Hostess Boxes

[gman]

Knowing that most boxes have been cut down to either a three-card panel or individual cards, about a year and a half ago, I have decided take on the fun challenge of collecting full boxes, preferably unused boxes, from all the years ('75 through -79) that Hostess included baseball cards on their boxes. I thought that I knew all the various Hostess desserts that were available at the time. But there is one being advertised on eBay that is a dessert called Choco-diles. I don't remember this variety being offered down here in Houston and I'm finding minimal information when I google this. Was this a regional dessert? What years was it available. And should this dessert box be considered more challenging to find relative to the others?

Here is the link to the one offered on eBay: https://www.ebay.com/itm/13464371720...Bk9SR4zFnOyeYw

[CW]

Had never heard of them either, John, but Wikipedia seems to have all the info about chocodiles, which is basically a chocolate covered twinkie:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chocodile_Twinkie

[rhettyeakley]

Chocodiles were always a rare find when I was growing up and were always purchased when found. I remember getting excited anytime we would actually find chocodiles (they still make them sometimes but aren’t as good as when I was a kid)

I am too young to have collected Hostess cards when issued so can’t answer that question.

[darkhorse9]

I believe Chocodiles debuted AFTER 1979. I don't believe they ever had baseball cards.

[steve B]

The wikipedia post gives a couple clues.
It looks like it was a west coast thing.

The box, unless it's a really great fake is right there.

I was working in a Cumberland farms when they either started selling them in eastern Mass, or started promoting them. That was 1982 or early 83.

I suspect it was a west coast regional thing they eventually took nationwide, then as money problems came years later, they cut back.

[nolemmings]

Originally Posted by darkhorse9

I believe Chocodiles debuted AFTER 1979. I don't believe they ever had baseball cards.

Actually, it seems they were available as far back as 1977. Several newspapers had ads for them in 1977 -1979, but I did not see any in a spot check from 1976:
This from the Houston Herald May 19, 1977:

[toppcat]

Chocodiles and Funny Bones (I know, not the same mfgr.) were the bomb.

[gman]

Originally Posted by darkhorse9

I believe Chocodiles debuted AFTER 1979. I don't believe they ever had baseball cards.

Mark,

I thought I knew all the boxes that the Hostess cards appeared on until I saw this eBay add in the early fall for a 1979 Choco-diles complete box of for sale that contained baseball cards.


https://www.ebay.com/itm/13464371720...Bk9SR4zFnOyeYw

This was new to me and thus my questions as to how widespread Choco-diles were distributed and were the card containing boxes only available in 1979 or were they also sold during all the other years that Hostess included baseball cards on their boxes.

I grew up in Houston and don't ever remember seeing this dessert in the grocery stores but apparently, they were sold in Houston in 1977 per the newspaper add that Todd found.

I'm really curious as to how scarce complete boxes of Choco-diles containing baseball cards really are.

[darkhorse9]

I do know that many of the snacks featuring milk chocolate coatings were not easily available in the south. I lived in Atlanta and we never got ho-Hos. We were told it was because the melted in shipment.
I'll bet Chocodiles met the same fate and only shipped to moderate climate areas.

[nolemmings]

It would seem from newspaper ads during 1977-79 that Chocodiles were available throughout a large segment of the country, although not everywhere. Here is a map showing in color the states where these newspaper ads ran--the darker the color, the greater number of reference points.


This is somewhat at odds with google research that makes anecdotal statements that Chocodiles were largely a West Coast product.

Newspapers.com did not show any reference to these snacks in 1975 or 1976, and the packaging shown in the 1977 ads refers to Chocodiles as "new", so it's likely that there will be no Hostess-related baseball cards found from this product until at least 1977.

Hope that helps.

[gman]

Wow, great investigative findings Todd! Thank you. That definitely confirms the thought that during the 70's, the Choco-diles were more of a regional desert. That would also support the thought that the Choco-diles boxes containing baseball cards are also scarce when compared to all other Hostess desserts.

We know that in 1979, Choco-diles did have baseball cards on their boxes (this, per the one currently for sale on eBay). Now the million-dollar question is whether or not the Choco-diles boxes had baseball cards in 1977 and 1978.

[steve B]

I think they were very regional.

The store I worked for only had the single packs, no boxes. And after the cards were a thing.

[runbrett]

Before COVID I had been collecting the complete boxes since I like them more than the panels. I haven't seen any lots available in the last few years and the single boxes are now out of my price range.

I only have 45 different boxes but they are from Suzy Qs, King Dons, Cup Cakes, Crumb Cakes, Twinkies, HoHos and BigWheels.

I never heard of King Dons or Big Wheels as a kid in Chicago, but they look just like Ding Dongs which I don't have a box of yet.