In Villa Park, Illinois there's a huge brick building just off of Villa Avenue, immediately north of the Great Western Bike Trail. As I drive to the interim housing site in Wood Dale each Friday, I pass by this building. When I was a kid and my friends and I rode our bikes east along the "Prairie Path," we would also pass by the building.
It was and is a pretty cool looking building which has been converted into condos or apartments, but in the '70s, the area around the factory smelled amazing, as it had for dozens of years:
You see, they made something special in that building:
Don't know what Ovaltine is? It was a powder that was mixed with milk or with water to create a flavored drink, similar to Bosco and to Nestle Quik. It's been around since the early 1900's, and during the 1930's through the '50's, Ovaltine sponsored very popular radio shows: Little Orphan Annie and Captain Midnight, and even sponsored Captain Midnight on tv.
And boy, did Ovaltine know how to get kids to listen in... send in the liner from the cap, and get a prize mailed back from One Ovaltine Court in Villa Park, IL.
You might order a mug featuring Little Orphan Annie and her dog, Sandy (who frequently says, “ARF!”)
Or the ultimate - the Little Orphan Annie Decoder Ring:
These shows and premiums were such an important part of Ovaltine, and Ovaltine was such an important part of Villa Park, the town's Post Office was built close by to handle all of the mail (orders being received and sent out.)
And if you drive down Villa Avenue, you'd swear Ralphie from A Christmas Story could live in almost any of those houses, waiting for the next episode of Little Orphan Annie:
Who's the little chatterbox?
The one with pretty auburn locks
Who can it be?
It's Little Orphan Annie!