Put On Your Thinking Cap
(Avoid the Dunce Cap) -
It's Another Shady's Place
Brain-Buster Quiz!
That's right, dear friend, It's time to bust your brain
on Shady Del Knight's latest Mom & Pop quiz.
Try to contain your enthusiasm.
Can your memory pass the test?
Denny the Dell Rat wants to know!
Hi, I'm Denny
the Dell Rat.
I might be a rat,
but I'm curious
as a cat. I'd like
to know if you
remember the
name of a lovable
cartoon character
of the early 60s.
Read the list
of clues below
and see if
you can
NAME THAT CARTOON CHARACTER!
* He is the mascot of a General Mills star-shaped breakfast cereal
advertised as "the only cereal in a storybook package" -
"stars inside, stories outside!"
* His friends include Fulton the Camel, Sanford the Parrot
* His adventures were embedded in the animated cartoon series
* Every 90 second vignette ends with "(name) only smiled"
* His friends include Fulton the Camel, Sanford the Parrot
and Wilbur the Monkey.
* He has a rotor-tail.
* When he and his pals face danger, his familiar chant is
* He has a rotor-tail.
* When he and his pals face danger, his familiar chant is
"Nose, nose, anything goes..."
* His adventures were embedded in the animated cartoon series
King Leonardo and his Short Subjects and, for a short time,
in Rocky and His Friends.
* Every 90 second vignette ends with "(name) only smiled"
or "(name) only laughed."
WHAT IS HIS NAME?
SCROLL DOWN
TRIVIA ANSWER:
HE'S TWINKLES THE MAGIC ELEPHANT!
Twinkles was introduced as a "Big G" cereal in 1960.
Twinkles Cereal TV commercial - early 1960s
King Leonardo and his Short Subjects, the program
that carried Twinkles the Magic Elephant 90 second
adventure vignettes, started airing October 15, 1960.
"Twinkles and the Haunted House"
ON OCTOBER 15, 1960, THE # 3 SONG ON THE CHART WAS:
"Chain Gang" - Sam Cooke
THE #2 SONG ON THE CHART THAT WEEK WAS:
"My Heart Has A Mind Of Its Own" - Connie Francis
THE #1 SONG ON THE CHART THAT WEEK WAS:
"Save The Last Dance For Me" - The Drifters
Did you guess
the correct
answer before
scrolling down?
Denny the
Dell Rat
wants to
know!
If you were able to identify Twinkles from the
clues... good for you. If not, you know the drill.
Have a Shady day!
NOTE: The character Denny the Dell Rat was inspired by my high school
classmate, fellow Shady Dell regular and good friend Denny Neiman.
1949 - 2010
I vaguely remember the cereal, but not well enough to get the answer. Good one!
ReplyDeleteHi, Alex!
DeleteThanks for checking in early (as in Early Bird) and busting your brain on Shady's latest Mom & Pop Quiz, this one hosted by new recruit Denny the Dell Rat.
I'm glad you remember Twinkles cereal, but flunked the test and need to don the dunce cap. :) Thanks again for joining the fun, good buddy Alex!
Well, put me in the corner and give me the dunce cap. I don't remember Twinkles cereal. I really like the idea of the storybook, though! It takes reading the back of the cereal box to a whole new level.
ReplyDeleteHi, Kelly!
DeleteThanks for finishing a strong second in this week's amazing race to S-Place, dear friend!
Yessum, inserting a storybook on the back of a breakfast cereal package seemed like a great idea at the time but, for whatever reason or reasons, General Mills stopped producing Twinkles cereal sometime during the 1960s. I didn't eat the cereal, nor did I watch King Leonardo and his Short Subjects. My only memory of Twinkles was watching his cartoon adventures when they were embedded in Rocky & Friends.
I'm sorry you will be standing in the corner and wearing the dreaded dunce cap. I suspect you'll have lots of company as the days roll by. :)
Thanks again for dropping in, dear friend Kelly!
Denny The Dell rat is so handsome. I love him.
