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MEMORIES:
1984ButBlair remembers...Pop Rocks were a treat for my sister and I. It was sort of a luxury that we got when ... More »
Posted on 09/05/08
PHOTOS:
Few candies have captured the imagination and fervor of children like Pop Rocks did throughout the late 70s and most of the 80s. For mere cents, kids could get a package the size of a Kool-Aid packet, open it up, throw the candy bits down the hatch and wait for the action to happen!
The patent was created by General Foods in 1956, though it took almost two decades to bring it to the public. Contrary to popular belief, this explosive candy wasn’t made with baking soda or vinegar; it was made by mixing carbon dioxide gas into the standard hot sugar mixture used to make hard candy. The gas would make tiny little bubbles in the candy. After cooling, the candy shatters into tiny bits that still have the high-pressure gas bubbles inside. Once inside your mouth, the sugar would melt away to find the bubble waiting to explode!
This candy was a hit with kids for years, but it wasn’t without its share of mystery. The first time around, Pop Rocks were manufactured from 1975 to 1983. Some claim that the stoppage was due to an urban legend, much like the Mentos mixed with Coke or Pepsi experiments of today. The legend had it that Pop Rocks were made with baking soda or some other explosive chemical that once mixed with carbonated drinks would explode in the stomach, even causing… death! Even worse, the rumor mill had it going that it was Mikey, the kid from the LIFE cereal commercials died from Pop Rocks and soda. (This is, of course, as untrue as the Paul-from-the-Wonder-Years-is-Marilyn-Manson rumor.) The dangerous tales about the confection alarmed residents in Seattle so much that the FDA set up a telephone hotline to answer any questions for residents worried about the safety of Pop Rocks. After a two year hiatus, the candy was re-introduced to the market. Though the rumors were still around, the controversy died out as everyone finally came to their senses and realized that Pop Rocks were safe.
After losing its rebel status, Pop Rocks soon fizzled away from attention, to be pushed aside and only brought out during certain times of the year, or to be found in novelty stores. Though it’s harder to find, the memories are even harder to forget.
