Five cents each
NOVEMBER 30, 2007 (FRIDAY) – I was raised at a time when a cup of coffee cost a nickel, with a free refill. Soft drinks were also five cents.
Many people used to use the word, “Coke,” to mean any soft drink. I don’t think we do that any more. I suppose Pepsi-Cola was the first competition for Coca Cola. Their ads were persistent, always reminding people they had a choice. Their jingle, heard on all the radio stations, kept the product before the public:
“Pepsi-Cola hits the spot
Twelve full ounces, that’s a lot
Twice as much for a nickel, too
Pepsi-Cola is the drink for you.
Nickel, nickel, nickel, nickel,
Trickle, trickle, trickle, trickle…”
Soon other manufacturers entered the arena, with many brand names and loads of flavors. Back then the price was always a nickel, regardless.
In 1940, Grapette was introduced (it had been around a long time under a different name). I had an experience with Grapette that I have never forgotten. You see, every Friday my father got his paycheck, and my mother would always pick him up from work and go to a nearby store to buy groceries for the week. We three kids had to stay in the car, but our consolation prize was a soft drink of our choice. I always picked the biggest drink available, but somehow I had tasted Grapette and even though the bottle was tiny, only 6 ounces, it made up for its small size with a wonderful taste. One day I chose Grapette as my treat. I had taken only a sip of this new and delightful beverage, when suddenly the car door opened, and my Grapette fell to the ground. By the time I could get hold of it, the bottle had emptied itself onto the gravel street. That was it. There was no money available for a replacement until the next payday.
I would be remiss if I did not mention R.C. Cola, also a giant-sized drink. It had a taste quite different from Pepsi, which tasted a lot like Coke. We kids would get together and argue about which one of the three was the best. Its name quickly became, “R.C.” It, too, cost only a nickel.
Every time I go to the store and pass through the soft drink aisle, with its many brands and flavors, I think about the “big three” of my childhood: Coke, Pepsi and R.C.
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P.S. – Today is the last day of November, and the last day of hurricane season. Whew!