We've had our share of pudgy pie sandwiches, red wine, and perfumed cigarettes over the last few posts, so there's only one thing left to do now-- satisfy our sweet tooth with some dessert! And if you're equally a fan of actresses from the earliest days of Broadway, radio, and silver screen cinema, then let's sink our choppers into some Billy Burke Chocolates! Made right here in St. Louis, MO in 1911, we're forced to not only imagine what a mouthful of these premiere chocolates might have tasted like (the box is empty, of course!), but we also have to ponder the unusual spelling of her first name on the lid and the bottom of the box as well. Mary William Ethelbert Appleton "Billie" Burke (speaking of mouthfuls!) was a popular American actress that most of you will likely know as Glinda the Good Witch of the North from the classic film musical, The Wizard of Oz (1939.) Now, what is really interesting is that every other variation of this candy box that you'll find online seems to spell her name correctly as Billie. The other colorful, red box designs (example) also show that the chocolates were produced in Boston by the United Candy Company. What. Is. Going. On? Skimming through her fascinating wiki page HERE, we learn that her father's middle name was "Billy", but alas, we learn nothing about her line of chocolates because, unfortunately, there isn't even a single mention of it. If any of you internet sleuths out there have some clues to share about any of this, we'd love to hear 'em!
9 comments:
Well this has been a most sumptuous repast—all four courses! I hope the chocolate was as delicious as this delightful mystery!
I have two theories as to why the box was labeled Billy Burke.
Theory number one, This was one of the first of a hundred or so box lids printed with the wrong name. After the error was discovered they printed the box lids with the correct name.
Theory number two, I have a book titled 'The Little Garden' printed back in 1921, with the name of the author as Mrs. Francis King imprinted on the book cover and on the Title page. The author's own name, Louisa Yeoman King, is printed on the preface/note page and signed by the author back in Nov 9, 1921.
Perhaps society back then just wasn't ready to accept the concept of a woman putting her own name on a book or product, but her father's or husband's name was OK. The 1910's and early 1920's were different times in more ways than one.
I like the picture on the box lid, with its Gibson Girl style picture.
Awesome. Her actually handwritten signature on the photo, besides spelling her name wrong, doesn't match other examples either--not the fancy script on the Boston candy box, or her real autograph, which can be found here and there on the web. I like to imagine some hairy warehouse stevedore signing each and every box.
Looks to me like an early example of off-model brand pirating. Probably full of chocolate flavored mercury medicine tablets that cured lumbago quickly. I love the little lacy fringes on the inside of the box. That's a classy touch.
And might I thrill you with a 5th repast? Stay tuned! haha
All plausible, of course.. though we do have plenty of examples of female authors published well before the 1920's. Still, that is something to think about when considering the world of chocolate / candy manufacturing.
>hairy warehouse stevedore
Oh, you got me... hahaha
I think I'm with Mr. Cavin here and this was just profiting off of a star's name. All of this was local and the chance she'd ever see this -- or go through the trouble of suing -- seems unlikely.
I guess I'll know when I've made it if some regional candy manufacturer rips off my likeness. Or I get some diss video about me, which is more likely.
Okay, we have many thoughts about the mystery here, and I appreciate them all. Now here's mine:
Even though there's damage, if you look closely at the last image of the bottom of the 1911 box you can sort of make out that the trademark is registered with United (Candy Co.?) of St. Louis. The later, redesigned red candy boxes with her name spelled correctly (linked in my intro) are also produced by United Candy Co. but from Boston. This all may have just been a simple move to a different processing plant, and of course adding color to the packaging, as well as spelling her dang name right!
I mean, Babe Ruth's chocolate bar got his name wrong in almost the exact same way, and that candy co. is about as legit as you can get.
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