AMBFAD Book Club (artificially sweetened w/ SUCARYL)

'Krazy Kids' Food: Vintage Food Graphics'

I've actually owned this one for a while since it was re-released by Barnes & Noble publishing in 2006, but the last nostalgia-fueled AMBFAD Book Club post sparked me into recommending it now. You may find it w/ another cover if you are looking for it online or at your favorite bookseller (FYI), but I digress.

'Krazy Kids' Food' is collection of vintage food graphics used to advertise children's products from the 1930s up through the 1970s. Advertising classics (and not-so-classics) like Mr. Bubble, Maypo, Mr. Wiggle, Shake-A-Pudd'n, Tang and Space Food Sticks all make appearances (just to name a few). The evolution from kid-targeted packaging using mostly established cartoons like Mickey Mouse and Popeye to integration of their own imaginary pitchmen into popular culture, like Tony the Tiger and Twinkie the Kid, is really pretty fascinating.

Even more fascinating is some of the products people used to actually let us eat as children. (Not that) nutritious and delicious concoctions like Fizzies, Kream Krunch Cereal, King Stir, Wrapples, Puddin' Head, Space Food Sticks and Koogle parade through the book in glorious color. Also included are some of the not-so-PC mascots of the past like the Frito Bandito, Chief Big Wheels and the 'Rots O' Ruck' Candy guys. Yikes.

Released as part of the TASCHEN Icons series back in 2003, the design and layout is class act. After a nice two-page introduction...it goes right into nothing but photos of the goods. More importantly, it was helmed by Steve Roden and the amazing Dan Goodsell, both artists and curators of the largest archive of original kids' food packaging in the world! Package all that together and you've got a fun-filled book that'll make you feel like a kid again.

Plus, speaking of Dan Goodsell, i highly recommend checking out the jaw-dropping website he maintains showcasing off this massive collection of packaging, print ads, animated TV spots, theme park memorabilia and other great treasures at Tick Tock Toys. While you're there, make sure to check out his blog and original art site as well for more great stuff. I can (and have) spent hours there since he started it in 1999.