WILMINGTON – Halloween is near!
Children and parents alike are prepping their costumes and makeshift candy bags for the one night a year when it’s not weird to go door to door begging for food.
Or more specifically, candy.
Americans eat about 20 pounds of candy every year and Halloween night accounts for a big “bite” of that number.
What’s better than eating a pound of candy in one sitting?
Learning interesting candy trivia at the same time, of course!
So, ignore the lazy “Please take one” sign and help yourself to some fun candy facts!
The Snickers Bar Was Named for a Horse
Frank and Ethel Mars (creators of The Milky Way Bar and accounting for 1 out of 2 “m’s” on the M&M) were just a few months away from releasing their newest candy bar when Ethel’s favorite horse, Snickers, suddenly died.
The couple decided to honor Snickers by naming their newest creation in his honor.
Reece’s Pieces Were Not the Original Choice in E.T.
Director Steven Speilberg had preferred to use M&M’s in the famous movie scene where Elliot lures E.T. out into the open with a trail of candy.
That was until the Hershey Company, creators of Reece’s Pieces, offered to pay $1 million to use their product instead.
And thus, a booming industry of product placement was born.
Candy Corn Does Not Have Separate Flavors
Don’t let the three colors fool you. Although some people will swear they can taste a difference, Candy Corn is made of the same ingredients all the way through, so every part of the candy tastes identical.
And that taste is terrible.
PEZ Dispensers Were Originally Intended for Smokers
Created in Austria in 1927, PEZ candies where marketed towards smokers as a healthier alternative to cigarettes because their creator, Eduard Haas II, thought of smoking as a bad habit.
Originally served in metal tins, the iconic PEZ dispenser didn’t come along until some 20 years later and was designed to be similar to the flicking of a lighter and more attractive to the smoker market.
Cotton Candy Was Invented by a Dentist
As a dentist, what better way is there to guarantee customers for life than to create a delicious, easy to consume, pure sugar product that was originally marketed under the name “Fairy Floss”?
That’s just good business sense.
3 Musketeers Was Not Named for the Famous Swordsmen
The candy bar originally featured 3 different flavors – chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry.
However, vanilla and strawberry (and pretty much everything else) were scarce during World War II so the candy bar company dropped its two hard-to-find flavors and simply kept the name.
Salt Water Taffy Came From a Sarcastic Response
In 1883, a bad storm struck the Atlantic City boardwalk and many candy shops were flooded as a result. According to folklore, a young girl walked up to one of these candy counters and requested a treat.
The shopkeeper, dismayed by the damage the storm had caused, sarcastically told her that all they had left was “saltwater” taffy.
The name stuck and you can now get the chewy treat in many different flavors, except for saltwater of course.
Let your new knowledge of candy trivia help guide you through awkward small talk at your office’s Halloween party or when meeting fellow parents out dragging their crying children door-to-door in search of that perfect piece of Halloween candy.
So stay safe out there this Halloween night!
And remember: Candy Corn is terrible.
