Tootsie Pops are lollipops with a hard candy shell and a chewy chocolate Tootsie Roll center. Tootsie Pops were introduced by Tootsie Roll Industries in 1931, and have since become the world's favorite lollipop.http://www.tootsie.com/comp_history.php The original five flavors were chocolate, grape, cherry, orange and raspberry.http://www.tootsie.com/products.php?pid=168 Recently, the company has been experimenting with some new flavors, including blue raspberry, banana and lemon lime. These flavors are alternated as a sixth flavor with the original five. Other flavors will be coming in the future. You can even vote on your favorite flavors at the Tootsie Roll Industries web site.http://www.tootsie.com/promo_popflavor.php Aside from their great taste, one of the best things about Tootsie Pops is that each one has only 60 calories and 0 grams of fat.
The original and ever-popular Tootsie Pop is sold in bunches of five or ten as well as in larger bags for the serious sweet tooth, party or holiday gathering. Bunches and bags include the five original flavors plus one of the alternate flavors. You can also buy Tootsie Pop Miniatures, which are simply scaled down versions of full-sized Tootsie Pops, and Pop Drops, which are bite-sized Tootsie Pops without the stick. Tootsie Pop Miniatures and Pop Drops include only the original five flavors.
Tootsie Roll Industries History
Tootsie Pops are a product of Tootsie Roll Industries. Originally called the Sweets Company of America, the company was not officially named Tootsie Roll Industries until 1966. It began in 1896 as a little candy store in New York City owned by Austrian immigrant Leo Hirshfield. With a candy making background, Leo made a number of different candies to sell in his store. By far the most popular was a little, chewy chocolate candy that he sold for a penny each. He named these little candies after his daughter Clara, whose nickname was "Tootsie."http://www.tootsie.com/comp_history.php
By 1905, Leo Hirshfield had moved the operations for his little candy shop to a four-story factory to help keep up with the demand for Tootsie Rolls.http://www.victoryseeds.com/candystore/confectioners/tootsie.htm In 1931, the Tootsie Pop was invented and added to the company's expanding product line. Despite the Depression in the 1930s, the company continued to grow and thrive. Over the years, it has moved several times, finally locating at its present location in Chicago, Illinois in the 1960s. In 1996, Tootsie Roll Industries celebrated its 100th anniversary and, in 2002, it celebrated 100 years on the New York Stock Exchange. As one of the company's flagship brands, Tootsie Pops continue to top the list as one of America's favorite candies. By 2003, over 20 million Tootsie Pops were being produced daily.http://www.victoryseeds.com/candystore/confectioners/tootsie.htm
How Many Licks Does It Take?
In 1970, Tootsie Roll Industries released a commercial asking the question, how many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop. Since then, children and adults everywhere have been trying to find the answer to this question. Between variables such as the size of your mouth and the amount of saliva in your mouth, and the irresistible urge to bite, the world may truly never know. Since the commercial first aired in 1970, over 20,000 children have written to the company claiming to have the answer. Most say somewhere between 600 and 800 licks, but the estimates have gone as high as 5,800!http://www.tootsie.com/comp_faq.php14 So valiant have been the efforts, that Tootsie Roll Industries sends out a Clean Stick Award certificate in response to every letter they receive. The certificate can also be downloaded from the company's web site.http://www.tootsie.com/gal_licks.php15
Believe it or not, there are also at least three known studies about how many licks it takes to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop.http://www.tootsie.com/gal_machine.php16 Students at Purdue University and the University of Michigan designed and built licking machines to come up with their answers. Students at Swarthmore Junior High School went the old-fashioned route, recruiting fellow students to do their licking. The average results? Purdue 364, University of Michigan 411 and Swarthmore Junior High 144. Like the commercial said, the world may never know.
Tootsie Pop Commercial
This is the original 60 second version of the famous "how many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll Center of a Tootsie Pop" commercial that was first aired in 1970. In the commercial, a child asks that question of Mr. Cow, Mr. Fox, Mr. Turtle and Mr. Owl. Mr. Cow, Mr. Fox and Mr. Turtle all admit that they don't know because they always bite before they get to the center. Mr. Owl, however, decides to lick and count. He gets three licks in and bites too. As the commercial concludes, we may never know. The commercial was later edited to include only the second 30 seconds with Mr. Turtle and Mr. Owl.
Tootsie Pop Merchandise
Official Site: Tootsie Shop
eBay: Tootsie Roll
Amazon.com: Tootsie Roll | Apparel | Toys & Games
CafePress.com: Tootsie Pop T-Shirts
- This page was created by Bunny, a Part Time Guide in the Mahalo Greenhouse (see the original), and curated by Travis.
If you'd like to help us create the best spam free search results on the Internet, apply to be a Part Time Guide!
References
Fast Facts
-
Made By
Tootsie Roll Industries
-
Headquarters
7401 South Cicero Avenue, Chicago, IL 60629
-
Phone
773-838-3400
-
Tootsie Roll Industries Products
Tootsie Pops, Tootsie Roll, Charleston Chew, Charms Blow Pops, Dots, Crows, Dubble Bubble, Junior Mints, Razzles, Sugar Babies, Sugar Daddy and many other fine candies
-
Fact:
In 1996, Tootsie Roll Industries celebrated its 100th anniversary
-
Fact:
Over 20 million Tootsie Pops are produced daily
-
Fact:
Sign up at the Tootsie Roll Industries web site for special offers and promotions through your email
-
Fact:
Each Tootsie Pop has 60 calories and 0 grams of fat
