Orange Julius
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Orange Julius is a fruit smoothie, created by blending frozen orange juice, crushed ice, and a mixture of powdered sugar and dairy creamer. It has been available for nearly eighty years.
It is the signature product and namesake of a food service franchise, frequently located in public places such as shopping malls, airports, and amusement parks, primarily in the United States and Canada. Its franchise is currently developed, licensed and serviced by International Dairy Queen owned companies, leading to many of the locations being coupled with Dairy Queen.
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[edit] History
The drink grew out of an orange juice stand opened in Los Angeles in 1926 by Julius Freed. Sales were initially modest, about $20 a day (over $200 adjusted for 2007 inflation). In 1929, Bill Hamlin, Freed's real estate broker, developed a mixture that made the acidic orange juice less bothersome to his stomach. Freed's stand began serving the drink, which had a frothier, creamier texture. The sales at the stand increased substantially after the introduction of the new drink, going up to $100 a day. People began lining up at the store and shouting, "Give me an Orange, Julius!" Eventually, the new drink would simply be called "the Orange Julius".[1]
During the 1950s and 1960s, Orange Julius was sold at a variety of outlets, including state and county fairs and freestanding Orange Julius stands.
Originally, and through the 1980's, a raw egg blended into the drink was offered as an option. This was seen as a good source of protein for body builders. However, the option was later dropped for food safety reasons, and bananas are now offered as a substitute.
In the 1970s and early 1980s, Orange Julius beverage stands used the image of a devil with a pitchfork, similar to that of the Arizona State University mascot, Sparky around an orange, with the slogan, "A Devilishly Good Drink". The company later dropped the logo and slogan after threats of a lawsuit from the ASU alumni association.
An Orange Julius restaurant existed in London for a short while in the early 1970s. It was situated in the suburb of Golders Green, but despite its apparent popularity, Orange Julius did not really take off in the UK and the Golders Green branch was gone by about 1976.
In 1987, the Orange Julius chain was bought by International Dairy Queen. IDQ, and by inclusion since 1999, Berkshire Hathaway, owns the rights to all Orange Julius stores, and have expanded the chain so its drinks are included in many of their Dairy Queen mall stores, called Treat Centers.
In 2004, Orange Julius launched a line of Premium Fruit Smoothies to compete with smoothie competitors such as Jamba Juice and Smoothie King.
[edit] Impact on Popular Culture
In the James Taylor song "Chili Dog" the singer pleads "...Don't bring home no Orange Julius".
Orange Julius is referenced as a totem of nostalgia in numerous movies and TV shows, most notably in an infamous Saturday Night Live sketch starring Sylvester Stallone as a troubled computer salesman whose dream is to work at a defunct Orange Julius. Though the chain is still active, like Rubik's Cubes, it remains firmly embedded in the zeitgeist of the 80s.
The Modest Mouse song "Teeth Like God's Shoeshine" mentions the chain in an anti-consumerism light: "Let's all have another Orange Julius, thick syrup, stranding in lines / All the malls are the soon to be ghost towns well, so long, farewell, goodbye."
[edit] References
Mariani, John F. (1999) The Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink. New York: Lebhar-Friedman. ISBN 0-86730-784-6
[edit] External links
- Orangejulius.com - Company website
