles
05:47Aladdin was among the most popular films
05:50of the early 90s.
05:52It makes sense why General Mills thought
05:53a genie mascot might work some magic
05:55on this sugary cereal.
05:56Robin Williams was probably out of their price range,
05:59but they did book Dom DeLuise as a purple genie,
06:02whose abilities are kind of limited.
06:03Mmm, I just wish I had a bigger bowl.
06:06Hey, you wish it, I miss it.
06:09New Sprinkle Spangles Cereal.
06:11It's every kid's wish come true.
06:13Apparently, he could only grant your wish
06:15if it was for more cereal
06:17or more Sprinkles on said cereal.
06:19Thankfully, that is precisely what the kids
06:21in the commercials asked for.
06:22It's all we needed, too.
06:24Sprinkle Spangles was a corned, puffed,
06:27star-shaped cereal that was covered in rainbow sprinkles.
06:30It was so delicious.
06:32And in fact, they called it a kid's dream come true.
06:36The genie wasn't out of his lamp for long
06:38as Sprinkle Spangles quickly poofed out of existence.
06:41If we had three wishes, and they had to be cereal-related,
06:44one would definitely be for more Sprinkle Spangles.
06:53Number 14.
06:55Pac-Man Cereal.
06:56At the peak of his popularity,
06:58Pac-Man was everywhere,
06:59from surreal Christmas specials to the cereal aisle.
07:02Already shaped like a corn puff,
07:04Pac-Man lent himself well to cereal.
07:06Throw in some marshmallow ghosts,
07:07and it's like you're eating the arcade game.
07:10Minus the fruit, ironically.
07:11The taste was every bit as memorable as the commercials,
07:14one of which featured a young Christian Bale.
07:26Everyone was doing the Pac-Man for a period in the 80s.
07:30While Pac-Man has endured as a gaming icon,
07:33his cereal remains trapped in the decade that he helped define.
07:36The closest we've gotten to a revival
07:38is a Funko-produced Pac-Man cereal sold at GameStop.
07:41Even that was radically different from the OG,
07:44replacing the marshmallows with a lemony flavor.
07:46Packed with marshmallows and corn puffs,
07:48Pac-Man cereal's part of a good breakfast.
07:53Number 13.
07:54Smurf Berry Crunch and Smurf Magic Berries.
07:57As we see it,
07:58there are two types of people in this world.
08:00Those who are nostalgic for Smurf Berry Crunch,
08:02and those who prefer Smurf Magic Berries.
08:04Whichever you are,
08:06we'd all rather see one of these cereals revived
08:08than watch another Smurf movie.
08:20Smurf Berry Crunch came first in 1983,
08:23standing out with red and purple colors.
08:25Kind of a missed opportunity
08:26that they didn't work the color blue in there.
08:28Around 1987,
08:30Smurf Berry Crunch would be phased out for a second cereal,
08:33Smurf Magic Berries added Marshmallow Stars to the fruity mix,
08:36although its run was even shorter.
08:38We speak for every 80s kid when we ask,
08:41what the Smurf were they thinking
08:42when they discontinued both of these cereals?
08:45Eating a Smurf Berry Crunch is even Smurfier than making it.
08:48A berry Smurfy part of this nutritious breakfast.
08:51Number 12.
08:52Urkel O's.
08:53The 90s ushered in the Urkel Invasion.
08:56The character's popularity couldn't be contained to family matters.
08:58It extended to crossovers, merchandising,
09:01and of course, a breakfast cereal.
09:04No, this wasn't just a throwaway joke on The Simpsons.
09:07Urkel O's.
09:07Delicious, but forbidden.
09:09It was an actual store-bought product,
09:11complete with a catchy jingle that still lives in our heads rent-free.
09:15Resembling Fruit Loops with strawberry and banana flavors,
09:18Steve Urkel promoted the cereal as the invention
09:20that would finally win over Laura.
09:21It might not have been the gateway to Laura's heart,
09:24but for anyone who saw the ads,
09:26Urkel O's will always be a core,
09:28was that real memory.
09:30When they took Urkel O's off the market,
09:32it was the ultimate,
09:33did I do that, moment.
09:35Something that'll make you love me.
09:37I've got a great new cereal.
09:39Did I do that?
09:41Number 11.
09:42Bill and Ted's Excellent Cereal.
09:44Wild Stallions rule.
09:46Promising a most awesome breakfast adventure,
09:49this concoction of cinnamon oat squares with marshmallow notes
09:51was inspired by the most triumphant Bill and Ted movies
09:54of the late 80s and early 90s,
09:56as well as serving as a promotional tie-in
09:58to the animated TV spinoff.
10:00With the small screen cartoon opening up the audience
10:02to a younger demographic,
10:04it seemed Ralston Purina believed it would be
10:06a most non-heinous idea
10:08to introduce this resplendent offering to the breakfast market.
10:11We've got a most excellent way to start your day.
10:13Or night.
10:14Bill and Ted's Excellent Cereal.
