Soda crackers or “saltines’ are thin, square cracker made
from white flour, yeast, and baking soda, with surface perforations and with a
distinctively dry and crisp texture. They were known as early as the mid 19th
century.
A very early pre-war LION SODA CRACKERS Ad
One Philippine cracker classic is the LION
BRAND SODA CRACKERS, manufactured by M.Y. San Co., Inc. TheMar family, whose patriarch Mar Yuck San had
come to the Philippines from Guangdong in 1900, had established a soda fountain
business. Like Clarke’s Ice Cream Parlor, they put up a bakery headed by Mar
Chew, a relative who had learned baking in Hawaii.
LION'S SODA CRACKERS, Print Ad, 1966
One of the first such products that were served in the
restaurant were soda crackers known for their crispy quality that were perfect
for eating with jams, butter, and marmalade. By the ate 1930s, they were so
popular that they were sold commercially under the brand name LION BRAND SODA CRACKERS, with the
familiar lion trade character. The earliest advertisements came out in 1940.
LION'S SODA CRACKRS, print ad, 1969
The brand name was eventually shortened to LION’S SODA CRACKERS in the 1960s, and
the LION brand was also used for its mixed biscuits offerings. M.Y. San the
produced another line of soda crackers named ‘SkyFlakes” in the 60s that proved
to be a bigger hit than LION.
LION'S SODA CRACKERS, Print Ad, 1971
LION’S
SODA CRACKERS though continued to be produced all the way thru the 1990s,
metamorphosing as LION’S Cream Crackers.
Nissin Monde now owns M.Y. San, as its subsidiary Monde M.Y. San, which continues to produce its
bestsellers like SkyFlakes, Fita, Graham Crackers—but LION brand of crackers
and bsicuits have been discontinued with the phase-out of the LION’S Cream
Cracker line.
OMNIBUS M.Y. SAN Ad, with LION'S SODA CRACKERS, 1987
Before, preparing noodle soups and dishes was a chore:
one had to get fresh noodles or dry bihon
from the market, cooked at home, garnished with vegetables and flavor-enriched
with spices and condiments. You can also buy Royal Continental chicken noodles in packs (Royco), but they take awhile to cook. The other option was to buy from a suking mamihan or panciteria.
The creation of the world’s first instant noodles in 1958
by Taiwanese-Japanese Momofuku Ando in Japan changed all that. His company,
Nissin, invented a process of flash-frying noodles after they have been made, giving
birth to the “instant noodles”. His first product was Chicken Ramen.
In many countries, including the Philippines, instant
noodles in individual packs have become basic food items for almost all households—tasty,
easy to prepare, and so affordable. But it would take decades before Japan’s
best-selling noodles would be introduced to the Philippines.
At first, NISSIN’S
RAMEN was imported from Japan, and then distributed in outlets –groceries and
supermarkets—packed in their distinctive red (chicken) and blue (beef) pouches with Japanese scripts. The flavorful NISSIN’S RAMEN became an instant hit among
Filipinos, and by the 1980s, the brand was actively advertising in newspaers
and magazine.
GARY LISING & NISSIN'S RAMEN, print ad, 1990.
The first NISSIN’S
RAMEN ads that featured a celebrity were launched in 1987, starring the irrepressible
Gary Lising, the “Bob Hope” of the Philippines, who helped popularized the
American stand-up comedy style of entertainment. The Ateneo graduate wrote and
performed his own (green) material in zany comedy show “Champoy” aired on
Channel 9. Pretty soon, he was appearing in scores of movies (‘Wander Woman si
Ako”, “Erpats Kung Forgets”, “Run Barbi Run”, etc.). Lising appeared as the main presenter of NISSIN'S RAMEN under the "Busog ka sa Sarap" campaign theme.
WATCH GARY LISING BACK ON STAGE HERE IN SHANG-RILA HERE:
uploaded by Herminio Mendiola
The windfall success
of NISSIN’S RAMEN prompted other
companies to branch out to noodle production after realizing the potential of
the noodle market. Lucky Me! was introduced in 1989 by biscuit company, Monde,
and would give NISSIN’S RAMEN stiff
competition. The next year, Semexco Marketing Corp., which already had a winner
with its beverage, Zest-O Juice Drink,joined the noodle bandwagon in 1990 with the launch of QUICKCHOW.
QUICKCHOW laid
claim to being “the first brand to
introduce rice noodles”, and made
headway in the market, capturing the Southern Philippine market that propelled
it to third place nationally.
QUICK CHOW & MR. SHOOLI, print ad, 1990
Helping push QUICKCHOW
was the versatile JUN URBANO, who
used his very popular “Mr. Shooli” character in the launch ads for the noodle
brand in 1990. Urbano, the son of actor-director Manuel Conde, had his start in
advertising as a hugely successful commercial director, megging many classic
San Miguel Beer ads in the 80s.
WATCH MR. SHOOLI' s PERFORMANCE HERE:
Source: GMA Network
In 1985, he created and portrayed the character
“Mr. Shoo-li” who first appeared in “Not So Late Night with Edu”. His satirical political commentaries delivered in his
signature Chinese accent became a certified TV hit. This led to his own talk
show, “Mongolian Babecue”. In 1991, he even starred in a film, “Juan Tamad at
Mr. Shooli: Mongolian Barbecue”.
Today, the noodle brands that Gary Lising and Jun Urbano
endorsed are still going on strong. NISSIN’S
partnered with URC in 1996 to form Nissin
Universal Robina Corp. in the Philippines which now produces local NISSIN’S noodles, including cup noodles,
yakisoba, and Payless. QUICKCHOW can
still be enjoyed in these delicious varieties: palabok, pancit canton, toyomansi, guisado, La Paz batchoy.
However, Lucky Me! ! is the undisputed no. 1 instant noodle brand in the
country, which incidentally has also tied up with NISSIN to become Monde Nissin
Corp.
As to Gary Lising
and Jun Urbano, there is no
competition beyond their product endorsements. They are, in fact, good friends,
who first met as Ateneo students in
1961. They worked together in films like “M.O.N.A.Y. (Misteyks obda neyson adres Yata) ni Mr. Shooli” (1991), and most
recently in “Ibong Adarna” (2014), which Urbano directed. Lising had a health
setback in 2009, but recovered and bounced with help from his colleagues in the
industry,