ReplyDeleteI've never heard of Twinkles but I wasn't born until 1970 so that's probably why.
I recognized The Drifters though.
Hi, Mary!
DeleteThanks for coming by and taking the challenge, dear friend!
Yessum, I know that you are a rat lover. As you saw at the end of the post, the character Denny the Dell Rat was named after my friend and high school classmate Denny Neiman. Denny, who died 11 years ago, was also a regular at the Shady Dell. I'm glad you like the rat image I found to represent Denny in my series of Mom & Pop Quizzes.
Yessum, if you were born in 1970 you completely missed the years Twinkles cereal was available in stores, and by the time you were old enough to watch TV, his cartoons were probably off the air as well. Taking into account that you are a member of Generation X and not a Baby Boomer, you will not be required to wear the dunce cap (unless you really really want to).
I'm glad you remember The Drifters, the act that was topping the pop chart when Twinkles the Magic Elephant started airing.
Thanks again for coming by, dear friend Mary. I wish you and my buddy Falcor a safe and happy week!
Hey there Shady! You definitely had me stumped! I was 5 in 1960 and I do not remember this cereal at all! Wonder if it was only available in certain parts of the country? Sometimes we West Coast folks don't get the same things you do. I don't remember the cartoon either and that would have been what I watched at 5 - LOL.
ReplyDeleteLove Connie Francis. Sad story about her. Save The Last Dance For Me is one of my favorite songs. Thanks for the quiz today. I'll be writing my next post soon. Went away for the weekend to a scrapbooking event! I was in heaven. Have a great rest of your week!
Janet’s Smiles
Hi Janet!
DeleteWelcome back, dear friend! I'm happy to have you here testing your memory and busting your brain on Denny's quiz.
In my research, I don't remember reading that Twinkles cereal had a limited regional distribution. As I mentioned to friend Kelly (above), I remember the cereal, but don't know if I ever tried it. I was age eleven by the time it started appearing on store shelves, and therefore I wouldn't have been interested in reading the pre-school level storybook on the back. I best remember Twinkles as running in the Rocky and His Friends animated TV series. If you watched Rock & Bullwinkle, then you probably saw Twinkles at some point.
I'm glad the top tunes from Halloween season, 1960, resonated with you. Sounds like you were in your element and in your glory over the weekend. I can't wait to read all about it. Thanks again for stopping in, dear fried Janet!
Hi Shady and Adorable Denny the Rat,
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, I need a dunce cap. I guessed "Tony the Tiger." I wasn't aware of Twinkles, but the commercials made me smile. I might have to ask dad if he remembers Twinkles. Mom may be too young since mom is 9 years younger. I could ask her as well.
I'm in a really good mood and "Save the Last Dance For Me" and "My Heart Has a Mind of Its Own" really is the soundtrack for today's mood. Thanks for continuing the good mood, dear friend!
Hi, Jessica Marie!
DeleteThanks for taking the Mom & Pop Quiz, dear friend. I'm glad you likey Denny the Dell Rat, a new Shady's Place character based on my boyhood and high school chum and fellow Shady Dell alumnus.
Tony the Tiger was a valiant try, a good guess, and you deserve credit for that, but I must still insist that you don the dunce cap. Okay... I relent! Given that you are by far my youngest commenting follower, it doesn't surprise me that you never heard of Twinkles. Yessum, ask you dad if he remembers the sugary Twinkles breakfast cereal or the cartoon series.
I'm happy that you are in a good mood and that the songs by The Drifters and Connie Francis helped sustain your mood.
Thanks again for stopping by and have a wonderful week, dear friend JM!
Hi Shady,
DeleteSoooo, I now have a boyfriend and I'm on cloud 9. I'm probably not sleeping tonight and had to give your playlist a listen to. It sets the mood!
This weekend I'll ask my dad if he's familiar with Twinkles. Hopefully he is and it's a fun walk down memory lane.
Have a great Thankful Thursday.
Hi, Jessica Marie!
DeleteSounds encouraging, dear friend, and I'm happy for you, but hope you did get some sleep overnight.
