Visit Our Snackbar
First published 11/9/2000

If you went to drive-in movies in the 1970s, you'll no doubt remember the classic animated short Visit Our Snackbar. Who could forget that dancing popcorn, that soft-shoeing soda pop, and that hot dog who did back flips? They were cheerful without being cloying, wholesome without being maudlin... and oh-so delicious!

But whatever became of these talented foodstuffs? Like most where-are-they-now stories, the answer is sadly more tragic than we'd wish.

For a while, the dancing popcorns -- de facto stars of Visit Our Snackbar -- were a hot property in Hollywood. Critics compared their smoldering intensity with that of Paul Newman, another rising star of the era. However, this promising start was squandered by bad management.

After foolishly turning down the lead in Doctor Zhivago (original title: Doctor and Mister Popcorn), the dancing popcorns starred in a disappointing series of flops, including Popcorn of Doom (1965), Butter Me! (1966), and Dial "P" for Popcorn (1968).

In 1970, the popcorns tried to recapture their early success by doing a remake of Visit Our Snackbar. However, the retooled version, entitled Don't Visit Our Snackbar, was a flop with drive-in owners and effectively ended their film careers.

Unable to get movie work, the dancing popcorns drifted for a while, eventually finding employment on the dinner theatre circuit. In 1986, while appearing in a production of Same Time Next Year, the popcorns where tragically accidentally eaten by Loretta Swit.

The soda pop brothers, who delighted drive-in audiences with their soft-shoe and their willingness to stick straws in their own heads, had a happier fate. Following the release of Visit Our Snackbar they become popular character actors, making a series of TV guest appearances throughout the 1970s. (Most notably, the elder of the two, Clive, had a semi-recurring role in Quincy, where he portrayed part of Sam's lunch.)

The brothers quit show business in 1981, but still lead active lives. Clive is a outspoken advocate for the environmental movement, while his younger brother Nick now sits as a senator for Wyoming.

Perhaps the strangest fate of all belongs to the back-flipping hotdog. In 1966 he was appearing at a mall opening in Kansas when he sustained a serious injury. No longer able to back flip, the hotdog left his longtime partner, Bun, and traveled to the Netherlands... where he ended up appearing in over 750 pornographic shorts!

Although they never worked together again, the cast of Visit Our Snackbar captured the public imagination as have no other dancing snackfoods before or since. In fact, they've made such a mark that, over 30 years after the release of Visit Our Snackbar, Hollywood is making a major film based on their lives.

No word yet as to who will play dancing popcorn, but word is Hollywood badboy Christian Slater has been signed to portray that ice cream sandwich that does a highwire act. Save an aisle seat for me!

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