15 completely bizarre lunch boxes from back in the day

Did you have a metric system lunch box growing up?

Today, kids are probably buying fancy thermal lunch boxes or putting money on their ID cards to buy lunch at school. But back in the day, it was all about metal lunch boxes advertising our favorite TV shows, cartoons and music. Nothing made a statement like a lunch box, not even the outfit you wore on the first day of school. 

There were a lot of hits, but there were also a lot of misses. Here are some pretty random lunch boxes from the '70s and '80s that had us doing double takes. Did you have any of these in elementary school? If you did, we're sorry.

1. The Metric System

Oh man, we just know the science nerds had this lunch box.

2. California Raisins

We didn't have to hear it through the grapevine to know this one was a little bizarre. 

3. Sheriff (?) Ronald McDonald

Why is Ronald McDonald the sheriff of Cactus Canyon? And what is Birdie the Early Bird doing?

4. The Flying Nun

Popular among Catholic school students. 

5. Bedknobs and Broomsticks

Who remembers this Mary Poppins rip-off? 

6. Disco

There were lunch boxes for Donny, Marie and Bee Gees. But for those who didn't claim a favorite, they had this generic box. 

7. The Harlem Globetrotters

The Harlem Globetrotters were everywhere in the 1970s, even lunch boxes. Here they are playing on top of a bus.

8. Flipper

It was like having Lassie on your lunch box, except with more water. Perfect for carrying tuna fish sandwiches.

9. The Six Million Dollar Man

We're not sure why this scene was chosen for the lunch box, but it sends a statement: back off my food!

10. The Waltons

For those who weren't allowed to watch cartoons or listen to disco, there was always this lunch box. 

11. Laugh-In

Wait, who was actually allowed to watch this as a young child?

12. Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp

This box is just monkey business. Unfortunately, we weren't chummy enough with Lancelot to call him "Lance."

13. Little House on the Prairie

Similar to The Waltons, this lunch box let people know you played it safe. 

14. Land of the Giants

Land of the Giants was pretty cool. What's not so cool: this giant face watching you eat your PB&J. 

15. Bicentennial

This one was for the history nerds. Was there a product that wasn't turned red, white and blue during the bicentennial? Wait… are these kids excited the British are coming?


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5 Comments

FrenchFryPerson 39 months ago
I had that California Raisins lunch box. Completely forgot about it until I saw this story.
Russ 49 months ago
Why are these considered "bizarre"? They were all typical kinds of lunch boxes at the time.
idkwut2use 49 months ago
I would actually love a lot of those...especially the raisins, Bedknobs & Broomsticks, "disco," Laugh-In, or Flipper...xD
Amalthea 49 months ago
I don't get why any of these are "bizarre" (except for the metric one, and maybe Sheriff Ronald). What's wrong with having a lunch box with a popular show or movie? Also, a few corrections: 1) "Bedknobs & Broomsticks" were both Disney, so you really can't call it a "ripoff"; the Harlem Globetrotters one was based on their cartoon, and their bus could do that; 3) My whole family watched "Laugh-In" together; I was preschool age when it came out. Just about everyone watched it. It was a fun, funny show; 4) As you, yourself said, EVERYTHING was red, white & blue in '76. The Bicentennial was a time to be proud to be an American.
Russ Amalthea 49 months ago
I didn't read your post before I put mine up. I'm leaving mine up since I agree with you. MeTV just likes to go with the "catchy and cute" headline to garner clicks. I also don't like their "forgotten" or "things you don't remember" articles. I remember most of what they post about.
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