In 1933, Post Grape-Nuts sponsored Sir Admiral Byrd’s expedition to Antarctica, where the first two-way radio transmission occurred. At the time, maps of the expedition even appeared on Grape-Nuts boxes. This was a huge milestone in the scientific community, and Grape-Nuts helped make it possible!

During World War II operations before 1944, Grape-Nuts was part of the Jungle rations that helped fuel US and Allied forces on extended missions to Panama and other tropical parts of the world.

In 1953, New Zealand explorer Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay took Grape-Nuts with them for efficient, nutritious energy as they trekked to the top of Mount Everest, becoming the first climbers in history to reach the summit. It is the ultimate example of man’s persistence in the face of the seemingly impossible feat, and Grape-Nuts was there for every high-altitude step along the way.

Arguably, Grape-Nuts is to thank for The Andy Griffith Show. Post sponsored a late-1950s TV series, The Danny Thomas Show, but it depicted a discordant, urban family life that conflicted with Post’s wholesome family image. So, in an episode promoting Grape-Nuts, Danny Thomas visited Mayberry, the fictional small town that has since become an all-American icon. Here, America met and immediately fell in love with Sheriff Andy Taylor. A spin-off premiered in 1960, and The Andy Griffith Show quickly became a staple in American culture. What’s more, commercial breaks featured Andy Griffith and co-star Don Knotts heralding the goodness of Grape-Nuts.

Grape-Nuts was briefly at the forefront of the “return to nature” movement sweeping parts of the country in the 1960s and 1970s after being paired with wild-food-expert-turned-spokesperson, Euell Gibbons. His appearance in a 1974 commercial for Grape-Nuts, which featured Gibbons uttering the famous line, “Ever eat a pine tree? Many parts are edible,” turned him into a pop culture sensation and turned Grape-Nuts into the cereal for health-conscious breakfast lovers.