Jolly Rancher is a brand of primarily fruit-flavored candy manufactured by Hershey Foods Corporation of Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company was founded in 1949 in Golden, Colorado by Bill and Dorothy Harmsen. The name "Jolly Rancher" was chosen to evoke western imagery with a friendly, hospitable bent. Originally, the company sold chocolate, ice cream, and hard candy, but began to focus exclusively on the hard candy when they noticed it selling particularly well. In 1966, the Harmsens sold their company to Beatrice Foods, but retained a role in the regular operation of the business. In 1983, Beatrice was purchased by Leaf, which sold its North American operations to Hershey in 1996.
While Jolly Rancher has introduced other kinds of candy in recent years, for many people their name is synonymous with the rectangular hard candies that made them famous. The original assortment of flavors that is marketed to this day consists of grape, cherry, lemon, watermelon, and sour apple. They also sell two other assortments: "Tropical Blends", comprising strawberry-banana, raspberry-pineapple, banana-pineapple, mandarin-tangerine, and lemon lime; and "Passion fruits", consisting of fruit punch, strawberry, raspberry, peach, and orange. An intense cinnamon flavor called Fire is also available, though a reputable reviewer has been known to proclaim "Fire bad!!!"
In addition to hard candy, Jolly Rancher also produces jellies, jelly beans, fruit chews (like Starburst), gummies, lollipops, and fruit chew lollipops.
Sources:
The Jolly Rancher Website. http://www.jolly-rancher.com/
Hershey Foods Corporation - JOLLY RANCHER. http://www.hersheys.com/products/jolly_rancher.shtml