Toonfomercial: Remember Willy the Hillbilly? (1966)

Mountain Dew has been part of the Pepsi family since 1964. In 1966, Pepsi decided it was time for the product's mascot, Willy the Hillbilly, to appear in television ads for the soft drink. Country-bluegrass singer Grandpa Jones, three years before Hee Haw made him an icon, is the voice of Willy.

The ad campaign lasted just three years, but Willy returned a few years back-----in a video game.

Alphabetic Toons: Joe & the Junebug (Sesame Street, 1969)

Two boys see the letter 'j' and think it's a fish hook. Heh, there's a story with that, but no fries.

Gary Owens (Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, The Perils of Penelope Pitstop) is the "voice of God" that sets up the story of "Joe & the Junebug".



Simple and effective.

Rating: A.

Toonfomercial: Remember Donutz cereal? (1980)

General Mills began the 80's by introducing a brand new cereal that trumpeted its arrival with a retro-doo-wop beat.

Donutz cereal didn't last long, a couple of years tops, but in a way, the company rebooted the product when they expanded the Cheerios line further a few years later. In my mind, Chocolate Cheerios is really Chocolate Donutz repackaged, as the "donuts" looked more like cocoa coated Cheerios in the first place.

Now, scope out this sample ad:



And the chocolate variation:



Yes, I tried it. How do you think I know they were "cousins", if ya will, of Cheerios back then?

You Know The Voice: Fernando Escandon (1979)

Before he was hired to be the voice of El Dorado on Super Friends in the early 80's, Fernando Escandon was the spokesman for Frito Lay's Tostitos tortilla chips.

Now, you have a face to match the voice.



In case you wonder, the chef in this ad became pretty famous, too. Rene Enriquez landed a supporting role on NBC's Hill Street Blues, roughly around the same time Escandon turned to cartoons. Oh, by the way, that's Michael Bell as the announcer at the end of the ad. There's no mistaking that voice. Subsequent Tostitos ads would have veteran actor William Schallert doing the voice-over.

Escandon would remain the spokesman for Tostitos for a number of years, and a few years in, did a series of spots that inserted him into some classic TV shows, including The Lone Ranger, The Addams Family, Mr. Ed, and the original Dragnet. We'll have those up soon.

Saturday Morning's Greatest Hits: Manic Monday & If She Knew What She Wants (1986)

American Bandstand was nearing the end of its ABC run in May 1986 when the Bangles appeared on the show to promote their 2nd CD, "Different Light". "Manic Monday", the Prince-penned 1st single, had been up & down the charts by the time the band appeared on the show on Mother's Day weekend. "If She Knew What She Wants", a cover of a Jules Shear track recorded a year earlier, was the current single at the time.

Now, scope out this video. The obligatory Dick Clark interview is sandwiched in between songs.



Bassist Michael Steele has since left the group, leaving just sexy lead singer Susanna Hoffs and the Peterson sisters. I've said for years that if Archie Comics could have licensed Josie & the Pussycats for a late 80's revival, the Bangles would've easily fit in to provide the singing voices.

Toons You Might've Missed: Sh-h-h-h-h-h-h! (1955)

Legendary cartoon icon Fred "Tex" Avery finished his career at Universal, working for Walter Lantz. His final effort recycled a plot idea from one of his Droopy shorts at MGM, but this time, in "Sh-h-h-h-h-h!", Avery's protagonist, Mr. Twiddle, quits the jazz band he's playing with when his nerves get fried from excessive noise.



It didn't quite have the zip of Avery's earlier works, but it would be 25 years before Avery would return, this time at Hanna-Barbera, as he was partially responsible for the Dino & Cavemouse segment of the Flintstone Comedy Hour (2nd series) and created Kwicky Koala as his final coda.

Rating: B-.

On The Air: P. J. Masks (2015)

In 2002, Disney introduced Teamo Supremo as their initial answer to Cartoon Network's popular Powerpuff Girls. Teamo, however, didn't last, despite the fact that it had a more diverse cast (2 boys, 1 girl) of protagonists. The kids of Teamo Supremo were at least a couple of grades up from the Powerpuffs.

13 years later, Disney acquired P. J. Masks, a CGI series developed in France and England. Like Teamo Supremo, the team consists of two boys & one girl, but the gimmick here is that their pajamas magically convert into their costumes when danger threatens. It's been established that Catboy, Gekko, & Owlette are all 6 years of age, which would mean they're in the first grade. Of course, CN rebooted the Powerpuffs last year, and brought them forward to about the 2nd or 3rd grade, but to an indifferent audience. Y'think maybe that was because of P. J. Masks?

Unlike the Powerpuffs or Teamo Supremo, the kids of P. J. Masks don't answer to adult authority figures, and the vehicles they use are there strictly as product placement to induce parents to buy the toys for their kiddo's. As if a real 6 year old could drive a car or use a hang glider in real life......

Now, you'll have to wait until next year for new episodes, as Disney is cycling the first 52 shorts (26 half-hours in all) ad infinitum until a new batch is ready. Let's take a look at a sample episode:



The first season "finale" aired in February, which tells us there is a great deal of lead time between when the episodes are completed in Europe and brought to Disney Junior/Disney Channel here in the US, as it took roughly 18 months to complete the first season.

Rating: A.