Old-Fashioned Popcorn Maker
By Pete Gross
Reading the article title Old-Fashioned Popcorn Maker anyone over 55 might suddenly drift back to their high school days in that old theater downtown that had the upstairs balcony where you could put your feet up, enjoy the movie and still smell the wonderful aroma of the old popcorn machine popping away down at the snack bar.
You don’t see the Old-Fashioned Popcorn Makers in theaters anymore. Oh sure, they have the machines that produce tons of popcorn in boxes big enough to feed a homeless shelter, but it’s not the real thing most older folks remember.
The first Old-Fashioned Popcorn Maker was invented by Charles Cretors in 1885 in Chicago, Illinois. Back in 1519 when Cortes invaded Mexico and first met with the Aztecs, he was surprised to find they were making and eating popcorn. If you were eating popcorn at the movies back in the 1930′s it only cost ten cents a bag. Yikes!
Here’s a fact to consider regarding an Old-Fashioned Popcorn Maker. You can still own one. Of course it won’t be the real thing, but it will look like it, smell like it and the finished product will still slide down your tummy followed by a soft drink or adult beverage like it did in decades past.
Today many families think an Old-Fashioned Popcorn Maker is the microwave. It’s cheaper than the as-close-to-the-real-thing-as-you-can-get movie popcorn and a lot faster. Rip off the cellophane cover, check the this-side-up notation, push the micro button and voila’, popcorn in three minutes. Okay, it’s not the same as the stuff that comes out of and Old-Fashioned Popcorn Maker, but it’s still popcorn with or without butter or salt or both.
The benefit of having one of the real old-time machines stashed away in your garage or basement for immediate use in case you’re showing a double-feature movie in your living room with 10 friends, is the oh’s and ah’s you’ll receive not to mention the taste. Think, standing ovation.
If you really want to go overboard using that Old-Fashioned Maker consider some variations. Cheese popcorn, carmel popcorn, white chocolate popcorn and peppermint popcorn just to name a few. Be creative. The machine can take it. Maybe back in the year 1519 Cortes and his Aztec buddies didn’t have any choices when making popcorn, but today you do. Buy one of the old-timers then you’ll know what perfection tastes like.