Dorri Partain
Contributor

Don’t forget the Guy’s- Guy’s Potato Chips, for this special offer.

Inside specially marked bags, chip munchers could find one of twenty different pin-back buttons featuring Major League teams to collect, wear, or redeem for a special prize- a regulation play Little League baseball.

And so collectors wouldn’t forget, each button has the Guy’s Potato Chip logo on the reverse along with the year and the “baseball offer” wordage.

Once collectors had accumulated all twenty teams, they would attach them to a “saver sheet” and mail them to receive the baseball; the buttons were dated and color-coded so buttons from previous years could not be redeemed the following year.

Buttons from 1964 had red, white and blue designs, 1965 designs were red, yellow and blue, while 1966 buttons were yellow, brown and green.

Guy’s Nut and Candy Company was founded in 1938 when Guy Caldwell (1911-1985) purchased a home-sized peanut roaster; along with wife Frances, they packaged and sold peanuts to small, corner grocery stores around Kansas City.

He expanded his line of products to include potato chips, and after serving in World War II, he patented his growing company as Guy’s Nuts and Potato Chip Company.

By 1948, his product line included pretzels, smoked herring, and pickles along with nuts and chips.

Offered across a 12 state area, Guy’s had manufacturing plants in Kansas City, St. Joseph, Topeka, Booneville, and Emporia before consolidating into one larger plant in Liberty, MO in 1970.

Looking to retire, Caldwell sold Guy’s to Borden Foods in 1979, but after successive issues the brand ceased production in 2001.

The brand was resurrected by new owners in 2007 and now operates as Guy’s Snacks.