1 00:00:04,080 --> 00:00:06,360 Speaker 1: Hey you, and welcome to the Short Stuff. I'm Josh 2 00:00:06,400 --> 00:00:10,440 Speaker 1: and there's Chuck. And this is short stuff about fortune cookies, 3 00:00:10,480 --> 00:00:12,760 Speaker 1: which is jam packed the stuff you didn't know about 4 00:00:12,760 --> 00:00:15,880 Speaker 1: fortune cookies. You mean the little cookies. It tastes terrible 5 00:00:15,880 --> 00:00:20,720 Speaker 1: that come from China. Uh part of that's right? Yeah, 6 00:00:20,760 --> 00:00:24,960 Speaker 1: which part the taste terrible part? Yeah? I love a 7 00:00:25,000 --> 00:00:29,160 Speaker 1: fortune cookie. I've never loved eating them, but I've always 8 00:00:29,160 --> 00:00:32,400 Speaker 1: liked getting that fortune. I've had one or two fortune 9 00:00:32,400 --> 00:00:34,600 Speaker 1: cookies where I was like, that was all right. I 10 00:00:34,640 --> 00:00:37,800 Speaker 1: don't know what the deal was. They were freak fortune cookies, 11 00:00:37,840 --> 00:00:41,120 Speaker 1: I guess because there is definitely a rarity, for sure, 12 00:00:41,280 --> 00:00:43,760 Speaker 1: but yeah, it's fun. They should sandwich a fortune in 13 00:00:43,760 --> 00:00:47,640 Speaker 1: the middle of an oreo. Yeah, why not? Then that'd 14 00:00:47,640 --> 00:00:50,199 Speaker 1: be down so um. One of the things that I 15 00:00:50,320 --> 00:00:53,200 Speaker 1: never realized that I never realized. I didn't realize until 16 00:00:53,200 --> 00:00:55,720 Speaker 1: I started researching this, Chuck, is that the fortune is 17 00:00:55,760 --> 00:01:00,160 Speaker 1: not actually baked into the fortune cookie. Did you know that? Well, 18 00:01:00,200 --> 00:01:03,160 Speaker 1: sure it would catch fire. I didn't never think about that. 19 00:01:03,360 --> 00:01:05,680 Speaker 1: I never did. And also it would be like gross 20 00:01:05,760 --> 00:01:07,920 Speaker 1: from the you know, the batter. A fortune cookie is 21 00:01:07,920 --> 00:01:10,720 Speaker 1: a little thin wafer cookie and when you start to 22 00:01:10,760 --> 00:01:13,840 Speaker 1: cook it. Initially it's batter still, so that would make 23 00:01:13,880 --> 00:01:16,800 Speaker 1: the fortune paper pretty mushy. So all right, smart guy, 24 00:01:16,840 --> 00:01:19,080 Speaker 1: how do they put the fortunes in the fortune cookie? Then? 25 00:01:19,560 --> 00:01:21,560 Speaker 1: What do you mean by you never really thought about it? 26 00:01:21,600 --> 00:01:23,720 Speaker 1: Was you literally never thought about it for one second? 27 00:01:24,600 --> 00:01:28,600 Speaker 1: That's absolutely true. Uh. They bake it for a little 28 00:01:28,600 --> 00:01:31,000 Speaker 1: while first, and then they stick it in there, right, yeah, 29 00:01:31,200 --> 00:01:34,319 Speaker 1: bake it and stick it bacon stick, and then fold 30 00:01:34,360 --> 00:01:37,440 Speaker 1: it bake stick. And well you gotta fold first, right, 31 00:01:37,760 --> 00:01:40,440 Speaker 1: you fold afterwards. That's the key. So you bake it 32 00:01:40,440 --> 00:01:42,360 Speaker 1: as a flat wafer cookie, and then when you pull 33 00:01:42,400 --> 00:01:45,119 Speaker 1: it out of the oven, it's still pliable, really quick 34 00:01:45,160 --> 00:01:48,000 Speaker 1: folded into the into that thing with the with the 35 00:01:48,040 --> 00:01:51,040 Speaker 1: fortune inside. All right, Well, we joked earlier. I joked 36 00:01:51,080 --> 00:01:55,160 Speaker 1: about it coming from China, And you might think that 37 00:01:55,240 --> 00:01:58,000 Speaker 1: they do because you find them traditionally in Chinese restaurants 38 00:01:58,000 --> 00:02:00,840 