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{{short description|American snack food brand}} {{Use American English|date=June 2024}} {{About|a brand of snack food|other uses|Crackerjack (disambiguation){{!}}Crackerjack}} {{Use mdy dates|date=October 2022}} {{infobox brand | name = Cracker Jack | logo = Cracker jack brand logo.png | logo_size = 200 | image = Cracker jacks.jpg | image_size = | caption = | type = [[Caramel]] coated [[popcorn]] and [[peanut]]s | currentowner = [[PepsiCo]] (via [[Frito-Lay]]) | origin = | introduced = {{start date and age|1896}} | discontinued = | related = | markets = | previousowners = The Cracker Jack Company <br /> [[Borden (company)|Borden]] | trademarkregistrations = | ambassador = | tagline = | website = {{url|https://www.fritolay.com/products/cracker-jack-original-caramel-coated-popcorn-peanuts|fritolay.com/crackerjack}} }} '''Cracker Jack''' is an American brand of [[snack food]] that consists of [[molasses]]-flavored, [[Caramel corn|caramel-coated popcorn]] balls and [[peanut]]s, well known for being packaged with a [[Prize (marketing)|prize]] of trivial value inside. The Cracker Jack name and slogan, "The More You Eat, The More You Want" were [[trademark|registered]] in 1896.<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=http://www.crackerjackcollectors.com/cjcahistory.htm |title=CJCA β Cracker Jack Collectors Association β History & Lore |website=Crackerjackcollectors.com |access-date=2013-11-20}}</ref> Food author Andrew F. Smith has called it the first [[junk food]].<ref>{{cite news|first=Manny |last=Fernandez|title=Let Us Now Praise the Great Men of Junk Food|newspaper=The New York Times|date= August 8, 2010|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/08/weekinreview/08manny.html|page=WK3}}</ref> Cracker Jack is famous for its connection to [[baseball]] lore.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.delish.com/food-fun/cracker-jack-history-snack-foods#slide-2 |title=History of Cracker Jack β History of Snack Foods |website=Delish.com |access-date=2013-11-20 |first=Kiri |last=Tannenbaum|date=2 February 2011 }}</ref> The Cracker Jack brand has been owned and marketed by [[Frito-Lay]] since 1997.<ref name=":0" /> Frito-Lay announced in 2016 that the toy gift would no longer be provided and had been replaced with a [[QR code]] which can be used to download a baseball-themed game.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sfgate.com/food/article/Cracker-Jack-getting-rid-of-toy-prizes-7378532.php|title=Cracker Jack getting rid of toy prizes, replacing them with digital game codes|date=April 27, 2016|website=Sfgate.com}}</ref> == Background == The origin of sugar-coated popcorn with a mixture of peanuts is unknown, but periodicals document its manufacture and sale in North America as far back as the early 19th century. The [[Freeport, Illinois]] ''Daily Journal'' newspaper published on January 29, 1857, for example, contains an advertisement by a local merchant selling sugar-coated popcorn.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/freeport-daily-journal-sugar-coated/138090818/|location=[[Freeport, Illinois]] |newspaper=Daily Journal|title=Advertisement for sugar-coated popcorn |date= January 29, 1857 |page =2, second column|access-date=January 6, 2024}}</ref> Recipes for popcorn and peanut mixtures were mentioned in North American literature and expressions of speech: *Page 4 of the Friday, August 23, 1867, edition of the [[The Washington Star|''Evening Star'']] newspaper published in [[Washington, D. C.]], contains the notice: ''The Nantucket Inquirer and Mirror'' says, "Peanuts and pop-corn were not mixed up with piety when we first knew camp meetings, nor cigar smoking and psalm singing. But the times are changed and we with them."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/evening-star-peanuts-and-pop-corn/138086153/ |title=Nantucket Inquirer anecdote |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |page=4 |newspaper=The Washington Evening Star (Washington, DC) |date=August 23, 1867|access-date=January 6, 2024}}</ref> *An inquiry was published on page 362 of the December 5, 1885 issue of ''[[Scientific American]]'', asking how the sugar coating was prepared after the popcorn had popped.