Smitty - Wheaties Cereal mask (1940s-50s) - backside

This vintage Smitty mask comes directly from the backside of a Wheaties cereal box, dating to the 1940s–1950s. The mask features the wide-eyed, mischievous face of Smitty, a popular newspaper comic strip character created in the early 1920s by cartoonist Walter Berndt.

The Smitty strip ran in hundreds of papers nationwide for decades, capturing the humor and everyday adventures of a young office boy and his friends. During the golden age of cross-promotions, Wheaties capitalized on the character’s popularity by including him in their cereal-box mask series, giving children the chance to “become” Smitty through play.

Most kids eagerly cut these masks out, tied them on with string, and discarded them after use—making uncut survivors like this a rare glimpse into mid-century pop culture.

Date: 1940s–1950s

Character: Smitty (from Walter Berndt’s comic strip)

Origin: Wheaties Cereal box premium

Size: 10 x 11 inches

Condition: Backside panel with vivid graphics, age wear consistent with vintage advertising material