Friday, August 21, 2015

Work needed for slightly used mascot.

We are all very happy about the return of the Twinkie a couple of years ago. When Hostess closed its doors at the end of 2012, it looked like Twinkie the Kid was washed up. But just eight months later, I saw a poster in Times Square announcing the triumphant return of the Twinkie.

Well, now it's gotten even more serious. Not only are Twinkies back, but...


Chocodile Twinkies!

You kids out there may not understand why these are called Chocodile Twinkies rather than just Chocolate Twinkies or Chocolate Basted Twinkies or something.

It has to do with this guy:



Yes, that's Chauncey Chocodile (or Choco-Dile), the original mascot for Hostess's Chocodile. It was a chocolate-coated Twinkie then, but they didn't call it that. See Chauncey in action here:


The question is: Where's Chauncey now?

This is no idle question from a guy who wrote a novel about advertising mascots come to life (see Larry and the Mascots, available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Google Play, iBooks...). While Hostess may have brought back the Chocodile, its pitchman is still in limbo. Instead, Twinkie the Kid has been pressed into service, as if the Chocodile was just another Twinkie.

I can't improve on Dinosaur Dracula's insane rave of joy about the return of the Chocodile. All I can say is: I'm glad it's back, but does anyone have an opening for a slightly used sort-of-crocodile-shaped mascot?*

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*As it happens, Captain Cupcake and Fruit Pie the Magician are also MIA; do you think Twinkie the Kid has survivor guilt?



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