Paddle Pop inventor Ron Street said he created the ice treat to win customers from a rival company, following an overseas trip as Streets technical director.
But his uncle Edwin (Ted) Street - who founded Streets Ice Cream in the 1930s with his brother Daniel, Ron's father - was not taken with the idea.
Speaking on the Paddle Pop's 60th birthday, Mr Street said his uncle told him his creation would be a "nine-day wonder".
"It took off like a wildfire, it just took off," Mr Street said yesterday.
Mr Street, now 88, chose a career in the family ice cream business after refusing an offer to join NASA's space program as an engineer.
The Paddle Pop was six months in development and given its name because its shape resembled a paddle. The shaggy-maned Paddle Pop Lion appeared in 1960 after Unilever bought Streets.
Mr Street said Paddle Pops were produced only in chocolate for the first two years and were so popular the factory had to put on an extra shift of workers.
Mr Street left Unilever five years after it bought Streets.
Caramel remains his favourite Paddle Pop flavour but his favourite ice cream is now Magnum, also a Streets product.
To celebrate the Paddle Pop's 60th birthday, Streets has brought back its classic vanilla flavour, loved by Aussies when it first appeared in the 1950s.
