Did You Know Tuesday - Smarties Retro Candy

Smarties were a popular penny candy when I was growing up. You could get a roll for a penny at dimestores like Woolworths or Ben Franklin. They are little sweet wafers wrapped in a clear cellophane package. I always preferred them to SweetTarts, which have a taste that is more tart.  

Smarties were invented in 1949 by Edward "Eddie" Dee for his company, Ce De Candy, in New Jersey.  The candies are called Rockets in Canada.  These candies are currently produced in Union, New Jersey, and Newmarket, Ontario.  

They come in six colors (and flavors):  white (orange-cream), yellow (pineapple), pink (cherry), green (strawberry), purple (grape), and orange (orange).

This childhood favorite is completely vegan (see link from the Smarties website).   Plus, they are fun for Halloween -- or other times of year as well!

Do you remember this retro candy from your childhood?  Was it a favorite?

Did You Know Tuesday - PEZ

I'll admit right now:  I love PEZ.  Not just the cute dispensers, but the candy too.  

I grew up with PEZ.  There was always a PEZ dispenser in my Christmas stocking, my Easter basket, and various other times of year as well.  I still have a little family of PEZ dispensers, mostly with holiday and Peanuts themes.

PEZ was created in 1927 by Eduard Haas III in Vienna, Austria.  He initially planned to make a candy to help smokers stop smoking.  The initials PEZ are short for the German word for peppermint, "pfefferminz."  Early PEZ dispensers were shaped like a cigarette lighter.  

Plastic production slowed during World War II, but this product picked up again in 1952 (PEZ-Haas in New York City) -- and the cute PEZ dispensers first appeared in 1955.  The first dispensers were Santa Claus and Mickey Mouse.

In 2006 the original owners of the Pez company purchased 67.5% of the company stock, so the company is now headquartered in Traun, Austria, and Orange, Connecticut.  The candy is produced in Austria and Connecticut, while the dispensers are made in Hungary and China.

PEZ comes in many different flavors, but the most common flavors in the USA are grape, orange, lemon, raspberry, and strawberry.  There are 12 pieces of candy in a standard PEZ roll.

Many different PEZ characters have been available over the years.  These included some historical characters during the American Bicentennial (Betsy Ross, Paul Revere, Daniel Boone), Star Wars, Elvis Presley, The Wizard of Oz, and more.  Vintage PEZ dispensers can be quite valuable.  The most valuable PEZ dispensers were three political donkeys owned by President Kennedy (valued $13,000).

The all-time most popular PEZ dispenser is Santa Claus.  (No surprise here!)

Here are a few holiday PEZ ads you may enjoy.  This Halloween ad is lots of fun:

Vintage Christmas PEZ ad:

Vintage Valentine's Day PEZ ad:

Vintage Easter PEZ ad:

1950's spaceman PEZ ad:

Do you love PEZ?  Do you have any PEZ dispensers?  Would love to hear from you in the comments, below!

Did You Know Tuesday - National Milk Chocolate Day

Did you know that July 28 is National Milk Chocolate Day?  Chocolate bars were first invented in 1847 (but these were not milk chocolate bars).  In 1879 Rodolphe Lindt (yes, as in Lindt chocolate!) invented a conching machine which made smooth, creamy chocolate like we have today.  The same year, 1879, Daniel Peter made the first milk chocolate bar.

Milk chocolate tastes more like sugar and milk than cacao, and so it was originally marketed for children.  Most milk chocolate bars today have less than 33% cacao.  I will admit that I prefer the sweeter milk chocolate to dark chocolate, which has a stronger taste.

My favorite candy bar - and also my favorite milk chocolate - is the Hershey bar.  This candy bar was invented in 1900.  The vintage ad above shows all the 1950's varieties of Hershey bars.

How about you - do you like milk chocolate?  And what is your favorite milk chocolate bar?  I'd love to hear from you in the comments below.

Did You Know Tuesday: 5 Fun Facts About Pixy Stix

Do you remember Pixy Stix?  These little paper straws contained flavored, colored sugar.  They also came in GIANT plastic sticks.   (Those were highly sought after during my childhood.)

 Of course, they were also favorite Halloween treats.

I have not had Pixy Stix for many years ... they are too sweet for even me, a dedicated retro candy enthusiast.  But -- for some reason I was thinking about them and wanted to find out more.   Here are a few Pixy Stix facts for you:

1. They are Pixy Stix, not Pixie Sticks.  (I am not entirely sure that I knew this!)

2. This candy started out as Frutola in the 1930's.  The creator was J. Fish Smith.  Frutola was originally intended as a drink mix, but children preferred them as powdered sugar candy.

3. Pixy Stix as we know them today were first made in 1952 by the Sunline Company.  

4. The giant plastic Pixy Stix is 2 feet long.  Yes - two feet of sugar!

5. Pixy Stix are now made by Nestle under the Wonka brand.  Current Pixy Stix flavors:  Grape, Orange, Cherry, Lime, Shelly Belly, and Maui Punch

Do you remember Pixy Stix?  Do you still crave them, or are they too sweet for you now, too?  I'd love to hear from you in the comments, below.

blueberry, orange, watermelon, lemon, pineapple, strawberry, Maui punch, cherry, green apple and grape.

Read more : http://www.ehow.com/facts_5195333_invented-pixy-stix-candy_.html

blueberry, orange, watermelon, lemon, pineapple, strawberry, Maui punch, cherry, green apple and grape

Read more : http://www.ehow.com/facts_5195333_invented-pixy-stix-candy_.html

Throwback Thursday: Bottle Caps Candy

Sometimes I think of something retro and it sends me down a trail.  Bottle Caps are like that.  This candy was popular during my childhood.   It came in a packet (exactly like you see below, 1972) and had flat tablets that were shaped like soda bottle caps.  The tablets were flavored like soda pop, too:  grape, orange, cherry, root beer, and cola.  I remember these were sold at the little convenience store near my neighborhood's community swimming pool.   I would ride my bike or walk there with my friends on the way to or from the pool, and we would buy Bottle Caps.  This candy, which I haven't had since childhood, reminds me of summer.  Funny how retro memories work that way.

Do you remember Bottle Caps, or do you have similar candies that spark memories for you like these?  I'd love to hear from you in the comments, below.

Throwback Thursday: Brach's Pick-A-Mix Candy

Do you remember Brach's Pick-A-Mix candy displays at the grocery store?  I loved these as a little girl.   Here's an ad, probably early 1970's vintage:

You got a little paper bag, like the one in the ad, and filled it with an assortment of your favorite candies.  It was weighed at the checkout.

My favorite of the Brach's candies were the Nougats.  I haven't had these in years!

I also really liked the Neapolitan candies.  They reminded me of my favorite three stripe coconut candy bars.

My Mom or Dad must have liked these Royals, because we always had some of these in the Brach's bag.

Do you remember these Brach's assorted candies?  Which ones were your favorites?

Happy Vintage Halloween!

Happy Halloween!   This Brach's candy ad is from 1965.   What was your favorite Halloween treat?   I loved candy corn and all the classic candy bars - Hershey's, Three Musketeers, Milky Way, etc. etc. etc.  I remember the joy of coming home with a pillowcase full of candy to sort after trick or treating.