Food Folk Figure. He created the snack "Cheez Doodles". Raised in Harlem and the Bronx by a Turkish immigrant family, he graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, worked for Grumman Aircraft, and served with the US Marine Corps in the South Pacific during World War II. After the conflict he became president of Old London Foods which his father had founded as King Kone in the 1920s. Desiring to add to his firm's repertoire of ice cream cones, popcorn, and Melba toast, he set about developing a salty cheese snack in the mid-1950s; the result was a three inch tube made of corn meal processed under high pressure, then cut with a high speed blade, flavored with cheddar cheese, and baked. Yohai insisted on spreading credit for his creation among his staff (though he did admit to thinking-up the name); the product was so successful that in 1965 his company was purchased by Borden, which made him a vice president. Not withstanding his modesty, he referred to his upscale home as the "house that Cheez Doodles bought", and proudly displayed a photo of Julia Child eating his invention. At his death, Cheez Doodles, marketed by Wise, continued to be a best-seller.
Food Folk Figure. He created the snack "Cheez Doodles". Raised in Harlem and the Bronx by a Turkish immigrant family, he graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, worked for Grumman Aircraft, and served with the US Marine Corps in the South Pacific during World War II. After the conflict he became president of Old London Foods which his father had founded as King Kone in the 1920s. Desiring to add to his firm's repertoire of ice cream cones, popcorn, and Melba toast, he set about developing a salty cheese snack in the mid-1950s; the result was a three inch tube made of corn meal processed under high pressure, then cut with a high speed blade, flavored with cheddar cheese, and baked. Yohai insisted on spreading credit for his creation among his staff (though he did admit to thinking-up the name); the product was so successful that in 1965 his company was purchased by Borden, which made him a vice president. Not withstanding his modesty, he referred to his upscale home as the "house that Cheez Doodles bought", and proudly displayed a photo of Julia Child eating his invention. At his death, Cheez Doodles, marketed by Wise, continued to be a best-seller.
Bio by: Bob Hufford
Inscription
BELOVED HUSBAND FATHER AND BROTHER
DIED JULY 27, 2010
AGE 90 YEARS
Family Members
Advertisement
See more Yohai memorials in:
Explore more
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