I forgot to tell you, there's even a Milton Bradley Twinkles board game selling for almost $48 on eBay:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/254836417444
So, as you see, Twinkles was indeed a "thing," and it makes me wonder why more of my older friends never heard of the cereal, the cartoon or the game. Be sure to ask your dad about the character and remind him that it was embedded in Rocky the Squirrel.
Mrs. Shady roped me into an evening of activity last night and I didn't see your comment or TT post until past my bedtime. I'll be coming over to your place next.
Have a happy Friday and weekend, dear friend JM!
Okay, you stumped me on this one. Why don't remember Twinkles at all, even after you've given me the answer? Hmmm. This is disturbing. However, I did remember all the lyrics to Save the Last Dance for Me, so there's hope yet. Loved the cool rat dude!
ReplyDeleteHi, Cheryl-Lee!
DeleteWelcome back to the fun here at Shady's Place, dear friend!
WHAT? I stumped you? You need to wear the dunce cap? I'll bet it looks lovely on you. :)
Now I am starting to suspect that Twinkles cereal had limited distribution, perhaps east of the Mississippi. You are the third friend from the Western U.S. who doesn't remember Twinkles. It was a pretty big thing in my neck of the woods, the cereal and the cartoon series. I remember an overweight boy at my school who was cruelly nicknamed "Twinkles."
I'm glad you do recall "Save The Last Dance," the #1 song when Twinkles began its run on TV.
Thanks again for swinging by, dear friend Cheryl-Lee, and enjoy the rest of your week!
The dunce hat is mine I guess! I sure don't remember that cereal or the commercial and I would have been 7 and prime for such fun! However, in our home we didn't get sugared cereal. It was (yuck) corn flakes, or cheerios, or oatmeal. Feeding 6 kids was expensive so I guess Mom served what was practical! Can't complain though because many times we had homemade goodies Mom would whip up and I certainly didn't starve! Thanks for the cute videos and I'm still hunkering down in Chi-town hoping sis gets home from the hospital today although it's getting late so maybe tomorrow. Have a good week and I enjoyed the smiles you brought my way today!
ReplyDeleteHi, Yaya!
DeleteIt's great to see you, dear friend! Thanks for making time for a visit and a trip down memory lane... well... down MY memory lane, at least. I'm surprised you never heard of Twinkles cereal or the cartoon series that was embedded in Rocky the Flying Squirrel. Twinkles was a pretty big deal in my region. The little girl in that TV commercial looks so much like Angela Cartwright it isn't even funny, but I did the math and think Angela would have been a little older than that by 1960 when the spot was allegedly produced. Thanks for sharing memories of the homemade snacks your dear mother used to make for the family.
I'm sorry to learn that Midge wasn't discharged yet. I hope tomorrow's the day for sure. Speaking of Hope, please give your niece dog a pat on the noggin and a biscuit from friend Shady.
Thanks again for dropping by, dear friend YaYa. Please drive safely on the trip hack home to The Pines, whenever that journey takes place. I hope to see you again soon!
Hi Shady, I know I am ridiculously late, but duty is ALWAYS calling! I came by here a few days ago and read your post, and somehow my Google Chrome icon is missing from my task bar! I heard rumors that there is a problem, but it seems to working for everyone...so much for rumors!
ReplyDeleteI am afraid I am a dunce on this one, as I did not know who Twinkles was. We had General Mills cereals in to the early 60's, but we were eating the Chex cereals, Wheaties and Cheerios during those years! I like the Haunted House cartoon, pretty cute!
You found a good list of top tunes for that week in October, and I must say, I like Sam Cooke's "Chain Gang" song the best. He had such a smooth voice with great storytelling expression. I always enjoyed the Drifters, and "Save The Last Dance For Me" was a very popular song. What a cool video with this one. I had fun watching the retro furniture, electric gadgets, cars and clothing go by during this song-ah, great memories! And, Connie Francis could do no wrong musically. She has such an amazing voice...you can't help but join in and sing with her.
