SWEET MEMORIES

THE NEFF ZONE -- BY JIM NEFF

CADILLAC NEWS -- APRIL 11, 2026

There is a bit of a controversy in the world of candy. Discovering this led me to reminiscing about some of my former favorites. Sweet treats can bring out the kid in all of us. After all, chocolate is like duct tape – it fixes everything.

According to reports from USA Today, a current favorite has come under scrutiny. “Brad Reese, grandson of Reese’s candy founder H. B. Reese, penned an open letter in February. He claimed the Reese's brand and identity are being rewritten by formulation decisions that replace Milk Chocolate with compound coatings and Peanut Butter with peanut-butter-style crèmes.”

There was a response. “Nearly two months (later) the company announced it would bring a small portion of the brand's candies back with their classic milk and dark chocolate recipes.” Get all the details at: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/food/2026/04/02/reeses-founders-grandson-slams-hersheys-classic-recipe-change/89435285007/.

This situation caused me to think of some candy bar nostalgia. Most of these are no longer in existence. In some cases, however, a small company will recreate and market an old time treat.

First on my list was the Sky Bar. “The Sky Bar, introduced in 1938, was a one-of-a-kind candy bar divided into four chambers—each filled with caramel, vanilla, peanut, or fudge.” In essence, it was four individual pieces of candy in one package. Luckily, this is one old timer you can still find on store shelves. (https://www.allrecipes.com/sky-bar-history-11934333https://www.allrecipes.com/sky-bar-history-11934333)

Four chambers in one bar was nifty, but not as impressive as the Seven Up candy bar. “This was a very unique candy bar that offered seven chambers of flavored fillings. These chambers were filled with eleven different flavored fillings over the years, but the mainstay of the candy bar’s flavorings was usually coconut, butterscotch caramel, buttercream, fudge, Brazil nut, cherry cream, and orange jelly.” The Seven Up ceased to exist after 1979. (https://www.snackhistory.com/sevehttps://www.snackhistory.com/seven-up-candy-bar/n-up-candy-bar/)

One of my childhood favorites was the Milkshake candy bar. “It was called a Milkshake because the ingredients gave it a similar taste to a chocolate malt milkshake.”

Sometimes you could even enjoy this cold. Milkshake bars were twice the size of modern bars. Stores with ice cream freezers could insert a popsicle stick into a Milkshake bar and deep freeze them. The result was an ice cold candy bar that was refreshing on a hot summer day. (https://www.snackhistory.com/milkshake-candy-bar/)

When it came to size, two candy bars come to mind. The Big Time candy bar was a nougat and peanut bar covered in milk chocolate. The Hollywood candy bar added a layer of caramel to the center and was covered in dark chocolate. The real value, though, was the bars were one-eighth of a pound for a nickel. “Big” was the key word in the advertising – “Big Time---Big Deal.” If you were a kid with limited money these were a way to maximize your pennies. (https://www.candywrappermuseum.com/bigtime.html)

Finally, when it comes to sweets, we don't want to forget our feathered friends. Now is the time to stock up on sugar (to mix with water) so you'll be ready to feed the hummingbirds. They are heading north right now. See the migration map at: https://www.hummingbirdcentral.com/hummingbird-migration-spring-2026-map.htm.

These little guys need all the fuel you can supply. “Research indicates a hummingbird can travel as much as 23 miles in one day. However, during migration as they cross the Gulf they may cover up to 500 miles at a time. Their average speed in direct flight is in the range of 20-30mph, and up to three times that fast during courtship dives. During migration, a hummingbird's heart beats up to 1,260 times a minute, and its wings flap 15 to 80 times a second.”

This leads us to a classic hummingbird dad joke. “Why do hummingbirds hum? Because they don't know the words.”

Jim Neff is a local columnist. Read Neff Zone columns online at CadillacNews.com and NeffZone.com/cadillacnews.