Things ain't what they used to be

[LARSSON at vax1.mankato.msus.edu]

Nigel writes:
" . . . Rhubarb Creams                  
sound all too familiar.... The one I am certain still exists is the
mightly Meggezone which is pretty much as described - it doesn't just
clear your nose and throat, it practically sandblasts every passage,
artery and vein in your entire body with sub-artic menthol gales....
 
The funny thing is.... I've noticed that the shops that stock the somewhat
subdued descendents of Mrs Quoad's favourites always stock the
weirder "adult" mags, the bondage, spanking and discipline stuff. Any
connection there, do you think?
 
Others that sound like they ought to come from that section of the book
include Army and Navy Tablets, Victory V's, Cough Candy, and, of course,
the sweet that launched a thousand fellatio jokes, the Fisherman's Friend."


They sound, um, yummy.

In a similar vein, we might decry the de-Moxification of Moxie, which was
a relatively popular drink through the 1940s.  I got to taste a bottle or
two while the company was going under in the early 1960s.  It had a bracing
and thoroughly medicinal taste.  You knew that anything that tasted that
bad *had* to be good for you!

Then Moxie tried to remarket itself, ala the New Coke fiasco, with a new
product that was actually somewhat potable and tasted like a slightly strong
root beer.  When no one saw the point in buying this when several brands of
root beer were already available, they tried to return to its original taste,
but by then it was too late.

"Make mine Moxie!"


Don Larsson, Mankato State U (MN)