Hollywood Stars' Early Roles in Horror Films Part 2: Electric Boogaloo

      On Halloween, 2020, I did a post about famous actors and actresses who appeared in often grotty horror flicks early in their careers.  I'm guessing for some of these folks it would be less shameful to have been caught being in a porn movie.  Anyway, recently my blog has been getting a marked increase in views for some posts, at least according to my blog's counter.  One of these was that Halloween post, so I'll give the readers more of what they apparently want.  (Or, it's possible, give the Russian bots more of what they want.  Oh well.)  On a practical note, there are a few minor spoilers sprinkled throughout these entries.

1) Mariska Hargitay:  Hargitay is the daughter of bombshell actress Jayne Mansfield and body builder/actor Mickey Hargitay.  Although she's been in some movies, she's best known for her work on television, especially "Law & Order," "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," and several other "Law & Order" variants.  Incredibly, she's played the same character from 1999-2021.  For which she's earned 8 Emmy nominations, and won 1.  But, her first role was something a bit less respectable.  It was in 1984's "Ghoulies," yet another 1980's tiny monster movie.  The one whose poster has a Ghoulie literally peeking out of a toilet.  (It's currently on HBO MAX, if anyone's curious.)

2) Jason Alexander:  He's another performer best known for his work on the small screen.  In Jason's case, playing George on "Seinfeld" (1989-98), as well as playing himself on "Curb Your Enthusiasm" (2001-09).  He has appeared in some movies, such as "The Mosquito Coast" (1986), "Jacob's Ladder" (1990, and see my post on April 4, 2020 for more detail about this movie), and "The Last Supper" (1995).  And he even played a would-be rapist in 1990's "Pretty Woman."  However, his first role was in a grindhouse slasher movie, 1981's "The Burning."  Which featured people being burned (obviously), campers in peril, gratuitous nudity, and excellent kills by special effects maestro Tom Savini.  Jason plays the comic relief, and actually acquits himself pretty well, considering the genre.

3) Holly Hunter:  Hunter has had a very distinguished career.  Among her honors are Oscar nominations for "Broadcast News" (1987), "The Firm" (1993), and "Thirteen" (2003), as well as an Academy win for 1993's "The Piano."  Other successes include "Raising Arizona" (1987), "O Brother, Where Art Thou" (2000), and "Jackie" (2012).  But, she also appeared in "The Burning" (1981) for her first role.  Unlike Jason Alexander, she didn't have a notable part--she's named, but only has a line or two of dialogue, and is mostly in the background.  Adding some negative trivia, "The Burning" was the initial feature for eventual convicted rapist Harvey Weinstein, and his brother Bob--Harvey produced and helped with the story, Bob co-wrote the screenplay.

4) Hayden Christensen:  Christensen is famous (or infamous, to many viewers) for playing  teenaged Anakin Skywalker in "Star Wars: Episode 2--The Clone Wars" (2002) and "Star Wars: Episode 3--Revenge of the Sith" (2005).  Some of his other movie roles include "Free Fall" (1999), "The Virgin Suicides" (1999), "Factory Girl" (2006), "American Hero" (2014), and "The Last Man" (2019).  His third role, though, was in a John Carpenter movie, 1994's "In the Mouth of Madness."  Arguably the horror master's last good movie, about crazed authors and readers, dimensional and time shifts, and Lovecraftian-type monsters.  Christensen plays a small role as a paper boy.

5) Paul Rudd:  Rudd has been active for a long time, both on television and in movies.  Some of his more notable roles were in "Clueless" (1995), "Wet Hot American Summer" (2001), television's "Friends" (2002-04), "Anchorman" (2004), several Judd Apatow movies, and a bunch of Marvel movies as Ant-Man.  Early on, though, his 10th role overall, he was part of one of the most enduring slasher movie series--"Halloween."  Alas, he was in 1996's "Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers."  In a major role, too, as the grown up Tommy Doyle.  "Halloween" fans generally place #6 low on the list as far as popularity, perhaps only over "Halloween: Resurrection" (2002), or Rob Zombie's remakes.  "The Curse of Michael Myers" features a really stupid explanation for Michael's nature, and one of the worst anti-climatic endings ever.

