The relationship with USA Softball provides us with an important audience and great, fun content. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Bouton toldJaynes, who is now a Comcast SportsNet Northwest commentator and blogger, the basics of the story: ''For once, it was an idea I followed through on. The interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity. It was the mid-1970s, and he and the kid were in Civic Stadium in Portland, Oregon, both working in the service of the Portland Mavericks, a rogue baseball team operating outside the purview of Major League Baseball. After graduating from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, he was employed by New Orleans, Louisianas Times-Picayune newspaper. "I remember telling my brother Ed, 'At least now I won't have to paint houses in the summer.' [2][3] Big League Chew was introduced in May 1980, in the traditional pink color already seen in established brands of bubble gum. "And Dan was absolutely right.". He has plans to take a trip this spring with several friends to Princeton, N.J., to celebrate the 40th anniversary of one of his greatest collegiate triumphs -- when he led Cornell to a 2-0 victory, pitching a two-hitter against the Tigers. Your email address will not be published. ". I said, Im not leaving this town. Tony Petitti era begins at Big Ten; Can the Senators really land a $1B deal? Big League with Charlie Boots Apple Podcasts Cuzyougoddagedallthesugaroudfirsd. And so, we will wait 10 minutes for Nelson to get all the sugar out first, so he can show off his legendary bubble-blowing skills. Hes one of the most creative thinkers Ive ever been involved with, Stege said. He didnt have a car, or furniture. "Dan said that we couldn't patent [the idea], but we could certainly protect it with trademarks and copyrights and so forth," says Nelson. 14 Million. Sometime in 1978, he happened across a copy of People magazine containing an ad for an Arlington, Tex., company selling a do-it-yourself gum-making kit. For folks of a certain age, this makes him some sort of patron saint of youth baseball, because the moment it came along, in 1980, it freed them of the yucky, gag-inducing charade of chewing tobacco. Rob Nelson: Inventor of 'Big League Chew' and Former Minor League Founded by former left-handed pitcher Rob "Nellie" Nelson, Big League Chew started from humble beginnings in the Portland Mavericks bullpen in 1977. Finally we got a little company called Amurol Products, a $9 million subsidiary of the Wrigley Co., to make it. Gemini is all about output, so these twins love to chat and often speak with their hands. We cross all sports but our roots are in baseball. Rob Nelson (Big League Chew Gum Creator) Baseball has taken Rob Nelson all around the world and it gave him his ticket into the Baseball Hall of Fame. "I can't stand it. Major Leaguers love their bubblegum. Famous as an anchor for WABC-TV (New York) and as a co-anchor for the ABC programs America This Morning and World News Now, he also briefly worked for the New Orleans CBS affiliate WWL-TV. Thats me from very, very long ago, when I was in my 20s, Nelson said, somewhat wistfully. Rob Nelson, inventor of Big League Chew, tells the story of the - MLB It came out of the oven looking like a pan of brownies. They were so sweet, because they knew I was an idea guy and that I was a little bit wacky. Manage Settings Eventually he found a small division of Wrigley, Amurol Confections out of Naperville, Illinois. Inventor, Rob Nelson, joined OnTheStacks Podcast to chat about everything from the 40th anniversary of #BigLeagueChew to the newest flavor, Slammin'. Please check back soon for updates. I finished pitching in my late 40s, he says. Amurol experimented with gum branded with Popeyes likeness, colored green and meant to resemble spinach. www .bigleaguechew .com. That was roughly 800 million pouches ago. Looking back, Nelson can see there must have been some sort of guiding hand call it God, or fate or karma that made this all possible. Big League Chew: The Bubblegum Of Your Childhood They dated for a while, but the important part was that one day, Nelson noticed Todd reaching into a chewing tobacco pouch and putting a hunk of blackish stuff in his mouth. Why Portland? bubble gum that looked like a Band-Aidyou know, dopey stuff. [5], In April 2023, Nelson announced that over a billion pouches of Big League Chew had been sold worldwide.