Ep. 6: Popcorn Saves the Movies TRANSCRIPT Thanks for popping on your headphones and joining us for an episode of Ballsy History, a podcast about big personalities and little-known stories. Settle in for a tour of the outrageous acts, incredible stories, and outsized characters that shape history. We’re your hosts Elizabeth, Emily, Maureen, and Elliott. We’re glad you’re tuning in. Today on our show we’ll learn about how the humble act of popping corn became the thing that kept movie theaters doors open during the Great Depression, besting even Gary Cooper and Greta Garbo as a profitable draw. As movie palaces realized they needed to adapt to survive, owners rethought the sanctity of their plush and litter-free spaces by providing the public a treat many could splurge on and afford. If you’ve ever sat in a darkened movie theater chances are you’ve also balanced a bag of popcorn on your lap while indulging in fistfulls of the salty snack people love so much. Ornate movie palaces with crystal chandeliers, marble-lined hallways, billiards rooms, and even drop-off daycare centers drew wealthier customers and were initially intolerant of messy and disruptive snacks. In fact, this—the original clandestine movie snack—didn’t make it out into the open until once movies became “talkies” with the film’s sound covering the noises of people eating. But, let’s roll time back even further and learn about maize being cultivated 8,000 years ago and how this evolved into such a tasty treat. Corn was cultivated in Mexico around 7,000 years ago and spread throughout both North and South America. The first corn was likely grown by the Native Americans from wild grasses and crossed with high-yielding plants to create hybrids. By 1903, there were 307 varieties sold by American seed houses; one strain of which is the popcorn we know today, characterized by starchy kernels with hard kernel walls. These hard walls allow the internal pressure to build when placed over heat, thus creating the satisfying “pop” as it explodes open. Before the Great Depression, most popcorn sold was white corn—yellow wasn't commercially grown very widely, and it cost twice as much. Movie vendors, however, preferred yellow corn because it expanded more when popped and had a yellowish tint like a coating of butter. People became accustomed to this type and refused to buy the white variety at markets—they wanted the kind that looked like "the popcorn at the movies." The first hybrid popcorn for commercial production, Minhybrid 250, was released in 1934 by the Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station. It only grew well along the northern edge of the U.S. corn belt, but was quickly followed by hybrids developed by the Indiana and Kansas Agricultural Experiment Stations in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Bureau of Plant Industry, and were released in the early 1940s. One reason for popcorn's increasing popularity was its mobility. By 1885, the first steam-powered popcorn maker, invented by Charles Cretor could be found at outdoor sporting events, fairs, and circuses. It didn’t require a kitchen like potato chips did—and the makers were easily mobile. In 1905, nickelodeon theaters changed the landscape of American entertainment, which had been dominated by live performances, such as stage plays or vaudeville. Nickelodeons ran showings of one- and two-reel silent films that lasted up to one hour and were accompanied by a piano or organ. Admission cost a nickel, thus the name. By 1907, around 3,000 nickelodeon theaters had opened, and by 1914 roughly 27 percent of Americans were going to the movies every week. They were popular but didn’t offer any food onsite. If you were hungry you had to purchase food and drinks from nearby restaurants and sneak it inside or from self-employed vendors who hawked sweet and salty wares like popcorn and peanuts from the aisles. In the '20s and '30s, nickelodeons were replaced by upscale movie theaters, designed after European palaces and opera houses appointed with marble columns, bejeweled chandeliers, and perfume sprayed into lobbies, the goal was to transport moviegoers to another world. The goal was to enhance the moviegoing experience and it worked. In the 1920s movie attendance swelled to 90 million people weekly. These early movie theaters hung signs outside their coatrooms, requesting patrons check their popcorn along with their coats. Theater owners just didn’t realize how lucrative concessions could be. They didn’t want snacking like you’d find at a burlesque show—and they wanted their upscale environments to remain garbage-free. But, just like in the nickelodeon days, vendors sold snacks outside and popcorn and candy wrappers ended up littering theaters despite owners’ best efforts. The Great Depression impacted the movie business. Attendance dropped, even as the movies tried to reassure the demoralized nation. Walt Disney was producing animations, “The Wizard of OZ” hit theaters, and screwball comedies such as “It Happened One Night” were hits. Still, the movie palace owners needed to find new sources of revenue. A few installed candy dispensers, and some leased lobby space to popcorn vendors. But, theater owners quickly realized popcorn’s lucrative promise and started selling in-house. The early popcorn machines had unpleasant, burning odors, but by the 1930s, the technology had improved and the smells were enticing. Popcorn was cheap enough that theaters could sell it for 10 cents a bag and still turn a profit. Even cash-strapped Americans could splurge on such an inexpensive treat. Theater builders of the 1930s scaled back and constructed neighborhood movie houses that were less opulent with more simplistic architecture. Concessions had become a bigger part of the business and the candy counter was important enough to be its own architectural consideration often taking up a great deal of space with Coca-Cola refrigeration units and glass cases showing off the many treats available. Theaters still hoping to appeal to highbrow customers offered chocolates, candied apples, and bonbons but as mass production grew more prevalent newer candies such as Milk Duds, Baby Ruths, Raisinets, and many others became favorites. During WWII, sugar was rationed and candy sales dropped. Popcorn was given the stamp of approval by the War Production Board because of its health benefits and popularity. This allowed the treat to further cement its hold on the concession stand. Thanks to this unusual situation, Americans ate three times as much popcorn as usual. After the war, television was another threat to movie houses so making profits off snack sales became even more important. From 1948 to 1956, despite a 50 percent decrease in theater attendance, concession sales increased fortyfold. With the war’s end sugar returned and soda and even more candy goodies like Goobers, Sno-Caps, and Chuckles appeared, followed shortly thereafter by M&Ms and Junior Mints. Inventive sales techniques, such as the up-sell, took off with staffers pushing higher priced concessions and suggesting additional purchases. Movie theater popcorn is THE concession stand staple with a mouthwatering scent of salt and butter. Perhaps most importantly of all, it saved the fledgling movie theater industry from near collapse during the Great Depression. Thank you for joining us today!