6) Jennifer Connelly:  Here we have a nice anomaly--a noted child actor who had continued success as an adult thespian, and  who didn't succumb to a drug addiction, see her parents steal all her earnings, or commit armed robberies.  Jennifer went from being in 1986's "Labyrinth" to roles in films like "The Rocketeer" (1991), "Mulholland Falls" (1996), "Dark City" (1998), "Requiem for a Dream" (2000), "Pollock" (2000), "Blood Diamond" (2006), and the upcoming "Top Gun" sequel (2021?).  She also received an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her part in "A Beautiful Mind" (2001).  But, her third role was the lead in the 1984 Italian horror movie "Phenomena" (see my post on December 5, 2020 for more information).  A film which has several impalements, a disfigured child killer, a pit full of corpses and maggots, and a razor-wielding chimpanzee.  So...not something you'll find on Lifetime, or the Disney Channel.

7) Demi Moore:  Moore's career has faded a bit in the 21st century, but she was huge in the late 1980's and 1990's.  She was part of the "Brat Pack," with roles in films like "St. Elmo's Fire" (1985), and "About Last Night" (1986).  Then "Ghost" (1990) made her a star, and movies like "A Few Good Men" (1992), "Indecent Proposal" (1993), "Disclosure" (1994), "G.I. Jane" (1997), and "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle" (2003) kept her in the public eye, for better or worse.  Everyone starts somewhere, though, and Moore's was particularly embarrassing.  Her 2nd role was in 1982's "Parasite," helmed by independent horror movie maven Charles Band.  "Parasite" is set in the far off, post-apocalyptic future of....1992.  And Band's company put out the infamous "Puppet Master," "Demonic Toys," and "Gingerdead Man" series, among countless others.  (Seriously, look at his IMDB page--he's amazingly prolific.)  As recently as a 2019 appearance with James Corden, Moore cited "Parasite" as the worst movie she has ever been in.

8) Michael Rooker:  Rooker's been a busy and respected actor for a long time.  He's had roles in such projects as "Mississippi Burning" (1988), "Sea of Love" (1989), "Music Box" (1989), "JFK" (1990), "Tombstone" (1993), "Mallrats" (1995) and on television's "The Walking Dead" (2010-13).  Younger viewers, though, probably know him best as the sleazy but ultimately decent Yondu Udonta, from the "Guardians of the Galaxy" movies (2014 and 2017).  His second ever part was quite different, however--playing the titular role in "Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer," which was finished in 1986, but didn't get a real release until 1990.  "Henry" is a great and scary film, but it's extremely difficult to watch.  It's flat and almost documentary-like feel, and its refusal to condemn its killers, or have a "good" moralistic ending, make for uncomfortable, terrifying viewing.  It's as if you're watching a proverbial snuff film.  Probably a poor choice for a fun Halloween viewing party, unless your friends are particularly warped.

9) Charlize Theron:  Despite her gorgeous looks, Theron's shown she has true acting chops.  Even if she was allegedly discovered while screaming at a teller at a bank.  She's been Oscar nominated for roles in "North Country" (2005) and "Bombshell" (2019), and she won the Best Actress Academy Award for 2003's "Monster."  Other highlights includes such films as "2 Days in the Valley" (1996), "That Thing You Do!" (1996), "The Devil's Advocate" (1997), "The Cider House Rules" (1999), "The Italian Job" (2003), "Mad Max: Fury Road" (2015), and "Atomic Blonde" (2017).  I also just learned that Theron's been a busy producer, having done this on 21 television programs or movies.  But here we go--her first role was in 1995's "Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest."  The "Children of the Corn" series, inexplicably, has had 11 entries, one as recently as last October!  Part III was the first to be direct-to-video (i.e., not released theatrically), and Charlize had a small, and mute role.