[6]. I spent a lot of time in the bullpen just observing guys. While its relatively simple to predict his income, its harder to know how much Rob has spent over the years. When children of the 1980s and 90s meet Rob Nelson, they share with him a version of the same misty, water-colored memory: the dusty dugout of a hometown baseball field, a scrappy summer little-league team, and a communal pouch of Big League Chewthe shredded bubble gum that Nelson, a former minor-league pitcher, invented in 1979. Nelson's nickname was Nellie, and he was a fan of Hall of Famer Nellie Fox, one of many ballplayers that kept a large wad of chewing tobacco in his mouth while he played. We really took our connectivity with female athletes to a new level a few years ago when a girl was added to the pouch for the first time. So Nelson went to Portland. Big League with Charlie Boots on Apple Podcasts PORTLAND, Ore. Rob Nelson dips a meaty thumb and a meaty forefinger into the pouch and pulls out a fat plug of shredded pink goodness. Nelson: They need to make sense and build on the Big League Chew brand. Wed look like tough guys but wouldnt make ourselves ill. Another inning later, Jim said to me, I really like that idea. For more than 35 years, the iconic pouches packed with shredded, flavorful bubble gum have become the preferred chew ing gum for all ages having sold more than 800 million pouches to date. He said when he was in high school, he used to chew Ground Ball Grapebut then he hit a bunch of grounders, so he doesnt chew that flavor anymore. Rob Nelson joins Michael Rasile on For the Love of Sports to discuss his baseball career and how he was able to take a couple innings of shooting the breeze . CORNELL'S MONTHLYNEWSLETTER FORALUMNI & FRIENDS. About Big League Chew Bubble Gum Big League Chew At the age of 70, though, he has maintained an athletic physique as well as his Redfordian good looks, with a square jaw and tousled graying blond hair. Rare insight into WNBA revenue and PLL adds Mike Levine to BOD. Spit Take: The Story of Big League Chew | Mental Floss Rob cooked up some gum in his kitchen and sliced it up with a knife, we packaged it up and took it to Fleer, Topps, Leaf, Donruss -- a lot of big companies -- and they all told us, 'We don't make anything like that.'. Add to it the fact that one of baseball's most iconic venues is named after a brand of chewing gum, and it's easy to get the sense that gum, itself, is part of the fabric of the game -- a fabric made ever so slightly chewier by the stuff. When he was 11 years old, Nelson had stuffed his mouth with bubble gum so he could look like White Sox second baseman Nellie Foxfamed for the bulge of pouch tobacco sitting in his left cheek . The Mavericks disbanded in 1977, but the partnership between Nelson and Bouton endured. Rob talks its invention, the Portland Mavericks, growing the company . '59, a patent and trademark lawyer, to ensure that Big League Chew would have a future. program. There was an organization called NSTEP, the National Spit Tobacco Education Project. 49 print issues delivered to your home or office. [1] It was then pitched to the Wrigley Company (longtime owners of the Chicago Cubs) by fellow Maverick and former New York Yankee All-Star Jim . We are always looking for new markets for our products. Todd Field, now an actor and director, was not included in the deal with the Wrigley Company, despite being involved in the early prototypes. "I told him, 'I always thought it would be cool to have shredded gum so we could look as good as these guys, but not get ill,' says Nelson. Hoping to mimic the tar-like color of Fields concoction, Nelson used brown food coloring, maple extract, and root beer extract in the gum. By the time Nelson got the taste right and sold the idea to Amurol Products, a subsidiary of Wrigley on a three-year contract that earned him five percent of all profits, a share he would continue to split with Bouton for 20 years (buying him out in 2000) the professional gum-makers had already nixed the idea of brown/black gum. Rob Nelson, who baked the first batch of the iconic gum 40 years ago, talked to Esquire about the Genesis behind an American rite of passage. When executives came back from lunch, the 2.1-ounce pouches had sold out. At last count, more than 800 million pouches of Big League Chew have been sold. For more than 35 years, the iconic pouches packed with shredded, flavorful bubble gum have become the preferred chewing gum for all ages having sold more than 800 million pouches to date. Nelson ordered