OK, write this down: Twinkies are not going away. Neither is Kodak film.This is true today. It will remain true for the foreseeable future.
Yes, Eastman Kodak and Hostess Brands declared bankruptcy last week. The declarations brought waves of frantic news stories bemoaning the disaster befalling two iconic products that have recorded our memories and swelled our waistlines.
Yes, both companies are in financial trouble. Twinkies are the "This is why America is fat" poster child. Digital cameras are everywhere.
But both companies filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which does not mean they are closing. They are reorganizing and shedding debt. They will keep making what sells.
Do film and Twinkies sell?
Audrey Jonckheer, Kodak's worldwide director of marketing, told the British Journal of Photography that "film (still and cinema) remains a profitable business for Kodak, and we have the broadest and most respected portfolio of films in both segments."
Hostess headquarters spokesman Erik Halvorson in Irving, Texas, told CNN, "Throughout the proceeding, we're going to operate business as normal. They'll keep making Twinkies."
That includes the Hostess bakery in Ogden. I called. Twinkie production is uninterrupted.
The only reason I bring this up is that I happen to enjoy the occasional Twinkie, and I shoot a lot of film in my cameras. Hyped-up rumors of their demise disturb me.
Sadly, too many believe the hype.
Mike Slade, a good friend and fellow photographer, takes amazing pictures of Great Salt Lake with the sort of big cameras you stand behind and focus with a dark cloth over your head.
These cameras use film, but inevitably, Mike says, someone will ask him, "Can you still get film for that?"
Mike is tempted to say, "No, I just like to bring it out here and pretend," but his kindness gene takes over and he explains.
I recently shot pictures of my grandson that are so gorgeous I want to cry, and sorry, a digital camera couldn't achieve the same quality. Artists and professionals who like the look of film agree.
Sure, art photography is a niche market. So are horse saddles.
Film's a big niche. Kodak reported last year film sales have picked up. Other film companies seem to be doing well.
If you need help locating film, call me. If you shoot some film, take it to the nice folks at Imaging Depot in Ogden, or Inkley's, or Macey's, or Walgreens.
There's a "good riddance" tone to the talk of Twinkies' alleged demise. With obesity a national health disaster, snack cakes get little respect.
Then again, people ate Twinkies in the 1950s and 1960s when few were obese. Back then, the snack food industry was a lot smaller and there weren't Big Macs, Big Gulps, supersized everything, video games and the Internet.
People walked more. Kids played outside.
Hostess Twinkies are a made-in-Ogden product, so eating them -- in moderation -- helps your neighbors. Walk to the store, share the package and only indulge once a month. It is a "treat" after all.
Will these things ever leave us?
Nothing lasts forever. Eight-track tapes are a cliche, VHS is fading out, and I have it on good authority CDs will disappear within the decade. Cellphone cameras are driving digital point-and-shoot cameras away.
And if you have any Research In Motion stock, now might be a good time to sell. Androids and iPhones make BlackBerrys as obsolete as PalmPilots. RIM is looking for a buyer.
But you can still buy a Twinkie. I can still take your picture eating it using Kodak Tri-X in my 60-year-old Leica.
For me, that is enough.
Wasatch Rambler is the opinion of Charles Trentelman. You can call him at 801-625-4232 or email him at ctrentelman@standard.net. He also blogs at www.standard.net.
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