Gum
What bubble gum brand, introduced in 1947 and popularized in the 1950s, is known for its comic strip wrappers?
Bazooka Bubble Gum. Bazooka Bubble Gum was introduced shortly after World War II and reportedly was named after the bazooka, a new weapon used to destroy tanks during the war
What classic gelatin desert became a household staple in the 1950s?
Jell-O. There is an entire museum dedicated to Jell-O in Le Roy, New York, where it was invented.
Which popular candy bar, introduced in 1932 and widely enjoyed in the 1950s, consists of nougat topped with caramel and covered in milk chocolate?
Mars bar. From 1939 to 1945, Mars bars were distributed to troops in the UK and prisoners of war in Germany.
What candy, first introduced in 1925, is a caramel lollipop known for its long-lasting chew and was originally called the Papa Sucker?
Sugar Daddy. The lesser known Sugar Mama was a chocolate-covered caramel version of the Sugar Daddy.
What iconic question is repeatedly asked in the classic Tootsie Pop commercial from the 1970s?
“How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?” Engineering students at Purdue University built a “licking machine” modeled after the human tongue to find out. They reported that it took the machine an average of 364 licks. When they repeated the test with human volunteers, the average was 252 licks to reach the center.
In the 1960s, which gum brand became one of the first to introduce sugar-free gum in the United States?
Trident. Trident was marketed as beneficial for dental health because it helped increase saliva production, which can neutralize acid and prevent tooth decay.
What layered dessert, featuring cake, custard, and fruit, became especially popular at parties in the 1960s?
Trifle. The Italian variation is called zuppa inglese, which features sponge cake and is layered with pastry cream.
What candy, introduced in 1940, features a peppermint center covered in dark chocolate and is known for its minty flavor?
York Peppermint Pattie. They were named after York, Pennsylvania, where the York Cone Company was based. Hershey bought the York company in 1988.
What candy, known as the oldest branded candy in the United States, features a licorice center coated in pink-and-white candy shells?
Good & Plenty. Good & Plenty rose in popularity thanks to its mascot, Choo-Choo Charlie, a fictional train engineer who powered his engine with the candies.
Which character in the Tootsie Pop commercial is known for his role as the wise figure who often tries to answer the central question?
The owl. The owl is voiced by actor Paul Winchell, a well-known ventriloquist and voice actor
Which gum, introduced in the 1950s, became known for its long-lasting flavor and was advertised as “double your pleasure, double your fun”?
Doublemint Gum. Jayne and Joan Boyd were the first “Doublemint Twins” in the brand’s long-running “double” commercials.
What popular 1950s dessert is flipped before serving, placing the fruit on top?
Pineapple upside-down cake. Canned pineapple became widely available in the early 1900s, thanks to the Dole Company. This accessibility—and its affordability—made the upside-down baked dessert more popular.
What out-of-this-world chocolate bar features a unique combination of milk chocolate and a smooth, creamy center?
Milky Way. Frank Mars created the candy bar in 1923. In 1926, two varieties were available: chocolate nougat with milk-chocolate coating and vanilla nougat with a darkchocolate coating. Now, there are many different varieties of Milky Ways.
What candy, introduced in 1939, features a crunchy, maltedmilk center covered in a milk-chocolate coating and is often sold in theater-sized boxes?
Whoppers. Whoppers were first introduced as “Giants” and were rebranded in 1949.
In the classic Tootsie Pop commercial, how many licks does the owl claim it takes to reach the Tootsie Roll center?
Three licks. That’s all the owl could manage before giving up and chomping his way to the center, which led to the famous tagline “The world may never know.”
What iconic gum brand introduced the first commercially available bubble gum tape in the 1988?
Hubba Bubba. Hubba Bubba Bubble Tape made it easy to tear off just the right amount for the bubble you wanted to make. The brand’s biggest selling point was that it was less sticky, making it easier to blow large bubbles without the gum sticking to your face.
Which cold dessert, made with layers of cake and ice cream, was a showstopper at 1960s dinner parties?
Baked Alaska. Baked Alaska defies the expectations that ice cream would melt when put in the oven thanks to the meringue covering, which helps trap the air to act as an insulator.
Which candy bar, introduced in 1967, features a biscuit base topped with caramel and covered in milk chocolate and is known for its “Two for me, none for you” tagline?
Twix. The Twix bar was first introduced in the UK and several other European countries as the “Raider,” but it was changed to Twix in 1991 to match the American branding of the bar.
Which candy bar, introduced in the 1920s, is known for its combination of peanuts, caramel, and nougat and is often mistakenly associated with a famous baseball player?
Baby Ruth. The Baby Ruth candy bar was said to be named after Ruth Cleveland, the daughter of President Grover Cleveland.
Who sang “On the Good Ship Lollipop” in the 1934 film Bright Eyes?
Shirley Temple. Temple played Shirley Blake in the film. This was her first starring role, and she became one of the highest-paid actresses of her time. Some sources report that Temple earned $50,000 per film at the height of her career.
Which chewing gum brand, introduced by Wrigley in 1893, is known for its distinct fruity flavor and was heavily marketed in the 1960s with the slogan “The taste is gonna move ya”?
Juicy Fruit. A pack of Juicy Fruit gum became the first product ever scanned using a Universal Product Code (UPC) barcode, at a Marsh Supermarket in Ohio in 1974.
Which frozen dessert, introduced in the 1960s, was celebrated for its convenience and included swirls of vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry?
Neapolitan ice cream. The first original flavors were pistachio, vanilla, and cherry, inspired by the colors of the Italian flag.
What iconic chocolate bar, introduced in the 1900 and famous for its simple milk-chocolate taste, is often referred to as “The Great American Chocolate Bar”?
Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Bar. Milton Hershey ran a successful caramel company before experimenting with milk and chocolate, which shifted his focus.
Which candy, introduced in 1949, consists of small, colorful, fruit-flavored tablets that are often packaged in cylindrical rolls?
Smarties. In 2021, Nestlé announced that Smarties would be sold in recyclable paper packaging to help reduce plastic waste.
“On the Good Ship Lollipop,” Temple sings of sailing on a magic ship to “where bon-bons play on the sunny beach of”—which place?
: Peppermint Bay. After retiring, she became actively involved in public service and was appointed the U.S Ambassador to Ghana.