60 acast.com Cold Storage: The Life and Death of Tom Carvel https://shows.acast.com/cold-storage-the-life-and-death-of-tom-carvel en Heather Quinlan ice cream, carvel, NYC history,greek-americans,food Heather Quinlan Tom Carvel — ice cream king, business tycoon, the man who brought us Fudgie the Whale. His voice was one that could sink a thousand ships, yet his was the voice of Carvel. “Who better to sell my ice cream than me?” he reasoned. And he was right. In the 1970s and ‘80s you’d hear him calling out “Buy one, get one free!” deals during commercial breaks. It was precisely that lack of Madison Avenue polish that made you believe Carvel was kindly, grandfatherly, a regular guy who just happened to make a lotta dough selling soft-serve ice cream. But all he really wanted was to make a kid smile. And you’d be wrong. Because what began as the quintessential American story — a Greek immigrant uses his ingenuity to create an empire — ended in disaster that may have resulted in Carvel’s death. It definitely resulted in litigation over his estate where the ones who benefitted most were the lawyers. 


So how did something as innocent as selling ice cream turn so tragic? How could a tyrant create Cookie Puss? And does anyone really know who anyone is? “Cold Storage” is the investigative podcast that answers these questions — and brings up plenty more — in its search to discover who Tom Carvel was. Along the way we’ll learn why the invention of soft-serve ice cream was up there with the invention of the light bulb, how Carvel treated many of his franchisees like cash cows, and why a sure-fire way to success in business lies not only in your smarts but in your golf handicap.

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]]> Tom Carvel — ice cream king, business tycoon, the man who brought us Fudgie the Whale. His voice was one that could sink a thousand ships, yet his was the voice of Carvel. “Who better to sell my ice cream than me?” he reasoned. And he was right. In the 1970s and ‘80s you’d hear him calling out “Buy one, get one free!” deals during commercial breaks. It was precisely that lack of Madison Avenue polish that made you believe Carvel was kindly, grandfatherly, a regular guy who just happened to make a lotta dough selling soft-serve ice cream. But all he really wanted was to make a kid smile. And you’d be wrong. Because what began as the quintessential American story — a Greek immigrant uses his ingenuity to create an empire — ended in disaster that may have resulted in Carvel’s death. It definitely resulted in litigation over his estate where the ones who benefitted most were the lawyers. 


So how did something as innocent as selling ice cream turn so tragic? How could a tyrant create Cookie Puss? And does anyone really know who anyone is? “Cold Storage” is the investigative podcast that answers these questions — and brings up plenty more — in its search to discover who Tom Carvel was. Along the way we’ll learn why the invention of soft-serve ice cream was up there with the invention of the light bulb, how Carvel treated many of his franchisees like cash cows, and why a sure-fire way to success in business lies not only in your smarts but in your golf handicap.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

]]> false Heather Quinlan info+649dc3034f166400106c7f32@mg-eu.acast.com 649dc3034f166400106c7f32 cold-storage-the-life-and-death-of-tom-carvel serial https://assets.pippa.io/shows/649dc3034f166400106c7f32/1688767567837-fef176ca5fe15c46b0d5746c54139c7e.jpeg https://shows.acast.com/cold-storage-the-life-and-death-of-tom-carvel Cold Storage: The Life and Death of Tom Carvel <![CDATA[Where There's This Will There's No Way]]> Wed, 03 Apr 2024 15:31:51 GMT 40:12 660d7667553a0d0017ecad6d false https://shows.acast.com/cold-storage-the-life-and-death-of-tom-carvel/episodes/where-theres-this-will-theres-no-way 660d7667553a0d0017ecad6d 649dc3034f166400106c7f32 where-theres-this-will-theres-no-way full 1 7

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]]>

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

]]> The Death of Tom Carvel The Death of Tom Carvel Tue, 12 Sep 2023 18:04:26 GMT 38:11 6500a82a5af62b001120fd9f false https://shows.acast.com/cold-storage-the-life-and-death-of-tom-carvel/episodes/the-death-of-tom-carvel 6500a82a5af62b001120fd9f 649dc3034f166400106c7f32 the-death-of-tom-carvel full 1 6

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]]>

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]]> I, Carvel I, Carvel Tue, 29 Aug 2023 16:44:25 GMT 27:48 64ee206a7a1a3800115c40f3 false https://shows.acast.com/cold-storage-the-life-and-death-of-tom-carvel/episodes/i-carvel 64ee206a7a1a3800115c40f3 649dc3034f166400106c7f32 i-carvel full 1 5

