February 23 – Tootsie Roll Day

nPosted on February 23, 2019

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nAccording to Tootsie Roll Industries, 64 million Tootsie Rolls are produced every day.

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nThat’s a lot of candy! And I assume that’s not counting all the Tootsie Pops that the company manufactures. 

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n(I assume it IS counting all the various sizes of Tootsie Rolls!)

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nToday is supposed to be the anniversary of the date in 1896 when Austrian immigrant Leo Hirshfield started selling hand-wrapped candies in his small Brooklyn store. He’d named his new treats after his daughter. Don’t worry! – his daughter was named Clara, and it was her silly nickname “Tootsie” that Hirshfield used for his candies.

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nSome people who study such things say that Leo Hirschfeld (a slightly different spelling of the name – but spelling changes in names are very normal for immigrants) was actually working for a candy manufacturer, not running a small store, when Tootsie Rolls were invented. In 1907 he applied for a patent for his recipe, I guess, and the unique chewy texture of his candy, and a year later he was awarded the patent. The whole thing about Clara, nicknamed Tootsie, being the candy’s namesake may be true – and she may even have been Hirshfield/Hirschfeld’s daughter – but there doesn’t seem to be any proof of that story, either. What is backed up by evidence is that there was a child spokes-model for a fruity gelatin candy put out by that same candy company, and this little girl was named Clara.

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nSo I don’t know if the Tootsie Roll Industries’ story about the small store in Brooklyn and the candymaker’s daughter Tootsie is completely true or if it is a mishmash of truth and heartwarming fiction. 

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nI do know that we cannot believe everything a company says about its own product…Check out these old ads:

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nI actually really like Tootsie Rolls. I usually like my candy to be a mix of dark chocolate, nuts, and caramel or nougat – but Tootsie Rolls is one of my favorite exceptions!

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nHere is an old video that shows how Tootsie Rolls are made. And here is a modern video showing us how to make a homemade version of the candy!

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nAlso on this date:

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nAnniversary of the writing of the song “This Land Is Your Land”

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• nFebruary holidays

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• nFebruary birthdays

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• nHistorical anniversaries in February
  

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• nMarch holidays

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• nMarch birthdays

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• nHistorical anniversaries in March

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