Sweet-Tooth Fix For Baby Boomers: Nostalgic Candy

wlky ^ | 10-30-03

[wheelgunguru]

Baby Boomers can't seem to grow up, at least when comes to their taste in candy.

People who want to celebrate Halloween with wax lips, Gold Mine Gum and other hard-to-find candies from their youth are finding more companies catering to the middle-age sweet tooth.

The Woodstock Candy company in upstate New York is doing a booming business, catering to the boomers' sweet-tooth.

They have retro goodies like wax lips, candy cigarettes and those candy buttons on paper. But the company is up-to-date in marketing.

Boomers can buy their sugar fix from the Web site WoodstockCandy.com.

There's also a bow to the political correctness of the 21st century. Candy cigarettes are now called candy sticks. But some old-time favorites still provide a puff of sugar when you blow through a hole in the middle.

Bridget Sweeney-Bell says people are usually thrilled to find candy from their childhood is still available. She says candy buttons, Nik-L-Nip and candy cigarettes are big sellers this year on her Web site.

Tom Scheiman stocks 2,500 items in his Cleveland candy store, 200 of which he classifies as "nostalgic."

Nostalgic candy has become a niche in the $24 billion U.S. candy business, in part because the biggest candy makers like Wrigley and Pennsylvania-based Hershey have concentrated on fewer items, especially chocolate.

That means wax lips and Atomic Fireballs can be hard to find on store shelves.

[Politicalmom]

The stuff is actually pretty good as a hot drink....

[giotto]

Banana was my favorite.

(Homer Simpson's voice) Mmmmmmmm...isoamyl acetate. I remember those revolting bright yellow square things called "Banana Bikes" or "Banana Bites" or something. They were so greasy they coated one's lips with slimy banana-flavored oil. Probably the taffy you are referring to was a much higher class item than this, though.

[Politicalmom]

I seem to remember actually liking the orange ones, but when I think about eating one now, I get queasy. : )

[AppyPappy]

If I felt my dad's presence, I'd be ducking.

[katnip]

I think they were called "Now and Later". Banana was the best!

[Neenah]

Remember these ? Do you remember this old-fashioned peanut candy from your youth? Our customer who recommended it did. She wrote to tell us about the hard buttery shell that melts away to reveal the soft, creamy peanut butter filling—the best part in her opinion, and ours, too!

I found these at The Vermont Country Store If you are interested in nostalgia, get their free catalog ! It is wonderful !! Right down to real cotton long johns !

[Central Scrutiniser]

I remember fondly the space sticks, and the 1-2-3 (bleah!), the jellow pudding and the Jiffy cake mix. Zots were fun, with the ending, as were pop rocks! But we never had gummi stuff!

[Nea Wood]

The Vermont Country Store has Breck shampoo. I found it at my local Pavilion's grocery store, too (I'm in California.)

[Ol' Sox]

Sorry about your mom. Today was also the anniversary of my Dad's death. He passed on his birthday, 18 years ago. My wife told me she sensed that he stopped in to see my daughter once soon after she was born. Personally, I'm not sensitive to that kind of thing.

[Central Scrutiniser]

Not a problem, time heals all, I hear from her when I want. Her father died this year one week shy of 103, and then a brother died a few months later.

Woody Allen said it best: "I believe in Reincarnation, I just don't look forward to having to see the Ice Capades again"

[southriver4]

N****R toes is what i always knew, them i'm very sorry to say, in the south.

[giotto]

I think "Now and Later" is a different candy--still much higher class than the one I'm thinking of. This one was sold separately, cost a penny, was fairly large, about 1 inch square and about a half inch thick, and it had "Banana" in the name.

[katnip]

I only remember the Now And Later.

I looked at a nostalgic candy site. That actually sell those awful "Boston Baked Beans" if you remember those.

Red coating over peanuts.

[southriver4]

Boston Baked Beans are the best!

[Freakazoid]

I've got an antique store in my town that sells a lot of nostalgic/hard to find candy such as candy cigs, root beer barrels, Mary Janes, Bit-O-Honey, etc.

[FITZ]

http://www.groovycandies.com/

[Freakazoid]

I liked space sticks except for the peanut butter ones. The chocolates were groovy and the caramel were OK. yummm.

[giotto]

those awful "Boston Baked Beans"

Yes! Isn't it strange how one remembers such insignificant things. Of course, when you're a kid, candy is not an insignificant thing, especially if you were raised by a mother who refused to buy candy for fear it would rot teeth. Until I started earning my own money at age nine, I very rarely got any candy. That's probably why I'm such a sugar addict now. As usual, it's my mother's fault.

[Empireoftheatom48]

Hey are Chunkys still around?

[katnip]

We weren't allowed much candy or soda either.

On Sundays we were given a nickel to buy candy at the drug store after church. Soda was only if we were lucky enough to go the the candy store with Mom which was rare.
We'd sit at the counter and have chocolate egg creams and pretzel sticks.

My poor son will only have memories of going to 7-11 LOL.