the kit, and on Feb. 6, 1979, in the kitchen of Todd Fields parents, he cooked up the first batch of Big League Chew, using root beer extract and maple syrup as flavoring and coloring agents shooting for a brownish-black color that mimicked chewing tobacco. Outta' Here Original variety Big League Chew, "The Battered Bastards of Baseball: The unlikely heroes of the Portland Mavericks", "The Birth Of A Bubblegum Empire: Big League Chew's Unlikely Portland Origin", "Tar Director Todd Field Helped Invent Big League Chew", "Big League Chew founder, Rob Nelson, joins the MLB Central crew to discuss the fascinating history of the iconic bubble gum", Carson Cistulli interviews Rob Nelson, co-inventor of Big League Chew, Discussion with Nelson about the growth and management of Big League Chew, ESPN Los Angeles article about adding images to packaging, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Big_League_Chew&oldid=1151513618, This page was last edited on 24 April 2023, at 14:51. In 2013, two active playersMatt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Cole Hamels from the Philadelphia Phillies (now with the Chicago Cubs)were pictured. Nelson would develop the product and Bouton would try to get it distributed. Entrepreneur and former left-handed minor league pitcher Rob "Nellie" Nelson, the inventor of Big League Chew, discusses his bubble gum company's history and success in the marketplace with Mick and Mook in the upcoming episode of 'A Mick A Mook and A Mic' slated for August 18th. Q:For people of my generation (born 1980), Big League Chew has something of a throwback appeal. Click below to sign in. That's the idea.' Gemini moves too fast to care about embarrassing missteps: They simply move on. 272 views, 17 likes, 2 loves, 3 comments, 1 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Big League Chew: In honor of our 40th anniversary, #DYK that inventor, Rob Nelson, was a former left-handed pitcher for. Wrigley Jr. Co., introduced Big League Chew in 1980. As one of the millions of kids who grew up playing ball with a wad of pink saccharine goo nestled in my cheek, I felt a certain nostalgic charge talking with the man behind Big League Chew. But we enjoy telling our story and how the start of Big League Chew came largely out of the disdain that (co-founder) Jim Bouton and I had for tobacco. Kids continued to dribble grape, strawberry, and other fruit-flavored gum on their shirts. Gemini is excellent at guiding change and transformation. Portland, OR - Big League Chew inventor Rob "Nellie" Nelson will be recognized by the City of Portland for his contributions to the city, as Portland Mayor Charlie Hales will proclaim August 19, 2015 as "Rob Nelson Day." Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager told ESPN he chews a lot of gum, but only Big League Chew's Outta Here Original flavor. "This was uncharted territory for us," Nelson told ESPN's Darren Rovell. One obstacle remained: Neither Nelson nor Bouton knew how to make gum. Rob Nelson: An Entrepreneur, Inventor of BIG LEAGUE CHEW - YouTube But the association with tobacco, which wasnt meant to be taken literally, upset some parents. "Right now, I'm the unofficial gum of Cornell baseball," says Nelson. [4], Currently, it is manufactured in the U.S. by Ford Gum & Machine Company in Akron, New York, after taking over distribution rights from Wrigley and moving production from Mexico at the end of 2010. He put up about $10,000 for prototypes. Topps and Fleer, which produced bubblegum cards, politely rejected him. Nelson: We dont necessarily need to focus on that, and that is a good thing. Esquire: How did you come up with the idea for Big League Chew? The company does about $16 to $17 million in revenue each year. We knew we had the older group simply based on nostalgia, but to reach the younger demographic, we needed to do it in ways that they were accustomed to. He stood amid the vast aisles of candy displays at the National Confectioners Associations Sweets & Snacks Expo inside Chicagos McCormick Place convention center, manning the Big League Chew booth as a sort of mascot for the brand. And it could have tragic consequences. "This was uncharted territory for us," Nelson told ESPN's Darren Rovell. Big League Chew would never work in basketball. It is the taste of ancient ball-glove leather, the taste of infield dirt, the taste of neon-green Gatorade out of a giant cooler in the corner of a tiny, chicken-wire dugout. I dont think anyone goes from shredded bubble gum to chewing tobacco any more than kids who use Nerf guns become terrorists. For more than 40 years, the iconic . When I was growing up, some parents saw the shredded gum as an introduction to Red Man and the like, just as they viewed bubble gum cigarettes as a gateway to smoking Marlboros. One evening, the two pitchers watched in disgust as some of their younger teammates tried to spit tobacco juice on each others' white cleats. We find that kids today simply dont make a connection between our product and smokeless tobacco, as they are more likely to see their MLB heroes blowing bubbles. 