12/1/05: The Original Fruity Pebbles Christmas! Granted, my mind gets blown over the silliest things, but I just can't believe that the Post Fruity Pebbles Christmas ad I grew up loving -- "Ho, Ho, Ho, I'm Huh, Huh Hungry!" -- wasn't the first of its kind. Finding this older version has shaken every foundation my soul depends on, even the ones I haven't given cute pet names to yet. From the mid to late `70s, the animated ad essentially tells the same story of the later version we all know and love so much, but there's enough differences to leave the half of the world that cares scratching their heads, and the other half that doesn't care scratching its collective ass. You don't scratch your ass unless you're indifferent. Like the `80s commercial I've long applauded on the site, this one also features Barney dressing like Santa Claus in an attempt to trick Fred out of his Fruity Pebbles. Everything is similar, from the exact moment where Barney straps the beard on to the exact moment that he magically fits himself down Fred's chimney. The animation is noticeably cruder, and the music is nowhere near as merry, but it's the same bricks building the same house. Fred takes the bait, and it's not until the real Santa drops down the chimney does Barney shake hands with a foiled plan. Unlike the later version, Santa doesn't deliver any strong messages. He's just there: Fat, red and useless. The biggest difference between this and the later ad is that Fred doesn't "come around" and share his beautiful cereal with Barney. Barney warns him against committing acts of evil and violence in front of Santa, and that's that. Fred doesn't cave or make any real concessions -- he just blushes and makes weird footsie movements that indicate his need to piss. It's clear that the Black Eyed Peas, topical sons of bitches that they are, based "Where Is The Love?" entirely on this commercial. Though I prefer the later version because that's the one I grew up on and because it's just a bigger, better production overall, both ads are terrific. Post didn't even need to "holidayize" the Pebbles cereals back then; the commercials were enough to make us make them make Christmas season mornings more special. Besides, cruder animation or not, it's still amazing to see Fred and Barney celebrating Jesus' birth millions of years before Jesus' birth. I bet Gazoo tipped the fuckers off. Click here to download this commercial! (.WMV, 5 MB) ....close this window!