10) George Clooney.  Kind of like Charlize Theron, Clooney has demonstrated that he's more than just photogenic.  I've covered several Oscar winners/nominees in this article, but George is the most prolific.  He's shared an Academy Award nomination for writing on two occasions, for "Good Night and Good Luck" (2005), and "The Ides of March" (2011), and was also nominated as Best Director for "Good Night and Good Luck.".  He's been nominated as an actor for "Michael Clayton" (2007) "Up in the Air" (2009), and "The Descendants" (2011), while winning Best Supporting Actor for "Syriana" (2005).  Finally, he shared a win for Best Picture for "Argo," as he was one of the producers.  His other notable films include "From Dusk Till Dawn" (1996), "Three Kings" (1999), "O Brother, Where Art Thou" (2000), and the "Oceans" series.  But his third role ever was a doozy.  It was a bit part in the sequel to a cheesy "Jaws" ripoff--1976's "Grizzly," about a killer bear, of course.  Clooney traveled to Hungary for this picture, and it was filmed in 1983.  Kind of.  The original producer left early on, and was reportedly thrown in jail.  And the rest of the shoot went poorly, too--supposedly the Hungarian government confiscated equipment when they weren't paid properly.  This doomed movie wasn't properly finished, until very recently.  Another producer finally stitched together a (barely) complete movie, and it was released in 2020.  It's gone by several titles--"Grizzly II: The Revenge," "Grizzly II: The Concert," and "Grizzly II: The Predator."  The reviews have been....unkind.  Only 8% on Rotten Tomatoes, and 3.6 on IMDB.  But there's more--a young Laura Dern and Charlie Sheen also have roles in this turkey.  

  

 

 

Exotic/Disgusting Foods and Beverages Forum--Three More Meatless Burgers

      Over six and a half years ago, on September 14, 2014, to be exact, I did a post about some meat alternatives and imitations, including two burgers.  A couple of weeks ago I happened to pass the frozen meatless section while shopping, and I paused.  I decided to revisit this topic, with a few new examples.  Anyway, I went with Sunshine Burger's spicy Tuscan burger, the Wholesome Pantry's veggie burger, and Hilary's super cauliflower veggie burger.  Also, aside from the post I already mentioned, I did one about the Impossible Whopper (Burger King's veggie burger), on October 26, 2019, which has some information about meatless burgers in general.

     The exact inventor of the veggie burger isn't conclusively known.  And it's probably the type of thing that was developed by many different people, independently, over the decades and perhaps even centuries.  And part of this problem is related to the definition of what exactly constitutes a veggie burger.  Patty-shaped foods made out of vegetables have existed in India and much of Europe for centuries, maybe even millennia, but do these count?  Especially since the invention of the hamburger itself is so disputed.  (I looked into this, and there are many alleged candidates.  People in Wisconsin, Oklahoma, Texas, New York, Connecticut, and, more logically, Hamburg Germany all have their backers.  Most of these date back to the late 1880's and 1890's, with a few claiming ages of the late 1700's.  What is definitive is that the hamburger skyrocketed in popularity after being featured at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis, Missouri, in the U.S.  Also, a guy named George Motz shot a documentary about hamburgers if you're interested--"Hamburger America" (2004).)  The first reference to something called a "vegeburger," made out of nuts and legumes, appears to have been on an American radio show called "Let George Do It," in 1948.  Moving on, Paul Wenner served a Gardenburger at his Oregon restaurant The Gardenhouse, in either 1980 or 1981.  (Wenner eventually started selling these commercially, and they're still available to this day.)  And at his London-based restaurant SEED, George Sams began selling a "vegeburger" in 1982.  But meatless versions of hamburgers really took off in the 1990's and 21st century, as vegetarians and vegans became more numerous.  The ingredients vary wildly, but common bases include soybean/tofu, nuts, grains, mushrooms/fungi, and seeds.  The more recent Beyond Burger, sold in many restaurants across the U.S., is mostly pea-based.  While its competitor the Impossible Burger, which I mentioned before, is wheat/potato/soy protein based, and very complicated to make.  The goal of meatless burgers differs, too--some are sincere attempts to mimic beef's taste and texture, while others are just trying to make something plant-based that will be good off the grill at picnics and such, perhaps on a bun, with ketchup and pickles and the like.