10 college athletes having signed on to promote the gum on their social accounts, SBJ Spotlight: Rich McKay of AMB Sports and Entertainment, Anquan Boldin on how the Players Coalition continues to fight for social justice, Jalen Rose on being a business-minded athlete, and why NIL is good for college players, Bill Simmons on the creation of ESPNs 30 for 30 documentaries. Its preposterous, he said. Nelson: The Sweets & Snacks Expo is the showcase for our industry and provides us with an opportunity to learn more about our industry and display all that we have going on at Ford Gum and Big League Chew. If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page.. This confectionery-related article is a stub. "I'm getting goosebumps just being here again.". He took a very simple idea, says Field, who went on to become an accomplished actor and filmmaker, and became an evangelist for it.. 11111062_1152825941410092_8406608481365328762_o.jpg. Leave the gum-making to us.. A product hat has become a staple in dugouts everywhere and a piece of Americana. Its just licorice. That idea just kind of stayed with me, I guess. I had a great run for somebody who, frankly, just wasnt that good. It was his halcyon days in the mid-70s with the independent Portland Mavericksthe ball club owned by Bonanza actor Bing Russell, the father of movie star and former minor-leaguer Kurt Russellthat led Nelson toward improbable baseball immortality with his invention of one of the most legendary sports-associated confections. ''He's going to keep pitching until he finds a continent that can't hit him.''. Eventually, Wrigley absorbed Amurol, and Nelson bought out Bouton, but neither of those changes was nearly as significant as when Mars Inc. purchased Wrigley in 2008. Who was this 11-year-old kid, the one with the beautiful older sister? Would you trade it all for the experience of having had a major league career? As Big League Chew spread into Little League dugouts across the country, Nelson continued to pitch all over the world. This is pretty insane because Amurol as a company was only worth $8 million and this one product was worth more than twice what their company was! Its an incredible story, Field said. He was making $300 a month with the Mavericks. "It was right there," Nelson says, pointing. But unlike childhood, Nelson knows where he can get some more bubble gum. Famous as an anchor for WABC-TV (New York) and as a co-anchor for the ABC programs America This Morning and World News Now, he also briefly worked for the New Orleans CBS . Rob is a Gemini. Its in the 2014 documentary The Battered Bastards of Baseball, which is available on .css-umdwtv{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:.0625rem;text-decoration-color:#FF3A30;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:inherit;-webkit-transition:background 0.4s;transition:background 0.4s;background:linear-gradient(#ffffff, #ffffff 50%, #d5dbe3 50%, #d5dbe3);-webkit-background-size:100% 200%;background-size:100% 200%;}.css-umdwtv:hover{color:#000000;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;-webkit-background-position:100% 100%;background-position:100% 100%;}Netflix and tells the whole story of the Mavs. For more than 35 years, the iconic pouches packed with shredded, flavorful bubble gum have become the preferred chewing gum for all ages having sold more than 800 million . And Im comfortable. Feel that familiar texture. Award-winning original reporting, with in-depth profiles, timely research and expert opinions on the biggest issues and stories in sports business. Everything fell into place. Nelson had met Chernoff that summer at a Cornell Club of Portland cocktail hour. Over 800 million pouches of Big League Chew have been sold since 1980. I have two daughters, and one of them was in softball. He looks out at the soccer stadium known as Providence Park, remembering