Here’s a letter to one of my favorite Aunts, probably one of yours, too…

Dear Aunt Jemima:

How come you never do any commercials? You should have your own cooking show on the Food Network! Are you just shy, or what? I can’t believe you haven’t even been on Oprah yet! What do you do with your free time? You don’t just stay home and cook all day, do you?

I’ve noticed that you’re looking a lot younger these days on the box. Tell the truth, did you sneak off and have a little plastic surgery? I promise not to tell if you did!

Can’t wait to hear back from you! If it’s not too much trouble could you please send an autographed color picture? If you don’t have one, a small wallet size photo would be great because my Aunts don’t photograph that well.

See you at breakfast in the morning!

The Quaker Oats Company Consumer Response Center responded with:

Thank you for contacting us.

We are very proud of the Aunt Jemima trademark, it has stood for quality and convenience to consumers for over 100 years. The Quaker Oats Company acquired the rights to the Aunt Jemima trademark and products in 1925. The trademark was first used in 1889 and registered in 1890.

The name “Aunt Jemima” was chosen by the inventor of the original ready-mix pancake product, Chris L. Rutt, a mill owner and former journalist in St. Joseph, Missouri. The trademark was inspired by a popular vaudeville routine of the late 1800s. Mr. Rutt wanted a product name to reflect the festive spirit long associated with pancakes, so he chose this trademark for his new convenience product.

Aunt Jemima was not a real person, she was brought to life by a series of skilled actresses. The first actress to portray the trademark was Nancy Green, who demonstrated pancake preparation at the 1893 World’s Fair and told stories about her life as Aunt Jemima. In 1933, Anna Robinson portrayed Aunt Jemima at the Century of Progress Exposition in Chicago. She continued her role as Aunt Jemima until 1951.

Several other women represented the Aunt Jemima image in local stores around the nation during Robinson’s reign, preparing the ready-mix product and telling stories. The most notable Aunt Jemima actresses were Aylene Lewis and Rosie Hall. Lewis hosted the Aunt Jemima kitchen at Disneyland. Hall was the last woman to portray the Aunt Jemima image. She gave demonstrations at state fairs from 1950 to 1967.

Aunt Jemima remains one of the world’s most enduring and recognizable trademarks and is updated periodically. It evokes feelings of warmth, dependability, caring and good cooking. Even after a host of revisions from its original image in 1889, the Aunt Jemima trademark has not deviated from this loving image. The trademark is now proudly displayed on a variety of products that are enjoyed by families throughout the world.

Final Thoughts: The Quaker Oats Company not only responded with that wonderful story, they included a lovely photo. Also enclosed were an Aunt Jemima “Favorite Family Recipes” booklet, including “Delicious ideas for Breads, Cakes, Cobblers, Muffins & More!” Plus, another booklet titled, “Breakfast on Maple Street With Aunt Jemima Lite® Syrup — A Celebration of Hometown Maple Street Recipes.” In that piece were recipes from regions around the country, tips for “Making Breakfast More Memorable,” uses for maple syrup during breakfast and beyond, plus two money-saving coupons off Aunt Jemima Syrup and Pancake Mix.

I’m not sure how Quaker would respond to my letter now (these letters were from 1997), but I can’t imagine a more complete customer service response. Some memorable replies are best left as is. If you’d like to see what Aunt Jemima has been up to from 1889 to today, check out “Aunt Jemima’s Historical Timeline.” It looks like the timing of my letter was perfect as the timeline focuses on 1996 back.

Other than pancakes, another thing I love getting stacks of is mail. So, I can tell you from experience that one way to satisfy your appetite for more information about a product or brand is to Write The Company.