Speaker 1: at the end of the meal. But that is probably 39 00:02:00,880 --> 00:02:02,880 Speaker 1: not so. But we do have a couple of reasons 40 00:02:02,880 --> 00:02:06,240 Speaker 1: why people might think this, and one of them is 41 00:02:06,280 --> 00:02:10,840 Speaker 1: the fact that this story about moon cakes from China, 42 00:02:10,960 --> 00:02:14,240 Speaker 1: This this food that's kind of associated with the mid 43 00:02:14,280 --> 00:02:19,040 Speaker 1: Autumn festival when they're celebrating uh fall harvest. It's a 44 00:02:19,040 --> 00:02:21,760 Speaker 1: little pastry. It's got a little sweeter, savory filling. They're 45 00:02:21,840 --> 00:02:24,200 Speaker 1: usually round because of shape like the moon, but they 46 00:02:24,240 --> 00:02:28,000 Speaker 1: can be square, and they're baked to a golden brown 47 00:02:28,080 --> 00:02:30,920 Speaker 1: as far as the Cantonese style go. And they stamp 48 00:02:30,919 --> 00:02:35,040 Speaker 1: a little uh name when they're cooking this thing after 49 00:02:35,080 --> 00:02:37,680 Speaker 1: they mold it, so it's got a little stamp on 50 00:02:37,720 --> 00:02:41,160 Speaker 1: their right, which tells you what's inside. For a lot 51 00:02:41,200 --> 00:02:44,120 Speaker 1: of times, there's stuff like lotus paste, which is sweet 52 00:02:44,480 --> 00:02:47,760 Speaker 1: sweet sweet bean paste, which is good red date paste, 53 00:02:47,800 --> 00:02:51,280 Speaker 1: which is originally where the word jujub comes from. And 54 00:02:51,320 --> 00:02:53,520 Speaker 1: then no matter whether it's salty or savory. From what 55 00:02:53,560 --> 00:02:56,760 Speaker 1: I understand, the surprise in the middle is one or 56 00:02:56,840 --> 00:03:02,680 Speaker 1: more salted cured chicken egg yolks. Duck egg yolks. I'm sorry, 57 00:03:03,400 --> 00:03:05,720 Speaker 1: which are Have you ever had one of this? I 58 00:03:05,720 --> 00:03:07,839 Speaker 1: don't think so. I think i'd probably know if I did. 59 00:03:08,040 --> 00:03:11,360 Speaker 1: It does not get saltier than that. Part of your 60 00:03:11,400 --> 00:03:13,919 Speaker 1: face will just fall right off after a couple of bites. 61 00:03:13,960 --> 00:03:17,400 Speaker 1: It's crazy, just rise up and falls. You will well, 62 00:03:17,440 --> 00:03:19,280 Speaker 1: then you will like duck eggs. You can get them 63 00:03:19,320 --> 00:03:21,160 Speaker 1: at um, h Mart. They'll have them in like the 64 00:03:21,240 --> 00:03:25,680 Speaker 1: dairy section. What'sh mar. Oh, it's like the big Asian 65 00:03:25,720 --> 00:03:29,120 Speaker 1: grocery store. Korean grocery store. M I don't know about that. 66 00:03:29,200 --> 00:03:32,680 Speaker 1: We have there are local Japanese storey. No, this is 67 00:03:32,720 --> 00:03:36,440 Speaker 1: like a supermarket. Okay, it's over on two eight five 68 00:03:36,480 --> 00:03:39,960 Speaker 1: and Peachtree Industrial, of course it is. Yeah, go check 69 00:03:39,960 --> 00:03:41,920 Speaker 1: it out. Actually it's really good because not only do 70 00:03:41,960 --> 00:03:46,880 Speaker 1: they have everything that's Asian and like a supermarket format chuck, 71 00:03:47,080 --> 00:03:48,880 Speaker 1: so like all sorts of stuff you've never heard of 72 00:03:49,000 --> 00:03:52,360 Speaker 1: to try, they also have the most outstanding food court 73 00:03:52,480 --> 00:03:55,040 Speaker 1: you will ever encounter in your life. Oh you know what. 74 00:03:55,240 --> 00:03:58,840 Speaker 1: I may have been there, then it's really good. Are 75 00:03:58,880 --> 00:04:03,000 Speaker 1: there like eight eight restaurants? Yeah? Yeah, I've been there 76 