I couldn't eat them as a child. I just couldn't. There was something about Topps' Ring Pops that just seemed so wrong to me.
I was a sensitive child and perhaps over-thought things a little.
Nonetheless, the first thing I thought of when they were introduced into Britain in the early 80s was that they looked like pacifiers. How could I, a strong and hearty growing lad--of six years of age--be seen eating such a thing? I had, after all, put aside such childish things. Now, now I was on the verge of adulthood.
Luckily for the Topps Company Inc., my vehement stance seems to have been rather unique among children. Most children saw them for what they were: plastic rings with a giant, edible "jewel" on top.
In the grand scheme of things Topps is probably more famous for defining the world of baseball trading cards in 1952. Topps is also famous for the twisted 1980s child of the trading card: The Garbage Pail Kids. Even so, their Ring Pop has been a solid favorite for over thirty years.
In 1975 Topps were top of the bubble gum world! Forty years earlier, however, things had looked pretty different. Abram, Ira, Philip, and Joseph Shorin had a problem. Their father, Morris, had founded American Leaf Tobacco in New York in 1890. Initially successful at tobacco imports, World War I had brought shortages because the Ottoman Empire was on the other side. But it was the Great Depression which finally killed American Leaf Tobacco.
Rather than give up, the Shorin brothers took what could be salvaged from the old company--connections, distribution networks--and they turned to making gum. Choosing a name which they thought would indicate the top quality of their products, they called their company Topps Chewing Gum, Inc.
Their massive success with baseball trading cards had made them a hit in the 1950s. Nothing, it seemed, could go wrong.
Then someone built a better mousetrap.
Before 1975, bubblegum had a major design flaw: it stuck to your face. In 1975 Life Savers introduced a gum which cleaned up more easily, Bubble Yum. Softer and less messy, it left the competition in the lurch.
Topps were faced with another crisis: falling sales of their more traditional bubblegum.
So, as they had done in 1938, Topps diversified. They worked on producing different types of candy. One of their early successes were Ring Pops, introduced in 1977. Quite unlike anything else on the market at the time, Ring Pops helped save Topps.
"Ooh! These remind me of being a kid!" said Natalie as she slipped a cherry Ring Pop onto her finger.
I'd bought four flavors. That left me with three choices: watermelon, "Star Gazer Grape" and blue raspberry.
Gingerly, I sniffed the watermelon. It didn't smell of a whole lot. It looked pretty cool, though.
"The best thing about Ring Pops," explained Natalie, "is that you didn't have to eat them all at once. You could leave it on your finger and take surreptitious slurps in class when the teacher wasn't looking!"
I wasn't hugely impressed with the flavor of the watermelon. It was okay, but nothing to write home about.
Meanwhile, Natalie was enthusing about the cherry. "It tastes just like Luden's Throat Drops! I loved them so much that I'd eat them like candy. My mum wasn't too happy about me doing that!"
A little later, Natalie tried the grape and I tried the blue raspberry. Neither of us liked the flavors much. Natalie thought the grape tasted "weird" and I was overwhelmed by the sugariness of the raspberry.
The one thing that was pretty clear, though, was how fun the candy was. Even if it didn't taste so hot, it was fun to have the translucent, gleaming jewel on your finger. Indeed, I'm wearing one right now as I type. Excuse me while I take a surreptitious slurp.
Topps Ring Pops Ratings
Flavor
Natalie: 6.5/10 (but the cherry gets 8/10)
Richard: 3.5/10
Fun Factor
Natalie: 8/10
Richard: 8/10
Text and photographs: Richard Peevers
6 comments:
If your kid's going to eat candy, at least Ring Pops didn't get all over their hands & clothing. I HAVE seen them smeared all over a face, though, but that's going to happen with most candy if given half a chance. I never liked these mainly because they really were VERY sweet.
November 10, 2009 5:58 AMOooh, that's a really good point, I didn't think of that.
November 10, 2009 11:02 AMSweet is the word. I couldn't even taste the blue raspberry flavour over the sugary sweetness. It was so sweet that, if I hadn't already been on the sofa, I'd have needed a little sit down!
They were always a bit too messy for me. I, too, was a sensitive child.
November 10, 2009 3:02 PMAlthough just last year my friends had a party here that featured Ring Pops. Ring Pops and Twister. Actually, there's a sequence in that story that leads to me taking a full-weighted knee onto a Ring Pop that was attached to somebody's hand. Hilarity insued.
You just had to write about Ring Pops, didn't you? Ever since you guys sent me a package of them a while back, I have been addicted. For some reason, they are really appealing to my crazy pregnant cravings lately!
November 10, 2009 8:00 PMI always thought these were cool...although my favorite novelty candy was something called a "Fun Dip"...which basically consisted of a tongue depresser-looking thing made of sugar which you would dip into flavored powered sweet and sour sugar. Yep...not a favorite of dentists to be sure!
November 11, 2009 4:39 PMAlex--what can I say? That sounds like a party I should have been at! (And I think I should write a post on Twister, too!)
November 11, 2009 9:22 PMEdie--I'm so sorry! I'm a terrible person! :) If you've run out as a result of this post, we can send you more! They make eleven flavours now: I'll send you the complete set!
GoRetroGirl---Oooh, Fun Dips! I vaguely remember those: I think we had them in the UK too! I used to really like them!! I think I'll add them to my list of candies to post about, thank you!
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