Jelly Beans!!

ABC Wednesdasy
March 15th, 2017

The letter is J for the fabulous Jelly Bean

Love them...

It is generally thought that the Jelly Bean first surfaced when a Boston confectioner, William Schrafft urged people to send jelly beans to soldiers during the American Civil War.

That would be about the time my Loyalist ancestors came to Canada

but I doubt if they brought the Jelly Bean with them.

Today most historians believe that the jelly bean was first linked with the celebration of Easter sometime in the 1930'.  

Who hasn't made a little nest of green confetti paper

to hold these sweet delicacies which they are going

to hide in the garden under the pretext that the Easter Bunny 

left them there for the children in the house?

The Jelly Bean comes in a myriad of colours and flavours.

Even the Harry Potter series is available on the market...

including flavours such as earwax, dirt, and pepper, -

we would hope these are only names, and the actual flavours 

are delicious and fruit based.

But who knows????

The Jelly Bean has also slang connotations.

In the electronics industry a "jelly bean" component is one which is widely

available, used generically in many applications, and has no very unusual

characteristics  (Mr. Google told me this...)

In the United States in the 1910s and 1920s a "Jellybean"

was a young man who dressed stylishly to attract women,

but had little else to recommend him!

Mr. Google told me this, too.......

Jimmie Dupre, Sam Rosen and Joe Verges wrote a song 

"Jelly Bean He's a Curbstone Cutie)

published by Universal Music Publishers

in the 1920s

and made popular in the 1940s by Phil Harris.

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F. Scott Fitzgerald and William Faulkner's both wrote about such a character,

a dandy, or a fop....

more Js here at ABC Wednesday

(but none so delicious)

with thanks to all who maintain this great meme.

Enjoy your Jelly Beans!