In what year did Tootsie Pops first go on sale?

Tootsie Pops first went on sale in 1931.

Tootsie Pops combine a hard candy shell with a chewy Tootsie Roll center. Tootsie Roll Industries introduced the lollipop in 1931, building on the popularity of the earlier Tootsie Roll candy. The layered design made the product both a hard candy and a chocolate-flavored chew.

The best-known advertising question asks how many licks it takes to reach the center. That campaign made the Tootsie Pop an enduring part of American snack and candy culture, but the exact number in the advertisements is not a scientific universal measurement. Lick counts vary with technique, saliva, and the shape of the candy.

Tootsie Pops are therefore distinct from ordinary chocolate lollipops: the chocolate flavor is concentrated in the chewy center, while the outside is a hard candy coating. The product’s two-texture design is the key feature behind its name and popularity.