Created in 1921 by the Curtiss Candy Company, Baby Ruth chocolate bars quickly became iconic among American candy. By 1926, the Baby Ruth candy bar was earning million-dollar monthly sales figures and expanding sales worldwide, but at the same time, the chocolate was creating controversy for co-opting the name of baseball-great Babe Ruth.

Babe Ruth fought against Baby Ruth candy bars by creating his own candy company and product, which he advertised as “Babe Ruth’s Own Candy.” The Curtiss Candy Company pushed back, claiming copyright infringement and stating they couldn’t have named the chocolate bar after Ruth because he wasn’t famous when they created the candy in 1921.

Curtiss Candy's claims were quickly disproven by massive amounts of press dating back to 1921 that mentioned Ruth, so the company shifted, saying they named the candy after Former President Grover Cleveland’s daughter, Ruth, who had died at the age of 12 in 1904. Ultimately, the courts sided with Curtiss Candy, and Ruth was barred from using his name on his candy.