Kickapoo Joy Juice is a
citrus
''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. The genus ''Citrus'' is native to ...
-flavored
soft drink brand owned by the
Monarch Beverage Company
The Monarch Beverage Company Inc is a diversified, international beverage company based in Atlanta, Georgia. The company's CEO is Jacques Bombal. The company was founded in 1965 by Frank Armstrong. Monarch Beverage Company aimed to establish i ...
.
The name was introduced in ''
Li'l Abner
''Li'l Abner'' is a satirical American comic strip that appeared in many newspapers in the United States, Canada and Europe. It featured a fictional clan of hillbilly, hillbillies in the impoverished mountain village of Dogpatch, USA. Written a ...
'', a comic strip that ran from 1934 through 1977.
Although ''Li'l Abner''
's Kickapoo Joy Juice was an
alcoholic drink
An alcoholic beverage (also called an alcoholic drink, adult beverage, or a drink) is a drink that contains ethanol, a type of alcohol that acts as a drug and is produced by fermentation of grains, fruits, or other sources of sugar. The c ...
, the real world beverage is a lightly
carbonated
Carbonation is the chemical reaction of carbon dioxide to give carbonates, bicarbonates, and carbonic acid. In chemistry, the term is sometimes used in place of carboxylation, which refers to the formation of carboxylic acids.
In inorganic ch ...
soft drink.
''Li'l Abner''
"Kickapoo Joy Juice" was a fictional beverage coined in the American
comic strip ''
Li'l Abner
''Li'l Abner'' is a satirical American comic strip that appeared in many newspapers in the United States, Canada and Europe. It featured a fictional clan of hillbilly, hillbillies in the impoverished mountain village of Dogpatch, USA. Written a ...
''.
Al Capp, the
cartoonist, described the beverage as "a
liquor of such stupefying potency that the hardiest citizens of
Dogpatch
Dogpatch was the fictional setting of cartoonist Al Capp's classic comic strip ''Li'l Abner'' (1934–1977).
''Li'l Abner'' comic strip
The inhabitants of Dogpatch were mostly lazy hillbillies, who usually wanted nothing to do with progress. ...
, after the first burning sip, rose into the air, stiff as frozen
cod
Cod is the common name for the demersal fish genus '' Gadus'', belonging to the family Gadidae. Cod is also used as part of the common name for a number of other fish species, and one species that belongs to genus ''Gadus'' is commonly not call ...
fish".
It was said to be an elixir of such power that the fumes alone have been known to melt the rivets off battleships.
Capp asserted in 1965 that the cartoon "never has suggested that the drink is
moonshine", in response to claims that the Kickapoo Joy Juice of ''Li'l Abner'' was an illicitly distilled liquor.
Brewed by
Hairless Joe and Lonesome Polecat, two of the comic strip's backwoods
poachers
Poaching has been defined as the illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals, usually associated with land use rights.
Poaching was once performed by impoverished peasants for subsistence purposes and to supplement meager diets. It was set a ...
, the ingredients of the brew are both mysterious and all-encompassing, (much like the contents of their cave, which has been known to harbor
prehistoric monsters.) When a batch "needs more body", the formidable pair simply goes out and clubs "a body" (often a moose), and tosses it in.
Over the years, the "recipe" has called for live grizzly bears, panthers, kerosene, horseshoes and anvils, among other ingredients.
Product
![Kickapoo Joy Juice 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/Kickapoo_Joy_Juice_2.jpg)
The real world drink was introduced in 1965 under
NuGrape
NuGrape is a brand of grape-flavored soda pop. The NuGrape brand was created in 1906, first bottled in 1921, and by April 1933, The National NuGrape Company was founded in Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of ...
, a former brand of the Monarch Beverage Company.
That year, Nugrape worked out a deal with Al Capp, the owner of the "Kickapoo Joy Juice" rights, to produce the beverage as a
carbonated soft drink
A soft drink (see § Terminology for other names) is a drink that usually contains water (often carbonated), a sweetener, and a natural and/or artificial flavoring. The sweetener may be a sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, fruit juice, a s ...
. Capp, however, would have the last word on all
advertising
Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...
and
promotion
Promotion may refer to:
Marketing
* Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...
.
Kickapoo Joy Juice's early
advertising campaign
An advertising campaign is a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme which make up an integrated marketing communication (IMC). An IMC is a platform in which a group of people can group their ideas, beliefs, and conc ...
was very similar to
Mountain Dew's of the time – using characters from ''Li'l Abner'' to create and market a
hillbilly feeling.
Although the product is distributed largely in
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
n markets (Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Cambodia and Bangladesh), the can still comes decorated with a vintage ''Li'l Abner'' drawing.
''
The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
'' had a regular feature on mixed drinks, and once published in it a recipe for Kickapoo Joy Juice. The backstory is that it had been illicit hooch ginned up by soldiers during World War II, often starting from alcohol intended for fuel for torpedoes and the like.
Variants
*Kickapoo Joy Juice (original)
*Kickapoo Fruit Shine (sangria flavored)
*Kickapoo Fuzzy Navel (peach flavored)
*Kickapoo Malibu (piña colada flavored)
*Kickapoo Lemonade (lemon flavored)
See also
*
Kickapoo people
The Kickapoo people ( Kickapoo: ''Kiikaapoa'' or ''Kiikaapoi''; es, Kikapú) are an Algonquian-speaking Native American and Indigenous Mexican tribe, originating in the region south of the Great Lakes. Today, three federally recognized Kick ...
*
List of soft drinks by country
This is a list of soft drinks in order of the brand's country of origin. A soft drink is a beverage that typically contains water (often carbonated water), a sweetener and a flavoring agent. The sweetener may be sugar, high-fructose ...
References
External links
Kickapoo Joy Juice reviewa
BevNET
{{Li'l Abner
Citrus sodas
Li'l Abner
Products introduced in 1965