Pillsbury Doughboy
- For the slang term for American soldiers in World War I and earlier, see doughboy.
Poppin' Fresh, the Pillsbury Doughboy, is an advertising icon and mascot of The Pillsbury Company, appearing in many of their commercials. He is a small anthropomorphic character apparently made out of dough. When poked in the stomach, a sign of affection and thanks for his excellent products, he lets out a soft, warm chuckle.
Creation
Fresh was thought up by the Leo Burnett advertising agency's copywriter, Rudy Perz, as he was sitting in his kitchen in 1965, under pressure to create an advertising campaign. Perz imagined a living dough boy popping out of a Pillsbury Cresent Rolls can. To distinguish the dough boy from the rolls he gave it a scarf, a chef's hat, two big blue eyes, a blush when girls kissed him, and a soft, warm chuckle when poked in the stomach. Perz originally conceived Fresh as an animated figure, but changed his mind after seeing a stop-action titling technique used in the opening credits for The Dinah Shore Show. A 3-D Doughboy doll of clay was then created at a cost of $16,000. Paul Frees (the voice of Rocky and Bullwinkle's Boris Badenov) was chosen to be Fresh's voice. Since then, Pillsbury has used Poppin' Fresh in more than 600 commercials for more than 50 of its products.
After Frees' death in 1986, Jeff Bergman, who also did the voiceover for Charlie the Tuna, took over. Today, the high-pitched giggles are done by JoBe Cerny, the on-camera star of Burnett's Cheer detergent ad campaign.
Other
In the 1970's a girlfriend, Poppie, a son, Popper, another son, Bun Bun, a cat, Biscuit, a dog, Flapjack and a bachelor uncle, Rollie of Fresh were sold in Sears stores. Poppie also appeared in some commercials along with Fresh. Parodys of the adverts have also appeared on Newgrounds.com.
Death
Veteran Pillsbury spokesman, Pop N. Fresh, died yesterday of a severe yeast infection. He was 71. Known to friends as "Brown-n-Serve," Fresh was an avid gardener and tennis player.
Fresh was buried in one of the largest funeral ceremonies in recent years. Dozens of celebrities turned out including Mrs. Butterworth, the California Raisins, Hungry Jack, Aunt Jemima, Betty Crocker, the Hostess Twinkies, and Skippy.
The graveside was piled high with flours as longtime friend, Aunt Jemima, delivered the eulogy, describing Fresh as a man who "never knew how much he was kneaded."
Fresh rose quickly in show business, but his later life was filled with many turnovers. He was not considered a very smart cookie, wasting much of his dough on half-baked schemes -- conned by those who buttered him up.
Still, even as a crusty old man, he was a roll model for millions. He enjoyed being prodded by his many friends who invariably poked fun at him.
Fresh is survived by his second wife. They have two children and another bun in the oven.
The funeral was held at 3:50 for about 20 minutes