10:16Despite being on store shelves for a limited time
10:19and being fortified with 12 essential vitamins and minerals,
10:22Bill and Ted's Excellent Cereal also gave away
10:24multiple free items throughout its run,
10:26such as hysterical postcards
10:28and dial-a-dude phone number organizers.
10:31Whoa.
10:32It's really embarrassing to say, you know,
10:33it's like merchandising.
10:34I don't actually wear the Bill and Ted pajamas,
10:36but I love the cereal.
10:37I really do.
10:38It's good.
10:39I don't know what to say.
10:40I'm sure it'll kill you in five years,
10:41but it's really good.
10:42Number 10.
10:43Nintendo Cereal System.
10:44While true to the Nintendo brand,
10:46the clunky name may have played a role in its demise.
10:49What the Nintendo Cereal System lacked in catchy naming,
10:52it more than made up for in pretty much every aspect
10:55of its design, concept, and branding.
10:57The box was designed to look like oversized NES game packaging
11:01and came with stickers,
11:03Nintendo Power Cards,
11:04and the chance to win a Power Pad NES accessory.
11:07Most impressively,
11:08the NCS actually delivered two cereals in one box,
11:12each based on one of their two flagship games,
11:14Super Mario Brothers, and Zelda.
11:16Powering up in 1986,
11:19the NCS used its last life in 1989.
11:22Number 9.
11:23Teddy Graham's Breakfast Bears.
11:25Eating cookies for breakfast.
11:26It was basically a childhood dream come true.
11:30And honestly,
11:31apart from the fact that they'd been labeled
11:32a breakfast cereal rather than snack crackers as kids,
11:35we really couldn't tell much of a difference
11:36between these and their cookie-like counterparts.
11:39Appearing on shelves just two years
11:40after the snack crackers,
11:41this line of cereal was proof that Nabisco's Teddy Grahams
11:44were a force to be reckoned with in the grocery store.
11:47This wickedly delicious cereal,
11:49which came in honey, chocolate, and cinnamon varieties,
11:51wasn't meant to last.
11:53After eight years on the market,
11:54it was discontinued in 1998.
11:57Number 8.
11:58Mr. T Cereal.
12:06We pity the fool who doesn't get to eat this cereal anymore,
12:09which is all of us.
12:10There is no denying it.
12:12Mr. T knows how to sell his image.
12:14He took elements from his roles in Rocky 3 and The A-Team
12:18and blended them into a distinct and enduring off-screen persona.
12:22Works for me, man.
12:23One that he's been successfully marketing for decades.
12:26From Mr. T's Flavor Wave Turbo Oven to the Chia Mr. T,
12:30the man born Lawrence Terode has sold many a product.
12:33But his cereal is one we all miss.
12:36This bowl full of miniature teas
12:38was pretty much Cap'n Crunch reshaped,
12:39but something about that Mr. T box made it taste so much better.
12:44I pity the boy fool who don't eat my cereal.
12:47Number 7.
12:48Dino Pebbles.
12:49The Flintstones have had a long and successful run in the cereal industry.
12:54Fruity Pebbles have been selling since 1971.
12:57Same for Cocoa Pebbles.
12:59Various spin-off flavors of the week have come and gone over the years,
13:02like Bedrock Blizzard and Cine Crunch Pebbles.
13:04But Dino Pebbles?
13:05That's the one offering that we really wish we could get back.
13:17Maybe there's no room for three flagship Flintstones cereals in the post-cereals roster.
13:22Or perhaps dinosaurs are simply always the first to go.
13:25All we know is we liked seeing Dino take the spotlight.
13:28And that puffed rice cereal mixed with mini Dino marshmallows sure hit the spot.
13:32Number 6.
13:34C-3PO's.
13:35In a galaxy far, far away,
13:37who knows, maybe they still sell this cereal.
13:39It's here.
13:40The excitement.
13:41The adventure.
13:42Of a new four-cent breakfast.
13:45Honestly, we suspect that the only reason this cereal originally happened
13:48was due to the fact that the wordplay was too easy to pass up.
13:51And, you know, because Star Wars was a bona fide merchandising juggernaut.
13:55Unlike most offerings on this list, however,
13:57C-3PO's was a cereal parents could actually feel good about giving to their kids.
14:01It was basically just Cheerios in a figure-eight shape.
14:05But the packaging and theme were enough to make us eat them with gusto.
14:08Considering most boxes came with some sort of Star Wars swag,
14:11we couldn't get enough.
14:13Number 5.
14:14Ice cream cones.
14:16Sugar-loaded cereals are like crack for kids.
14:18So it's only natural that the sickeningly sweet brands
14:21are the ones we're going to remember most fondly.
14:23Hey, here comes Ice Cream Cones.
14:25With a cereal called Ice Cream Cones.
14:28Look out, the cereal.
14:29Case in point, Ice Cream Cones cereal.
14:32Sold by General Mills in the late 80s
14:34when companies weren't even bothering to pretend
14:36that the cereal they were peddling was healthy,
14:39Ice Cream Cones consisted of puffed sweet treats
14:41that tasted like your favorite flavors of ice cream.
14:43Chocolate chip, vanilla, and chocolate.
14:46Little golden sugar cone-shaped triangles stood in for the cones
14:49to complete the visual effect.
