When Mister Softee goes to war against the Good Humor Man, the only winners are newspaper-feature writers. The Times ran a story yesterday morning about retro Good Humor Man Jose Martinez locked bumper to bumper and eye to eye with Mister Softee driver Carlos Rodriguez at an Upper West Side school corner. But in a late-afternoon update, we learned that Mister Softee showed up for work early and declared victory. This is a dark day for ice cream. What kind of victory deprives children of the clinking bells and retro excitement of the Good Humor Man? In this battle, nothing was won but ill humor.

It’s Still Spring, but the Ice Cream Truck War Revs Up [NYT]
A Cease-Fire in a West Side Ice Cream War [City Room/NYT]
Related: Good Humor Man of Old Returns, Bringing…Good Humor

The Dessert Truck has been roundly celebrated, and no doubt other, even more sophisticated dessert trucks are being built and outfitted with more complex, artfully composed desserts. But how can they compete with the vehicle that pulled up at the Museum of Modern Art the other day? When the original Good Humor man rolls up in his custom Ford pickup — bells jangling, coin dispenser on his hip — who can resist? Serious Eats has a tribute to this time-traveling, creamsicle-carrying ice-cream man, who seems to have appeared out of nowhere with all the force of a long-forgotten memory coming to light. Or not. The driver, identified only as Jay, and the truck's unidentified owner have taken it upon themselves to salvage mid-century ice-cream trucks and refit them for the present day. More are on the way, reports Adam Kuban. Look for them in Manhattan this summer.

Sugar Rush: The Retro Ice Cream Man Cometh [Ed Levine Eats]
Related: 31. Because We Can Eat Warm Chocolate Bread Pudding With Bacon Crème Anglaise Out of a Truck [NYM]