Ice cream van
794197
222354415
2008-06-28T22:15:21Z
Mardetanha
5058171
Reverted 1 edit by [[Special:Contributions/71.121.14.132|71.121.14.132]] identified as [[WP:VAND|vandalism]] to last revision by [[User:65.183.132.140|65.183.132.140]].
{{Refimprove|date=September 2007}}
[[Image:vintage ice cream truck.jpg|right|220px|thumb|Vintage Ice Cream Truck in [[Harper Woods, Michigan]], USA.]]
An '''ice cream van''' ([[British English|British]]) or '''ice cream truck''' ([[American English|American]]) is a [[commercial vehicle]] which serves as a travelling [[retail]] outlet for [[ice cream]], usually during the [[summer]]. Ice cream vans are often seen parked at public events, or near [[park]]s, [[beach]]es, or other areas where people congregate. Ice cream vans often travel near where children play — outside [[school]]s, in [[residential]] areas, or in other locations. They usually stop briefly before moving on to the next [[street]].
Ice cream vans are often brightly decorated and carry images of ice cream, or some other [[adornment]], such as [[cartoon character]]s. They may have painted-on notices, which can serve a commercial purpose (''"Stop me and buy one!"'') or a more serious one (''"Watch that child!"'' - serving as a warning to passing motorists that children may run out into the road at the sight of the van, or appear without warning from behind it). Along the sides, a large sliding window acts as a serving hatch, and this is often covered with small pictures of the available products, with their associated prices. A distinctive feature of ice cream vans is their melodic chimes, and often these take the form of a famous and recognizable tune, usually "[[The Entertainer (rag)|The Entertainer]]", or, in the [[United Kingdom]], "[[Greensleeves]]".
[[Image:Ice Cream Truck Sydney Australia - crop.png|thumb|right|Ice cream van in [[Sydney, Australia]].]]
Most ice cream vans tend to sell both pre-manufactured [[ice lolly|ice lollies]] ([[American English]]: [[popsicle]]s) in wrappers, and [[soft serve]] ice cream from a machine, served in a cone, and often with a [[99 Flake|chocolate flake]] (in Britain) or a sugary [[syrup]] flavoured with, for example, [[strawberry]]. Soft serve ice cream is served topped with [[sprinkles]] for a slight extra charge. Other vans tend to be run by small businesses, selling their own variety of ice cream.
In some locations, ice cream van operators have diversified to fill gaps in the [[market]] for [[soft drinks]], using their capacity for [[refrigeration|refrigerated storage]] to sell chilled cans and bottles.
Early vans used relatively primitive techniques: their refrigeration was ensured by large blocks of [[dry ice]] so the motor was always turned off when the van was stopped for sales. The chimes were operated by a hand driven crank or a take-off from the motor, so they were not heard as often.
==In the United Kingdom==
[[Image:Ice cream van 13u07.JPG|right|thumb|A [[Wall's ice cream]] van parked near to a school in [[Coventry]], England.]]
[[Image:A British Ford Transit Ice Cream Van.jpg|right|thumb|A [[Ford Transit]]-based [[Ice cream]] van in [[Portsmouth]], [[England]].]]
There are mainly two types of ice cream vans in the [[United Kingdom]]: a "hard van" which sells scoop ice cream and is only equipped with a freezer and a "soft van" which has a freezer and also a soft serve whippy machine installed. They are usually converted from factory standard vans with the rear cut away and replaced with a fibre glass body (to reduce the weight). Because of the British [[climate]], running an ice cream van profitably is not only very difficult outside summer, but is also an unpredictable business. A summer [[Heatwave (climate)|heatwave]] can provoke a massive upturn in fortunes for a few days, but after the [[weather]] has returned to a milder character sales drop off dramatically. The need to take advantage of rare and short-lived opportunities can result in fierce rivalry between ice cream vans in coterminous areas, with the main disputes being over who is entitled to sell ice cream in a particular 'patch'. This has also lead to some ice cream van vendors [[Diversity (business)|diversifying]] and selling other products such as [[crisps]], [[French fried potatoes|chips]], burgers or [[hot dog]]s from their vehicles at other times of year.
In a number of Local Authority areas, particularly in London Boroughs with existing street markets, street trading regulations prohibit ice cream vans from remaining in one static location. The legislation also contains powers to ban ice-ceam vans from specific streets. Proposals in the current London Local Authorities Bill will allow only 15 minutes trading per vehicle per street each day.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.statutelaw.gov.uk/content.aspx?LegType=All+Legislation&title=london+local+authorities&searchEnacted=0&extentMatchOnly=0&confersPower=0&blanketAmendment=0&sortAlpha=0&TYPE=QS&PageNumber=1&NavFrom=0&parentActiveTextDocId=1513318&ActiveTextDocId=1513333&filesize=1029|title=London Local Authorities Act 1994 (c. xii)|publisher=[[Ministry of Justice (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Justice]]|accessdate=2008-05-11}}</ref>
British-style ice cream vans are also found in [[Hong Kong]] - there is usually one parked outside the [[Star Ferry]] terminal on [[Hong Kong island]].
In [[Glasgow]], some organised crime syndicates used them for [[Money_laundering|laundering]] the proceeds of crime and a front for drug dealing. A period of Glaswegian criminal history called the [[Glasgow Ice Cream Wars|Ice Cream Wars]] existed in the 1980s between rival gangs fighting for territory.
