Abba-Zaba

Abba-Zaba is a taffy candy bar with peanut butter center, made by the Annabelle Candy Company in Hayward, California.

Abba-Zaba bar

A split Abba-Zaba

History

According to the Candy Wrapper Museum, the first Abba Zaba bars were manufactured in 1922 by Colby and McDermott.^[1] Before Annabelle Candy Co. started manufacturing Abba-Zaba, the packaging featured racist imagery.^[2][3] Annabelle Candy Co. will only say that the wrapper has been the same for as long as they have manufactured the candy.^{[citation needed]} The bar was later manufactured by the Cardinet Candy Co. along with U-No Bar. Annabelle Candy purchased the Cardinet Candy Co. in 1978. Annabelle now manufactures both candy bars in addition to others.^[4]

Abba-Zaba bars can be found almost exclusively west of the Rockies.^[5] The wrapper features a yellow and black checkerboard "taxi" pattern since the 1950s.^[6] They can be purchased in bulk on the web. They can also be found in candy specialty stores anywhere in the US and Canada.^{[citation needed]}

In 2005, Annabelle introduced an apple-flavored taffy variant of Abba-Zaba.^[7] There is also a new bar that has a chocolate taffy and contains chocolate spread and peanut butter.^{[citation needed]}

Abba-Zaba bars are kosher pareve.^{[citation needed]}

In popular culture

Music

• The bar was a favorite of rock musician Don Van Vliet, who is best known by his stage name Captain Beefheart. He used the bar's name as a song title on his album Safe as Milk in 1967. Artwork on the rear album sleeve also features a black and yellow checkerboard pattern inspired by the Abba-Zaba wrapper.
• Abba-Zaba is mentioned, along with Almond Joy in the Tom Waits song "Chocolate Jesus" that appeared on his album Mule Variations.
• Fenix TX included a song entitled "Abba Zabba" on their 2001 second album Lechuza.

Film

• Abba-Zaba bars are featured prominently in the 1998 Dave Chappelle comedy film Half Baked.

Series

• In HBO's Boardwalk Empire Gillian offers an Abba-Zaba bar to her grandson Tommy.

Celebrities

• Actor John Wayne had a sweet tooth and Abba-Zaba bars were his favorite candy.^[8]
• Actress and TV host Tiffani Thiessen counts the candy bars among her favorite snacks on set while filming episodes of Saved By the Bell.^[9]