it as an old ballpark called Civic Stadium. The following year, in 1981, the Wrigley family sold the Cubs to the Tribune Company for $20.5 million. They feared Big League Chew could become a "gateway" gumbubblegum one day, tobacco and oral cancer the next. Rob talks its invention, the Portland Mavericks, growing the company & much more! He brushes his fingers against his suit pants to get the sugar dust off and passes the pouch to his right. Nelson wanted to move production back to the United States (in recent years it had been manufactured in Mexico) so he purchased the gum shredding and packaging machines from Wrigley and discovered the small company Ford Gum and Machine, based in Akron, N.Y. Adam takes a trip to Portland, Oregon to meet with Rob Nelson, the cofounder of Big League Chew, in this clip from Season 1, "Only in the 80's."#AdamEatsthe8. Big League Chew - Wikipedia Other than the new venture with Ford Gum, Nelson spends his days with small projects and inventions, as well as devoting his time to his wife, Sarah, and children, 11-year-old Paige and 7-year-old twins Charlie and Jane. In January 1979, I read an article about a small make-your-own-bubble-gum company out of Arlington, Texas. His success has come from the rising of hard work. Now, here I am 50-some years later, and my gum is going to be in the Hall of Fame, but Im not.. I would love for the bullpen to be the Big League Chew bullpen and have a plaque out there that says 'Rob Nelson threw here once; briefly and ineffectively.' While you wait, you might as well reach in and grab some for yourself. How does that change Big League Chews positioning, since it started as an alternative? Or at least his gum has, as part of an upcoming exhibit on baseball in the 1980s. '57, LL.B. Then hed let the black goo dribble down his chin or hock it in the dirt. Author Jonathan Swift stated: "Discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody else has thought.". In a coincidence, Amurol engineer Ron Ream had been working on a shredded-gum project for several years. How do you capitalize on that while having a message that goes beyond the nostalgia play? Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn, who dipped his whole career, died of cancer of the salivary gland. Q:Smokeless tobacco is much less prominent in baseball than it once was, even being banned in many ballparks. Chewing tobacco was a common sight among the athletes, but Nelson hadnt seen many kids take up the habit so early. With Big League Chew paying his bills, Nelson was able to continue playing into his early 50s in places such as South Africa, Australia and England. Most of them are interesting and worthy of discussion. The original advertising slogan throughout the 1980s, which is still featured today, was, "You're in the big leagues when you're into Big League Chew!" He really did believe he could make anything happen. While the chewing tobacco homage was obvious, they didnt want to completely replicate the experience. Rob Nelson is a member of Richest Celebrities and Journalists. Big League Chew For former Cornell baseball pitcher Rob Nelson '71, his discovery involved seeing two ballpark staples -- chewing gum and chewing tobacco -- and thinking of a way to combine the two into a new product that has stood the test of time for 30 years: Big League Chew. The idea for Big League Chew was conjured up by Rob Nelson '71, a former Cornell pitcher under Hall of Fame head coach Ted Thoren. All rights reserved. Big League Chew Bubblegum! It is the sport of chewing and spitting. Smell the sugar dust. Nelson and Bouton have turned a tidy profit -- enough to finance Nelson's continued pursuit of a baseball career. The education details are not available at this time. Nelson had his best season with the Big Red as a senior, going 6-2, with his only . I dont think so. To get here was no little task. I went to the Meijer supermarket and got flavor extracts of maple and root beer. Rather than brush Bouton off, the company embraced the idea of a gum that would be sold in a pouch and was a play on kid-friendly chewing tobacco. It did not enjoy the same success. Hes now a writer, director, and actor in Hollywood. