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Developed in 1940s by Tennessee bottlers Barney and Ally Hartman, Mountain Dew is actually slang for “moonshine.” That’s right, folks — this soft drink was initially developed as a mixer for whiskey!

Nothing says summertime quite like a road trip and this year, members of the ad community are bringing their favorite brand mascot buddies along for the ride.

Happy 40th birthday, Chuck E. Cheese! For four decades, this chain of entertainment and restaurant combo centers has lived up to its tagline of being the ultimate place “where a kid can be a kid” with games, live music, and pizza for days to celebrate any event big or small.

In April 2017, the American Advertising Federation (AAF) inducted Carol H. Williams into the Advertising Hall of Fame. Her induction marks a major milestone in AAF’s history, as Williams is the first African American woman creative to be inducted into the Advertising Hall of Fame.

Few characters can claim that they have saved 85,000 lives quite like the Crash Test Dummies, Vince and Larry.

A couple of weeks ago, General Mills brought the iconic Sprinkle Spangles back into the spotlight. ICYMI, Sprinkle Spangles are a popped corn, sugar cookie-flavored, star-shaped cereal that launched in 1993 — the only cereal on the market at the time that had sprinkles!

Her face has adorned boxes of Sun-Maid raisins for years, a smiling young woman in a simple white shirt with dark curled hair. She wears a red bonnet on her head that ties underneath her neck and carries a basket overflowing with ripe, green grapes — grapes that will no doubt be made into raisins very soon!

Stay thirsty, mis amigos. Who better to celebrate Cinco de Mayo than with the charismatic Most Interesting Man in the World? The latest campaign from Dos Equis rings in May 5th in style with “Spice Up Your Cinco,” celebrating 120 years of the brand’s heritage and the Mexican spice of life.

Since 1968, he’s been the purr-fect icon for 9Lives Cat Food, an orange tabby plucked from obscurity to become one of the most recognizable felines around. But what do we really know about “the world’s most finicky cat” anyway?

What do a dinner table full of characters, an oven mitt on a quest for Italian flavor, a giant dribbling a basketball, and a heart-smart tuna all have in common? Each is a different brand mascot brought to life for advertising campaigns by the creatives at Calabash Animation.