14:50They lasted a year in their original run,
14:52though it was brought back for a one-time deal in 2003
14:55for the ice cream cone's 100th anniversary.
14:58But what a sweet year 1987 was.
15:00Pones and puffs that taste like vanilla ice cream cones
15:03or chocolate chip,
15:04the crunchy part of this nutritious breakfast.
15:07Number 4.
15:08S'mores Grams,
15:09a.k.a. S'mores Crunch.
15:11Ice cream is great,
15:12but maybe you gravitated more towards
15:13the serialized, deconstructed version
15:15of this late-night camping fireside snack.
15:17We're hungry for S'mores Crunch,
15:19but so is he!
15:20Then it's a purr-fect time to
15:23wave my wand
15:24for swirls of chocolatey grahams
15:26and marshmallows galore.
15:28It's S'mores Crunch!
15:29Some have stood the test of time
15:31like Cinnamon Toast Crunch,
15:32while others, like French Toast Crunch,
15:34were discontinued,
15:35only to be revived due to popular demand.
15:37Sadly, this particular offering,
15:39which boldly threw marshmallows into the mix
15:41without even bothering to disguise them
15:43as something else,
15:44is no longer available.
15:45It ran from 1982 to 1988
15:48and was briefly brought back in the 90s,
15:51getting the axe again.
15:53Number 3.
15:53Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Cereal
16:07For 80s and 90s kids,
16:09few properties hit the mark
16:11like our favorite heroes in a half-shell.
16:12Of course,
16:13it's not like the Ninja Turtles
16:15have been limited to one generation.
16:17They've made several comebacks
16:18over the decades,
16:19leading to multiple serial tie-ins.
16:21Even with the franchise's
16:22sustained cultural relevance,
16:24the original serial
16:25that paired so well
16:26with Saturday Morning
16:27seems forever designated
16:28to a bygone era.
16:30Hey, redheads!
16:31Want to help put all the marshmallows back?
16:32Uh, these guys can handle it.
16:3489, 80, 10, 80, 11.
16:37Ninja Turtles Cereal
16:38is part of your complete record.
16:39Featuring our beloved
16:40animated crime fighters on the box,
16:42this cereal,
16:43true to its namesake,
16:44was an odd hybrid
16:45that combines a base cereal
16:47similar to Chex's
16:48with Lucky Charm-style marshmallows.
16:50And you know what?
16:51It was totally awesome,
16:52reminding us of a simpler time
16:54when we started the day
16:55with turtle cereal
16:56and ended it with turtle pies.
17:13It's a thin line
17:14that companies need to walk
17:15when trying to market cereal
17:16based on baked goods to kids.
17:18Parents can seemingly
17:19accept sweet treat-based products
17:21as long as traditional breakfast dishes
17:23like French toast
17:24or cinnamon toast inspire them.
17:25But when the concept
17:26is something like ice cream
17:27or as is the case here, donuts,
17:29it's a little harder to swallow.
17:31Parents be damned though,
17:33these were awesome.
17:34With the familiar face
17:35of Cap'n Crunch on the box,
17:36these chocolate cereal rings
17:37garnished with sprinkles
17:38were a home run with the kids.
17:40They were also too good
17:41for this world
17:42and were discontinued.
17:44Dunkin' Donuts cereal
17:45met the same fate,
17:46leaving a hole in our appetites
17:48that remains unfilled.
17:49You can choose rich chocolate
17:51or glazed donut flavors
17:52or both as part
17:54of a nutritious breakfast.
17:55Dunkin' Donuts cereal,
17:57crunchy little donuts,
17:58great big taste.
18:00If you love games,
18:01be sure to check out
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18:05just launched for purchase
18:06at terribleinfluence.com.
18:08Terrible Influence
18:08is a satirical board game
18:10about the dark side of fame
18:11from the writer
18:12of the most popular girls
18:13in school and us,
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18:16I can make an apology video.
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18:24Number one,
18:25Pop-Tarts Crunch.
18:26Pop-Tarts Crunch.
18:27I love to munch.
18:31On them.
18:3290s breakfasts
18:33came down to two options,
18:35cereal or Pop-Tarts.
18:37This work of processed food genius
18:38finally did away with compromise
18:40by giving us the best
18:41of both worlds.
18:42And then,
18:43they took it away from us.
18:44Debuting in 1994
18:46and unceremoniously
18:47getting the axe
18:48just a year later,
18:49these Pop-Tarts
18:50for your spoon
18:50were served in strawberry
18:51and brown sugar cinnamon varieties.
18:53Both flavors
18:54saw a comeback in 2019,
18:56rebranded as Pop-Tarts cereal.
18:58Alas,
18:59even that throwback cereal
19:00has seemingly disappeared
19:01from grocery stores
19:02in recent years.
19:03Perhaps another revival
19:05will be in the cereal's future.
19:06For now, though,
19:07we continue to wake up
19:08every morning
19:09craving this crunchy confection,
19:11only to have our dreams toasted.
19:13Which cereal has you longing
19:15for one more spoonful?
19:16Let us know in the comments.