>was there a previous period of avocado popularity, I suspect it was regional, and as you observed, Ohio (and the Midwest in general) was not one of the region

>was there a previous period of avocado popularity, I suspect it was regional, and as you observed, Ohio (and the Midwest in general) was not one of the regions 40+ years ago. At my (Midwestern) college radio station in the 1970s, we used to get PSAs (public service announcements) to read from the California Avocado Advisory Board[0,1] touting the fruit, sometimes they were mocked regarding what kind of advice we give to avocados. I recall my first direct experience with an avocado wasn't until I moved to California some years later. [0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Avocado_Commission#Organization_history https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Avocado_Commission#... [1] at the above link, you can read about how a Sunset magazine cover featuring avocado dish played a role in popularizing avocado across the nation in the 1970s