Those metal cans made THE best yarn holders/dispensers for knitting and crocheting. Especially when they had the plastic lids you used after the can was opened. Put your yarn balls in the can, melt a little hole through the plastic lid and thread your yarn out. Kept the cats out of it and reduced tangling to nil. I miss those cans.
Alternatively, put the cat in the can with a hole punched in the lid. That also keeps the yarn safe, amirite?
For certain values of “safe,” sure! 
Are you sure the can was blue? MJB cans were blue-green or green during that era.
Yes. Very positive. It was not MJB either.
Thanks all who have tried to help.
MJB was my first thought. I have one of their empty cans sitting on an honored shelf. It belonged to my dear, departed sister, and was used for picking blueberries. It still has the string on it for hanging the can around one’s neck to leave both hands free for the picking activity. I remember doing this as far back as I can remember, probably 70 years. This can was the only thing I wanted from my sister’s estate, and her son rescued if for me. Looking at it brings fond memories of epic berry-picking excursions in Alaska.
Here are some old blue coffee cans I found online: