{"id":6384,"date":"2026-07-02T09:27:11","date_gmt":"2026-07-02T16:27:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/news\/7725927\/the-hot-dog-we-need-to-be-frank-about-how-german-sausages-became-an-american-icon\/"},"modified":"2026-07-02T09:27:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-02T16:27:11","slug":"the-hot-dog-we-need-to-be-frank-about-how-german-sausages-became-an-american-icon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/6384\/the-hot-dog-we-need-to-be-frank-about-how-german-sausages-became-an-american-icon\/","title":{"rendered":"The hot dog: We need to be frank about how German sausages became an American icon"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nineteenth-century Indiana passed some of the country’s toughest \u201cblue laws\u201d to protect Sunday’s rest and worship from alcohol and … hot dogs? <\/p>\n

But Indiana’s push was noteworthy for another reason: It produced the country’s earliest known use in print of the culinary term that now sits at the center of American culture. \u201cEven the innocent wienerworst man will be barred from dispensing hot dog on the street corners,\u201d the Evansville Courier & Press read on Sept. 14, 1884. Germans’ weisswurst, bockwurst and blutwurst were becoming as American as baseball. <\/p>\n

\u201cHot dogs become embedded in American culture,\u201d says Bruce Kraig, author of \u201cHot Dog: A Global History.\u201d \u201cIt becomes completely associated with ballparks by the 1890s.”<\/p>\n

The famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest in New York tied them to the nation’s birthday.<\/p>\n

The National Hot Dog and Sausage Council (yes, the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council) says there are 19 regional varieties,<\/a> from the french-fry topped Cleveland \u201cPolish boy\u201d to the bacon-wrapped Sonoran dog and the renowned Chicago dog, with its seven traditional toppings and poppy seed bun.<\/p>\n

Despite regional differences, dogs played an important role in international relations or \u201chot dog diplomacy,\u201d as the U.S. National Archives calls it.<\/p>\n

With World War II approaching, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth became the first reigning British royals to visit America. The Roosevelts \u2014 to the horror of FDR’s mother \u2014 served them hot dogs, the president’s library says. The king asked for more, The New York Times reported.<\/p>\n

Nikita Khrushchev, the first Soviet premier to visit the U.S., quipped that while the USSR sometimes bested America in the space race, \u201cyou have beaten us in sausage-making.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fans worldwide have their favorites. Gloria Ousset, 74, of Argentina, visited her son in the New York suburbs in early June and stopped at a local institution \u2014 Walter\u2019s Hot Dogs. Walter\u2019s offerings, \u201can exclusive blend of beef, pork and veal,\u201d remind her of how Argentine dogs once had that crunch she loves.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow,” she says, \u201cthey\u2019re very bland.\u201d<\/p>\n

And dogs can be more than a quick meal. In 2024, artists Jen Catron and Paul Outlaw installed a 65-foot hot dog sculpture in Times Square. Daily at noon, and without subtlety, the sausage grew and spewed confetti.<\/p>\n

In 2023, comedy writer and podcaster Jamie Loftus debuted her popular book about her nationwide tour of hot dog joints, \u201cRaw Dog: The Naked Truth about Hot Dogs.”<\/p>\n

Loftus sees the hot dog \u2014 the good and the bad \u2014 as \u201can appropriate symbol for the U.S. It is a source of joy and nostalgia for so many people.\u201d<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

Part of a recurring series, \u201cAmerican Objects,\u201d marking the 250th anniversary of the United States. For more American objects, click here<\/a>. For more stories on the anniversary, click here<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\n \"|\"
FILE – Cuban Prime Minister Fidel Castro, visiting the U.S., takes a good sized bite of hot dog during a trip to New York’s Bronx Zoo April 24, 1959. (AP Photo\/John Lindsay, File)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n \"|\"
FILE – President Kennedy, with eyes glued on the playing field, munches a hot dog during the American League opener, April 8, 1963. The President stayed throughout the game, watching the Baltimore Orioles defeat the Washington Senators 3-1. (AP Photo\/stf, File)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n \"|\"
FILE – Nikita Khrushchev gets his first taste of an American hot dog during his tour of the Des Moines Packing Co. plant, Sept. 22, 1959 in Des Moines, Ia. (AP Photo\/Henry Burroughs, File)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n \"|\"
FILE – A Nathan’s employee arranges 76 hot dogs on a plate at a weigh-in before the Nathan’s Famous July Fourth hot dog eating contest, July 1, 2022, in New York. (AP Photo\/Julia Nikhinson, File)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nineteenth-century Indiana passed some of the country’s toughest \u201cblue laws\u201d to protect Sunday’s rest and worship from alcohol and … hot dogs? But Indiana’s push was noteworthy for another reason: It produced the country’s earliest known use in print of the culinary term that now sits at the center of American culture. \u201cEven the innocent […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":521,"featured_media":6385,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"guid":"a1067489-d1fc-43ea-8307-ca181f3f56a2","source":"The Associated Press","byline":"Michael Weissenstein","published":"2026-07-02 09:27:11","updated":"2026-07-02 09:27:11","_infotelid":"","_prepressid":"","_multisite_post_sync":"","_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1303,1304],"tags":[],"region":[1301],"class_list":["post-6384","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international","category-world","region-world"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":7}},"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/6384\/the-hot-dog-we-need-to-be-frank-about-how-german-sausages-became-an-american-icon\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"The hot dog: We need to be frank about how German sausages became an American icon","url":"http:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/6384\/the-hot-dog-we-need-to-be-frank-about-how-german-sausages-became-an-american-icon\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/6384\/the-hot-dog-we-need-to-be-frank-about-how-german-sausages-became-an-american-icon\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/inwheels-87dfd0b35c60853472a947cdc4115f06d605c10f730e82ac25b9677373055285.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/inwheels-87dfd0b35c60853472a947cdc4115f06d605c10f730e82ac25b9677373055285.jpg"},"articleSection":"International","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"The Associated Press"}],"creator":["The Associated Press"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"iNwheels","logo":""},"keywords":[],"dateCreated":"2026-07-02T16:27:11Z","datePublished":"2026-07-02T16:27:11Z","dateModified":"2026-07-02T16:27:11Z"},"rendered":"