00:04:03,840 --> 00:04:06,120 Speaker 1: because I'm constantly seeking the best egg roll in Atlanta 77 00:04:06,120 --> 00:04:08,720 Speaker 1: because Atlanta doesn't do egg rolls right. Oh yeah, I 78 00:04:08,800 --> 00:04:11,360 Speaker 1: never really tried them. Yeah, they're the worst. I finally 79 00:04:11,360 --> 00:04:15,680 Speaker 1: found a place though. Okay. Anyway, So, as the story 80 00:04:15,760 --> 00:04:18,599 Speaker 1: goes back in the thirteenth and fourteen centuries, when China 81 00:04:19,000 --> 00:04:22,840 Speaker 1: was being occupied by Genghis Khan and the Mongols, legend 82 00:04:22,839 --> 00:04:25,480 Speaker 1: has it that they didn't like this lotus nut paste, 83 00:04:26,080 --> 00:04:29,120 Speaker 1: and so when they were warring, the Chinese hidden messages 84 00:04:29,720 --> 00:04:32,480 Speaker 1: about like what they were doing, the date of an uprising, 85 00:04:32,520 --> 00:04:35,680 Speaker 1: maybe instructions or you know, how to coordinate the battle, 86 00:04:36,200 --> 00:04:39,760 Speaker 1: and they would stick them in these moon cakes, knowing 87 00:04:39,800 --> 00:04:42,680 Speaker 1: that their message would get through to the Chinese. But 88 00:04:42,920 --> 00:04:45,359 Speaker 1: because the Mongols didn't like the lotus nut basted, they 89 00:04:45,400 --> 00:04:47,520 Speaker 1: would just go ah and they'd throw it away. Yeah. 90 00:04:47,600 --> 00:04:50,279 Speaker 1: Can't you see like some Mongol horde being like, what 91 00:04:50,440 --> 00:04:53,640 Speaker 1: is that a mooncake? What's in there? They're like cured 92 00:04:53,720 --> 00:04:58,039 Speaker 1: salted duck, egg yolk. Yeah, what else? Lotus nut paste? 93 00:04:58,160 --> 00:05:00,760 Speaker 1: Oh God, get it away from me? Yeah, what else? Oh? 94 00:05:00,839 --> 00:05:04,480 Speaker 1: Just instructions about the invasion, right exactly. So so that 95 00:05:04,640 --> 00:05:07,880 Speaker 1: legend apparently is pretty widespread, and some people say that's 96 00:05:07,920 --> 00:05:12,479 Speaker 1: probably where fortune cookies came from, right yeah, And I think, uh. 97 00:05:12,880 --> 00:05:15,360 Speaker 1: The other thing too is that when children are born 98 00:05:15,360 --> 00:05:18,960 Speaker 1: in China that families send out little cake rolls with 99 00:05:19,040 --> 00:05:22,760 Speaker 1: messages inside announcing the birth of the child. So there's 100 00:05:22,800 --> 00:05:24,880 Speaker 1: these couple of things, and the fact that, of course 101 00:05:24,920 --> 00:05:27,359 Speaker 1: that you could have been Chinese restaurants, most people would 102 00:05:27,360 --> 00:05:29,920 Speaker 1: just assume that they're from China. Yes, but then most 103 00:05:29,920 --> 00:05:33,599 Speaker 1: people would be wrong because there's basically no one who's 104 00:05:33,640 --> 00:05:37,280 Speaker 1: looked into this story um or the origin of fortune 105 00:05:37,320 --> 00:05:41,000 Speaker 1: cookies that is like, yeah, they're from China, that's just wrong. 106 00:05:41,320 --> 00:05:44,599 Speaker 1: And we'll tell you where they are actually probably from 107 00:05:44,720 --> 00:06:13,400 Speaker 1: right after this, right, where are they from? Japan and America? 108 00:06:14,120 --> 00:06:20,040 Speaker 1: That's right? Uh? Dating back to the eighteen seventies in Kyoto, Japan, 109 00:06:20,560 --> 00:06:23,000 Speaker 1: they had what we're called fortune crackers. Do you want 110 00:06:23,000 --> 00:06:28,120 Speaker 1: to rattle off that Japanese name? Uh? Suki uda semba man, 111 00:06:28,279 --> 00:06:32,640 Speaker 1: You've really nailed it, Thank you. Can you actually speak Japanese? Though? No, 112 00:06:33,040 --> 00:06:35,680 Speaker 1: I just know how to pronounce Japanese words when I 113 00:06:35,680 --> 00:06:37,280 Speaker 1: see you. I didn't know if you were learning a 114 00:06:37,279 --> 00:06:39,800 Speaker 1: little bit or not. No, it's just it won't stick. 