Five Famous Female Frontwomen

In 1921, Gold Medal Flour cooked up the name Betty Crocker as a way of personalizing responses to customer letters. Advice from Betty was so popular that the company decided to create the mascot Betty in 1936. Her look has been updated seven times since (most recently in 1996), morphing from a matronly lady to one who today embodies four brand attributes: She’s resourceful, committed to family, community-minded and likes to bake. Alas, Betty doesn’t make personal appearances—but she’ll still send you baking tips. There’s always a Betty on duty at General Mills HQ and, as associate marketing manager Maria Jaramillo assures us, “she is on top of the latest food trends.”