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]]>

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]]> Tom Carvel Becomes Top Banana Tom Carvel Becomes Top Banana Tue, 15 Aug 2023 21:28:22 GMT 28:22 64dbedf62000030011c3135c false https://shows.acast.com/cold-storage-the-life-and-death-of-tom-carvel/episodes/tom-carvel-becomes-top-banana 64dbedf62000030011c3135c 649dc3034f166400106c7f32 tom-carvel-becomes-top-banana full 1 4

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]]>

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

]]> <![CDATA[Am I My Brother's Freezer?]]> Tue, 01 Aug 2023 16:17:19 GMT 20:33 64c9300fd9a4210011b1858f false https://shows.acast.com/cold-storage-the-life-and-death-of-tom-carvel/episodes/ep3-am-i-my-brothers-freezer 64c9300fd9a4210011b1858f 649dc3034f166400106c7f32 ep3-am-i-my-brothers-freezer full 1 3 This week we'll delve into the following:

  • The inside story on why soldiers needed ice cream to keep going during WWII--the U.S. Navy spent $1 million converting a barge into a floating ice cream factory that made 10 gallons of ice cream every seven minutes.
  • During the war, Tom Carvel was selling ice cream at Ft. Bragg and according to Carvel lore learning the freezer business--but it was his brother Bruce who was developing the freezers that would make Tom Carvel a multi-millionaire.
  • How Tom was able to take credit for his brother's freezer inventions and get away with it.
  • The seeds for this love/hate relationship between the brothers were planted early on, with Bruce being the eldest, the favorite, and "the handsome one."

“Cold Storage” is hosted by Heather Quinlan, head of Canvasback Kid Productions, and Paul Finnegan, creator/host of the acclaimed podcast CenterPieceNY.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

]]> This week we'll delve into the following:

  • The inside story on why soldiers needed ice cream to keep going during WWII--the U.S. Navy spent $1 million converting a barge into a floating ice cream factory that made 10 gallons of ice cream every seven minutes.
  • During the war, Tom Carvel was selling ice cream at Ft. Bragg and according to Carvel lore learning the freezer business--but it was his brother Bruce who was developing the freezers that would make Tom Carvel a multi-millionaire.
  • How Tom was able to take credit for his brother's freezer inventions and get away with it.
  • The seeds for this love/hate relationship between the brothers were planted early on, with Bruce being the eldest, the favorite, and "the handsome one."

“Cold Storage” is hosted by Heather Quinlan, head of Canvasback Kid Productions, and Paul Finnegan, creator/host of the acclaimed podcast CenterPieceNY.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

]]> Prohibition Means America Screams for Ice Cream Prohibition Means America Screams for Ice Cream Tue, 25 Jul 2023 15:54:58 GMT 33:47 64bff0536e090900115d25ff false https://shows.acast.com/cold-storage-the-life-and-death-of-tom-carvel/episodes/prohibition-means-america-screams-for-ice-cream 64bff0536e090900115d25ff 649dc3034f166400106c7f32 prohibition-means-america-screams-for-ice-cream Booze ban translates to big bucks for Carvels, as dad sells bootleg wine and Tom launches his ice cream career full 1 2 This week we'll delve into the following:

  • The 19th-century French wine industry was almost destroyed by an American bug, leading Greece to bail them out with raisins until Greece went bankrupt--with the Carvels forced to leave for America.
  • Prohibition turned ice cream from a sweet treat to a booming empire as people needed their sugar fix--breweries like Anheuser-Busch and Yuengling began to sell rocky road instead of beer.
  • By the end of Prohibition in 1933 the demand for ice cream decreased, though ice cream itself was firmly entrenched in our way of life … just in time for Tom Carvel to be riding his truck through Hartsdale, NY.
  • In addition to ice cream, how did the Greek community corner the market on diners?

“Cold Storage” is hosted by Heather Quinlan, head of Canvasback Kid Productions, and Paul Finnegan, creator/host of the acclaimed podcast CenterPieceNY. Episode Two includes interviews with Tom Nealon, author of "Food Fights & Culture Wars" and Liz Pristourtis, owner of the Parkway Restaurant in Dyker Heights, Brooklyn.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

]]> This week we'll delve into the following:

  • The 19th-century French wine industry was almost destroyed by an American bug, leading Greece to bail them out with raisins until Greece went bankrupt--with the Carvels forced to leave for America.
  • Prohibition turned ice cream from a sweet treat to a booming empire as people needed their sugar fix--breweries like Anheuser-Busch and Yuengling began to sell rocky road instead of beer.
  • By the end of Prohibition in 1933 the demand for ice cream decreased, though ice cream itself was firmly entrenched in our way of life … just in time for Tom Carvel to be riding his truck through Hartsdale, NY.
  • In addition to ice cream, how did the Greek community corner the market on diners?

