Avengers (candy) Assemble!

Posted on May 4, 2012 by Jason Liebig

Unless you’ve been living under a pop-culture rock, you are probably aware that Marvel Comics’ much-anticipated film, The Avengers, premieres today.  I won’t be seeing it today, but I’ll likely take in the flick before the end of the weekend.

As a former Marvel Comics editor, I feel it’s appropriate to acknowledge this occasion with a related post.  And it just so happens that there have been a few pieces of Avengers-related candy to collect, over the years.

Warner-Lambert – Charleston Chew – Vanilla – Avengers 30th Anniversary – Captain America – candy wrapper – 1993

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Posted in 1990's, Hershey, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Freeze’em & Eat’em – A Historical Sampler of Cool Confections

Posted on May 3, 2012 by Jason Liebig

It’s May, and we are slowly working our way to the hot summer months.  And really, after an afternoon of frolicking outdoors, who doesn’t enjoy a fresh-from-the-fridge Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup, or something similar?

Throwing candy bars in the freezer is something that when I first did it, or first heard about doing it, I thought it was a new invention.  I was wrong of course, and it turns out that candy bars and your freezer have been friends for a very long time.

M&M-Mars - "Freez 'em n Eat 'em!" letterhead - late 60's early 70's

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Posted in 1970's, 1980's, 1990's, Hershey | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Wacky Wednesdays – Czechlets!

Posted on May 2, 2012 by Jason Liebig

It’s another edition of Wacky Wednesdays, and today we’re going to take a look at the inspiration for the sticker Czechlets, from 1974’s Wacky Packages series 9.

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Posted in 1970's, Gum, Topps, Wacky Packages | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

From the Oddball Files – Australia’s LifeSavers Musk flavor.

Posted on May 1, 2012 by Jason Liebig

Ah, flavor… it’s a funny thing, especially where candy is concerned.   What one person finds delicious, another finds awful.   I don’t spend too much time discussing the flavors of candy, as that’s not what the focus on this site is about, but today’s article requires that I do.

Flavor preferences can diversify quite a bit when you travel around the world.  I recently had a friend explain that he’d offered a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup to someone overseas, and the person he offered it to thought it tasted terrible.  To me, that’s crazy because Reese’s PB Cups are one of the most delicious treats ever.   But that illustrates that each culture has its own traditional flavors and palettes.

When I first started collecting candy packaging, one of the surprises I encountered was that in Australia, there was a flavor of LifeSavers I’d never heard of before, and one that I found particularly odd – Musk.

Australia - LifeSavers Musk candy roll - 1980's

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Posted in 1950's, 1980's, Hard Candy, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

The One-Pound Snickers – They call it “Slice ‘n Share”.

Posted on April 30, 2012 by Jason Liebig

A short post today about a big candy bar.

I collect current candy packaging as well as the vintage stuff, and I’ll be honest, I don’t eat everything I buy.  If I did, I’d have to buy a new wardrobe every few months.  This is especially true for especially large candy bars.

Last month, I found something new in the realm of really big candy bars.  A one-pound Snickers bar.

For decades you’ve been able to buy giant Hershey bars, and even giant Hershey Kisses.  But in the last few years, they’ve come out with a one-pound pair of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, too.  It would appear these have all been a success, because it’s led to this:

Snickers - Slice N Share - the Giant 16 ounce Snickers!

That’s a standard-sized bar right in front of it.   It’s kind of crazy, but probably perfect for birthday parties and similar occasions.

And that’s all for today.

Posted in Chocolate | 5 Comments

Attack of the Zombie Candy – Australia’s Zombie Chews!

Posted on April 28, 2012 by Jason Liebig

Ah… Zombies… what’s not to love?

I’ve been a fan of zombies as long as I can remember.  I think my first exposure to them was through the pages of Starlog magazine (or maybe it was Fangoria) and their coverage of the then-new film by George Romero, Dawn of the Dead.  That film became one of my long-time favorites when I finally saw it a few years later.

These days, zombies are all the rage, and that’s just fine with me, especially when it means we get quality entertainment like AMC’s The Walking Dead.  But how does this tie into CollectingCandy.com, you ask?

Well, zombies have even made their way into the confectionery world (and no, I’m not talking about 30-year old Snickers bars as “zombie” candy).  Though they haven’t made their way to the United Sates just yet, Australia’s Sweetmans company has been producing a line of zombie-inspired treats for a number of  years now.  They are — Zombie Chews!

Australia - Sweetmans - Zombie Chews Mini Fun Size 12-piece bag - 2009

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Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Wacky Wednesdays – Scary Jane!

Posted on April 25, 2012 by Jason Liebig

Today’s edition of Wacky Wednesdays is from 1974’s Wacky Packages series 10 – Scary Jane.

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Fun Dip and Lik-M-Aid – A powdery-sugar-filled retrospective.

Posted on April 24, 2012 by Jason Liebig

I am excited to finally be getting to today’s post, as I’ve wanted to cover the subject of Fun Dip for a long time.  It’s good that I waited, as the last couple of months have provided key pieces of information on the background of the brand.

Fun Dip is such a unique confectionery treat that it leaves a tasty sugary residue in the consciousness of anyone who has ever tried it.  It certainly did for me, and I absolutely recall the first time I found this at my local Woolworth’s store, and how amazed I was at the unique experience of consumption that it provided.   At least in the United States, there’s never been anything quite like Fun Dip that stuck around for any amount of time.

What might surprise readers is that one of the key components in Fun Dip, that Lik-m-Aid powder, has been around at least 60 years.  Today, I will cover the earliest versions of that product, and track its development all the way to today.

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Posted in 1950's, 1960's, 1970's, 1980's, 1990's, Wonka | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 47 Comments

Topps’ Fruit Fizz and Cola Fizz – A new candy discovery from the late 70’s.

Posted on April 21, 2012 by Jason Liebig

It’s not often that I discover images of something produced by Topps in the mid-to-late-70’s that I’d never seen before.   After doing years of resarch and collecting, I’d assumed I’d at least come across photos of every one of their produced confections.  But a few weeks ago, I came upon images of a pair of products I’d never seen before:  Topps Cola Fizz and Fruit Fizz.

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Posted in 1970's, Bubble Gum, Gum, Topps | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment