Fortune Cookie History

Fortune Cookie History

The Fortune Cookie was created in Los Angeles in 1918 during the Great Depression by local businessman and philanthropist David Jung in order to raise the spirits of the unemployed through messages of inspiration and good fortune.

In fact, the very first messages inside fortune cookies were verses from the Bible!
In 1960, Billy Wilder took the idea one step further: he was the first to use the crisp Chinatown treat to promote his new movie, ‘The Fortune Cookie’.

This was the first time that silver screen legends Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau were paired on film- and the combination proved very "fortune"-ate.

Always at the cutting edge Billy Wilder was not only a film genius- he was also a marketing master.

Wilder commissioned 15,000 fortune cookies from Jung’s bakery that read “A great Picture is in your future…” and the rest - is history.

The fortune cookies were enjoyed by Hollywood's elite- and soon the idea of using these "smart cookies" caught on and became extremely popular.

David Jung's fortune cookie business sky rocketed thanks to Billy Wilder's savvy marketing idea and the success of his wildy funny film "the Fortune Cookie". Everyone in Hollywood caught on to the idea of light crisp cookies filled with smart messages and good fortune.

Legend has it that David Jung was so greatful to Billy Wilder for virtually popularizing the Chinatown treat that he presented him with a giant fortune cookie with a custom message inside.

Today, no one knows what the message actually said.... however we can only speculate that it contained a very good fortune inside!

http://www.ladyfortunes.com/ carries on the Los Angeles tradition, manufacturing the Nation's most delicious gourmet fortune cookies, baked goods and confections.