National Popcorn Day – January 19
The enchanting aroma, the memories that it brings, the savory and satisfying POPCORN!
National Popcorn Day has been celebrated since at least 1988. Since the 16th century, the Aztecs used popcorn in headdresses worn during ceremonies to honor Tlaloc, their god of maize (corn) and fertility. Spanish explorers were fascinated by the maize that burst into what looked like a flower.
Popcorn started to become popular in the USA in the middle 1800s. A candy store owner, Charles Cretors, made a machine to steam the corn and pop it. By 1900, he had horse-drawn popcorn wagons going through Chicago to sell popcorn.
Around the same time, Louise Ruckheim added peanuts and molasses to popcorn to create Cracker Jack. In 1908, Jack Norworth and Albert von Tilzer wrote “Take Me Out to the Ballgame”, the national anthem of baseball.
Glen W. Dickson installed popcorn machines in his movie theatres and started the popcorn as a movie snack.
During World War 2, Percy Spencer used popcorn in his initial experiments for the development of the microwave oven.
Today, people in the USA consume 13 billion quarts of popcorn per year. The USA grows most of the world’s popcorn and Nebraska grows more than all the other states.
With the journey of popcorn in mind, enjoy some popcorn on National Popcorn Day on January 19th.
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Dress up in your favorite costume and you can get a free large popcorn at a Regal Cinema on January 19th.
Read here to learn more: Free Popcorn - National Popcorn Day 2026 | Regal
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Check out some titles on popcorn. Join Beanstack and write down the book titles and audiobook titles that you read or listen to in Beanstack.
Here’s the link to Beanstack:
Beanstack: Reading Challenges and Personalized Recommendations
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By Aaron Brown (Librarian II) at the Central Library
Source:
(2026, January 9). National Popcorn Day. National Day Calendar. https://www.nationaldaycalendar.com/national-day/national-popcorn-day-january-19
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