Cracker Jack

Cracker Jack is a famous American snack made of caramel-coated popcorn and peanuts.  The iconic Sailor Jack logo on the Cracker Jack box was modeled after Robert Rueckheim, the grandson of company co-founder, Frederick William Rueckheim.

Robert Rueckheim was the son of Edward Rueckheim (the eldest of the Rueckheim brothers who created the snack.  His likeness was captured and introduced as part of the brand's mascot artwork around 1916.  

Bingo the dog was the small dog accompanying Sailor Jack.  The character was based on a real-life stray dog named Russell, who was adopted in 1917 by partner Henry Eckstein.  Eckstein insisted the beloved pet be added to the packaging alongside the boy. 

In 1937, the artwork was refined, changing the boy's hat to white and shifting the dog's position.

It was first shown to the public at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair.  The name and slogan "The More you Eat, the More You Want" were registered in 1896. In that year, a coating process was perfected to stop the popcorn from sticking together, leading to the name 'Cracker Jack".  In 1908, the snack became famous when it was immortalized in the baseball anthem "Take Me Out to the Ball Game". 

Cracker Jack stopped including traditional physical toy prizes in 2016.  The most valuable Cracker Jack prizes are the 1914 and 1915 baseball cards.   Complete sets in near-mint condition are worth between $150,000 and $375,000 with individual star player cards that include the name, Ty Cobb commanding five-figure sums at auction.  Rare die-cast or pot-metal cars, trains and tin litho airplanes can fetch anywhere from $40 to over $100 depending on rarity and condition. 

In 1912, the snack began the tradition of putting a prize inside every box.