     Sunshine Burger, which is a part of the Sunshine Burger and Specialty Food Company, was started by Carol Debberman in 1983.  Debberman was a fellow New Jerseyian, but the company is based in Wisconsin.  The business seems defined on what it doesn't use in its wares--aside from meat Sunshine avoids sugar, gluten, soy, wheat, corn, oats, dairy, eggs, tree nuts, peanuts, GMO's, and preservatives.  The official company website is a bit sparse, and evidently is not updated very often, as it only lists four varieties of burgers, and not the one I bought.  To be complete, their other kinds include the original, shiitake mushroom, South West, organic garden herb, and possibly loco chipotle, barbecue, and falafel.  (Plus the lack of preservatives leads to an obvious issue--I bought the burgers in late February or early March, and the Use By date was only May 22, 2021).

     Hilary's is a brand name for the Drink Eat Well company, out of Lawrence, Kansas.  Founder Hilary Brown was reportedly a significant sufferer of food allergies, so she created foods which don't use the most common food allergens.  Brown started with a fast food restaurant named Local Burger in 2005, but by 2010 had started the overall company.  Besides meatless burgers, Hilary's also markets meatless sausages and whole grain medleys.  Like Sunshine, Hilary's avoids a lot of ingredients, presumably because they're allergens.  So you'll find no gluten, shellfish, sulfites, mustard, sesame, coconut, tree nuts, peanuts, corn, dairy, eggs, or soy in their products.

     Wholesome Pantry is the baby of the bunch, having only started in late 2016.  It's a brand of ShopRite, the grocery store where I bought these products.  (A bit off topic, but over the years I've probably spelled it "Shop Rite," "Shop-Rite," and "ShopRite."  Today I learned that ShopRite is the proper correct spelling, but the others have been correct at times.  Oh well.)  As I think I've mentioned before, in a previous post, ShopRite is owned by the Wakefern Food Corporation.  Their supermarket began in 1946, in Newark, NJ.  It boasts 321 locations, all in the states of New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Maryland, Delaware, and Pennsylvania.  The Wholesome Pantry brand has dozens of products, including fruit, vegetables, salads, breakfast foods, kombuchas, herbs, no-nut butters, baking supplies, and milk.  Their products are organic.  Unlike Sunshine and Hilary's though, the meatless burger I got from Wholesome Pantry contains wheat (and therefore gluten), soybean oil, and tree nuts (almonds).  So if you're looking to avoid these ingredients due to allergies, or celiac disease, or other concerns, be forewarned.

(Organic) Sunshine burger, spicy Tuscan flavor:  Based on white beans and kale (see my post on March 9, 2016).  Brownish color, with visible green and red chunks.  Disc-shaped, with a diameter of about 9 cm. (about 3.5 inches).  I had this on a hamburger bun, which came from a local diner.  It had an odd taste--almost nutty?  Hard to describe.  The texture was almost meat-ish.  Weird.  Not terrible, but not great.  Edible, I suppose, but not a great imitation of beef.  Better with ketchup on it (but what isn't?).  Spice sneaks up on you as you consume it.

