Woolworth/Woolco Hallowe'en

[jimm]

I recall the cigs and a HUGE Pez display taking up a whole counter at Grants way back in the day

[Hepcat]

Hepcat, those are the exact cigars.  Remember the box of cigarette gun where you blow and "smoke" come out?

Smoke? Which ones did that? These?



Or these by Swell?







Like the cigars, the Swell cigarettes were produced by the Philadelphia Chewing Gum Company. The Hysterical Mothers of America Opposed to Just About Everything combined with the Anti-Nico Nazis to get the cigarettes banned in most places twenty or so years ago.

[Scatter]

Gimmee an articulated 3 3/4 Uni monster line by Mez and we shall see who doesn't love 3 3/4 

I doesn't!!

[Scatter]

Hepcat, those are the exact cigars.  Remember the box of cigarette gun where you blow and "smoke" come out?

Yup!! Those were great!!

[Wich2]

>Anti-Nico Nazis to get the cigarettes banned in most places twenty or so years ago.<

Dunno about the "Nazi" part, but God bless the folks who got more people to see that Coffin Nails weren't about getting hot blondes, but getting cancer; and not about living in Marlboro Country, but living in Chemo/Radiation Country.

-Craig

(Who lost his father to the hellish things this summer.)

[Hepcat]

Dunno about the "Nazi" part, but God bless the folks who got more people to see that Coffin Nails weren't about getting hot blondes, but getting cancer; and not about living in Marlboro Country, but living in Chemo/Radiation Country.

Yes, but somehow they got confused there somewhere. Gum in whatever shape doesn't have the effects of tobacco.

[Wich2]

Fair point; but I guess the idea was, grow up chewing gum cigs, or crunching those delicious crunchy ones, and you're more likely to start with the gen-u-wine article.

But you can still get 'em; I've had them in the last few years:

http://www.oldtimecandy.com/candy-cigarettes.htm

(Be sure to read the little blurb there...)

[Dr.Cyclops]

These were big in Canada in the 60's/70's


They're still made with the one noticeable difference other than the wording is "No lit red end" on the new candies.

[Hepcat]

...but I guess the idea was, grow up chewing gum cigs, or crunching those delicious crunchy ones, and you're more likely to start with the gen-u-wine article.

Nonsense. Deny kids candy cigarettes and they'll end up reaching for something worse. It's the law of unintended consequences.

I wish I could pick up and shake the Hysterical Mothers Opposed to Just About Everything for fuzzy thinking and silliness of that sort. It absolutely drives me up the wall!

They're still made with the one noticeable difference other than the wording is "No lit red end" on the new candies.

I bought the Popeye Candy Cigarettes on a regular basis as a kid even though I wasn't that great a fan of Popeye, and I still buy the Popeye Candy Sticks on occasion. The problem is that the lack of a "lit" red end causes me to scowl everytime so I don't buy them as often, despite the fact that I find their chalky sugary taste to be mildly addictive.

[Wich2]

>Nonsense.<

Really?

"ABC NEWS: Tobacco Cooperated With Candy Cig Makers"

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=118074&page=1

"...documents also show confectioners suppressed and altered a 1991 candy industry study indicating candy cigarettes could promote smoking to children ... a study the previous year that found sixth graders who reported having used candy cigarettes were twice as likely to have also smoked tobacco cigarettes, regardless of whether their parents smoked."

>I wish I could pick up and shake the Hysterical Mothers Opposed to Just About Everything for fuzzy thinking and silliness of that sort.<

Like the desire to lower the number of lung cancer deaths?

Not everything in the Good Old Days was automatically wonderful. They used to put cocaine in all kinds of things.

-Craig

[twilitezoner]

>Nonsense.<

Really?

