1934-39 Wheaties Panels Sets

Posted on December 25, 2016 by Pre-War Cards

‘It’s In The Details’

Title	Wheaties Panels
Year	Various
Size	Various
Images	Black and White
Type	Food
Number in Set	200+

Wheaties Panels Overview

Beginning in 1934, Wheaties produced a series of sports panels on their cereal boxes. Today, these are still quite collectable. While this page focuses on panels from 1934-39 in the pre-war era, the company has produced many boxes after that as well.

Since the panels were part of cereal boxes, these are handcut and often will be found with uneven edges. The panels measure different sizes since many different series were created. Each series has its own look and design. Pictured here is a Joe DiMaggio baseball card from the 1937 Series 7, as well as a football and basketball issue. It should be noted that the 1935 and 1936 football issues feature collegians. Here’s a good look at the various designs throughout the years. Some of the designs are merely photos, some are more like advertisements, and some are even like miniature articles.

While the series all have their own unique design, some things are the same throughout them. The trademark Wheaties orange and blue colors, for example, are included across most of the series. And while some of the panels include color images, almost all depict players in black and white.

A few variations also exist. For example, Mickey Cochrane is pictured with both a white cap and a dark cap on his 1935 boxes.

Finally, most of the panels also include a player’s replica signature in addition to his or her image.

While baseball is the most popular of the sports featured on the panels, numerous different athletes in other sports, including football and basketball were included as well. In all, there are approximately 200 Wheaties panels in the pre-war card era.

Wheaties Panels Checklist

Below are the athletes that appeared on Wheaties boxes in the pre-war era from 1935 through 1939. While I believe this to be a pretty comprehensive list, it almost certainly is not complete. In addition, several athletes listed may have more than one box type in a given year.

Auto Racing