Wholesome Pantry veggie burger:  Advertises its bases as kale, quinoa (see my post about Superfoods on May 1, 2014), onions, carrots, and almonds.  Slightly bigger than the previous, being about 10 cm. (about 4 inches) in diameter, with the same standard patty disc shape.  Kind of a greenish-brown color, with visible orange chunks and black bits.  Also had this on a diner bun.  This one had a better texture and taste.  Bready?  Still didn't taste much like meat, but better than the other two.  And once again improved with ketchup on it.  Almost like a breaded fish flavor.  I liked this one the best, which rather shocked me, since I loathe carrots.  But in this case their awful flavor was overpowered by the other ingredients.

Hilary's super cauliflower veggie burger:  Base was protein-packed lentils, with (obviously) cauliflower, peas, carrots, and garlic.  Yellowish-brown color, with visible yellow and white chunks.  Size was like the Sunshine, about 3.5 inches/about 9 cm., disc-shaped.  Texture was more moist, but not very meat-like.  Okay.  About on par with the Sunshine one.  Not great, not awful.  As always, better with ketchup on it.  Taste was not beef-like at all.

     So, these were all kind of mediocre.  Neither awful nor great, but in between, kind of "meh."  None of them tasted much like a beef burger, or any other meat burger, like a turkey burger, but some or all of them weren't really attempting this.  Since I'm not a vegan, or vegetarian, or anti-gluten, etc., I won't be eating these again--they would have had to be very good to great for repeat business.  But, if you do avoid meat, eggs, dairy, gluten, etc., these might be a viable alternative for you.  However, if you do want a decent imitation of beef, I'd still recommend the Impossible Whopper from Burger King, and presumably, the other restaurants' versions of Impossible Burgers.  And I'll periodically check in on other meatless burger brands, just to see what they're all about.  Finally, despite my opinions about them, the Sol Cuisine and Engine 2 meatless burgers, which I talked about in the 2014 post, are still apparently being sold, so congrats, I guess.

  

 

  

Exotic/Disgusting Foods and Beverages Forum--Chicharrones (Pork Rinds)

      I can hear the protests already.  "Pork rinds?!  They're not exotic and/or disgusting.  They're barely even unusual!  A regular, mundane snack food."  But give me a chance.  To certain folks, yes, this is a common edible, but to others, it's not.  It is at least slightly niche.  I think it qualifies for the "disgusting" part too, if you think about it.  Sure, some people like the skin on a roast chicken, or turkey, or duck, but just as often the skin is removed before eating, either because of revulsion or imagined health benefits.  (On that last point I did some checking, and now nutritionists seem to think that eating poultry skin is okay, as long as it's not in huge amounts, due to its high fat and caloric content.)  But even when skin is eaten, it's combined with the meat underneath, not separately.  So, to sum up, eating just the skin of an animal, by itself, seems a bit weird, and to many, a little off-putting.  (Especially to vegetarians and vegans, I would bet!)  Anyway, that's my justification.  I tried the Baken-Ets brand of pork rinds/chicharrones, which is a product of the American Frito-Lay company.

     Chicharrones can actually refer to a variety of food types, and these often vary depending on what part of the world you're in.  Chicharrones is a Spanish word, and this dish is popular in Spain, Portugal, and countries which are former colonies of these places, such as most of Central and South America, and the Caribbean.  Also the Philippines, and other parts of Southeast Asia.  And, unrelatedly, China, Denmark, and Greece.  Chicharrones can be made from other animals besides the pig, such as chickens, cows, and sheep.  Or from other parts of the body than the skin--mainly the belly meat.  Some chicharrones are deep fried and crispy, while others are fatty, meaty, rich, and buttery.  Some chicharrones are served as filling within tacos and gorditas (in Mexico), some in soups, some are pickled and eaten cold, and others are fried, and then eaten as a snack, like a potato chip (or "crisp").  "Cracklings" or "crackins" are a subtype of chicharrones, as they may be made from pieces of meat, membrane produced from the process of rendering, or the skin.  "Pork rinds" is an American term, and when you think about it, it's a doubly distancing expression from what it actually is, since it's really "pig skins."  Nutritionally chicharrones are usually high in sodium and fat, but low in carbs.  So if you're into the Atkins or Keto diets, they're not a bad option.

