This wrapper is one of the first oldies that joined the collection. When I began collecting for the Candy Wrapper Museum, everything I bought was off the store shelves. Then, with the advent of eBay, I began collecting wrappers before my times. The wrapper designs tend to be delightful! Here, this 5 cent Clark Bar from the 1920s features energetic lightning bolts along with the promise that if you eat a Clark Bar and drink a glass of water every day between 2 and 4 a.m. you will be infused with pep that will stay with you all the way till the day is done. That’s quite the promise!
This was back in the day when candy bars were often promoted and marketed as meals and sources of energy. The Clark Bar played a major role in supplying the troops with sugar-fueled energy in World Wars I and II. It was even deemed essential to the war effort during World War II. The D.L. Clark Company also had candy bars named the Iceland Sandwich and the Honest Square, again promoting the idea of a candy bar as a nutritious meal.
With this Clark Bar, I like the way they have to specifically mention that you should drink some water as part of this regimen. Did people have to be urged to drink water back then? In either event, I don't know about you, but I really don't want to be full of pep when the day is done. I want to go to sleep. But then again, I am not out in the trenches fighting a war!
