by JOE WINDISH

Oscar G. Mayer, who transformed his family business into one of the world's largest meat processors, died Monday. He was 95.

The fact that most of the public probably did not know that "Oscar Mayer" was a real person — actually he was the third member of his family to have that name — was fine with him, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. He liked his anonymity, even as his company was at one time the largest private employer in the Madison area.

For a certain generation of Americans, this is a jingle that accompanied their childhood:

The story behind the famous ad:

Oscar Mayer was bought by General Foods in 1981, and later by Kraft Foods. Kraft has set up a WeinerMobile home page and a Hot Dogger Blog. Check it out. More fun photos at Flickr. My pick: