Imagine walking into a movie theater without being greeted by the scent of freshly salted and buttered popcorn. It's hard to believe, but this was the case for decades.
Often tumultuous and ever-evolving, the relationship between popcorn and movie theaters is younger than you may think. So, how did this perfect pairing come to be?
1920sMovie theaters refuse to sell popcorn.- 1930sPopcorn sales are responsible for the survival of theaters during The Great Depression.
- 1939Sugar rationing during World War II reduced the sale of candy and solidified popcorn's place at the movies.
- 1949Oregon state senator tries to ban popcorn at the movies.
- 1950sAmerica's TV boom brings popcorn into the home.
- 1959Jiffy Pop introduces its stove-stop popping pan.
- 1965Orville Redenbacher perfects his unique popcorn hybrid.
- 1981ACT I, the first commercial microwave popcorn, is introduced.
- 2015Orville Redenbacher's distributes 47 million pounds of popcorn to movie theaters annually.
