It's Official: Twinkie the Kid is Gone—For Real This Time

He’s down, he’s up—he’s down again. This time, Twinkie the Kid is out for the count, at least as far as Hostess is concerned.

The iconic baked goods company, Hostess Inc., announced on Wednesday that it will proceed with plans to liquidate the business, Reuters reports. Hostess broke news last Friday, November 16, that it would be shutting down all operations after negotiations with the striking Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union reached an impasse. Then on Monday—just as boxes of Twinkies sold out across the country and began popping up on eBay for astronomical prices—it looked as if the sponge-cake cowboy might get a reprieve when a judge ordered Hostess and the union into mediation.

Unfortunately, talks quickly fell apart, along with any chance of the company’s recovery. Twinkie the Kid, created by Riverhead artist Don Duga, may return in the future, but not until Hostess sells off its various brands. Thankfully, there are already some interested parties.

On Wednesday, Duga said he’s enjoying the renewed interest in his Twinkie the Kid character, who has appeared on almost every national news program and all over the internet since the news of his demise first broke. Ever-humble, Duga recalled his first meeting with the snack cake giant back in the late 1960s. “They wanted me to develop a character that would be in people’s minds,” he said. “So I wrote down some designs.”