Jon Remembers Fizzies, Great Shakes and Space Food Sticks [Video]

The other day, my boys asked me if I liked Pop Rocks, you know that candy that feels like carbonation exploding in your mouth. I told them I never tried them, but that did remind me of something that I loved as a kid....Fizzies. Do you remember those? They were candy tablets that you dropped into a glass of water and they dissolved like Alka-Seltzer, but instead created a great tasting and fun carbonated drink in several different flavors. You could even put the tablet on your tongue, which was really a treat. In the summer, my brother and sister and I would go through tons of Fizzies, and we loved every single one.

As I was talking to my boys about Fizzies, I was reminded of probably my favorite snack treat, Great Shakes, which was a powder you mixed with milk to create some mighty fine milk shakes like chocolate, strawberry and vanilla....they were awesome. You would buy the shaker that had several packets of shake mix inside. You would put the powder in the shaker and mix with milk up to the fill-line, put the lid on and shake away. Still the best chocolate shake ever in my opinion.

One of my all-time favorite snacks came out in the 1960s, Space Food Sticks. They were made by Pillsbury and they were marketed as the same snacks the astronauts ate, which was all I needed to ask my mom to get some. I can still remember opening the package and removing the 4-1/2 inch rounded stick that came in many flavors. They were actually among the first energy bars for kids. They were chewy, rich and delicious.

Fizzies and Space Food Sticks, I  believe, are still around today, thanks to some people my age who were huge fans as kids and simply had to bring them back. I'm not sure about Great Shakes, but if not, I will bring them back. See some of the original commercials below.....good times.