Whatever Happened to Frito Bandito?

If you watched television in the late 1960s, chances are you were introduced to the animated mascot for Fritos Corn Chips. Wearing a sombrero, sporting a thin mustache, stubble, a gold tooth, and carrying two six-shooter pistols on his hips, the Frito Bandito was created by Foote, Cone & Belding, animated by Tex Avery (the same animator who created Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck), and voiced by Mel Blanc, who also voiced Speedy Gonzales and Porky Pig. While Frito corn chips thought the cartoon mascot was a win, many advocacy groups, including the National Mexican-American Anti-Defamation Committee found the Frito Bandito campaign to be racist. With a Mexican accent and jingle, the NMAADC found the Mexican bandit to be highly disrespectful.

Frito-Lay eventually retired the Frito Bandito commercial in 1971 and moved on to promoting the company with the muncha bunch.