Jolly Jim (The Hobo) - Kelloggs Corn Flakes mask (1953) - backside

Original Jolly Jim cut-out mask from the back of a Kellogg’s Corn Flakes box, issued in 1953. Measures approx. 7.5" × 9.5".

This design — depicting the cigar-chomping “hobo” character Jolly Jim — reflects Kellogg’s mid-1950s cereal box promotion era, when masks of stock characters, animals, and theatrical types were given to children as cut-outs right on the packaging. While whimsical in spirit at the time, the theme of the “hobo” is a cultural relic of the post-war years, when vagabond imagery was still used in advertising and popular entertainment.

The mask stands out today as both a nostalgic oddity and a snapshot of the mid-century cereal premium craze. Uncut examples are increasingly tough to find, as most were cut up and discarded.