Black Jack (gum)
Encyclopedia
Anise
Anise , Pimpinella anisum, also called aniseed, is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae native to the eastern Mediterranean region and Southwest Asia. Its flavor resembles that of liquorice, fennel, and tarragon.- Biology :...
ed flavored chewing gum
Chewing gum
Chewing gum is a type of gum traditionally made of chicle, a natural latex product, or synthetic rubber known as polyisobutylene. For economical and quality reasons, many modern chewing gums use rubber instead of chicle...
made by Cadbury Adams, originally the American Chicle Company
American Chicle Company
The American Chicle Company was a chewing gum trust founded by Edward E. Beeman and Jonathan Primle.-History:It was incorporated in Trenton, New Jersey on June 2, 1899. Its market capitalization was $9,000,000 with one third of its stock preferred and 6% cumulative dividends...
.
In 1869, exiled former Mexican president and general Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna
Antonio López de Santa Anna
Antonio de Padua María Severino López de Santa Anna y Pérez de Lebrón , often known as Santa Anna or López de Santa Anna, known as "the Napoleon of the West," was a Mexican political leader, general, and president who greatly influenced early Mexican and Spanish politics and government...
(famous for losing the Texas War of Independence) was living in New Jersey. He brought a ton of Mexican chicle
Chicle
Manilkara chicle is a tropical evergreen tree native to Mexico and Central America. The tree ranges from Veracruz in Mexico south to Atlántico in Colombia...
with him, in hopes of selling it to raise funds to help him return to power in his own country. He persuaded Thomas Adams of Staten Island, New York to buy it. Adams, a photographer and inventor, intended to vulcanize the chicle for use as a rubber
Rubber
Natural rubber, also called India rubber or caoutchouc, is an elastomer that was originally derived from latex, a milky colloid produced by some plants. The plants would be ‘tapped’, that is, an incision made into the bark of the tree and the sticky, milk colored latex sap collected and refined...
substitute. Adams' efforts at vulcanization
Vulcanization
Vulcanization or vulcanisation is a chemical process for converting rubber or related polymers into more durable materials via the addition of sulfur or other equivalent "curatives." These additives modify the polymer by forming crosslinks between individual polymer chains. Vulcanized material is...
failed, but he noticed that Santa Anna liked to chew the chicle, which the ancient Mayans had done. Disappointed with the rubber experiments, Adams boiled a small batch of chicle in his kitchen to create a chewing gum
Chewing gum
Chewing gum is a type of gum traditionally made of chicle, a natural latex product, or synthetic rubber known as polyisobutylene. For economical and quality reasons, many modern chewing gums use rubber instead of chicle...
. He gave some to a local store to see if people would buy it; they did and he began production.
In 1871, Adams received a patent on a gum-making machine and began mass-producing chicle-based gum. His first product ("Snapping and Stretching") was pure chicle with no flavoring, but sold well enough to encourage Adams in his plans. He began to experiment with flavorings, beginning with sarsaparilla
Sarsaparilla
is a perennial trailing vine with prickly stems that is native to Central America. Common names include Sarsaparilla , Honduran Sarsaparilla, and Jamaican Sarsaparilla...
. In 1884, he began adding licorice flavoring and called his invention Adams' Black Jack, the first flavored gum in the U.S. It was also the first gum to be offered in sticks.
Black Jack Gum was sold well into the 1970s
1970s
File:1970s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: US President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office after the Watergate scandal in 1974; Refugees aboard a US naval boat after the Fall of Saigon, leading to the end of the Vietnam War in 1975; The 1973 oil...
, when production ceased due to slow sales. American Chicle
American Chicle Company
The American Chicle Company was a chewing gum trust founded by Edward E. Beeman and Jonathan Primle.-History:It was incorporated in Trenton, New Jersey on June 2, 1899. Its market capitalization was $9,000,000 with one third of its stock preferred and 6% cumulative dividends...
was purchased by the Warner-Lambert Company in 1962, which became part of Pfizer
Pfizer
Pfizer, Inc. is an American multinational pharmaceutical corporation. The company is based in New York City, New York with its research headquarters in Groton, Connecticut, United States...
in 2000. In 2002, Adams was purchased by the Cadbury Company. Cadbury Adams continues to manufacture Black Jack, as well as other nostalgic brands of chewing gum: Beeman's
Beemans gum
Beemans gum is a chewing gum invented by Ohio physician Dr. Edward E. Beeman in the late 19th century.-History:...
, Chiclets
Chiclets
Chiclets is a brand of candy coated chewing gum made by Cadbury Adams. The colors of chiclets are: yellow, green, orange, red, white, and pink. The product's name is derived from Nahuatl word tziktli, in English chicle, the substance from which chewing gum was traditionally made...
, Clove, Sour Apple and Sour Cherry.
In popular Culture
- Black Jack gum is reference both verbally when broadcasting and shown visually in the 1990 film Pump Up the VolumePump Up the Volume (film)Pump Up the Volume is a 1990 comedy-drama film written and directed by Allan Moyle and starring Christian Slater and Samantha Mathis.- Plot summary :...
by the character and pirate radioPirate radioPirate radio is illegal or unregulated radio transmission. The term is most commonly used to describe illegal broadcasting for entertainment or political purposes, but is also sometimes used for illegal two-way radio operation...
DJ Mark Hunter played by Christian SlaterChristian SlaterChristian Michael Leonard Slater is an American actor. He made his film debut with a small role in The Postman Always Rings Twice before playing a leading role in the 1985 film The Legend of Billie Jean...
for his on air intro.