“Cold Storage” is hosted by Heather Quinlan, head of Canvasback Kid Productions, and Paul Finnegan, creator/host of the acclaimed podcast CenterPieceNY. Episode Two includes interviews with Tom Nealon, author of "Food Fights & Culture Wars" and Liz Pristourtis, owner of the Parkway Restaurant in Dyker Heights, Brooklyn.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

]]> Tom Carvel—A Sweet Empire Until It Melted Tom Carvel—A Sweet Empire Until It Melted Tue, 18 Jul 2023 15:17:48 GMT 30:30 64b6ad1c9c1b110012759b25 false https://shows.acast.com/cold-storage-the-life-and-death-of-tom-carvel/episodes/tom-carvel-a-sweet-empire-until-it-melted 64b6ad1c9c1b110012759b25 649dc3034f166400106c7f32 tom-carvel-a-sweet-empire-until-it-melted What began as the sweet story of American ingenuity ended in disaster that may have resulted in Carvel’s death. full 1 1 Those of you who lived up and down the East Coast but especially in NY and NJ and are of a certain age remember Carvel ice cream shops as if there was on every corner. Now where can you find one? As it turns out, at one point Carvel stores, like those who patronized them, largely ditched the cities for strip malls in the suburbs, leaving behind the glass-front shops that had twirling cones on the roof. Now that was ice cream!

So what caused this twist of fate? Was it an inability to change with the times? Bad luck? Or murder? We'll find out in Cold Storage.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

]]> Those of you who lived up and down the East Coast but especially in NY and NJ and are of a certain age remember Carvel ice cream shops as if there was on every corner. Now where can you find one? As it turns out, at one point Carvel stores, like those who patronized them, largely ditched the cities for strip malls in the suburbs, leaving behind the glass-front shops that had twirling cones on the roof. Now that was ice cream!

So what caused this twist of fate? Was it an inability to change with the times? Bad luck? Or murder? We'll find out in Cold Storage.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

]]> Cold Storage Trailer Cold Storage Trailer Thu, 06 Jul 2023 20:02:14 GMT 2:06 64a716146611210011da40e6 false https://shows.acast.com/cold-storage-the-life-and-death-of-tom-carvel/episodes/cold-storage 64a716146611210011da40e6 649dc3034f166400106c7f32 cold-storage The Life and Death of Tom Carvel trailer If you were going to write a screenplay about an American Dream turned American Tragedy, it would be the story of Tom Carvel. Legend has it that on a hot Memorial Day in 1934, his ice cream truck got a flat tire and his profits began to melt. But the locals of Yonkers, NY saved his career by eating up the residuals. Carvel had his eureka moment: Start a business selling soft-serve ice cream. Whether this tale was true or not, Carvel was right — his Mom-and-Pop ice cream shoppe evolved into an empire that spread from Bensonhurst to Tokyo.


While he went that extra mile for those he cared about, Carvel's inability to cede control to his franchisees not only ruined other Moms and Pops who’d invested their life savings into the Carvel name, but multiple lawsuits hurt his bottom line as well. And Carvel’s iron-fisted business also stood in sharp contrast to his ambiguous and poorly-planned will, which managed to set his widow, family, and business associates at loggerheads in a legal maelstrom that continues to this day. Hardly the Carvel way—but perhaps that was his intention all along.


In “Cold Storage” we investigate the shockingly tumultuous life of an ice cream man, unfurling his story over multiple episodes until the bittersweet end.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

]]> If you were going to write a screenplay about an American Dream turned American Tragedy, it would be the story of Tom Carvel. Legend has it that on a hot Memorial Day in 1934, his ice cream truck got a flat tire and his profits began to melt. But the locals of Yonkers, NY saved his career by eating up the residuals. Carvel had his eureka moment: Start a business selling soft-serve ice cream. Whether this tale was true or not, Carvel was right — his Mom-and-Pop ice cream shoppe evolved into an empire that spread from Bensonhurst to Tokyo.


While he went that extra mile for those he cared about, Carvel's inability to cede control to his franchisees not only ruined other Moms and Pops who’d invested their life savings into the Carvel name, but multiple lawsuits hurt his bottom line as well. And Carvel’s iron-fisted business also stood in sharp contrast to his ambiguous and poorly-planned will, which managed to set his widow, family, and business associates at loggerheads in a legal maelstrom that continues to this day. Hardly the Carvel way—but perhaps that was his intention all along.


In “Cold Storage” we investigate the shockingly tumultuous life of an ice cream man, unfurling his story over multiple episodes until the bittersweet end.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

]]>