Co-founder of Baskin-Robbins ice-cream;
Born December 6, 1917;
Died May 5, 2008.


IRVINE Robbins, who has died aged 90 after a long illness, was co-founder of the Baskin-Robbins ice-cream empire which brought Rocky Road and other exotic concoctions firstly to consumers in the US and then to a worldwide audience.

While the company advertised that it offered 31 flavours, in fact it has created more than 1000 and generations of American children trooped to Baskin-Robbins stores to buy ice-cream flavours such as jamoca, daiquiri ice, pink bubblegum, Nuts to You and Here Comes the Fudge.

Some were short-lived and created to mark specific events, such as Lunar Cheesecake for the 1969 moon landings and Valley Forge Fudge for the 1976 US bicentennial.

When the Beatles were to arrive in the United States in 1964, a reporter called to ask whether Baskin-Robbins was going to commemorate the event with a new flavour. Robbins did not have a flavour planned but quickly replied: "Uh, Beatle Nut, of course." The flavour was created, manufactured and delivered in just five days.

Robbins opened his first ice-cream store in Glendale, California, in December 1945, following his discharge from the army. He used $6000 from a cashed-in insurance policy his father had given him for his bar mitzvah.

"In light of what Baskin-Robbins was to become, that first store was incredibly amateurish," according to a biography by his daughter, Veit. "It was called Snowbird' because Robbins couldn't think of anything else. The opening was delayed for a day because the paint on the floor hadn't dried." His cousin, Sybil Hartfield, bought $39 of the first day's sales of $53.

His brother-in-law, the late Burton Baskin, opened his own ice-cream store in neighboring Pasadena a year later. By the end of the 1940s, they had joined forces to create Baskin-Robbins. Robbins recalled they used a flip of the coin to decide which name came first.

They also decided to sell their stores to managers, pioneering the franchise concept for ice-cream stores.

As corporate policy, employees were allowed to eat all the ice-cream they wanted, because, Robbins said: "I don't want my employees stealing."

"Everybody has a proprietary interest in ice-cream," Robbins said in 1973. "All you have to do is mention ice-cream and everybody has a flavour." Baskin-Robbins was sold to United Fruit Co in 1967, but Robbins continued to work for the company until retiring in the 1970s.

Today, Baskin-Robbins is part of Dunkin' Brands Inc and has more than 5800 franchises worldwide. In addition to his daughter, survivors include his wife, Irma; a second daughter, Erin Robbins; a son, John Robbins; and sisters Shirley Familian and Elka Weiner.

ROBERT JABLON