Per the Pillsbury website, over 50 people auditioned to be the voice of the Pillsbury Doughboy. The job went to Paul Frees, who also voiced the character Boris Badenov on "The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle" — talk about range! Within three years, the Pillsbury Doughboy had an 87% recognition rate among consumers, and at one point, he received 200 fan letters each week as well as 1,500 requests for an autographed photograph.
So what is the Pillsbury Doughboy's name? It's never been a secret; per General Mills, the very first words spoken by the character were "Hi, I'm Poppin' Fresh, the Pillsbury Doughboy!" According to Pillsbury, that first commercial appearance aired on November 7, 1965, and Poppin' Fresh literally popped out of a can of dough, just as Rudy Perz had originally imagined when he came up with the character. Nevertheless, Poppin' Fresh had his own "Charles Entertainment Cheese" moment in 2017, even getting a Buzzfeed article devoted to the shock the writer felt upon learning his name.
Poppin' Fresh went on to appear in over 600 ads for 50 different Pillsbury products. In 1972, a Poppin' Fresh vinyl toy doll was released and it instantly became a best-selling toy. A year later, Pillsbury introduced Poppin' Fresh's family: partner Poppie Fresh, Granmommer and Granpopper, Uncle Rollie, son Popper, daughter Bun-Bun, dog Flapjack, and cat Biscuit. Per Advertising Week, Poppie Fresh appeared in some ads and the entire family was available as vinyl toys, some of which are archived at General Mills.
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