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.

[T Minus Four]

Fizzies! Oh, I loved those! I wasn't allowed to have soda, but my Grandma let me have Fizzies.

[T Minus Four]

those straws with powdery stuff inside

Pixie sticks!

[Delbert]

What a trip. Cant believe they still make that stuff.

[Argh]

The only way to consume them was to take the Fizzie in little chunks directly on your tongue (and only the root beer ones). Putting them in water as intended made a pretty weak drink.

[far sider]

Libby's! Please bring back FRUIT FLOAT.

Also Betty Crocker had these great potato chips in a box (like a big cereal box). They were like Pringle's in a way but the tasted better. Anyone remember them?

[Wednesday's Child]

I just loved Sky Bars!
here's a great place to find "old time" candy and other goodies

www.hometownfavorites.com

it's a nice trip down memory lane!

[vollmond]

Do they have Mars bars (with almonds) anymore? I used to loooove those.

Rumor is, the new Snickers Almonds are Mars Bars rebranded for America.

[Cagey]

B-O... N-O... M-O... 
Oh, Oh, Oh...  it Bonomo's... Caaaaaaaaaaaandy !

And, there was nothing like smashing the wrapped bar on the sidewalk so you'd have all those small pieces of taffy. Banana was my favorite.

[Neets]

Clove Life Savers! But don't bring back Fizzies, thanks...

Ditto's

EEEK, are we showing our age here Arghie?

[EllaMinnow]

$12.99 for a 3-box pack of Quisp. Now that I'm thinking about it, I've got to have some.

Check this out: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3634911204&category=10790

[Billthedrill]

The candy-dots-on-paper thingy was a staple of my youth. I think I got most of my fiber that way.

[EllaMinnow]

I used to buy 25 cents worth of malted milk balls at the candy counter at Woolworths. They put them in a little pink striped bag...

It's a wonder that I still have all my own teeth.

[Argh]

Hi, Miss Neets! Yes, I'm old!! And there's not a damn thing I can do about it! (Don't you tell 'em a darn thing if you don't want to!)

By the way, Life Savers had a lot of interesting flavours they don't have anymore, but the Clove ones were quite strong and hit the spot from time to time.

[Pan_Yans Wife]

Black jack toffee!

[Billthedrill]

Yeah, now those were real malted milk balls, too, not this vegan carob stuff...

[Neets]

[luigi]

My sister got an assorted box of these old candies for me for my birthday last year. Pretty wild.

Anyone remember Jello 1-2-3?

[Argh]

Haha, nice memories!

[Merdoug]

I used to go into my local "Jim Dandy" after school every day and get a sucker that was half lemon and half lime flavored. Very sour and pure sugar.

[Graybeard58]

"The candy-dots-on-paper thingy was a staple of my youth. I think I got most of my fiber that way"


...Ditto. I always ate about as much paper as candy. Didn't kill me.