A fun post, Shady, even though I bombed out with the clues. Maybe I'll get the next one! Have a great weekend, and I will try to be more prompt! Take care, dear friend!
Hi, Suzanne!
DeleteI'm excited to see you, dear friend! Thanks for coming over to meet Denny the Dell Rat, the new Shady's Place character dedicated to the memory of my friend and classmate Denny Neiman.
I see you have already tried the dunce cap on for size, dear friend. :) I am really puzzled, because Twinkles was a big thing in my neck of the woods, with a cereal and storybook box, cartoon series and even a Milton Bradley board game based on the magical red elephant and his adventures.
Thanks for singling out Sam Cooke. I never get tired of hearing his smooth singing style, and "Chain Gang was one of his greatest hits. Thanks also for giving thumbs up to Connie and The Drifters, rounding out the top 3 on the pop chart a couple of weeks before Halloween in 1960.
Yessum, you arrived just in time, because this post gets bumped tamale. Stick around for the return of Malcolm Winters from The Young and the Restless who will be shining the spotlight on two exciting girl groups of the 21st century.
I hope you and Scootie are well and in good spirits. I know you are crazy busy over there, and that makes me appreciate your visits all the more. Take care, dear friend Suzanne. Have a wonderful weekend and I hope to see you again soon!
Denny the Dell Rat is kind of cute, and, your high school friend Denny was a handsome guy. I am sorry you lost a dear friend, and I enjoyed your tribute in his honor. Also, I want to mention that your pictures are very cool, and the dunce photo is a good one! I never get tired of hearing Sam Cooke sing...it was such a tragedy how we lost this great artist!
DeleteScootie and I are scootin' along and hanging in there. I've put some restrictions on him that require better grades and cooperation as incentives for game time! He's a good kid, but pretty bullheaded like me!
Take care, dear Shady! See you next time!
Hi again, Suzanne!
DeleteI'm glad you returned, dear friend, because it gives me an opportunity to show you the primitive little post I ran on the old blog, Shady Dell Music & Memories, on October 7, 2010, soon after I learned that Denny had died. This was way back before you and I met here in blogland:
https://shadydell.blogspot.com/2010/10/remembering-denny.html
Thanks for the kind words regarding Denny. As you noticed if you read the comments and my replies on that old post, I last saw Denny in the summer of 1982 at our 15th high school class reunion. He and I sat at the same table. My other best friend, Dale, was also seated at that same table along with his wife. In between Denny and me was a female classmate that we both knew since childhood and both of us dated. In a sad irony, all four of those people I sat with at the reunion are now dead and gone! Makes you think...
Thanks also for the compliment on the pictures I found for this series. I applaud you for doing some excellent grandparenting on Scootie's behalf. He might moan and complain at times, but deep down inside I'm sure he knows your rules are designed to help him succeed in life.
Thanks again for giving me a chance to tell you a bit more about my friend Denny, dear friend Suzanne!
My childhood memories go back to maybe 1967. Twinkles must have been off the shelves by then or I'm sure my mother would have bought it at one point or other (especially if it happened to be on sale.) Also, that's an older, different-looking General Mills logo than I recall seeing on Trix or Lucky Charms (I became aware of corporate logos at a disturbingly young age. I stopped believing in Santa Claus when I realized there were no elves named Mattel or Hasbro.)
ReplyDeleteThe first-run episodes may have been before my time, but I'm very familiar with Rocky and Bullwinkle, whose cartoon adventures, albeit in reruns, were still on TV when I was a kid. But there was no Twinkles the elephant. The "humor" must have seemed very coy compared to the more anarchic antics of the squirrel and moose (as well as Mr. Peabody and Sherman, Aesop and Son, Fractured Fairy Tales, Dudley Do-Right, etc.) And the animation was so awful that it makes Rocky and Bullwinkle--itself hardly a visual feast--look like Fantasia!
Very familiar with the Sam Cooke and Drifter songs, but the one by Connie Francis is new to me. As always, though, I love her voice. I don't think the song itself even has to be particularly good!
