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Michigan man credited with inventing Pop-Tarts dies at 96

Pop-Tarts went from concept to shelves in just 4 months

In this April 29, 2013, file photo, Kellogg's brand Strawberry flavored Pop-Tarts are arranged for a photo in Surfside, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File) (Wilfredo Lee, Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

The Michigan man credited with inventing the popular toaster pastry Pop-Tarts has died at 96.

William (Bill) Post began his career as a part-time worker washing trucks at Hekman Biscuit Company, later known as the Keebler Company. After serving in the Army Air Corps in occupied Japan, he returned to that part-time job and worked his way up the corporate ladder, according to his obituary.

When he was 21, he worked at Hekman full-time as the personnel manager and assisted with sales, production, and anything else that he could learn. It would be another 20 years before the Pop-Tart was invented. Post was working as the plant manager for Hekman when executives from Kellogg’s asked the company to create a new product.

William LaMothe was one of those executives and would soon become one of Post’s close friends. Post is credited for inventing the Pop-Tart, but he said it was a collaborative effort.

According to his obituary, “Bill would say, ‘I assembled an amazing team that developed Kellogg’s concept of a shelf-stable toaster pastry into a fine product that we could bring to market in the span of just four months.’ The collaboration and growth of Kellogg’s and Keebler continued until Kellogg’s finally purchased the Keebler company.”

In 1967, Post moved his family to Elmhurst, Illinois, and worked at the corporate offices of the Keebler Company. When he was 56, he left the company and retired to Glen Arbor, Michigan. He did work as a consultant for Kellogg’s for 20 years. In 2003, Post and his wife, Florence (Schut), moved back to Grand Rapids to be near family. His wife, six siblings and their spouses preceded him in death.

Netflix is releasing a movie telling the story of the invention of the Pop-Tart. “Unfrosted: The Pop-Tart Story” is starring, written by, and directed by Jerry Seinfeld. It is set in Michigan in 1963, the year before Pop-Tarts reached grocery store shelves.

According to Netflix, “Michigan, 1963. Kellogg’s and Post, sworn cereal rivals, race to create a pastry that will change the face of breakfast forever. A tale of ambition, betrayal, sugar, and menacing milkmen, Unfrosted stars writer-director Jerry Seinfeld.”

The film’s cast also includes Melissa McCarthy, Jim Gaffigan, Amy Schumer, Hugh Grant, Max Greenfield, Christian Slater, Bill Burr, Daniel Levy, James Marsden, Jack McBrayer, Thomas Lennon, Bobby Moynihan, Adrian Martinez, Sarah Cooper, and Fred Armisen.


About the Author
Kayla Clarke headshot

Kayla is a Web Producer for ClickOnDetroit. Before she joined the team in 2018 she worked at WILX in Lansing as a digital producer.

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