Today’s article was written by guest contributor Tyler Partnow. Thanks, Tyler!
A little while ago I was vacationing in Europe, when suddenly, the inevitable happened: I found myself parched. I hastily located the nearest corner shop, not unlike a Hooper’s of sorts, and surveyed their vast selection of beverages, many of which were unfamiliar to my American eyes. At first, I thought it would be impossible to make my decision. I wembled back and forth between soft drinks like I was choosing the Holy Grail.
But then, I saw it: Orange Mirinda.
Images of a certain soda guzzling creature immediately flooded my brain, while the same spokesman’s immortal words echoed endlessly: “good-good-good-good-good!”
Had I not been an obsessive Muppet fan, I probably would’ve chosen a different drink. But a rare opportunity presented itself to finally try a product that had been promoted to me for over a decade by a slightly unsettling Bob Payne character, and there was no way I could pass that up. And… it wasn’t bad. On a scale of Sunkist to Fanta, I’d probably place it at about an Orange Crush.
So I bought a product solely because Jim Henson and co. made an ad for it 50+ years ago. That’s the power of good advertising, and this is by no means an isolated incident.
When there are, say, Munchos or RC Cola on the shelves, I’m far more inclined to pick those up over more recognizable competitors like Pringles or Mr. Pibb because the Muppets did commercials for them. Which leads me to wonder: am I single-handedly keeping these brands alive thanks to my obsession with the Muppets? Or are there other Muppet fans out there that are just as diehard as myself, when it comes to grocery shopping?
Or are there genuine fans of Munchos out there who have no idea about the Jim Henson connection, or that former Munchos mascots Fred and Arnold would go on to become Zelda Rose and the Cookie Monster, respectively?
The bottom-line is, if Muppets Inc. made a commercial for it in the 1960s, I want to spend my money on it.
This does not at all apply to more recent ad campaigns; I’ve never perused Booking.com, I’ve never owned a Facebook portal, I still don’t know what Vrbo is. When the Muppets appear in commercials these days, I’m too preoccupied overanalyzing what that commercial says about their status as a franchise to pay any attention to what they’re trying to sell me.
But on the flip side, if Starbucks ran a promotion where they slapped a Wilkins Coffee sticker on their cups and sold them for double the price of a regular Macchiato, I’d be the first in line. Weird, huh?
Whereas I have a strangely deep personal attachment to nearly every brand the Muppets were spokesmen for in the 60s, I couldn’t care less about whatever new product they’re promoting in the 21st century. The one exception to this is the recent Henson x Monster Cereals collab, but that was more of a collector’s item than an ad campaign in the vein of Pepé shilling for Long John Silver’s.
As a kid, whenever I was out grocery shopping with my family and we’d pass the pet food aisle, I’d always make sure to point out that “Purina Dog Chow was promoted by Jim Henson in the early 1960s, inspiring the creation of both Rowlf and Baskerville! If anyone wants, we can watch the Muppet Show season 3 DVD bonus features on the way home with our in-car DVD player, because this is the year 2008 and we have those.” I still have that same thought whenever I’m face-to-face with Purina products. I just have a better filter these days so I don’t feel the need to tell everyone in sight.
If you ever see me out-and-about, chances are I’ll be wearing a denim jacket covered in various patches. Some are music or pop culture related, but there’s a special section I’ve got designated for vintage Esskay Meats, Claussen’s Bread, and Marathon Oil patches… Three companies I’ve never purchased from, yet I’ve been guerilla marketing for them for years. All thanks to Jim, Jane, Frank, Jerry, the other Jerry, and Don’s collective knack for creating genuinely entertaining commercials that hold up insanely well nearly 70 years after they were produced.
Many of the former industry titans that the Muppets promoted are now either extinct, or were bought out by larger, more recognizable corporations who, in time, will likely phase out these niche brands. But some are still legit family-owned operations which you can still support directly, and maybe you should. I’ve heard bad things happen to people who don’t support family-owned companies that had commercials featuring Muppets.
List of Henson-promoted products that you can still support as of January 2026:
Celanese Chemical Company (not sure why you’d need this, but they’re still around)
Sprint Wafers (later known as Kit-Kats)
There’s the list. Now let them know the Muppets’ advertising from six decades ago worked!
Click here to look for the Cloverland Dairy brand on the Tough Pigs Discord!
by Tyler Partnow