"ABC NEWS: Tobacco Cooperated With Candy Cig Makers"

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=118074&page=1

"...documents also show confectioners suppressed and altered a 1991 candy industry study indicating candy cigarettes could promote smoking to children ... a study the previous year that found sixth graders who reported having used candy cigarettes were twice as likely to have also smoked tobacco cigarettes, regardless of whether their parents smoked."

>I wish I could pick up and shake the Hysterical Mothers Opposed to Just About Everything for fuzzy thinking and silliness of that sort.<

Like the desire to lower the number of lung cancer deaths?

Not everything in the Good Old Days was automatically wonderful. They used to put cocaine in all kinds of things.

-Craig

My friends and I would always get the candy cigarettes and cigars but we also were smart enough to know even at that young age that smoking the real deal will eventually kill you.

Not being a conspiracy theorist at all but you really do have to wonder who the hell thought it was a good idea to market candy tobacco products to children?

[twilitezoner]

We had 2 Woolworths that I frequented growing up; the local one where I got my first Star Wars figures and the really cool Plymouth Meeting Mall store that was 2 floors with an escalator.


 

[Scatter]

   
Not everything in the Good Old Days was automatically wonderful. They used to put cocaine in all kinds of things.

-Craig

Well, you just undermined your entire argument there. 

[Hepcat]

>Nonsense.<

Really?

Yes, really. And you've provided a very good case in point.

"...documents also show confectioners suppressed and altered a 1991 candy industry study indicating candy cigarettes could promote smoking to children ... a study the previous year that found sixth graders who reported having used candy cigarettes were twice as likely to have also smoked tobacco cigarettes, regardless of whether their parents smoked."

"Reported"? Did you not notice the weasel word? Guess what? Almost every kid consumed candy cigarettes on occasion back then, quite simply because when it comes to candy kids are very naturally omnivorous. All kids ate candy cigarettes. Some grow up to smoke. Even the most rudimentary understanding of mathematics tells you that you can't draw inferences from a correlation of this sort, and my own understanding of mathematics is very good indeed.

If I were a candy maker though, I could quickly cook up such a self-serving study if a cigarette manufacturer was charging me with trademark infringement and wanted licensing payments for the use of their trademark.

That of course is assuming the study even exists. The anti-smoking brigade is well known for playing fast and loose with studies, like this business of 50 million people per year or whatever die from second hand smoke per year. That number is an outright fabrication. It can't be conclusively demonstrated that even one person has died from second hand smoke. But this number is bandied about and never even challenged. In fact, hardly anything the anti-smoking crusaders say is ever challenged because it's all for our own "good" of course. Well I don't like being lied to. It really makes me angry, and I don't forget - ever.

>I wish I could pick up and shake the Hysterical Mothers Opposed to Just About Everything for fuzzy thinking and silliness of that sort.<

Like the desire to lower the number of lung cancer deaths?

No, more precisely like their desire to tell me how to live my life in this and so many other ways! Not only have I had enough of their preaching, but the fact that I'm being preached at with my own money, i.e. government funding, absolutely infuriates me! So, no, I really don't give a damn what their specific agenda/"cause du jouer" happens to be, the word is ENOUGH! My money, my choice, and get your stinking hands out of my pocket!

And before you draw any more erroneous conclusions, I don't smoke, and never have. I absolutely do object very strongly though to having my right to choose whatever brand of candy cigarettes I want curtailed by a group of do-gooders telling me how to live my life with my own money though.

Not everything in the Good Old Days was automatically wonderful. They used to put cocaine in all kinds of things.

Anything noteworthy other than Coke? Now of course the government chooses to spend $billions of other people's money banning the stuff. It is to scream.

[Hepcat]

Not being a conspiracy theorist at all but you really do have to wonder who the hell thought it was a good idea to market candy tobacco products to children?

No need to posit any conspiracies. It's whatever sells. That's always the bottom line.

We had 2 Woolworths that I frequented growing up; the local one where I got my first Star Wars figures and the really cool Plymouth Meeting Mall store that was 2 floors with an escalator.

Where was this?