115 00:06:40,279 --> 00:06:42,400 Speaker 1: And I've never like sat down and actually really try. 116 00:06:42,480 --> 00:06:44,080 Speaker 1: Well that's not true. I have tried a couple of times, 117 00:06:44,160 --> 00:06:45,960 Speaker 1: but I've never like gone to class or anything. But 118 00:06:46,240 --> 00:06:48,080 Speaker 1: for the stuff I have tried to pick up, it's 119 00:06:48,120 --> 00:06:51,599 Speaker 1: just not stuck so far. How good is Yummy's Japanese? Oh, 120 00:06:51,640 --> 00:06:54,600 Speaker 1: it's like pretty much flawless. Well, that's why you don't 121 00:06:54,680 --> 00:06:56,640 Speaker 1: learn it, because when you go to Japan you're just like, 122 00:06:58,080 --> 00:07:01,520 Speaker 1: I'm translator built in. I'm very lucky too, because it's 123 00:07:01,600 --> 00:07:04,760 Speaker 1: like a second nature impulse for her to just tell 124 00:07:04,800 --> 00:07:08,280 Speaker 1: me what's going on than just continue on in this conversation. 125 00:07:08,320 --> 00:07:11,080 Speaker 1: It's really it's really helpful. But yeah, it's it's tough 126 00:07:11,120 --> 00:07:13,920 Speaker 1: not to become dependent on that. She's like, I hate 127 00:07:13,960 --> 00:07:16,200 Speaker 1: that big dope. I don't know what's going on fac here. 128 00:07:16,280 --> 00:07:21,960 Speaker 1: So yeah, what's that? What's that guy doing? Good stuff? 129 00:07:22,000 --> 00:07:25,680 Speaker 1: I wish Emily spoke something good? What does she speak? 130 00:07:25,760 --> 00:07:29,000 Speaker 1: So she doing with her life? She studied French, but 131 00:07:29,160 --> 00:07:31,360 Speaker 1: like like every other kid study a little bit of French, 132 00:07:31,400 --> 00:07:33,680 Speaker 1: she doesn't really know any It's like me and my 133 00:07:33,720 --> 00:07:37,120 Speaker 1: German were useless. I'm with you, like me in French too. 134 00:07:38,080 --> 00:07:41,000 Speaker 1: But those fortune crackers in Japan from the eighteen seventies 135 00:07:41,080 --> 00:07:44,239 Speaker 1: or flavored generally with like mis or sesame or something 136 00:07:44,280 --> 00:07:47,160 Speaker 1: like that, not to the fortune cookie that we know. 137 00:07:47,560 --> 00:07:50,560 Speaker 1: The other differentiator is that the fortunes were tucked into 138 00:07:50,600 --> 00:07:54,760 Speaker 1: the bend of the fortune cookie. Pretty lazy people in 139 00:07:54,880 --> 00:08:04,800 Speaker 1: Kyoto as opposed to wear inside the actual four yes yes, 140 00:08:04,960 --> 00:08:07,160 Speaker 1: which you don't. I mean, that's not good. They didn't. 141 00:08:07,200 --> 00:08:10,840 Speaker 1: They never learned the bacon stick. No, I guess not. 142 00:08:11,320 --> 00:08:14,480 Speaker 1: But they did seem to originate something like fortune cookies. 143 00:08:14,560 --> 00:08:18,280 Speaker 1: The question is how did that get to America. That's 144 00:08:18,320 --> 00:08:22,800 Speaker 1: still unclear. So instead we say, okay, how where did 145 00:08:22,800 --> 00:08:25,280 Speaker 1: the actual fortune cookie as we know it came from? 146 00:08:25,440 --> 00:08:29,040 Speaker 1: And that's actually disputed. But the first, the earliest um 147 00:08:29,280 --> 00:08:32,800 Speaker 1: story is in nineteen o seven and there's a guy 148 00:08:32,880 --> 00:08:38,080 Speaker 1: named MacOda Makotagara and he