1969 was a great year to be seven-going-on-eight: astronauts were getting ready to land on the moon—and for spellbound earthlings, there were Space Food Sticks. As this vintage ad explains, Space Food Sticks were developed "to meet the demands of a long spaceflight" by the nice folks at Pillsbury. (Can you imagine any product today proclaiming on its box that it was "developed . . . under a government contract"?)
Alas, unlike other whined-for foods in our household (Pop Tarts, Cap'n Crunch), Space Food Sticks were a distinct disappointment. They were chewy, as advertised, but their flavor was chalky and indistinct, less like the glorious future and more like the smell of Grandma's denture cup. Pillsbury discontinued the original product in the 1970s but a band of brave (and perhaps foolhardy) souls currently produces Space Food Sticks for a new generation. You can order them, as well as read a detailed product history, at their web site.