In his delightfully eccentric book Gus Pulakos sets out to write a history of confectionery, but he throws in so much other material that it ends up as a wild confection in itself. At the time he wrote it, Gus was running Pulakos 926 Chocolates. A still-thriving company, it was founded in 1903 by Gus's father George, from whom Gus presumably inherited his enthusiasm for chocolate. His promotional drive is also memorialised in the Gus Pulakos Candy School.
Gus must have been getting on in years, and it would seem that he wanted his book to be a record of his achievements in life as well as an authoritative source of information about sweets through the ages. That would explain why he includes, for example, press cuttings, copies of numerous letters - largely from various notables thanking him for gifts of an edible nature - and, not least, many photographs of his creations in chocolate. It is these poorly printed and often blurry photographs that make his book something special: mainly of seasonal window decorations from the company shop, they are sometimes astonishing, often kitsch, but altogether remarkable.
Worked at 926 when I was 16…
Worked at 926 when I was 16. Mr. Gus’s chocolate creations were incredible!
My mother was Gus Pulakos'
My mother was Gus Pulakos' little sister Mary. I have many fond memories of the original 926 store. My cousin "Herk" used to carry me on his shoulders through the racks of freshly hand dipped chocolates and I was allowed to help myself. I became addicted at an early age. In 2011 I was with friends in Beaufort S.C. and we took a tour of the town. We were told to go to a particular candy store for a free piece of chocolate and a cup of coffee. I told my friends about my early addiction to chocolate. while waiting for the others to complete their purchases, I noticed a bulletin board....and lo and behold there were two photos of the Pulakos Candy school. Nice to know it is still helping people appreciate chocolate.
I would like to thank Mr. Gus
I would like to thank Mr. Gus Pulakos for the effort he had taken for writing this book! From the photographs itself we can imagine effort for making these chocolate creations! Interested to learn to make such chocolate creations!
Thanks for the insightful
Thanks for the insightful comment. I think you must have accidentally included the link to a completely irrelevant website, so I have deleted it for you, as I am sure you would not to give the impression of being a slimy spamming bottom-feeder. Don't thank me, my pleasure.