In 1999, a favorite holiday commercial was a grandma using Cheerios to teach her grandbaby about where their family lives. The baby then eats the Cheerios.
In 2020, the baby is a 21-year-old studying media at Georgia Tech. She and “grandma” have reunited for a new commercial this holiday season.
Delfina Booth told Yahoo Life she doesn’t remember filming “Baby’s First Christmas,” considering she was only 9 months old. But TikTok personality Cori Spruiell, who has more than 200,000 followers on the platform, remembers seeing it when she was about 9.
Spruill is the one who had the idea to update the commercial because 2020 is all about distance between loved ones.
“I think it’s one of those (commercials) that really lives in the public consciousness,” Spruiell told Yahoo Life. “Rewatching it, I was like, wait, this is actually incredibly poignant and it’s very relevant today — that theme of togetherness at the holidays no matter what.”
For those who don’t remember — or have never seen — the original commercial, it was about an infant Booth celebrating her first Christmas with her grandmother, played by actress Peggy Miley.
“Grandma wanted to be here for your first Christmas,” grandma tells granddaughter. “She came a loooong way.”
She then uses Cheerios as makeshift cities to show the infant where their relatives live throughout the United States, adding, “But no matter where Grandma lives, we’ll always be together for Christmas.”
In the updated version, Booth is alone in her home when the doorbell rings. She finds a box of Cheerios outside with a note from grandma saying “Call me.” As the two video chat, grandma again tells her that “no matter where grandma lives, we’ll always be together for Christmas.”
You can watch the new ad below.
“Family togetherness is at the heart of this 20-year-old, iconic Cheerios commercial and that’s something that isn’t going to be physically possible for many this holiday season,” Kathy Dixon, senior brand experience manager for Cheerios, told Yahoo Life of acting on Spruiell’s suggestion for an update. “Many of our fans remember the grandma character and the baby from the original spot so, what better time than now to refresh the commercial, empathize with our audiences and capture today’s reality.”
Booth told Yahoo Life she was excited to make a new commercial, but scared, too. Her family moved from New York City to Georgia when she was 2, and she never acted again.
For her, the ad is mostly a bit of trivia “that I’ll bring up if I need, like, a fun fact about myself.” People will often quote, “You just ate Dallas,” back at her.
“I don’t consider myself an actress now, so it was a little nerve-racking,” Booth said but added the crew soon put her at ease. She says she hopes the new commercial gives viewers the “comfort of nostalgia” as well as a reminder that it’s still possible to stay connected and that “we’re not as isolated as we feel.”
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