Sky Bar

Sky Bar is an American candy bar introduced by Necco in 1938, discontinued in 2018,[1] and reintroduced in 2019 by the Sky Bar Confectionary Company.[2] Each Sky Bar has four sections, each with a different filling—caramel, vanilla, peanut, and fudge—all covered in milk chocolate.[3]

For the Los Angeles establishment, see SkyBar. For the Bangkok establishment, see Sky Bar (Bangkok).
Sky Bar
A split Sky Bar
Product typeCandy bar
OwnerSky Bar Confectionary Company
CountryUnited States
Introduced1938; 2019 (reintroduced)
Discontinued2018
MarketsNew England
Previous ownersNecco
Websitewww.skybarcandy.com

History

New England Confectionery Company
Sky Bar advertisement published in the Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph in September 1938

Sky Bar was first announced in March 1938,[4] as the New England Confectionery Company (Necco) became the first manufacturer in the United States to introduce a molded candy bar with four different centers encased in a chocolate covering.[5] The originator of the Sky Bar was a candy maker working for Necco named Joseph Cangemi. Necco introduced Sky Bar by means of a dramatic skywriting advertising campaign,[6] and ran a "complete the sentence" contest in The Boston Globe with cash prizes to raise consumer awareness.[7] The initial price for a Sky Bar was five cents.[7]

Sky Bar's four different centers enrobed in chocolate were originally described in 1938 as English toffee, nougat, nut butter toffee, and fudge parfait.[7] By 1955, they were English toffee, honey nougat, peanut whip, and fudge parfait.[8] By 2001, the fillings were caramel, vanilla, peanut, and fudge.[5] The peanut section was not peanut butter—it was a peanut-flavored caramel—while the vanilla section was not quite nougat or marshmallow, but similar to the consistency of a Valomilk cup.

In 1945, a Necco advertisement for Sky Bar was one of only six signs illuminated in New York City's Times Square following VE Day.[9]

In late 2009, as an advertising tie-in with the DVD release of New Moon (from the Twilight vampire series), Necco released special chocolate bars inspired by the original Sky Bar candy.[10] One bar, similar to the original, contained three filling flavors—caramel, creme and peanut butter.[11] Another bar resembled a heart shape and only contained creme.

By 2014, Sky Bar had become difficult to find, but was still produced by Necco and could be found in some stores such as Cracker Barrel (especially in New England) or on the Internet through Amazon.com (in bulk) or some candy resellers.[12]

Sky Bar Confectionary Company
Storefront of the Sky Bar Confectionary Company in Sudbury, Massachusetts

Following the closure of Necco in mid-2018, the Sky Bar brand was sold at auction on September 27, 2018.[13][14] The winning bidder was Louise Mawhinney, owner of a gourmet food store named Duck Soup based in Sudbury, Massachusetts.[13] The new owner indicated plans to resume production in small batches in late 2019.[13][14] In November 2019, operating as the Sky Bar Confectionary Company, ownership announced that Sky Bar was once again in production, available online and at the Duck Soup store in Sudbury.[15] Beginning December 7th, 2019, the Sky Bar was sold at a separate Sky Bar store directly adjacent to Duck Soup, with the bar being produced in the rear of the store.

A Sky Bar candy bar is shown twice in the 2009 film The House of the Devil. Early in the film the Samantha Hughes character (Jocelin Donahue) opens and begins to consume a Sky Bar while in her college dorm room. Later, during her babysitting job, she's shown eating an already opened Sky Bar (presumably the unfinished candy bar from earlier).

Photographs

Sky Bars made by Necco included the Necco logo on the wrapper and imprinted on each of the four segments. Sky Bars made by the Sky Bar Confectionary Company have no logo on the wrapper, and "Sky" or "Bar" imprinted on each segment.

  • Necco bar in wrapper
  • Sky Bar Confectionary Company bar in wrapper
  • Necco bar unwrapped and split
  • Sky Bar Confectionary Company bar unwrapped

References
  1. "People are panic-buying Necco wafers instead of the Sky Bar. They're freaking out about the wrong candy". The Boston Globe. April 17, 2018. Retrieved September 11, 2018.
  2. "Iconic Sky Bar candy, once thought gone, being made again in Mass". Boston.com. AP. November 13, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  3. Lucky Penny Shop (December 4, 2014). "Necco SkyBar Milk Chocolate Candy Bar - 4 Flavors In 1". Retrieved January 24, 2019 – via YouTube.
  4. "N. E. Confectionery Co. Features a New Candy". The Boston Globe. March 17, 1938. p. 28. Retrieved November 13, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  5. "Ask the Globe". The Boston Globe. June 8, 2001. p. D20. Retrieved November 13, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  6. "Sky-Writing Methods Explained At Luncheon at Boston Airport". The Boston Globe. March 24, 1938. p. 4. Retrieved November 13, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  7. "Sky Bar 5c (advertisement)". The Boston Globe. March 18, 1938. p. 19. Retrieved November 13, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  8. "Necco Sky Bar (advertisement)". Philadelphia Inquirer. November 3, 1955. p. 24. Retrieved November 13, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  9. "The History of Sky Bar". Necco.com. Archived from the original on July 20, 2018. Retrieved 19 July 2018 – via Wayback Machine.
  10. "Sky Bar: New Moon (Special Edition)". Gigi Reviews. November 3, 2009. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  11. "New Moon Sky Bar". Obsessive Sweets. April 26, 2010. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  12. Tucker, Aimee (2014). "Sky Bar, New England's Classic Chocolate Candy Bar". New England Today. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  13. "Iconic candy Sky Bar, once thought gone forever, is coming back". WMUR-TV. AP. 2019-01-27. Retrieved 2019-01-28.
  14. "Can Duck Soup Make Sky Bars Fly Again?". CandyStore.com. Retrieved March 23, 2019.
  15. First, Devra (November 13, 2019). "The Sky Bar's triumphant return". The Boston Globe. Retrieved November 13, 2019.

Further reading
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