was the caretaker of the 149 00:08:38,160 --> 00:08:42,319 Speaker 1: Japanese tea gardens in San Francisco. And there's a story 150 00:08:42,480 --> 00:08:44,880 Speaker 1: I've not been Actually it's a Golden Gate park, right, 151 00:08:45,559 --> 00:08:49,240 Speaker 1: I've got to check it out. But um hog aora san. 152 00:08:49,880 --> 00:08:54,200 Speaker 1: He apparently was fired for being Japanese by the mayor 153 00:08:54,200 --> 00:08:56,480 Speaker 1: of San Francisco at the time, who said, there's a 154 00:08:56,559 --> 00:09:00,000 Speaker 1: Japanese person taking care of the Japanese tea gardens. It's 155 00:09:00,000 --> 00:09:03,400 Speaker 1: going park fire. That person not very San Francisco. No, 156 00:09:03,679 --> 00:09:07,520 Speaker 1: And apparently Mr Hagiwara was very beloved and the public 157 00:09:07,600 --> 00:09:12,360 Speaker 1: came to his aid and made sure that he got rehired. Right, 158 00:09:12,480 --> 00:09:16,560 Speaker 1: And it's a thank you. He made legit fortune cookies 159 00:09:16,679 --> 00:09:19,360 Speaker 1: like we know them, with little thank you notes inside 160 00:09:19,800 --> 00:09:23,040 Speaker 1: and give gave them out to people who supported him. 161 00:09:23,080 --> 00:09:24,800 Speaker 1: And like you said, this was nineteen o seven. So 162 00:09:24,840 --> 00:09:26,880 Speaker 1: a lot of people say, well, there you go, bing 163 00:09:26,920 --> 00:09:29,160 Speaker 1: bang boom. That's when it started in the US. Yeah. 164 00:09:29,160 --> 00:09:31,640 Speaker 1: San Francisco is the home of the fortune cookie, and 165 00:09:31,720 --> 00:09:35,240 Speaker 1: Los Angeles says not so fast, everybody. Of course, not 166 00:09:35,440 --> 00:09:38,840 Speaker 1: only were we the ones who invented the fortune cookie, 167 00:09:38,840 --> 00:09:42,880 Speaker 1: it was actually a Cantonese immigrant from China who invented 168 00:09:42,880 --> 00:09:45,160 Speaker 1: the fortune cookie. No, not in nineteen o seven. I 169 00:09:45,160 --> 00:09:47,800 Speaker 1: don't even believe your story, says l A. This happened 170 00:09:47,800 --> 00:09:51,320 Speaker 1: in there was a guy named David Jung, founder of 171 00:09:51,360 --> 00:09:54,280 Speaker 1: the Hong Kong Noodle Company, and he used to hand 172 00:09:54,320 --> 00:09:58,520 Speaker 1: out little fortune cookies with little Bible scripture um printed 173 00:09:58,520 --> 00:10:01,200 Speaker 1: on them as kind of a me up for people 174 00:10:01,400 --> 00:10:04,160 Speaker 1: for who were unemployed wandering around Los Angeles that he 175 00:10:04,200 --> 00:10:07,200 Speaker 1: did encounter. That's right. That's one version of the story. 176 00:10:07,240 --> 00:10:11,680 Speaker 1: The other is that he created them as little appetizers. 177 00:10:12,160 --> 00:10:16,760 Speaker 1: When people are waiting very Seinfeldian, waiting for their table 178 00:10:16,800 --> 00:10:19,920 Speaker 1: at the Chinese restaurant, he would hand them out, uh, 179 00:10:19,960 --> 00:10:23,000 Speaker 1: two people in line as a little appertif I guess 180 00:10:23,080 --> 00:10:26,720 Speaker 1: to hold you over. So there's a mock court that 181 00:10:26,840 --> 00:10:30,760 Speaker 1: was put together in three, the Court of Historical Reviews 182 00:10:30,760 --> 00:10:33,599 Speaker 1: and Appeals. I believe they ruled on other stuff previously, 183 00:10:33,880 --> 00:10:36,520 Speaker 1: but in three they took up the issue of them 184 00:10:37,160 --> 00:10:40,079 Speaker 1: the Fortune Cookie, and being a San Francisco mock court, 185 00:10:40,120 --> 00:10:43,080 Speaker 1: they ruled very clearly that San Francisco