by Moe Zilla

Created on: February 03, 2008   Last Updated: January 08, 2009

You remember them as a child, and you remember them as an adult. There's some amazing commercial jingles that will always keep singing somewhere in your head...

* "Meow Mix"

This cat food had one of the most unforgettable jingles. ("Meow, meow, meow, meow / meow, meow, meow, meow," translated with subtitles as "I want tuna, I want liver...") Though the jingle first appeared in 1970, it's still remembered more than three decades later. (It's been the subject of jokes on "The Simpsons," "Malcolm in the Middle," and even in "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery.") It's catchy and it's cute, and it speaks to an almost universal truth: we secretly love it when our cats say meow.

* "Snap, crackle, pop - Rice Krispies."

The jingle is so familiar, it's hard to believe it started as an ad jingle more than 40 years ago. Originally the Kellogg's ads even included a full minute-long song in which the three characters argued about which sound was better. Kellogg's changes the descriptive sounds when marketing the cereal in foreign countries. (In Germany, the cereal says "Knisper! Knasper! Knusper!") But it remains a clever way to describe exactly what will happen when the cereal is mixed with milk.

* "I'd like to buy the world a Coke." Though it's strangely sentimental, this jingle became wildly popular in the 1970s. People would even phone radio stations to request that they play it. Decades later, Coke re-united the cast for a follow-up commercial where they relived the magic moment of singing their anthem to a sugary soft drink (while holding candles on a hillside). It's a catchy tune, offering an encouraging message about coming together.

* "General Cinemas Corporation."

This is a tune that you'd recognize if you heard. Before movies in the 1970s, spinning animated circles (suggesting a movie projector) shot out three words to a syncopated beat: "General. Cinemas. Corporation." The tune proved so unforgettable that they resurrected it nearly thirty years later, showing it played by a jamming band of animated candies. I remembered the tune from my childhood, and was always glad to see it return.

There's two more commercials that aren't quite as memorable, but still deserve an honorable mention. "Ace is the Place With The Helpful Hardware Man." One survey determined this was one of the ten most effective ad jingles of all time. (The word "Ace" has nothing to do with hardware, but after hearing this catchy jingle, they were inextricably linked.) And "Hey, Culligan Man" isn't really an ad jingle - but it's still really memorable. It conveyed its message very effectively - that it's easy to get Culligan to install a water purification system.

There's some commercials you just can't forget.

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