{{cn|date=August 2023}} *Page 222 of the 1886 edition of the ''Pennsylvania Historical Review, Gazetteer, Post-Office, Express and Telegraph Guide'' lists Goodwin Brothers, 105 North Front Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as manufacturers of Sugar Coated Popcorn, Prize Balls, Corn Balls, Corn Cakes, etc.{{cn|date=August 2023}} In Chicago, there are two legends of how Cracker Jack originated: The older attributes it to [[Charles F. Gunther|Charles Frederick Gunther]] (1837β1920), also known as "The Candy Man" and "Cracker-Jacks King"; the other attributes it to [[Frederick William Rueckheim]], a German immigrant known informally as "Fritz", who sold popcorn at 113 Fourth Avenue (now known as Federal Street), in Chicago beginning in 1871.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Cross |first1=Mary |title=A Century of American Icons: 100 Products and Slogans from the 20th-Century Consumer Culture |date=2002 |publisher=Greenwood Press |isbn=978-0313314810 |access-date=4 September 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/centuryofamerica00cros/page/28/ |pages=28β29}}</ref> The Rueckheim popcorn was made by hand, using steam equipment. In 1873, Fritz bought out his partner William Brinkmeyer and brought his brother Louis from Germany to join in his venture, forming the company F. W. Rueckheim & Bro.<ref name=":3">{{cite web|url=http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/PopcornHistory.htm |title=History of Popcorn, History of Caramel Corn, History of Cracker Jacks, History of Popcorn Squares |website=Whatscookingamerica.net |year=2004 |access-date=2013-11-20 |first=Linda |last=Stradley}}</ref> The Rueckheim brothers produced a new recipe, including popcorn, peanuts, and molasses, and first presented it to the public at the [[World's Columbian Exposition]] (Chicago's first [[World's Fair]]) in 1893. The molasses of this early version was too sticky.<ref name=":1">Chmelik, Samantha. [http://www.immigrantentrepreneurship.org/entry.php?rec=158 "Frederick Rueckheim."] In ''Immigrant Entrepreneurship: German-American Business Biographies, 1720 to the Present'', vol. 4, edited by Jeffrey Fear. German Historical Institute. Last modified October 10, 2013.</ref> [[File:Enlist Cracker Jack ad.png|thumb|170px|1918 Cracker Jack ad, asking readers to enlist in the Navy. Eating Cracker Jack would save valuable sugar and wheat for the war effort.]] In 1896, Louis discovered a method to separate the kernels of molasses-coated popcorn during the manufacturing process. As each batch was mixed in a cement-mixer-like drum, a small quantity of oil was added β a closely guarded trade secret. Before this change, the mixture had been difficult to handle, as it stuck together in chunks.<ref name=":0" /> == Naming and packaging == In 1896, the first lot of Cracker Jack was produced, the same year the product's name and tagline "The More You Eat, the More You Want" were [[trademark|registered]]. It was named as if someone tasted it and remarked: "That's a crackerjack!" (Crackerjack is a colloquialism meaning "of excellent quality").<ref>{{cite news|title=Crackerjack|work=American Heritage Dictionary|edition= 4th |date= 2000}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> In 1899, [[Henry Gottlieb Eckstein]] developed the "waxed sealed package" for freshness, which was then known as the "Eckstein Triple Proof Package," a dust-, germ-, and moisture-proof paper package. In 1902, the company was reorganized as Rueckheim Bros. & Eckstein. In 1907, the release of the song, "[[Take Me Out to the Ball Game]]," written by the lyricist [[Jack Norworth]] and composer [[Albert Von Tilzer]], gave Cracker Jack free publicity, with its line: "Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack!"<ref name=":0" /> In 1922, the name of the Chicago company was changed to The Cracker Jack Company.<ref name=":3" /> == Mascots == [[File:Grave of Robert Muno Rueckheim (1913β1920) at St. Henry Catholic Cemetery, Chicago.