Also in Scotland, ice cream vans have been used to sell smuggled cigarettes.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/1310774.stm|title=Ice cream ploy by tobacco sellers|publisher=[[BBC]]|date=[[2001-05-03]]}}</ref>
==In the United States==
[[Image:JackAndJillTruck.jpg|thumb|right|Jack and Jill Ice Cream Truck in [[Kentlands, Maryland]], USA.]]
Apart from ice cream, ice cream trucks may also sell [[snow cone]]s, [[snack]]s, [[Soft drink|sodas]], and [[candy]]. Many trucks carry a sign, in the shape of a stop sign, that warns other drivers of children crossing the street to buy food or ice cream.
===Novelty Ice Cream Trucks===
Professionally built ice cream trucks that sell prepackaged product (Novelty Trucks) use commercial cold plate freezers that plug in overnight and when unplugged maintain the cold for at least 12 hours. Music systems are commonly digital devices that have no tape or other moving parts. Each "Music Box" has as few as 1 or as many tunes as one can have programmed onto the chip. The opening on the side that drivers serve from is commonly referred to as a serving window and will usually have a serving counter. Awnings can be attached to trucks over the serving window. Safety equipment usually comes in the form of an electric or vacuum swing out sign which may resemble a stop sign or a triangular shape, as well as vinyl lettering or decals that advise others to use caution.
==In Southeast Asia==
[[Image:Cambodia ice cream motorcycle.jpg|thumb|Motorcycle with attachment for ice cream vending.]]
In Southeast Asian countries including Thailand and Cambodia, ice cream is often sold from modified motorcycles with freezer sidecars.
==The ice cream truck in popular culture==
{{Trivia|date=June 2008}}
[[Image:Ice cream van interior.jpg|thumb|The interior of an ice cream van, with its enormous freezer]]
[[Image:Frosty Treats van.jpg|thumb|An 1985 [[Chevrolet]] Van used as an ice cream truck in metropolitan [[Louisville, Kentucky|Louisville]]]]
*In the ''[[Twisted Metal (series)|Twisted Metal]]'' series of video games, the mascot, ''[[Sweet Tooth (Twisted Metal)|Sweet Tooth]]'', drives an ice cream truck as his vehicle of choice.
*The video game ''[[Grand Theft Auto: Vice City]]'' includes a side-mission where the player sells drugs from an ice cream van, referencing the [[Glasgow Ice Cream Wars]].
*In ''[[Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan|Borat]],'' the title character drives an ice cream truck across America.
*In the 1995 movie ''[[Friday (film)|Friday]],'' ice cream trucks are used as a cover-up for drug dealers.
*The [[Disney]] film ''[[The Shaggy D.A.]]'' ([[1976 in film|1976]]) features a Dolly Dixon ice cream van owned by [[Tim Conway]]'s character.
*The cable series ''[[Reno 911!]]'' features an episode in the first season where the cops intercept an ice cream truck that is a front for illegal fireworks sales.
*An ice cream van was famously used as a prop by [[Dom Joly]] in the [[United Kingdom|British]] comedy sketch show ''[[Trigger Happy TV]]''. Joly would taunt customers by, variously, taking an order and then driving off, taking an order and then joining the back of the queue, or taking an order and then climbing on to the roof. One episode involved an American tourist requesting an orange disco lolly. This was the cue for Joly to close the window of the van, switch on some disco lights and gyrate wildly to a hard core techno track while white smoke swirled around the inside of the van.
*The [[Glasgow Ice Cream Wars]] were satirized in an episode of ''[[Rab C. Nesbitt]]'' (a Scots TV program), where Gash becomes a junkie and buys his drugs from an ice cream van.
*In ''[[Fahrenheit 9/11]]'', Michael Moore drove an ice cream truck around the [[United States House of Representatives]], reading the USA PATRIOT Act.
*Bill Forsyth's 1984 movie ''[[Comfort and Joy (1984 film)|Comfort and Joy]]'' features a rivalry between two rival ice-cream van companies.
*In Michael Cimino's 1974 movie ''[[Thunderbolt and Lightfoot| Thunderbolt and Lightfoot]]'', A gang use ice cream trucks as part of their scheme to pull off a bank robbery.
*In the 1981 movie ''[[Nice Dreams]]'', [[Cheech & Chong]]'s characters utilize an ice cream truck to sell [[cannabis (drug)|marijuana]].
*[[The KLF]] single ''[[Justified and Ancient]]'' featured [[Tammy Wynette]] singing about an ice cream van.
*The music video for the [[Smashing Pumpkins]] song "[[Today (song)|Today]]" features an ice cream van.
*In ''[[Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen]]'', unnamed at the moment, but two robots currently known as "The Twins" will share and together become on old beat up ice cream truck.
*The villains of the [[BBC]] television show [[Ace Lightning]] used an ice cream truck to travel during the first season.
*[[Eddie Murphy]] made famous "The Ice Cream Man" skit from his [[Grammy]] winning comedy album of [[1983]] Comedian.
== References ==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
* [http://www.ice-cream-recipes.com/ice_cream_truck.htm Ice cream trailer and van - United Kingdom]
* [http://esopusmag.com/files/ARCHIVE_FLASH/4/SOFTSERVE/ Article about the Music on ice cream trucks.]
[[Category:Ice cream]]
[[Category:Vans|Vans]]
[[Category:Types of restaurants]]
[[nl:IJscowagen]]
[[fi:Jäätelöauto]]
[[sv:Glassbil]]