I remember many things about being a child. I grew up in The Bronx, part of New York City. It was the east Bronx, more specifically the north part of the east Bronx. The main street was called Williamsbridge Road and it was a major street going north from Pelham Parkway. But it wasn’t paved at that time. No, it was red dirt or clay. If you made a right turn from my street which was called Stell Place onto that dirt road and walked two blocks north you’d come to Mace Avenue. Now if you’re wondering why I’m telling you all these directions it’s because we’re going somewhere. Yes, half a block west of Williamsbridge Road was PS 89, my school. But we’re not going to school right now. No, we’re going to a small candy store across the street from PS 89 called Nick’s.

It was a small store. There was a door and a window on either side of the door and three other walls and a roof. But when you opened that door, there was treasure inside. There were glass cases on all three sides when you came in. Each case had many different compartments and in each individual compartment was a different type of candy. There were lollipops, licorice whips, jawbreakers, gumballs, Mary-Janes, Tootsie Rolls, Turkish Taffy and lots of other good stuff. The best part of it was that all of these goodies cost only 1¢ each. That’s right only one penny, (some were even two or three for a penny). It was possible to go into that little store with ten cents and come out with a whole bag full of candy.

Well one of my very special favorites was a miniature marshmallow ice cream cone. You could eat ‘em in the summertime without dripping, and if you made believe it was real ice cream, it could last a whole lot longer than a real ice cream cone. So, fifty years later I saw these same candies in a store and I decided that even though they no longer cost only one penny, I wanted my grandchildren to experience one of the things I remember from many years ago. I sent them each a plastic barrel-full along with the above story and instructions on sharing.

According to them they’re still fun and they still taste good!

Elliot, I grew up in Brooklyn and don’t remember any penny candy stores. You must be older than me, which is quite noticeable by your gray beard and hair as well as the unpaved streets in your childhood neighborhood in the Bronx. As Molly of Fibber McGee and Molly used to say…”That ain’t the way I heard it.”

I grew up on Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn and although we had no penny candy store, I did have a wonderful luncheonette that sold penny candy. It was located on Utica Avenue and Eastern Parkway across the street from P.S. 167, which I’m sure you’ve heard of. On that corner was a fruit stand, a luncheonette, a bakery, a grocery store, a butcher and a store where only pickles, sour kraut and pickled tomatoes were made and sold..

In front of the luncheonette were 2 penny nut machines one for “polly-seeds”, (sunflower seeds), and the other for Indian nuts, and there was a bench where one would find daily newspapers. My father would send me down to buy Der Tug a Yiddish newspaper. Dad could read Yiddish but English looked like Chinese to him.

The luncheonette had the best candy and penny candy in Brooklyn…even better than they had in the Bronx.

Hey, come on now Mel, don’t start knocking “Da Bronx”!

Walking into the luncheonette, one would see the cash register with boxed candy and gum in front to the left and the magazines were to the right. Continuing on the left hand side was a counter with round stools in front; behind the counter was the paraphernalia needed to make malteds, milk shakes. Floats, egg creams, sundaes, sodas, frappes, etc and limited sandwiches. (You didn’t have Lime Ricky’s?) On the right hand side was the goldmine---- the penny candy.

I remember spending a lot of time looking and attempting to decide what I wanted. Should I get a brown licorice stick or shoe string licorice or a licorice pipe or wax teeth, a wax mustache or wax lips. Hmmm I really think the bat sucker or banana chew will last longer or maybe the jawbreaker or maybe the chocolate babies or Scotties or twirls or tootsie roll. Gee I know the Double Bubble gum will last a long time and I get a cartoon with that or maybe a charm lollipop…Wait, I could get a candy cigarette or bubble gum cigar. I think I’ll get the candy buttons, I get so many. (Gee, I forgot about those. They were a lot of candy for the money and you could wear ‘em around your neck.) Oy vey, so many decisions with so few pennies.

When I had more money other goodies where available to me such as Black Jack, ,Juicy Fruit, Beeman’s Pepsin, Beechnut or clove gum. Then there were chuckles, Baby Ruth, cracker jacks, sugar daddies, sky bar, 5th Avenue bar, jujubes or violet squares ( Yuck)

We’re compiling a list of candies from the 1940’s and 1950’s and could use some help. Would you tell us about some of the candy that you ate? Send it to melthefatguy@yahoo.com

Well, now we all know why Mel is the fat guy. Seems like he had a lot more candy than I did, (or maybe just a better memory?). And next month Mel will keep his previous promise to tell you what a frappe is, won’t you?

Shalom,
El & Mel