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Robert Rueckheim's grave at St. Henry Catholic Cemetery. As of October 2022, the inset image of Sailor Jack is missing.]] Cracker Jack's [[mascot]]s Sailor Jack and his dog Bingo, drawn by [[Andrew Loomis]], were introduced as early as 1916<ref>{{cite news|title=The Evening World|url=http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030193/1916-03-06/ed-1/seq-9/#date1=1916&sort=date&date2=1916&searchType=advanced&language=&sequence=0&index=0&words=Cracker+jack+Jack+Jacks+popcorn&proxdistance=50&rows=20&ortext=&proxtext=cracker+jack+popcorn&phrasetext=cracker+jack&andtext=&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1|access-date=8 October 2015|date=March 6, 1916|page=9}}</ref> and registered as a trademark in 1919.<ref name=Bellis>{{cite web|url=http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blcrackerjacks.htm |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120710092950/http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blcrackerjacks.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 10, 2012 |title=Cracker Jack |website=About.com |date=2013-11-14 |access-date=2013-11-20 |first=Mary |last=Bellis}}</ref> Sailor Jack was modeled after Frederickβs grandson Robert Rueckheim. He was the son of Edward, the eldest of the Rueckheim brothers. Robert died of pneumonia shortly after his image appeared at the age of 7.<ref name="scribd1">{{cite web |url=https://www.scribd.com/doc/44602448/Charles-Panati-Extraordinary-Origins-of-Everyday-Things |title=Charles Panati β Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things |website=Scribd.com |access-date=2012-03-05 |archive-date=November 7, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107070919/http://www.scribd.com/doc/44602448/Charles-Panati-Extraordinary-Origins-of-Everyday-Things |url-status=dead }}</ref> The sailor boy image acquired such meaning for the founder of Cracker Jack that he had it carved on his tombstone at St. Henry Catholic Cemetery in Chicago; the image, an inset in the stone, is missing.<ref name="scribd1" /><!-- note: comments about the dog were vandalism--> == Ownership == The Cracker Jack Company was purchased by [[Borden (company)|Borden]] in 1964 after a bidding war with [[Frito-Lay]] and was manufactured for years in [[Northbrook, Illinois]]. Borden sold the brand to Frito-Lay parent [[PepsiCo]] in 1997, and Cracker Jack was quickly incorporated into the Frito-Lay portfolio.<ref name=Bellis /> Frito-Lay transferred production of Cracker Jack from Northbrook to [[Wyandot Snacks]] in [[Marion, Ohio]] soon after that.<ref>[https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2002/04/29/daily52.html Snack-maker Wyandot launches updated Web site ] Retrieved December 14, 2018</ref> In 2013, Frito-Lay announced that Cracker Jack would undergo a slight reformulation, adding more peanuts and updating the prizes to make them more relevant to the times.<ref name="Cracker Jack'D" /> == Cracker Jack'D == On April 30, 2013, Frito-Lay expanded the Cracker Jack product line to include other salty snacks in the spirit of the original Cracker Jack. Called '''Cracker Jack'D''', it is distinct from the original Cracker Jack by using black packaging instead of the traditional red and white and showing a close-up version of Sailor Jack & Bingo. In addition, unlike the original Cracker Jack, Cracker Jack'D has not featured prizes in its packages.<ref name="Cracker Jack'D">{{cite news| url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/30/cracker-jackd_n_3185811.html | work=Huffington Post | first=Kim | last=Bhasin | title=WTF Happened To Cracker Jack? | date=2013-04-30}}</ref> One of the products available under the Cracker Jack'D line, the Power Bites, gained some criticism before its official launch due to concern over [[caffeine]]<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/15/cracker-jackd_n_2138891.html | work=Huffington Post | first=Rachel | last=Tepper | title=Frito Lay Unveils Controversial Caffeinated Cracker Jacks, 'Cracker Jack'd' | date=2012-11-15}}</ref> being added to more foods, and potential harm to children or pregnant women. == Baseball connection == {{multiple image |align = |total_width= 300 |image1= 1915 Cracker Jack Joe Jackson 103.jpg |image2 = Hank Gowdy.jpg |footer = [[Shoeless Joe Jackson]] (left) and [[Hank Gowdy]] displayed on baseball cards, issued by Cracker Jack in 1915 }} Cracker Jack is known for being commonly sold at baseball games and is mentioned in the American [[standard (music)|standard]] "[[Take Me Out to the Ball Game]]." Each July from 1982 to 1985, Cracker Jack sponsored an [[Old-Timers' Day|Old-Timers Classic]] game featuring former [[Major League Baseball|MLB]] players, held at [[Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium|RFK Stadium]] in [[Washington, D.C.]]