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A Bitter ‘Sweet’ Family History

Short-order cook Ben Eisenstadt and his son Marvin invented Sweet ‘N Low at a Brooklyn diner in the 1950s. The little pink packets of saccharin and dextrose were a national hit. But the booming business led to a 40-year battle over the family fortune.

In the book Sweet and Low, Eisenstadt’s grandson, Rich Cohen, tells the family story from a special vantage point. Cohen’s mother and all of her children were disinherited by Eisenstadt’s wife, Betty.

Debbie Elliott talks with Cohen about why artificial sweetener was such a success, his family’s reaction to the memoir and the lingering bitterness.

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