Popcorn?
It all comes down to history. Popcorn has almost always been associated with movies, at least in our time. According to Oscars.org, it wasn’t until the Great Depression and the burst of talking movies that popcorn became a hit. “Concession areas of a theater lobby didn’t even exist” (Oscars.org). According to the Smithsonian, “movie theaters wanted nothing to do with popcorn because they were trying to duplicate what was done in real theaters. They had beautiful carpets and rugs and didn’t want popcorn being ground into it” (Smithsonian.com).
Silent films made the theater feel sophisticated, and the general crowds wouldn’t bother with it; after the talkies, however, they found they could make a profit from this affordable snack and sold pounds of it daily once the audience broadened.
And thus, the pre-film advertising was born.