Off-Kilter
Rainbow Beaks Department: Toucan Sam, the cartoon spokesbird for Kellogg’s Froot Loops cereal, turns 35 today. So Off-Kilter spoke with his biographer and discovered some gossip:
* Toucan Sam originally had a much larger snout, but in the early 1970s, animators gave him a beak job to shorten his colorful bill.
* He has never married or dated. But he does have three nephews.
* Toucan Sam’s accent was inspired by actor Ronald Colman, but in early TV commercials he spoke “Toucanese,” a variation of pig Latin. Cartoon vocalist Mel Blanc supplied the original voice for Sam, but Paul Frees (the voice of Boris Badenov in “Bullwinkle”) took over in 1970. Today, Maurice LeMarche provides the pipes for Sam.
* Sam is not related to the cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs bird, Hekyll or Jekyll, Foghorn Leghorn, the Kenner toy bird or the NBC peacock.
* In honor of the toucan’s 35th birthday, Kellogg’s has released a new version of the cereal called Kellogg’s Marshmallow Blasted Froot Loops, which contains blue and white marshmallow pieces shaped like Toucan Sam. That’s a decent tribute, but we think they should have him settle down and marry instead.
Pamplona Alternatives: The town of Morrilton, Ark., will host its 10th annual “Running of the Fat Guys” this weekend as part of a Great Arkansas Pig-Out festival.
The half-kilometer event, which is open to humans whose waists measure at least four inches more than their inseams, includes three pit stops where contestants must wolf down a slice of pizza, guzzle a can of cola and devour a Snickers bar. Last year’s winner, who also happens to be the new county coroner, captured first place by eating a Snickers bar without removing the wrapper.
Alarming Trends Bureau: Here are the newest signs of a pending apocalypse:
* Two New York entrepreneurs are marketing energy treats for canines: the Rover Bar, which is described as “a performance dog snack,” and the Power Bark.
* A Las Vegas sex therapist reports in her new book that some couples get aroused by pretending to be chickens.
* This is World Breast-Feeding Week.
* A Nevada company recently announced plans to clone pets--at fees of up to $100,000. Rover Bars and Power Barks not included.
Where There’s No Smoke Department: Europe’s ban on cigarette advertising has inspired tobacco companies to develop other ways of keeping their names in the limelight. According to Montecito Journal columnist John Wilcock, Benson & Hedges plans to open a chain of coffee shops bearing the company’s name. And Lucky Strike is working on a line of clothing.
Unusual Product Endorsements Department: From a newspaper advertisement for a North Hollywood foot surgery center: “When the Sisters of the Dominican Order needed bunion surgery, they trusted in us.”
Best Supermarket Tabloid Headline: “German Fighter Ace Red Baron Shot Down a UFO in 1917!” (Weekly World News)
Which is why, when the Sisters of the Dominican Order need a space alien killed, they turn to the German air force.
* Roy Rivenburg’s e-mail address is roy.rivenburg@latimes.com.
Unpaid Informants: Wireless Flash News Service, Tom and Gina Meneghini, New York magazine