was the birthplace 186 00:10:43,080 --> 00:10:46,119 Speaker 1: of the fortune Cookie. That's right, Ellie and San Francisco, 187 00:10:46,520 --> 00:10:50,400 Speaker 1: they always have hated each other. They're always added over something, 188 00:10:50,480 --> 00:10:52,720 Speaker 1: you know, And I think San Diego is like what 189 00:10:52,760 --> 00:10:57,880 Speaker 1: about me? For San Diego, they're just down their surfing. Bro. Yeah. 190 00:10:58,320 --> 00:11:00,760 Speaker 1: Remember we did that weird show there and that man 191 00:11:00,920 --> 00:11:03,400 Speaker 1: was church or something. Yeah, And for a little while 192 00:11:03,440 --> 00:11:06,880 Speaker 1: I was convinced that it was the church from um 193 00:11:07,120 --> 00:11:09,600 Speaker 1: Prince of Darkness, the John Carpenter movie. But I went 194 00:11:09,600 --> 00:11:11,160 Speaker 1: back and watched the movie and I was like, this 195 00:11:11,240 --> 00:11:13,360 Speaker 1: is in it. But it had the same vibe. Yeah. 196 00:11:13,400 --> 00:11:15,440 Speaker 1: I remember two things about that show. I remember it 197 00:11:15,480 --> 00:11:18,040 Speaker 1: didn't really have a green room bathroom, so I was 198 00:11:18,080 --> 00:11:20,160 Speaker 1: just in there peeing in the urnals next to everyone 199 00:11:20,200 --> 00:11:24,000 Speaker 1: and they're like, oh, there's Chuck. It was like, yeah, 200 00:11:24,080 --> 00:11:26,640 Speaker 1: that's me. And uh, I remember there was a guy 201 00:11:26,640 --> 00:11:28,840 Speaker 1: on the front row fully filming the entire thing with 202 00:11:28,880 --> 00:11:31,320 Speaker 1: a video camera, and he looked mad about it like 203 00:11:31,360 --> 00:11:35,320 Speaker 1: he was he was like generating evidence or something. It 204 00:11:35,400 --> 00:11:38,319 Speaker 1: was weird, so strange. Uh, maybe we'll come back one day, 205 00:11:38,320 --> 00:11:42,479 Speaker 1: San Diego, if you'd get your act together. That's rights. 206 00:11:44,000 --> 00:11:48,479 Speaker 1: Oh yeah. They were made for about forty years with chopsticks, 207 00:11:49,440 --> 00:11:52,320 Speaker 1: which that takes a lot of skill to to fuld 208 00:11:52,360 --> 00:11:54,400 Speaker 1: and make these things with chopsticks. I would think it's 209 00:11:54,400 --> 00:11:57,440 Speaker 1: a very Japanese way to make fortune cookies, and it 210 00:11:57,440 --> 00:12:00,440 Speaker 1: actually was the Japanese bakers in San Francisco who dominated 211 00:12:00,440 --> 00:12:04,360 Speaker 1: the business from the early twentieth century up until World 212 00:12:04,400 --> 00:12:06,720 Speaker 1: War Two, when they were forced out of the business 213 00:12:06,720 --> 00:12:09,400 Speaker 1: because they were also forced out of their homes after 214 00:12:09,760 --> 00:12:13,040 Speaker 1: Pearl harbor Um and the Japanese were uprooted and put 215 00:12:13,080 --> 00:12:15,760 Speaker 1: into internment camps. And one of the outcomes of that 216 00:12:16,240 --> 00:12:20,120 Speaker 1: was that they stopped making fortune cookies, and apparently this 217 00:12:20,240 --> 00:12:23,160 Speaker 1: created a vacuum that the Chinese immigrants in the United 218 00:12:23,200 --> 00:12:27,199 Speaker 1: States stepped in to fill. Very nice. Uh. Those first 219 00:12:27,240 --> 00:12:30,560 Speaker 1: fortune cookies in the US did have little proverbs and 220 00:12:30,640 --> 00:12:34,120 Speaker 1: sometimes scripture, but they started to get a little more 221 00:12:34,440 --> 00:12:38,480 Speaker 1: English and Americanized by the nineteen thirties, and he started 222 00:12:38,520 --> 00:12:41,319 Speaker 1: to get some of