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. The Story Behind Big League Chew, the Shredded Gum That - Adweek Bing Russell was the son of legendary actor Kurt Russell and he was a huge baseball guy. Im getting goosebumps just being here again.. . One brand, Big League Chew, became famous over the years for its baseball-centric packaging, and it turns out its creator, former Independent Leagues pitcher Rob Nelson, came up with the idea on a whim while sitting in the bullpen for his team. Something that would be playful but show my gratitude to the university. For the last 13 years, the product has averaged a steady $12 million a year. Royalties from Big League Chew have enabled Nelson to pitch on three continents. Its a Red Man pouch, but Ive got ripped up pieces of black licorice in there, so I can spit black juice like the big leaguers.. I like to say that my arms not in the Hall of Fame, but my gum is, Nelson told me. But I never did. Kurt said to Jim, basically, What are you doing here on the Mavs? How would Nelson even know how to start making gum? Hes an Ivy Leaguer, a world traveler, a former professional baseball player and his legacy is bubble gum. The gateway idea is all fantasy. Some of them are really far out.. 2023 Leaders Group. It blows great bubbles. Both pitchers were prolonging their careers on the independent baseball team that was featured in the documentary, the "Battered Bastards of Baseball. After meeting with several prospective partners, including some of the worlds largest candy companies, Nelson went with Ford Gum, a relatively tiny operation in Upstate New York maker of those ubiquitous quarter gum ball machines. Rob Nelson Big League Chew overall revenues are growing day by day, and he is becoming more popular on both sides. It brings back nostalgic memories to lots of people. The Creation Of Big League Chew Rob Nelson: creator of Big League Chew. Big League Chew, Invented By Rob Nelson '71, Inks Big League YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. $13.5 Million. Q: What are your goals for the Sweets & Snacks Expo? Coincidentally, Nelson stumbled upon an article in January 1979 in People magazine about do-it-yourself bubble gum kits. Its interesting that youve always seen Big League Chew as an alternative to chewing tobacco. It was Bouton who would become the first person Nelson told of his idea bubble gum in a chewing tobacco pouch, called Big League Chew out there in the Mavericks bullpen, and it was Bouton who put up the first $10,000 in seed money. When I was 16 years old, I thought I was going to be the next Whitey Ford. "I remember Bouton's eyes got really big, and he said 'Jeez, I really like that idea.' Is there any place youd rather be? I dont think theres any place Id rather be. The cartoon-style packaging, originally designed by artist Bill Mayer, comes in colors such as neon green (sour apple) and bright purple (grape). The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Leaders Group. SBJ I Factor is a monthly podcast offering interviews with sports executives who have been recipients of one of the magazines awards, such as Forty Under 40, Game Changers and others. 2023 Minute Media - All Rights Reserved. How did the initial batches of Big League Chew taste? A California bill that would have banned the gum, candy cigarettes, and other products meant to resemble tobacco died in the states Senate Judiciary Committee in 1992. Who illustrated the characters that grace the outside of the Big League Chew pouch? Theres too much going on. That was Todd Field, batboy for the Mavericks and a camper in one of Nelsons first Lil Mavericks youth baseball camps. Nelsons hunch had been correct: Kids loved the facsimile chew, which sold for between 59 and 79 cents a pack. Big League Chew is an American brand of bubble gum that was created by Portland Mavericks left-handed pitcher Rob Nelson and bat boy and future film-maker Todd Field. He represents the company at candy trade shows. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. He reaches into his pockets for a piece of paper, holds it up to his mouth and disgorges a giant wad of flavorless trash. It was the perfect name for the gum. Absolutely. Anthony Pompliano Net Worth Phone Number, House Address, Wiki, Ashley Massengill Net Worth | Bio, Family, Address, Career, Atlas Monroe Net Worth | Age, Height, Weight, Dating And More, Beyonce S Net Worth Phone Number, House Address, Wiki, Blue Ivy Net Worth Phone Number, House Address, Wiki. Nelson was a fledging player who sometimes got on the field but mostly stuck to selling tickets and coaching youth baseball camps. Eventually, in 1977, in what would be the final home game in the Mavericks short but storied existence, he got his only professional win in the states.