We’ve all seen it. To boost sales of their product the makers run a prize competition. A few lucky cans have the special coloured ringpull that shows you’ve won a prize.
When did this begin? Specifically, did anyone run this sort of competition before Roald Dahl wrote Charlie & The Chocolate Factory?
After the book? After the first movie?
The idea of a “prize” in the package to help sales likely started with Cracker Jack back in the early 1900’s.
Those were just small toys though, weren’t they? And in every box? It wasn’t a case of a few lucky winners getting a BIG prize?
Checking on Wikipedia, it seems that it was described as a “toy surprise” rather than a prize.
(I’m not that familiar with them. I’m British, and I don’t think we had them over here. I just know that there ain’t a Coupe De ville at the bottom of a Cracker Jack box)