these, like you know, Confucius says 223 00:12:41,400 --> 00:12:44,800 Speaker 1: this kind of things in there. Uh, and then you know, 224 00:12:45,080 --> 00:12:48,120 Speaker 1: poor Richard's Almanac kind of stuff went in there, and 225 00:12:48,160 --> 00:12:51,160 Speaker 1: then the lottery numbers started creeping in. Never been a 226 00:12:51,160 --> 00:12:54,720 Speaker 1: big fan of that with a little emoji smiley faces 227 00:12:54,760 --> 00:12:57,120 Speaker 1: and jokes and stuff like that. Not not a big 228 00:12:57,160 --> 00:13:01,480 Speaker 1: fan of that stuff. No, especially miley faces. Unless there's 229 00:13:01,520 --> 00:13:04,240 Speaker 1: some other message that makes a smiley face appropriate. I'm 230 00:13:04,280 --> 00:13:08,199 Speaker 1: alright with that. Just give me a classic Fortune. So 231 00:13:08,320 --> 00:13:11,560 Speaker 1: one of the great ironies of all this chuck is 232 00:13:11,600 --> 00:13:14,520 Speaker 1: that in the mid nineties, the Wanton Food Company, the 233 00:13:15,000 --> 00:13:19,160 Speaker 1: world's largest maker of Fortune cookies, looked around and said, 234 00:13:19,200 --> 00:13:22,440 Speaker 1: what market have we not penetrated. Europe loves these things, 235 00:13:22,440 --> 00:13:26,000 Speaker 1: America loves these things. What about China? China is gonna 236 00:13:26,000 --> 00:13:28,480 Speaker 1: love these two And it took off like a rocket 237 00:13:28,600 --> 00:13:32,240 Speaker 1: right now, It did not at all, And they basically 238 00:13:32,240 --> 00:13:36,079 Speaker 1: said they're too American for us. And even though they 239 00:13:36,080 --> 00:13:38,640 Speaker 1: make four million and these things every day, to the 240 00:13:38,640 --> 00:13:41,839 Speaker 1: tune of about three billion cookies every year, they didn't 241 00:13:41,840 --> 00:13:43,839 Speaker 1: take off there. They didn't like them, they didn't want them. Yeah, 242 00:13:43,880 --> 00:13:47,080 Speaker 1: And I did that math, and apparently they have two factories, 243 00:13:47,080 --> 00:13:49,520 Speaker 1: because you'd be making about eight million a data to 244 00:13:49,559 --> 00:13:52,840 Speaker 1: come up with three billion. But who knows. I wouldn't 245 00:13:52,840 --> 00:13:55,160 Speaker 1: be surprised if that's how much they were making. I mean, 246 00:13:55,200 --> 00:13:57,840 Speaker 1: those things are flowing like water here in the States. 247 00:13:58,280 --> 00:14:02,280 Speaker 1: Fuzzy math, Yes it is. Um. So I want to 248 00:14:02,280 --> 00:14:04,720 Speaker 1: give a shout out to What's Cooking America l A, 249 00:14:04,840 --> 00:14:10,880 Speaker 1: Times Today, History and um Jennifer eight Lee who popped 250 00:14:10,920 --> 00:14:14,679 Speaker 1: up and I Think our Chinese Food on Christmas episode. 251 00:14:14,800 --> 00:14:17,440 Speaker 1: She wrote The Fortune Cookie Chronicles adventures in the world 252 00:14:17,440 --> 00:14:20,200 Speaker 1: of Chinese Food. She did a lot of scholarly research 253 00:14:20,240 --> 00:14:24,120 Speaker 1: on fortune cookies recently, so hats off to her. Uh 254 00:14:24,120 --> 00:14:25,800 Speaker 1: and hats off to you guys for listening to this 255 00:14:25,840 --> 00:14:33,840 Speaker 1: episode of Short Stuff. Short Stuff is away now. Stuff 256 00:14:33,880 --> 00:14:35,880 Speaker 1: You Should Know is a production of I Heart Radio. 257 00:14:36,360 --> 00:14:38,880 Speaker 1: For more podcasts my Heart Radio, visit the I Heart 258 00:14:38,960 --> 00:14:41,880 Speaker 1: Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your 259 00:14:41,880 --> 00:14:42,640 Speaker 1: favorite shows.