LTHForum.com

Forest Park sweets-maker Ferrara Pan Candy Co. will merge with Minnesota-based Farley's & Sathers Candy Co., the companies announced Wednesday. http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ ... 0072.story

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"A fruit is a vegetable with looks and money. Plus, if you let fruit rot, it turns into wine, something Brussels sprouts never do."
-- P. J. O’Rourke"

Well, at least it looks as if the Ferraras will still be involved. One hopes they'll still be making candy here.

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LAZ
Dining Chicago
Index to LTHForum Recipes, 2004-2008

God forbid Forest Park and Oak Park (when the wind is blowing northeast) no longer smell like Atomic Fireballs and Lemon Heads (depending on the day of the week).

My wife and I live less than a mile from Ferrara pan. Our favorite "neighborhood smells" are when they make the cherryheads or grapeheads.

Sure beats the hell out of when we lived in Canaryville and only had a rendered pork fat smell to look forward to when we got home.

Hopefully they remain in the area.

Decades ago, I used to live about 4 blocks from FP on the top floor of a building. Much of the time, I was in the direct path of the effluent from FP's stacks. If I left my windows open on Fireball day, it was brutal. I think Cherry day was my favorite, also. Back then they called them Cherry Chans with a caricature of a Chinese man on the box complete with coolie hat and a Fu Man Chu moustache (it was totally offensive). Funny how at the time, it was still OK to stereotype Asians, but not other minorities. I certainly understand why they changed the name of that one, but why change Alexander the Grape?

I believe it was Cherry Clan, right?

You may be thinking of Charlie Chan, another stereotype played to perfection on screen by Swedish Warner Oland (the guy was versatile).

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“We all have to stand before the kitchen gods.” Chef Jacob Sahaya Kumar Aruni

No, I am pretty sure it was Cherry Chan playing on the name Charlie Chan with a stereotyped mispronunciation of "Charlie" . I was wrong about the Coolie hat. It was Charlie Chan's bowler hat.

Here is a link to a picture of the box: http://www.candywrappermuseum.com/cherrychan.html
gotta love the intertubes, you can find anything

Apparently Cherry Chan was replaced with Cherry Clans which was not much more PC, since they kept the Chinese connection, and this time added the coolie hats.
http://www.candywrappermuseum.com/cherryclanbox.html

What do you know: they had both Cherry Chan AND Cherry Clan.

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“We all have to stand before the kitchen gods.” Chef Jacob Sahaya Kumar Aruni

Yeah I just discovered that and edited my previous post. Funny they changed it to Cherry Clans, which uses even more offensive imagery, but made no sense from a "pun" perpective.
According to the site (which is fantastic BTW), it was not the racist overtones that made them change the name, but a cease and desist order from Warner Oland's family.

BTW notice the package lost 5 grams in the transition?

Dave, I checked out your first link and scratched my head at " check out this amazing box of Candy Crafters' "Coolies" that museum guest Debby Wapner scanned for me. I don't normally post scans, but I thought this box was great. Debby says the copyright date is 1943. Definitely not a banner year for political correctness, especially when it came to Asians."

At the risk of igniting a firestorm of debate, I am not sure I see the "racist" elements in this box. I mean, "coolies" were sad members of Asian society, considered to be a little below the lowest rung on the social ladder, but representing them on a box seems innocent enough.

Writing about this, I just realized why, in the early 60s, an American Indian was pictured on a box of red pistachios. As Tosh might ask, "Is it racist?" It might be.

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“We all have to stand before the kitchen gods.” Chef Jacob Sahaya Kumar Aruni

Hey, the Cleveland Indians still use "Chief Wahoo" as their logo. That has to be the most offensive portrayal of American Indians ever.


Just for old times sake:


I encourage everybody to check out the Candy Wrapper Museum
A really fun site, and a great way to waste time. Great discovery.

The worst for me, growing up 3/4 mile from Ferrara Pan, was boston baked bean day. Ugh.

Favorite flavors were alexander the grape and johnny apple treats.

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Ed Fisher
my chicago food photos

RIP LTH.

I actually liked (and still like) Lemonheads.

Odd anti-drug campaign in local schools during the 1990s, supported by Ferrari Pan, was something like "Don't be a Lemonhead. Don't do drugs." Seemed insane to me, associating your product with the very thing you don't want people to like.

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“We all have to stand before the kitchen gods.” Chef Jacob Sahaya Kumar Aruni

I think FP was well aware that their candy was popular among the red-eyed crowd. The boxes were funny (in a weird way), and lemonheads were a great remedy for cotton mouth. Plus it was really cheap, and was always located right next to the rolling papers at your local gas station. On the inner flaps they started putting "say nope to dope".

Remember "Screamin Yellow Zonkers" with the really weird humor on the boxes? You had to be under the influence to "get it". If that marketing was not geared towards the munchie crowd, I don't know what was. Plus it was manufactured in Villa Park by Sandoz Pharmaceutical, the only legal manufacturer of LSD. I'l bet their focus groups were a trip.

That is hilarious. SYZs (no longer produced) definitely had that rep, and that they're connected to Sandoz is close to unbelievable (I did google to confirm you weren't just fooling; it's true).

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“We all have to stand before the kitchen gods.” Chef Jacob Sahaya Kumar Aruni

SYZs were discontinued several years ago but apparently are available as of May 15 for a limited time at Walgreens.

Per Candy & Snack Today.com . . .


Ferrara Closing Three Operations

=R=

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I just wanna live until I gotta die. I know I ain't perfect but God knows I try. --Todd Snider

Twitter: ronniesuburban

I thought maybe you guys were thinking of this, since we got on the subject of racist cherries:

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I want to have a good body, but not as much as I want dessert. ~ Jason Love
There is no pie in Nighthawks, which is why it's such a desolate image. ~ Happy Stomach
I can't go to Hollywood. I got biscuits to make. ~ Dwight Henry

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