<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/20245840/oldtimers_to_play_at_tiger_stadium/ |title=Old-timers to play at Tiger Stadium |newspaper=[[Detroit Free Press]] |page=46 |date=February 11, 1986 |access-date=May 20, 2018 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> On June 16, 1993, the 100th anniversary of Cracker Jack was celebrated at [[Wrigley Field]] during the game between the [[Chicago Cubs|Cubs]] and the [[Expansion team|expansion]] [[Florida Marlins]]. Before the game, Sailor Jack, the company's mascot, threw out the [[ceremonial first pitch]].<ref>{{cite news|first=Barnaby J. |last=Feder|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/06/17/business/company-news-old-timers-day-for-snack-cracker-jack-takes-itself-out-to-ballgame.html |title=Old-Timers Day for Snack; Cracker Jack Takes Itself Out to Ballgame |newspaper=New York Times |date=1993-06-17 |access-date=2013-11-20}}</ref> In 2004, the [[New York Yankees]] baseball team replaced Cracker Jack with the milder, sweet butter [[toffee]]-flavored [[Crunch 'n Munch]] at home games. After public outcry, the club switched back to Cracker Jack.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A14400-2004Jun3.html |title=Crunch 'n Munch Waived by Yankees |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=2004-06-04 |access-date=2013-11-20 |agency=Associated Press |pages=D02}}</ref> == Advertising == The Cracker Jack Company began advertising on television in 1955. Cracker Jack sponsored [[CBS]] Television's ''On Your Account'', which was televised on 130 stations nationally.<ref name=":4">{{cite web|url=http://www.crackerjack.com/history.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100408031824/http://www.crackerjack.com/history.php |archive-date=2010-04-08 |title=Brief History |website=CrackerJack.com |date=2010-04-08 |access-date=2013-11-20}}</ref> Actor [[Jack Gilford]] appeared in many television commercials for Cracker Jack from 1960 until 1972, and was most recognized as the "rubber-faced guy on the Cracker Jack commercials" for 12 years.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0318527/bio|title=Jack Gilford|website=IMDb.com}}</ref> Puppeteer [[Shari Lewis]] and her puppet [[Lamb Chop (puppet)|Lamb Chop]] appeared in Cracker Jack commercials in 1961. A new television ad for Cracker Jack ran during [[Super Bowl XXXIII]] on January 31, 1999. It was the first television advertising for the Cracker Jack brand in 15 years.<ref name=":4" /> It introduced the company's new bag packaging, the first time Cracker Jack was made available in something other than the classic Cracker Jack box. == Toys and prizes == Cracker Jack originally included a small "mystery" [[novelty item]] referred to as a "Toy Surprise" in each box. The tagline for Cracker Jack was originally "Candy-coated popcorn, peanuts and a prize" but has since become "Caramel-coated popcorn & peanuts" under Frito-Lay.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fritolay.com/our-snacks/cracker-jack-original.html|title=Snacks|website=Fritolay.com|access-date=2012-06-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120607134842/http://www.fritolay.com/our-snacks/cracker-jack-original.html|archive-date=2012-06-07|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Prize (marketing)|Prizes]] were included in every box of Cracker Jack beginning in 1912.<ref name=":4" /> One of the first prizes was in 1914 when the company produced the first of two Cracker Jack baseball card issues, which featured players from both major leagues as well as players from the short-lived [[Federal League]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cardboardconnection.com/1914-cracker-jack-baseball-cards|title=1914 Cracker Jack Baseball Checklist, Set Info, Key Cards|website=Cardboardconnection.com|date=21 May 2015 }}</ref> Early "toy surprises" included rings, plastic figurines, booklets, stickers, [[temporary tattoo]]s, and [[Secret decoder ring|decoder rings]]. Books have been written cataloging the prizes,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0764301896/ref=s9_simh_gw_p14_d0_i2?