Food mascots are more than just clever cartoons. Many of the most recognizable faces in your pantry (or takeout bag) were inspired by real people with real stories. Here are eight mascots whose roots are far more real than you imagined.
8. Famous Amos of Famous Amos Cookies
Before cookies became his business, Wally Amos Jr. became the first Black talent agent at the William Morris Agency, sending his aunt’s chocolate chip cookies to celebrities like Simon & Garfunkel and Motown stars. In 1975, with about $25,000 borrowed from friends (including Marvin Gaye), he opened the first Famous Amos cookie store in Los Angeles. He used his own name, face, and charm as the mascot and his personality shaped the brand.
7. Wendy of Wendy’s
Melinda Lou Thomas, born in 1961, became “Wendy” because as a child her siblings couldn’t pronounce “Melinda,” so they called her “Wenda,” which morphed into Wendy. When her dad, Dave Thomas, founded the Wendy’s hamburger chain in 1969, he named it after her. To create the logo and mascot, Dave asked Wendy to put her hair in pigtails, wear a blue-and-white striped dress her mother made, and they took photos. Wendy grew up and later became a spokesperson and helped co-own franchises.
6. Mrs. Fields of Mrs. Fields Cookies
Debbi Fields was a 20-year-old homemaker in Palo Alto in 1977 when she decided to open a small cookie shop. Debbi’s warmth and energy became the brand itself. Her name, face, and story were baked into every shop and box of cookies. She often appeared in ads and spoke about customer service as much as recipes.
5. Aunt Jemima of Pearl Milling Company (formerly)
For over a century, the smiling woman on boxes of pancake mix and syrup was presented as “Aunt Jemima.” But behind that caricature were real women hired to embody her, starting with Nancy Green, a former enslaved woman from Kentucky who debuted as Aunt Jemima in 1893. Later women, including Anna Robinson and Lillian Richard, also took on the role. However, in 2021, the brand retired the mascot due to its racist roots, renaming itself Pearl Milling Company.
4. Ben & Jerry’s of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield were just childhood friends from New York who took a course in ice cream making and opened their first shop in Vermont in 1978. They leaned into their own personalities as the faces of the brand, and unlike fictional cartoons, the founders became the mascots, appearing in early packaging and ads, mixing activism with ice cream.
3. Oscar Mayer of Oscar Mayer Meats
Oscar Ferdinand Mayer immigrated from Germany to the U.S. as a teenager and learned the meat business working in Chicago butcher shops. In 1883, he and his brother opened their own shop with a focus on high-quality sausages. Using his own name as the brand, Oscar’s reputation for European-style meats spread quickly. The Oscar Mayer brand became synonymous with authenticity, long before regulators ensured food safety.
2. Mr. Peanut of Planters
While Mr. Peanut isn’t based on a specific adult persona, he came from one kid’s imagination. In 1916, Planters held a contest to design a brand mascot, and a 14-year-old Italian immigrant named Antonio Gentile submitted a drawing of a peanut with arms, legs, and a smile. His design won, and while commercial artists refined it into the Mr. Peanut we know today, Gentile’s contribution was never forgotten. The company even paid his college tuition in thanks.
1. Colonel Sanders of KFC
Yes, Colonel Sanders is based on a real person. Born in Indiana in 1890, Sanders endured poverty, lost his father young, and taught himself to cook for his siblings. He began frying chicken at a gas station in Kentucky, developing his famous pressure-frying method and secret recipe of 11 herbs and spices. He earned the honorary title “Colonel” for his hospitality, which became a part of his persona. As KFC expanded in the 1950s and 60s, Sanders, with his goatee, white suit, and black string tie, became the living mascot of the fast food brand.