The Dallas-based maker of Twinkies and the union that prompted the company to shut down last week will enter into a confidential mediation on Tuesday; this afternoon's bankruptcy hearing has been adjourned until Wednesday morning.
Hostess Brands and the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union are hoping to reach a happy middle ground and no doubt the Teamsters are hoping for this as well as thousands of their union members have been caught in the cross fire.
The confidential mediation affects about 30 percent of the work bakery's workforce and Hostess agreed to the talks at the request of the judge.
Hostess manufactures the iconic snack cake Twinkies, Ding Dongs, Sno Balls, and Wonder Bread.
Twinkies Fun Facts:
- In 2006, Hostess published a 75th anniversary Twinkie cookbook with more than 50 recipes chosen from hundreds sent in by Twinkie fans. Among the recipes: Twinkie Sushi, Twinkie Burrito, and Pigs in a Twinkie. Hey, if you're hoarding Twinkies, might as well pick up the cookbook (cookbook is available at this link).
- The Twinkie was invented in 1930 by James Dewar, manager of Chicago's Continental Bakery. He named them after the "Twinkle Toe" shoes he saw advertised on a billboard in St. Louis. They were originally filled with banana cream, and sold two for a nickel. (Source: The Washington Post)
- During World War II, when there was a banana shortage, the filling flavor changed to vanilla. (Source: The Washington Post)
- There is a website devoted to the Twinkie's scientific properties. It's called the T.W.I.N.K.I.E.S. project (Tests With Inorganic Noxious Kakes In Extreme Situations). According to the site, it's based on a series of experiments conducted during finals week in 1995 at Rice University. twinkiesproject.com
- In 1999, President Bill Clinton and the White House Millennium Council selected the Twinkie to be preserved in the nation's millennium time capsule, calling it an enduring American icon.
- According to Reuters, the deep-fried Twinkie was invented by British chef Christopher Sell, who invented the deep-fried confection at his fish-and-chips restaurant in Brooklyn.
- When Minneapolis City Council candidate George Belair served Twinkies and other refreshments to two senior citizens' groups in 1985, he was indicted for bribery in what the newspapers dubbed "Twinkiegate." (Source: The Washington Post)
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