Wendy's Turns 50, Unveils First New Frosty Flavor In 50 Years That It Can Remember

Fifty is one of those big birthdays that makes you think about your place in the world and what you've accomplished in life and whether you've succeeded in living up to your youthful ideals. In short, it's a birthday that invites some people to make abrupt and drastic course corrections, which the self-help industry politely calls a midlife crisis.

Fast food chains are not immune. On Friday Wendy's turns 50. In anticipation, its marketing team has done a certain amount of reflection and decided that what Wendy's really needs, in addition to a role-playing game and another new breakfast menu, is a new flavor for its Frosty.

Imagine: In 50 years, Wendy's hasn't diverted from its original Frosty flavor. Not even once. Well, except for the now-forgotten Vanilla Frosty in 2006. (Memory loss is an early sign of aging.) It has ignored the siren call of cherry and lime and chocolate mint and pumpkin spice. But now it's decided to make a change: In addition to the O.G. Frosty, there will now be a Birthday Cake Frosty.

It's a sign that Wendy's is still youthful. It's a sign that Wendy's can still have fun. It's a sign that Wendy's still gets high on pure sugar. A small Birthday Cake Frosty will cost $1.49, while a cookie sundae version will be $2.19. They're now on sale both go on sale Friday for a limited time at participating Wendy's.