BOSCO – The Nostalgic Sweetness of Chocolate Syrup

BOSCO is a representative American chocolate syrup brand. Launched nationwide in 1928, its sweetness captivated children. It also garnered many adult fans; the renowned director Alfred Hitchcock was reportedly a great lover of BOSCO, even using it as a substitute for fake blood in his 1960 masterpiece, *Psycho*. The character of this national chocolate syrup is "BOSCO Bear." In snowball fights, he takes snowballs to the head; while whistling and ice skating, a hole in the cracked ice awaits him; he falls while skiing, is chased by bees, and fails at balancing on a ball. As depicted on the novelty mugs (currently for sale at rumors) and tumblers made by Anchor Hocking for BOSCO in the 1940s-50s, BOSCO Bear was not portrayed as a hero to children, but rather as an endearing bear they could relate to.



The mugs featuring BOSCO Bear share a shape similar to the "Philbe Mug," one of the earliest Fire-King mugs, but were manufactured using a unique mold and Vitrock, a glass with a ceramic-like finish. It's a novel design, using only brown monochrome with Vitrock's distinctive texture, which resembles snow.
Just looking at them evokes a curious sensation, as if the taste of chocolate is spreading in your mouth. Milk chocolate made simply by stirring the syrup into warm milk. It brings back memories of childhood, eagerly stirring the spoon to color the milk. Come to think of it, as a child, I used to swirl paintbrushes in water too. Perhaps there was happiness in the act of mixing things.

The Elusive Novelty Items: Authenticity in Question

After the previous installment, I received a question: "Could there be a *Snow White* mug in Fire-King's D-handle mug series? I saw one being traded at a high price on auctions." To my knowledge, the only Disney-licensed novelty mugs made by Anchor Hocking are the Pepsi-Cola Mickey series, the Mickey and Minnie mugs, and the Pooh mugs. The *Pinocchio* Jiminy Cricket mug featured in an American collector's book has a "decal," a type of sticker, that was originally included as a bonus. Other decals include Bambi and more. If you purchase based solely on a photograph, you might be surprised to find it's just a sticker. In that sense, it's also true that old stickers are sometimes applied to Fire-King mugs today and sold at high prices.



The issue with selling vintage glassware online in recent years seems to boil down to how to discern authenticity, something that can only be truly known upon handling. Collecting old items, not just glassware, can lead to mistakes even with knowledge. To avoid this, isn't it best to purchase from a shop you trust? Notably, some early Fire-King pieces lack markings. The absence of a mark doesn't automatically mean it's fake, and conversely, some marked advertising mugs now feature printed designs, making identification very difficult.
To ensure there are no mistakes with the "Kitsch Inn" items within rumors, I continue to study daily, so I hope you can shop with peace of mind.