Tag: spring

Boomers Welcomed Spring Their Way

As winter’s thawing tentacles recoil and thrash, intent on crushing the young ambitions of budding crocuses, a wellspring of thoughts gurgle with the notion that spring will — no, must — arrive soon.

Mister Boomer hated this time of the season, that interval of neither here nor there. The time when you needed a winter coat for the walk to school in the morning, but by the time school let out, the temperature had risen 20 degrees. Still cold enough to require a jacket, Mister B and his siblings would have to strip off their hats and gloves and unzip coats to maintain a comfortable equilibrium with the day. He hated that.

Mister Boomer’s mom, like many boomer moms, was motivated by the coming of spring. Her actions on spring motivations began with the seasonal change of outerwear. Since a family of five had to share one small coat closet, a move to storage was always in order when the next season arrived. Winter coats, scarves and gloves were transferred to a basement chifforobe. It was a tall, wooden, rounded-cornered affair, probably dating from the 1930s or ’40s. Mister Boomer thought it must’ve been part of his parents’ bedroom set when they were married, a hand-me-down gift from one of their parents or siblings. However, Midwest springs being what they are, seasons can come and go in a matter of hours. Inevitably there were days when Mister B would have to make the trek to the basement to retrieve winter wear that was prematurely sent to the off-season storage. He hated that.

What’s more, the season ushered in annual spring cleaning chores, especially for the Boomer Brothers. Once Mister B’s mom had the hall closet switched to spring jackets, she’d enlist the help of the boys in various chores around the house. His sister was often exempt from participating. Mister B hated that. (See: Spring Cleaning for Boomer Youth)

T.S. Eliot may have christened April the cruelest month, but then, he may never have had to go to baseball tryouts in the Midwest in March. Mister Boomer didn’t make a Little League team his first year, but did the next three. Tryouts, though, in Mister B’s estimation, were problematic due to seasonal conditions. The air was far too crisp for Mister Boomer, the ground far too soft, the sky far too grey. Then there was the sting of catching a ball in a cold glove, and the zap running up each arm, like brain-freeze for extremities, when the ball made contact with the bat. Even as he took his place at the plate, Mister B knew that somewhere in this favored land, the sun was shining bright, but right there on that day, the weather had struck out. Mister B hated that. (See: Going Batty for Spring)

Mister Boomer has mentioned many times that he, like most boomers, spent a good portion of his time outdoors. As far as Mister B was concerned, he could layer up for winter, but this early spring business confounded his selection of outerwear and made it the most uncomfortable season to play in, in the Great Outdoors. One of the first spring activities in Mister Boomer’s neighborhood was kite flying, to take advantage of the seasonal wind. Like baseball tryouts — air, crisp; ground, soft; sky, grey — wasn’t Mister Boomer’s idea of a good time. He hated that. (See: Boomers Go Fly A Kite)

Meanwhile, back at school the march continued toward summer vacation at a snail’s pace. After all, what was spring to a school kid but the gateway to a summer of fun? It would be Memorial Day before Mister B could hope for a full day off for basking in the warm rays of late spring sunshine. Sure, he had a break over Easter, that strange holiday that hopped around the calendar like a crazed bunny hyped up on sugar. It could be a pleasant week off from school one year, depending where it was in the month, or it could snow. Mister Boomer hated that. (See: Our Sunday Best for Easter)

As the passage of time becomes more prescient to an aging Mister B, he hasn’t mellowed much in his thoughts on early spring days. However, hope springs eternal as March has a way of becoming April, which paves the way to May and on to June. Before you know it, we’re in a Frank Sinatra song singing about the autumn of our years. Mister B hates that.

How did you feel about early spring, boomers? How do you feel now?

Boomers Loved Their Chocolate Easter Bunnies

As spring ushers in another Easter in the Boomer Era, Mister Boomer is waxing nostalgic for the Easters of yore. In particular, he recalls that marshmallow peeps were OK and jelly beans were good (except for those light blue ones … what flavor was that supposed to be?), but the main candy event every Easter was the chocolate bunny.

