Remember those colorful candy wrappers that rustled in your pocket? The sweet treats that made your taste buds dance?
Candy has changed over the decades, leaving some gems behind and thankfully burying others. Let’s unwrap some nostalgic goodies and cringe at a few forgotten failures!
1. Marathon Bar
Braided caramel covered in chocolate, the Marathon Bar was 8 inches of pure joy! Sold from the 1970s until 1981, it promised to last a long time.
Kids would stretch eating it across an entire afternoon. Mars eventually replaced it with the Snickers bar.
2. Thrills Gum
Ever wanted your breath to smell like you gargled with soap? Thrills Gum proudly delivered this bizarre experience since the 1930s!
Its purple color looked appealing, but the flavor was pure deception. The package even boasted “It still tastes like soap!” as if that were something to celebrate.
3. Bonkers!
The 1980s gave us Bonkers! – chewy fruit candies that literally smashed flavor into your mouth. The commercials showed people getting hit with giant fruit, perfectly capturing the experience.
Each candy had a hard shell with a soft, intensely flavored center. Strawberry was the standout favorite.
4. Candy Cigarettes
White chalky sticks with red tips – candy cigarettes let kids pretend to smoke just like adults! Packaged in boxes mimicking real cigarette brands, they were everywhere until the 1970s.
You could even blow through them to create a puff of powdered sugar “smoke.” Thankfully, promoting smoking to children eventually fell out of fashion.
5. Reggie! Bar
Baseball legend Reggie Jackson got his own candy bar in 1976! A circular disc of caramel, peanuts and chocolate that rivaled the best candy bars of its day.
The Reggie! Bar caused a riot at Yankee Stadium when fans threw thousands of them onto the field after Jackson hit a home run..
6. Pickle Candy Canes
Green striped candy canes with the flavor of dill pickles – who thought this was a good idea? Appearing in the early 2000s as a novelty item, they continue to haunt holiday stockings.
The jarring combination of Christmas peppermint tradition and pickle brine creates an unforgettable taste sensation. And not in a good way!
7. Butterfinger BB’s
Tiny spheres of Butterfinger goodness – BB’s packed all the crispy peanut butter flavor of the original bar into poppable balls! Launched in 1992, they were the perfect movie theater snack.
The chocolate-to-filling ratio was better than the regular bar. Nestlé cruelly discontinued them in 2006.
8. Necco Wafers
Dating back to 1847, these chalky discs came in flavors ranging from questionable to downright awful. The licorice and clove varieties were particularly offensive to childhood taste buds!
Their texture resembled sweetened antacid tablets. Though they vanished briefly in 2018, they’ve returned to torture new generations.
9. PB Max
Crunchy cookie topped with creamy peanut butter and wrapped in milk chocolate – PB Max was peak 1990s candy perfection! Mars reportedly sold $50 million worth annually.
Legend says the Mars family discontinued it because they personally disliked peanut butter. What candy crime!
10. Chicken Dinner Candy Bar
Despite its name, this 1920s candy bar contained no chicken whatsoever! Made by Sperry Candy Company, it featured peanuts, chocolate and… disappointment.
The bizarre name came from the phrase “chicken dinner” meaning prosperity during the Great Depression. Nothing says “delicious treat” like misleading depression-era marketing!
11. Wonka Bar
Nestlé created real-life Wonka Bars after the 1971 film “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.” Graham cracker pieces embedded in milk chocolate created a magical experience!
Later versions included Wonka Donutz and Triple Dazzle Caramel. The company even ran Golden Ticket promotions like in the movie!
12. Durian Candy
Capturing the essence of the world’s smelliest fruit in hard candy form was never necessary! These Asian candies bring the authentic durian experience – notes of sweaty gym socks and rotten onions.
Somehow they maintain a dedicated following.
13. Wacky Wafers
Giant, colorful discs of fruity goodness – Wacky Wafers were a 1970s playground currency! Each pack contained five different fruit flavors in oversized, satisfying tablets.
Banana was oddly the standout favorite. The original Wacky Wafers disappeared in the 1980s. A 2018 comeback attempt got the flavors right but shrunk the size.
14. Circus Peanuts
Orange foam peanut-shaped monstrosities that taste vaguely of artificial banana. These spongy abominations have tortured taste buds since the 1800s!
Their texture ranges from rock-hard when fresh to gummy when stale. Neither is pleasant. Despite universal agreement about their awfulness, they continue to haunt candy aisles nationwide.
15. Cröonchy Stars
The Swedish Chef from The Muppets created these cinnamon cereal stars in 1988! The box featured hilarious broken English instructions and Muppet humor.
Despite tasting like Cinnamon Toast Crunch’s cooler cousin, these vanished after a limited run. The packaging alone was worth keeping.
16. Salted Licorice
Popular in Nordic countries, salted licorice delivers an unholy combination of intense saltiness and bitter licorice. First-timers often spit it out immediately!
The extreme salt comes from ammonium chloride, giving it an almost chemical burn sensation. Scandinavians call it “salmiak” and inexplicably love it.
17. Fruit Stripe Gum
The gum with flavor that disappeared faster than your allowance money! Each stick featured different colored zebra stripes and came with temporary tattoos.
The mascot, Yipes the Zebra, adorned every package. While technically still available, today’s version lacks the flavor intensity of the original 1960s formula.
18. Violets
Perfume-flavored candy tablets that taste exactly like your grandmother’s powder room smells! These purple flower-shaped candies date back to Napoleon’s era.
C. Howard’s and Choward’s brands still produce these floral assaults on taste buds. The flavor is literally soap-adjacent.