Here's a memory so obscure that I could barely find anything on the web about it! That's good news for the next curious seeker of obscure knowledge, because they'll find THIS article.
Today, I write about little plastic critters that once lived on the edge of your styrofoam cup full of ice cold drink that was brought to your hands by a carhop, probably on roller skates.
We had a local chain in the Miami, Oklahoma area called Sonic. You've probably heard of them, they have since gone on to a much more nationwide presence. But in 1967, they were an Oklahoma phenomenon, and one of the things that they did to distinguish themselves from the competition was provide those incredibly brightly colored little mermaids, elephants, swordfish, monkeys, and a veritable menagerie of other creatures.
Perhaps you grew up with Sonic drive-ins. If not, I'll bet a similar 1960's eatery would decorate your drink with the miniaturized animals and such. They would profligate in kitchen junk drawers, along with matchbooks, 45 inserts, and other gewgaws too cool to throw away. They would also show up hanging from rear view mirrors, frequently in the form of monkeys linked tail-to-tail.
There was a scintillating quality to the drink critters that very few other give-aways could match. I mean, that bright blue, green, and red plastic was so gorgeous, with sunlight filtered through the windshield of a 1966 Plymouth Fury highlighting the delightful colors against that white styrofoam cup rim and those tiny crushed ice chips floating happily in the cherry limeade.
If you can remember them, you know EXACTLY what I'm talking about.
And the ploy worked, too. More often than not, I would convince my parents of the superior quality of Sonic's food and drink and persuade them to go there for a meal on the go. But they knew that it was those amazing little plastic works of art that really drew me there.
Who knows, perhaps they drew them, too.
So what happened? How did such a universally loved concept disappear?
The same way so many other similarly loved phenomena that we remember from our childhoods did. Through litigation.
Note this quote from the Wikipedia article on Sonic drive-ins:
In the 1960s, Sonic meals were always accompanied by a peppermint candy and small colored plastic animals called zoo-picks hanging on the side of drink cups. In small Southwestern towns it was common to see these Sonic zoo-pick collections on customers' dashboards and rear-view mirrors until they were outlawed by consumer product safety laws as a choking hazard. The traditional peppermint candy is still served with Sonic meals today.
Aargh. I might have known.
You can still order them from Australia, if you dare. They are probably banned in the US, along with DDT and similar scourges of the human race. if you manage to obtain them, you might want to have your guests sign a big, fat release in case any of them should attempt to swallow the critters and choke in the process.
But that's not good enough for me. I want to jump in the Plymouth with mom and dad and drive to the Sonic on the edge of Miami and have a huge cherry limeade, complete with a bright red monkey hanging on to the edge. And I want it to be 1967 again.
Oh well, I guess it's time to put the Stones' Let it Bleed on and get back to reality.
Comments (8)
I was talking to a friend this morning about those sonic animals. I miss them too! I wish they would bring them back for the route 44 cups. I mean...what small child will be drinking a route 44. It wil just be for all of us "old timers" to relive our youth.
Posted by Lynn C | January 25, 2009 4:32 PM
Posted on January 25, 2009 16:32
Wow! I can't believe how difficult it was to google these collectibles of my past! I had a huge collection of them! Thanks for taking me back in time!
Posted by sathomcat | April 25, 2009 7:23 PM
Posted on April 25, 2009 19:23
We can still get these little treasures on our sherbet at Zehnders Restaurant in Frankenmuth, MI. They stopped for awhile, but have returned, I am sure due to many disappointed customer! Thanks for your article.
Posted by chers | September 23, 2009 10:27 AM
Posted on September 23, 2009 10:27
Makes me wonder how those little peppermint candies (and even M&Ms) have survived the "choking hazard" radar. We did not need to live with choking hazard laws when I was a kid, we lived with parents who slapped the small stuff out of our mouths, or else grabbed us by the heels and shook it out then carried on as always instead of phoning lawyers.
Posted by NCeddie | April 11, 2010 12:16 PM
Posted on April 11, 2010 12:16
This is so weird...I found this page by going to www.ask.com and typing "animals Sonic drive-ins used to put on drinks". Then I read about Miami, OK. The weird part is...that's where I live. What are the chances of that? BTW...love your site!
Posted by Tammy | May 27, 2010 11:26 PM
Posted on May 27, 2010 23:26
My son recently bought a '74 Nova to re-build and drive for his first car. While pulling out the back seat his dad found a monkey zoo pick. Of course my son had no clue so we "schooled him" on what they were and where they came from. This is a great find for me, his mom, I was a carhop at Sonic off and on for the last 20 years. It brought back great childhood memeories too!! :)
Posted by Tammy P. | June 30, 2010 9:14 AM
Posted on June 30, 2010 09:14
I grew up in Britton okla Part of OKC. Born in 1960 these things were the neetest thing we always went to Sonic to get a cherry Coke and if we did not get some cherrys and a monkey or something lookout.LoL...Wish I could go back to thouse days and stay. good music cool cars and Neat cloths???
Posted by Mike Selvey | July 28, 2010 9:34 PM
Posted on July 28, 2010 21:34
I had been looking for some of the zoo-picks (I didn't know what they were called) just to have but had not been able to find any, then last week I went to an estate sale and found the mermaid in a bag of vintage swizzle sticks. Thanks for the memories!
Posted by Terri | August 16, 2010 11:40 AM
Posted on August 16, 2010 11:40