Oh Henry!
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Oh Henry! is a candy bar containing peanuts, caramel and nougat, coated in chocolate. It was first introduced in 1920, by the Williamson Candy Company of Chicago, Illinois. According to legend, Oh Henry! was originally named after a boy who frequented the Williamson company, flirting with the girls who made the candy. The name is also said to be an homage to American writer, O. Henry. These stories are probably apocryphal.
The candy bar was invented by a man named Tom Henry of Arkansas City, Kansas. Tom Henry ran a candy company called the Peerless candy factory, and in 1919 he started making the Tom Henry candy bar. He sold the candy bar to Curtiss Candy Company in 1920 where they later changed the name to "Oh Henry!". Henry's family now runs a candy factory in Dexter, Kansas that sells "momma henry" bars, which are near identical to the original candy bar.
In 1923, an employee of Williamson, John Glossinger, announced that he was going to make the Oh Henry! bar a national best seller. Company officials said it was impossible and denied him the funds for an advertising campaign. Glossinger went into the streets and pasted stickers saying merely "Oh Henry!" onto automobile bumpers. People became curious as to what an Oh Henry! was and sales for the bar rose quickly.
Nestlé acquired the United States rights to the brand in 1984, where it continues to produce the bar; the bar is produced by The Hershey Company in Canada.
[edit] Trivia
- The 1990s sitcom Seinfeld featured a recurring character, Sue Ellen Mischke (played by Brenda Strong), who was an heiress to the Oh Henry! candy bar fortune.
- At 62.5 grams, O'Henry is the heaviest ordinary chocolate bar on sale in Canada.
- When Henry Rodriguez was playing for the Montreal Expos it was a tradition at Olympic Stadium to throw Oh Henry! bars on the field after a home run or when he came up to bat. This would sometimes momentarily delay games.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Oh Henry! from Nestlé USA
- Oh Henry! from Hershey Canada
- Ark City's Rich History of Candy from arkcity.net
Confectionery products of The Hershey Company |
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Chocolate-based |
5th Avenue | Almond Joy | Bar None (discontinued) | Cherry Blossom | Fast Break | Glosette (Canada only) | Heath bar | Hershey bar | Hershey's Kiss | Hershey's Kissables | Hershey's Cookies 'n' Creme | Hershey's Pops | Hershey's S'mores | Kit Kat (U.S. only) | Krackel | Milk Duds | Mounds | Mr. Goodbar | Oh Henry! (Canada only) | PayDay Chocolate (Limited Edition) | Rolo | Reese's Peanut Butter Cup | Reese's Pieces | ReeseSticks | Skor | Take 5 (Also known as Max 5) | Whoppers | York Peppermint Pattie |
Non-Chocolate |
Bubble Yum | Ice Breakers | Jolly Rancher | Koolerz | PayDay | ZAGNUT |
Other |
Good & Plenty | Snack Barz | Swoops | Twizzlers | Whatchamacallit | ZERO |
Hershey also manufactures Cadbury-branded products in the U.S. and military chocolate for the U.S. armed forces |