Everlasting Gobstopper
The Everlasting Gobstopper is both a fictional brand of candy and an actual confection named after the fictional product.
According to Roald Dahl's book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the fictional Everlasting Gobstopper is a candy that not only changes colors and flavors, but can never be finished, and never even gets smaller. It is implied that they may also be indestructible. Factory owner Willy Wonka explained that they were "for children with very little pocket money". According to Slugworth in the 1971 film, the Everlasting Gobstopper would entirely ruin his business.
Nestlé Everlasting Gobstopper
| Outer | Middle | Inner |
|---|---|---|
| Orange | Yellow (Lemon) | Pink |
| Red (Cherry) | Orange | |
| Yellow (Lemon) | Orange | |
| Green (Watermelon) | Purple (Grape) | |
| Purple (Grape) | Pink (Strawberry) |
A product called Everlasting Gobstopper was introduced in 1976 by the Chicago candy company Breaker Confections. It had licensed the "Willy Wonka" name in 1971 so that their candy could be used as merchandising tie-ins for Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory film, which was released the same year.[1] The Willy Wonka Candy Company brand has since been bought by Nestlé and production has been moved to Itasca, Illinois.[1]
The everlasting gobstopper is rather similar to a normal gobstopper or jawbreaker and is composed of several discrete layers. The layers allow for the colour and flavour changing effects described in the book. They are available in a variety of different flavour combinations and usually have a chalky centre similar to a cherry-flavoured SweeTart. A version with a chewy centre is also available.
They resemble the gobstopper from the book and its 2005 film adaptation far more than the ones in the 1971 film. The version from the 1971 film is a multi-coloured, bumpy, spiky candy and the ones in the book and the 2005 film are round, single-coloured spheres. Unlike the ones from the book and the films, where Willy Wonka says you would break your teeth if you tried to chew a gobstopper, the Nestlé produced gobstoppers are chewable once sucked long enough and unlike their fictional counterparts they are not "everlasting."
Seasonal variants such as "Gobstopper Snowballs" and "Gobstopper Heartbreakers" are available during winter holidays and around the time of Valentine's Day, respectively.
See also
References
- 1 2 Zeldes, Leah A. (October 30, 2009). "Willy Wonka lives in Chicagoland". Dining Chicago. Chicago's Restaurant & Entertainment Guide, Inc. Retrieved November 4, 2009.