Chocolate bunnies didn’t originate in the boomer years. In fact, people have been consuming milk chocolate Easter bunnies as far back as the 1890s, when the tradition was brought to the U.S. by German immigrants. The hollow chocolate bunny made its debut in the 1930s. As World War II rationing took hold in 1942, consumer chocolate production was halted and cacao was diverted to the War effort. Thus the chain of munching chocolate Easter bunnies that was gaining momentum with each passing year was broken.

After the War, a soldier returning home was searching for a business idea. In 1948, Richard Palmer, that former soldier, decided he’d open a candy business. To keep himself out of direct competition with Hershey’s, and to avoid confusion with the E.C. Palmer Candy Company, he defined his business model as seasonal and novelties, beginning with Easter. Among his first confections were hollow chocolate bunny “personalities” that were more like cartoon characters than the traditional standing or seated chocolate bunnies sold up to that point. He applied for and was awarded patents for his chocolate bunny molds.

This differentiation was a hit with new parents and their boomer kids from the start. Richard Palmer was in the right place at the right time, and as a result he is credited with reintroducing the chocolate Easter bunny to a whole new generation. Today, the R.M. Palmer Company is the largest maker of chocolate Easter bunnies in the U.S. as more than 90 million per year are produced. The company expanded to Christmas candies in the early 1960s as boomer families grew, and added year-round novelties in the past three decades.

Easter advertising imagery 1961
The two most important things for an early boomer Easter was chocolate bunnies and church. This montage of advertising imagery from 1961 ilustrates that, with a family dressed for church, Easter basket and chocolate bunny looming large in the minds of the boomer youth. Images taken from Mister B's collection.

As a general rule, consuming candy was not an everyday occurrence for most boomers. Rather, it was a measured treat reserved for holidays and special occasions. Mister B remembers his family’s candy traditions at Easter. Wicker Easter baskets had been purchased for each of the three children at an early age and were reused year to year. First, Easter grass would line the bottom. Next, a layer of jelly beans would be tossed into the grass, like sugary drops of dew on a spring lawn. A few foil-wrapped chocolate eggs followed. Occasionally, a snap-together plastic egg was placed into the basket, filled with more jelly beans and small chocolate eggs. Two yellow marshmallow peeps were next, set to the sides of the basket to frame the star of the show: the chocolate Easter bunny. Varying in size and shape each year, the bunnies came packed in rectangular cardboard boxes printed with colorful Easter colors, with a good portion of the front panel being made of cellophane to afford a grand view of the chocolate prize inside. The box was nestled into the center of the basket, an edible rabbit in a grass nest.

Come Easter morning, Mister Boomer’s family would search for Easter eggs the family had dyed the day before, but not Easter baskets. His parents preferred to just give Mister B and his siblings the Easter treats without any wrapping or fanfare. Since the children received the same basket each year, there was never a question of which belonged to whom. Brother Boomer, ever into instant gratification, would tear into his bunny box and with a single hand, grab the chocolate bunny by the throat and yanked it from its cardboard mooring. A second later, he had bitten a chunk off the ears. It appears Brother Boomer wasn’t the only person who chose to chomp his bunny ears first. In fact, today it is reported that 76% of people prefer to eat the ears first. As for Mister B, he preferred to savor the experience bit by bit. He may have allowed himself a nibble of ear at a time, but wouldn’t take the entire chocolate auditory system in a single act of carnage.

Like Halloween candy, the candy in an Easter basket was intended to last for while. Being home from school for spring break gave us the perfect schedule for dispatching the contents. Naturally, a watchful eye was always judicious when Brother Boomer’s basket was empty, lest he raid the remaining two baskets to satisfy his first-born cravings.

What memories of chocolate Easter bunnies are dancing through your heads today, boomers?