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=0ZP2WXFHDQXACRVNNN4Q&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1688200382&pf_rd_i=507846|title=Cracker Jack Toys: The Complete, Unofficial Guide for Collectors (Schiffer Book With Prices): Larry White: 9780764301896: Amazon.com: Books|website=Amazon.com}}</ref> and a substantial collector's market exists.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kovels.com/price-guide/cracker-jack.html|title=Antique Cracker Jack β Toys & Dolls Price Guide β Antiques & Collectibles Price Guide|website=Kovels.com}}</ref> Until 1937, Cracker Jack toy prizes were made in Japan. They were designed by Carey Cloud from 1938.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.c-carey-cloud.com/news-articles/man-who-gave-us-cracker-jack-toys.htm|title=C. Carey Cloud β Newspaper Article β The Man Who Gave Us Cracker Jack Toys|website=C-carey-cloud.com}}</ref> Many metal toys were also made by [[TootsieToy]], who also made [[Monopoly (game)|Monopoly]] game markers. During World War II, the prizes were made of paper.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2014/06/30/jane-alexiadis-metallic-cracker-jack-prizes/|title=Jane Alexiadis: Metallic Cracker Jack prizes|website=Mercurynews.com|date=June 30, 2014}}</ref> In the 1961 movie ''[[Breakfast at Tiffany's (film)|Breakfast at Tiffany's]]'', the lead couple goes to [[Tiffany & Co.]] where they have a ring from a box of Cracker Jack engraved.<ref name="Miyao2019">{{cite book|last=Miyao|first=Daisuke |author-link=Daisuke Miyao|title=Cinema Is a Cat: A Cat Lover's Introduction to Film Studies|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hFzGDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA22|date=October 31, 2019|publisher=University of Hawaii Press|isbn=978-0-8248-7970-9|pages=22β23}}</ref> The prizes attained pop-culture status with the phrase "came in a Cracker Jack box" or metaphorical comparisons to a "Cracker Jack prize," particularly when applied sarcastically to engagement and wedding rings of dubious investment value. The [[Jim Steinman]] song "[[Two Out of Three Ain't Bad]]" (best known as a 1978 recording by [[Meat Loaf]]) includes the lyric "there ain't no [[Coupe de Ville]] hiding at the bottom of a Cracker Jack box." Under Frito-Lay, toy and trinket prizes were replaced with paper prizes displaying riddles and jokes, then temporary tattoos. In 2013, some prizes became codes for people to play "nostalgic" games on the Cracker Jack [[mobile app|app]] through [[Google Play]] for [[Android (operating system)|Android]]-powered devices.<ref name="Cracker Jack'D" /> The announcement was made in 2016 that these gameplays would replace tangible prizes. == See also == * [[Caramel corn]] * [[Crunch 'n Munch]] * [[Fiddle Faddle]] * [[List of popcorn brands]] * [[Lolly Gobble Bliss Bombs]] * [[Poppycock]] * [[Prize (marketing)|Prizes]] * [[Screaming Yellow Zonkers]] * [[Take Me Out To The Ballgame]] * {{portal-inline|Food}} == References == {{Reflist}} == External links == {{commons category}} * {{official website}} * [http://www.crackerjackcollectors.com/ The Cracker Jack Collectors Association] * {{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/patc/crackerjack/ |work=NPR |title=Cracker Jack |author=Feeney, Susan |date=August 26, 2002 |edition=Archived |url-status=deviated |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091126105803/http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/patc/crackerjack/ |archive-date=November 26, 2009 }} History. {{Frito Lay}} {{Popcorn brands}} {{authority control}} [[Category:Products introduced in 1896]] [[Category:Baseball culture]] [[Category:Brand name snack foods]] [[Category:Frito-Lay brands]] [[Category:Popcorn brands]] [[Category:World's Columbian Exposition]] [[Category:American brands]] [[Category:Cuisine of Chicago]]
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