I was watching an interview with Jerry Seinfeld and he mentioned a book called “Quintessence,” so I borrowed a copy through inter-library loan. It was written by Betty Cornfeld and Owen Edwards (whom I assume is gay) and published in 1983. Edwards writes: “this is a book about … things that offer more to us than we specifically ask of them and to which we respond more strongly than is easily explained.”
What follows is their list of 65 quintessential things from over forty years ago … it’s interesting to see which ones are still around:
Barnum’s Animal Crackers (recipe has changed since my youth, now awful)
Campbell’s Tomato Soup (1200 mg of salt, 20 g added sugar per can)
Coca-Cola (in glass bottle)
Crayola Crayons (big box no longer has built-in sharpener)
El Bubble Bubblegum Cigar (now made by Tootsie Roll, another “quintessential” candy one could argue)
The Faber Mongol #2 Pencil (made in Mexico now)
Fox's U-Bet Chocolate Syrup (never heard of it)
Frederick's of Hollywood Lingerie (multiple Chapter 11 bankruptcies)
The Ghurka Express Bag No. 2 ($2,695)
Green Giant Peas (no longer available in a can?)
The Hamilton Beach Model 936 Drink Mixer (pdf of old user manual)
Heinz Ketchup (in glass bottle) (squeeze bottle a great leap forward)
The Hershey's Chocolate Kiss (awful chocolate, but I agree the foil packaging with tail is genius)
Honey Bear (hard to find example with nipple on head)
Jockey Briefs (purely a boxer briefs man now)
Johnson's Baby Powder (discontinued, $9 billion lawsuit settlement (cancer))
Keds High-top Sneakers (not Converse?)
The L.L. Bean Maine Hunting Boot (only good if lined)
Lacoste Polo Shirt (early status symbol, later overtaken by Liftshitz polo pony)
LePage's Mucilage (looks like it’s no longer made)
The Louisville Slugger Bat (good thing for home defense)
M&M's Chocolate Candies (peanut-filled was a good brand extension, peanut butter was pushing it)
The Märklin Electric HO Gauge Model Trains (expensive hobby for adults only)
The Martini (60 ml gin and 10 ml dry vermouth)
Monopoly Board Game (awful game when you think about it)
The Mont Blanc Diplomat Pen (does anyone use a fountain pen now?)
Nathan's Famous Hot Dog (never had one)
Ohio Blue Tip Matches (now owned by Diamond?)
The Oreo Cookie (authors lament advent of “Double Stuf” which ruins the Oreo’s quintessence, they say)
The Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich (rarely had one of these as a kid, considered a great luxury junk food)
The Polaroid SX-70 Camera (sold out of course)
Ray-Ban Sunglasses (Aviator Classic the pair they mean)
Silly Putty (played with as a kid, great stuff, esp. the smell)
The Slinky (played with as a kid)
The Spalding Rubber Ball (looks like Spalding no longer makes these)
Steiff Teddy Bears (the ancient Steiff teddy bears in my life were too valuable to play with and therefore useless to me)
The Swiss Army Knife (Victorinox sole manufacturer now?)
Timex Mercury 20521 Watch (the 20521 is no longer made, but I’ve linked to the Marlin, which is a re-issue that appeals to vintage lovers)
Tupperware Containers (not a fan of plastic food storage except for the lids)
The Volkswagen Beetle Car (we had one when I was a kid)
Wedgwood Plain White Bone China (plain white a little boring, but they have a point)
The Zippo Lighter (I collect Zippo Armor lighters, love them)
Unfortunate typo of the author’s name on the cover page … Cornfeld not “Cornfield”