     I'd head of the Frito-Lay company, but I didn't realize what a behemoth it is.  Frito-Lay is the largest globally-distributed snack food company in the world.  It boasts 29 brands, and over 55,000 employees.  Some of its famous brands are Doritos, Cheetos, Fritos, Lay's, Sun Chips, Tostitos, Funyuns, and sweeter dessert foods like Cracker Jacks and cookies.  And some beverages, too--more on that in a moment.  As to the company's history, back in San Antonio, Texas, in 1932, Charles Elmer Doolin purchased and enjoyed some locally-made corn chips.  After learning that the manufacturer was interested in selling, Doolin bought the recipe, and started selling the chips as Fritos.  At the same time, over in Nashville, Tennessee, Herman W. Lay started a snack food delivery company, again after buying out a pre-existing firm.  H.W. Lay & Co. was born.  In 1961 the companies joined together to form Frito-Lay.  And then in 1965 Frito-Lay merged with soft drink giant Pepsi Cola to make PepsiCo.  Getting back to the company's popularity, their products are sold throughout all of North, Central, and South America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.  Or I guess, everywhere but Australia, Antarctica, and perhaps a few isolated Pacific islands.  Or, put in another way, I challenge readers to not find at least a single Frito-Lay/PepsiCo product for sale in their home area.  It won't be many of you.

Frito-Lay Baken-Ets chicharrones (pork rinds), traditional flavor:  The rinds themselves were light brown, puffy, and twisted into irregular shapes.  The size of each one varied quite a bit, but I'd guess the average length of one was about 2-3 inches (about 5-7.5 cm.)  The texture was crunchy, but very airy.  They didn't have a very strong taste.  They also weren't extremely salty tasting, as I expected.  Overall they weren't bad, but they weren't spectacular, either.  Kind of mediocre.  Therefore, when it comes to salty snacks, they weren't as good as most potato or corn chips (crisps).  Maybe they're better paired with a solid dip.  Oddly, I'd compare them to a typical European cookie (biscuit)--kind of bland, and not flavorful enough to make me want to try them again.  To be fair, Frito-Lay does sell a hot & spicy variety of chicharrones, and a Sweet Southern barbecue flavor kind.  Maybe I'll give these a whirl if I see them for sale.  Obviously if this happens I'll add an update to this post.

    

Exotic/Disgusting Foods and Beverages Forum--A Mysterious Western European Licorice Candy

      My local Shop Rite grocery recently began stocking a new candy, called Gustaf's allsorts, billed as a "gourmet English licorice."  (Or at least I think it's recent--I didn't notice it until recently at any rate, and I usually check for potential blog post fodder fairly diligently.)  I was a little confused by the name--"Gustaf" sounded Scandinavian to me, and not English.  (I checked on this, and most linguists do think the name is Swedish in origin.  However, aside from Scandinavian nations it's also not uncommon in German-speaking countries, and The Netherlands and Belgium.)  But, I figured that maybe Gustaf was a Norwegian ex-pat or something, who had set up shop in England and prospered as a candy monger.  After I bought the candy and brought it back home, I figured a little online research would give me some background information.

     Switching topics, I've mentioned this before, but I'll repeat it just the same--growing up I wasn't much of a licorice fan.  I didn't hate it exactly, but neither did I seek it out.  However, my opinion seems to be changing as I age.  My experiences with Australian licorice (see my post on January 20, 2017) and Finnish licorice (see my July 1, 2017 post) were quite rewarding, so now I'm starting to think that maybe the Twizzlers and such that I had as a kid were just inferior forms of licorice, and/or I've developed a taste for licorice.  Also, as an adult I've noticed an affinity for anise-flavored liquors, such as absinthe (see my post on October 18, 2015), Sambuca, and to a lesser extent aguardiente (see my recent January 9, 2021 post).  Anise isn't actually related to licorice, but the flavors are rather similar.  Anyway, I went into trying this particular kind of candy with more hope that I would have prior to about 2017 or so.