Hi, Kirk!
DeleteThanks for staying up late to meet Shady's Place newbie Denny the Dell Rat, test your memory and bust your brain, good buddy.
I'm glad you didn't miss this post, because Denny and I wanted to know if you remember Twinkles the magic elephant. I'm beginning to think the red pachyderm was a pigment of my imagination, (get it?), because no one else who has commented remembers the cereal, the cartoon series or the MB board game.
Signpost up ahead. Your next stop... The Twilight Zone.
Yes, I agree that the animation in the Twinkles shorts was primitive compared to most other cartoons, and the preschool level innocence of the story lines was a jarring juxtaposition embedded in the sophisticated Rock & Bullwinkle series. Maybe that's why Twinkles didn't last.
I'm pleased that you like crooning cutie Connie Francis. Like you, I simply enjoy hearing her voice no matter what kind of song she is singing. The pick for this post, "My Heart Has A Mind Of Its Own," went on to reach #1 on the chart. It's interesting that Connie waxed the song in multiple takes spread out over three recording sessions during the summer of '60, and that the version originally chosen for release as a single was replaced. Wiki sez:
<< The original MGM K 12923 single utilized Take 49 (recorded July 31, 1960) but two weeks into release this was replaced by Take 37 (recorded July 25, 1960) at the behest of Francis and the song's writers. >>
Can you imagine having to do 49 or more takes of a song? It must have been exhausting. It is also interesting that Connie's vanilla, country-pop style ballad crossed over to the R&B chart. Shucks, many singles released by black artists never even made the R&B survey! Connie later recorded a German language version of "My Heart Has A Mind..."
Thanks again for reporting in before the post died, good buddy Kirk. Malcolm Winters awaits you. Have a safe and happy weekend!
Tom,
ReplyDeleteI definitely did not know this cereal. The commercial ran the year before I was born. Do you know how long Twinkles was in grocery stores? I don't think I recall ever eating them as a kid. Of your three song features, Connie Francis' song was new-to-me. Thanks for the vintage share!
Hi, Cathy!
DeleteI'm glad I checked back here and found this comment on my earlier post, dear friend. Thanks for clicking back to it!
Gosh, seems like I am the only person on earth who remembers Twinkles cereal and the Twinkles cartoon shorts embedded in Rocky. I feel like I'm in The Twilight Zone! :) I did some reading about the cereal, but couldn't find exact data on when it was discontinued. I suspect it didn't last much later than the mid 60s.
I'm glad you learned a new song, namely the one by crooner Connie Francis.
Thanks again for clicking back to this post and for taking time to comment, dear friend Cathy!
I missed your post until now and am sorry. I love the songs from your time at the Dell. They are great to listen to. Your friend passed too young and I’m sorry that has happened but t least you have some great memories. I don’t recall this cereal at all so the dunce cap is on. I loved Count Chocula and ate that a lot. I love the cartoon and used to watch Rocky and Bullwinkle but don’t recall the Elephant.
ReplyDeleteHi, Birgit!
DeleteThat's AOK, dearie! Your friendship credit is good here at Shady's Place. If you need to double-up or triple-up on comments, then I appreciate each and every one of them.
Just to set the record straight, I was only ten years old around Halloween 1960 when the three songs in this post peaked on the chart. It would be five more years before I started going to the Shady Dell. Therefore, I can't verify that they were played at the Dell. Jerre Slaybaugh was a regular at the Dell by 1960, and he would be the one to answer that question.
Thanks for the kind words about Denny N. He and several other great Dell friends passed away at a relatively young age.
So, you join everybody else in stating that you do not remember Twinkles the magic red elephant, the cereal or the cartoon. That amazes me, because Twinkles was definitely a "thing" in my region. How else would I have recalled him 60 years later? I am pleased to introduce you and all the others to this lovable character who reminds me a lot of Barney the purple Dinosaur in his innocence and temperament.
Thanks again for the double comment today, dear friend BB. If you are doing a music post Wednesday, you know I'll be there. Take good care of yourself and Ill see you then!