As cable audiences disappear, legacy cable media properties need to adapt. Most just die, however, including the original vision for so many of the original cable brands like TNN, MTV, VH1. Even A&E, Disney Channel and BBC America have strayed so far from original brand promises that they have confusedMORE HERE
Quaker’s Raisins & Spice Instant Oatmeal has returned to grocery store shelves after periods of limited availability at major retailers such as Walmart. Instant oatmeal first appeared on the market in 1965. Quaker launched its own version in 1966 as a convenient hot cereal packaged in single-serve packets. The brandMORE HERE
Folgers Coffee is one of those rare American brands that’s more than just a name on a can. Its roots stretch back to 1850, when William H. Bovee established the Pioneer Steam Coffee and Spice Mills in San Francisco. The company pioneered selling pre-roasted and ground coffee, an innovation inMORE HERE
The news that MSNBC will shed its peacock and NBC branding is nothing short of an identity crisis for the struggling cable channel. The network will reemerge as MSNOW, shorthand for New Opinion World. It’s baffling. The “MS” once had a clear lineage to Microsoft and its joint work with NBC, butMORE HERE
A refresh for a historic brand can now be as simple “merch” hoodies and tees trying some new co-promotions with a fellow brand. Such is the case with a co-promotion of Canada Dry, the soft drink, with the Canadian retailer Roots. They have launched what is sometimes now called aMORE HERE
The universe of what we buy in the grocery store often comes from but a few large food manufacturers. The share of pork, beef or chicken comes from but a few major distributors. But back in the 1950s, regional brands were still a powerful part of the landscape, not onlyMORE HERE
As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary—officially the semiquincentennial in 2026—a familiar name in American graphic design has once again been called upon to mark the occasion: Chermayeff & Geismar. In 1976, the firm created what became one of the most patriotic symbols of the 20th century. Their red,MORE HERE
End of a uniquely American attraction arrives just ahead of the nation’s 250th birthday. Just in time for America’s 250th birthday in 2026, Walt Disney World will shutter its Tom Sawyer Island and Liberty Square Riverboat on July 6, 2025. In their place: a Cars-themed attraction. The river, island, andMORE HERE
Could the Corinthian leather be a thing again? Probably not, but in a series of social media posts celebrating the centennial of the Chrysler brand released in the last few days, their parent company Stellantis is going full Mopar with the nostalgia. Chrysler has been a walking zombie of aMORE HERE
Driving along a favorite country road in Virginia last week, I saw an old Gulf pump, and an lighted OPEN sign that called me in. Someone had reopened the old Cumnor Store in the tiny King and Queen County, Virginia town of Cumnor. Life returns to paradise, I thought. CumnorMORE HERE