   Unfortunately, my online research didn't grow any data fruit.  I can tell you that Gustaf's is imported and distributed by the Gerrit J. Verburg Company, out of Michigan, in the U.S.  Other products marketed by Verburg include various chocolates, gummy candies, lollipops, gums, and other kinds of licorice.  Verburg's apparently started in 1979.  Gustaf's is a puzzle, though.  I couldn't find out anything about this company--all attempts just brought me to candy selling websites advertising Gustaf candies.  I'm not even sure if Gustaf's is just a brand name, or a separate company.  I can't even say where Gustaf's is headquartered--although several of their candies are called "Dutch," so maybe they are based out of somewhere in The Netherlands.  But, the bag of licorice I have claims it's a product of the U.K. 

    I was able to learn a bit about what allsorts are, though.  The name allsorts isn't a trademark of Gustaf's, but it is instead a type of candy.  Or, more specifically, a type of candy mixture.  Way back in 1899, a British company, Geo. Bassett & Co., made various candies.  A sales rep, Charles Thompson, accidently dropped a tray of their licorice selections in front of a potential seller.  When Thompson hastily picked up the candies the seller liked the resulting mixture.  And it became a thing, a combination of various types of licorice--usually layered pieces, nonpareils, and coconut rolls.  So other confectioners in other countries made their own versions of allsorts, but they usually refer to this as English licorice, due to the historic inciting incident.

Gustaf's allsorts, coconut roll:  This was a pink circle, with a diameter of about 2 cm (about .75 inches), with a small black center.  It had kind of a chalky, powdery texture.  Definite coconut flavor.  Quite good.

Gustaf's allsorts, blue nonpareil:  (To explain, a nonpareil is a candy coated in tiny, sand grain-sized balls of sugar and starch.)  This was a disc with a diameter of about 1.5 cm (about half an inch), with the tiny nonpareil coating, giving it a pebbled appearance.  This had quite a strong licorice-y flavor, and a crunchy/chewy texture, if that's a thing.  Also tasty.

Gustaf's allsorts, pink nonpareil:  Same size, shape, and texture of the previous, only this one was a pink color.  Tasted about the same too--didn't notice much of a distinction.  So also good, with a strong licorice bite to it.

Gustaf's allsorts, white/black/pink layered piece:  These were square, about 2 cm (about .75 inches) to a side, with the three layers stated above.  Had a chewy, kind of powdery texture.  More of a fruity taste.  Good, but not as good as the three previous.

Gustaf's allsorts, white/black/yellow layered piece:  Same size and shape as the previous, only with a yellow layer replacing the pink.  Same texture, too.  Kind of a fruity flavor, perhaps coconut?  Decent, similar to the pink one.

Gustaf's allsorts, white/black/brown layered piece:  Same shape, size, and texture as its kin.  The brown layer was clearly chocolate, as that flavor was represented.  And once again it was pretty good.

     So, as you can see, my newfound appreciation for licorice candies continues, and I plan to buy this one again.  If you'd like to read about the possible health problems associated with consuming too much licorice, once again consult my January 20, 2017 post about Australian licorice.  I have one final trivial nugget to discuss.  Verburg recently bought the rights to Black Jack gum, the first flavored gum in the U.S., dating back to 1884.  Black Jack inventor Thomas Adams acquired the chicle (a naturally occurring gum produced by some trees) needed to make his gum from an unlikely source--ex general and former Mexican President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, in the 1850's.  During a period of exile following Santa Anna's loss in the Texas War of Independence, Santa Anna sold chicle in the New York area as a rubber substitute.  This didn't work out, but Adams decided to try it as a chewing gum, after learning that Mexicans had a history of doing this.  Alas for Santa Anna, aside from the initial chicle sale he didn't ever see a cut of the eventual gum fortune.