World’s Largest MoonPie to Rise Over Mobile for New Year ‘s Eve

Dec 22nd, 2008

Fireworks, music and fun are usually found at most cities' New Year’s Eve celebrations. This year Mobile, Alabama will take their celebration to a new level with the addition of a 600-lb electronic MoonPie, a treat synonymous to the city's Carnival season.

Mobile is not only recognized as celebrating the first-known American Mardi Gras celebration in 1703 (yes, even before New Orleans), but also as home to the "America's Family Mardi Gras" delighting both young and old from around town and across the nation. This magnificent celebration lasts for over two and a half weeks and culminates on Fat Tuesday, the day before Lent.

The moon pie is the popular treat thrown by Mardi Gras revelers.

The city has partnered this year with Chattanooga Bakery Inc., the maker of the iconic MoonPie brand marshmallow sandwich, to enhance the New Year’s Eve celebration with a 600-lb electronic MoonPie that will light up Mobile's skyline at the stroke of midnight.

Prior to midnight, officials from Chattanooga Bakery will serve up an edible 55-lb, 45,000-calories chocolate MoonPie, dubbed the world's largest. The edible MoonPie is nearly four feet in diameter.

"This event will not only kick off our Carnival season, but we believe it will become the premier event for the Central Time Zone, creating a tremendous economic impact for our city," said Mobile Councilman Fred Richardson, who came up with the MoonPie concept for Mobile.

In addition to the 55-lb edible MoonPie, the bakery will also hand out 5,000 of the tasty treats to New Year’s Eve revelers.

"What a great idea!" said Tory Johnston, Chattanooga Bakery's VP of Marketing. Mobile, Mardi Gras and MoonPies go hand-in-hand, so we thought the New Year’s Eve celebration was a creative idea. We've made a few big ones (MoonPies) over the years, but this will be our biggest one yet."

Over 4 million MoonPies are sold during Mobile’s Mardi Gras season, according to Stephen Toomey, owner of Toomey’s Mardi Gras Candy Company.

Ingredients Of The World's Largest Edible MoonPie

• Six pounds of chocolate icing;
• Fourteen pounds of marshmallow;

Materials For The Electronic Moonpie

• 1200-1500 golf ball-size clear lights;
• Eight sheets of 2-by-2 square aluminum tubing;
• Ten sheets of plywood;
• Massive amount of banana colored mache;

Entertainment For New Year's Eve

New Orleans Jazz Sensation Charmaine Neville will headline the entertainment lineup for the New Year's Eve celebration which will include the Mobile Singing Children; The Dance Center; Bishop State Community College Chorus; Melinda Leigh School of Dance; Elements of Difference (Students from Murphy High School); the Excelsior Band and bands from the City of Mobile James Seals and Sullivan Community Centers.

Location of Celebration:

Entertainment will kick off at 8 p.m. in Cooper-Riverside Park in downtown Mobile adjacent to the Arthur Outlaw Convention Center.

What goes well with a MoonPie?

A warm cup of coffee or hot chocolate is the answer. Mobile coffee business Leroy Hill Coffee Company is sponsoring 5,000 cups of coffee and SMG will provide 5,000 cups of hot chocolate. And for the more traditional, RC Cola has donated thousands of cans to ring in the New Year.

Charity Benefits From New Year’s Eve Celebration

Proceeds from the sale of commemorative T-shirts and coffee/hot chocolate will go to the local Salvation Army and McKemmie Place, a local shelter for homeless women.