PEZ

The name PEZ was derived from the German word for peppermint, Pfefferminz. Pez was originally introduced in Austria, later exported, notably to the US, and eventually became available worldwide. The all-upper-case spelling of PEZ, besides its status as an acronym, echoes the trademark's style of type, on packaging and the dispensers themselves, drawn in perspective and looking as if the letters were built out of bricks.

PEZ have applied the razor and blades business model to the confectionery market, by selling candy dispensers, usually with character merchandising, which are useful only to dispense Pez-shaped candy (or to admire as an amusing and ingenious artifact). PEZ Dispensers are part of popular culture in many nations. Because of the large number of dispenser designs over the years, PEZ dispensers are collected by enthusiasts.

History

PEZ was first marketed as a compressed peppermint candy in Vienna, Austria. The candy was invented in 1927 in Vienna by a candyman named Eduard Haas III. Haas invented peppermint candies using family owned baking powders, and decided to serve the mints in small, hand-size containers. He manufactured a small tin to hold the mints, similar to the modern Altoids tins. The first PEZ mint dispensers, known as "regulars", were similar in shape to a cigarette lighter, and dispensed an adult breath mint marketed as an alternative to smoking. Haas Food Manufacturing Corporation of Vienna, Austria, was the first to sell PEZ candies.

World War II slowed marketing and production. In 1945, manufacturers devised and promoted the PEZ Box Regular. In 1952 Eduard Haas introduced his product to the United States, and Curtis Allina headed PEZ's US business. In 1955, the PEZ company placed heads on the dispensers and marketed it for children. Santa Claus, Mickey Mouse and Spacetrooper were among the first character dispensers.

After being unavailable for several years, peppermint flavored PEZ candies were reintroduced in the late 1990's along with remakes of the "regulars".

The enthusiasm and nostalgia surrounding Pez are suggested by the existence of two single-block streets in the US, presumably both named "Pez" at the suggestion of Pez enthusiasts:

Patents

There are several patents related to the PEZ dispenser. PEZ, Inc. has applied for and received patents related to the PEZ dispensers. Usually, the patent number is molded onto the stem changed every time PEZ, Inc. made a change in the design of the dispenser. Looking at the patent number the dispenser's age can be estimated. The patent number timeline related to PEZ and PEZ-like dispensers follows:

Dispensers can also be found with several non-US patents, such as the German "DBP 818.829" (Deutsches Bundes Patent), and the Mexican "Patent Nr 141,242"

PEZ dispenser tags

There are two types of tags on PEZ dispensers.

The first type is the patent number. The patent number can be used to determine how old the dispenser is.

The second tag type is the injection mold code [IMC]. It tells you what country it came from. A second number identified the specific facility within that country [which is denoted in brackets].

Characters

Toy character head dispensers were introduced in 1955, after the candy was introduced in the United States. There are over 450 unique dispenser heads with thousands of variations. Several different versions were made of many of the characters listed below, but each character is only listed once. Sites in the links section go into much more detail into the variations of Pez dispensers.

Asterix -
Asterix, Obelix, Muselix, Roman Centurion

Bob the Builder -
Bob, Wendy, Pilchard, Scoop, Spud

Charity -
Barky Brown (Animal Welfare League NSW)

Christmas -
Angel, Elf, Polar Bear, Reindeer, Rudolph, Santa Claus, Snowman

College Football -
LSU Football

DC Comics -
Batman, Batgirl, Joker, Penguin, Wonder Woman

Easter -
Chick, Duck with Flower, Egg, Lamb, Rabbit, Rooster

Garfield -
Garfield, Arline, Odie, Nermal

Harvey Publications -
Casper, Green Hornet

Hello Kitty -
Kitty White, Corocoro Kuririn, My Melody

The Incredibles -
Mr. Incredible, Mrs. Incredible, Dash, Jack-Jack; Bob Parr, Helen Parr, Dashiell Parr, Jack-Jack Parr (not in USA)

Marvel Comics -
Captain America, Incredible Hulk, Spider-Man, Thor, Wolverine

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer -
Tom, Jerry, Barney Bear, Droopy Dog, Spike, Tuffy, Tyke

Misc -
Bozo the Clown, Psychedelic Hand, Psydelic Flower, Bubble man, E.T., Jack in the Box, PIF, Zielpunkt

Moomin -
Only in Japan, five minis.

Mr. Bean -
Mr. Bean, Irma Gobb, Teddy, Mini Cooper

The Muppets -
Kermit the Frog, Fozzie, Miss Piggy, Gonzo

Nintendo -
Diddy Kong, Koopa Trooper, Mario, Yoshi

Olympic Games -
Alpine Man, Olympic Snowman, Vucko Wolf

Peanuts -
Charlie Brown, Joe Cool, Lucy, Peppermint Patty, Snoopy, Woodstock

Pez-Pals -
Boy, Bride, Doctor, Engineer, Fireman, Girl, Groom, Knight, Maharaja, Mexican Boy, Nurse, Pirate, Policeman, Ringmaster, Sailor, Sheik, Sheriff

Pez-Pals 2 -
Alpine Boy, Aral Oil, BP, Mariner, Pilot, Shell Oil

People -
Astronaut, Cowboy, Footbal Player, Pilot, Spaceman, Stewardess

Pez-a-saurs -
He-saur, She-saur, Fly-saur, I-saur

Pink Panther -
Pink Panther, Inspector Clouseau, Ant, Aardvark

Pokémon -
Koffing, Meowth, Mew, Pikachu, Psyduck

Popeye -
Brutus, Olive Oyl, Popeye

Sesame Street -
Big Bird, Ernie, Bert, Cookie Monster, Elmo, Zoe

Shrek -
Shrek, Princess Fiona, Puss-n-Boots, Donkey

PEZ Sourz -
Pineapple, Green Apple, Watermelon, Blue Raspberry

SpongeBob SquarePants -
Spongebob, Patrick, Squidward, Embarrased Spongebob

Star Wars -
Boba Fett, C-3PO, Chewbacca (IV-VI), Chewbacca (III), Clone Trooper, Darth Vader, Death Star, Emperor Palpatine, Ewok, Jango Fett, General Grievous, Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, R2-D2, Stormtrooper, Yoda

The Flintstones -
Fred Flintstone, Pebbles, Dino, Barney Rubble

The Simpsons -
Bart, Homer, Lisa, Maggie, Marge

The Smurfs -
Brainy, Gargamel, Papa, Smurf, Smurfette

The Walt Disney Company -

Sports -
Baseball, Basketball, Football, Hockey Puck, Baseball Glove

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles -
Donatello, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael

The Tweenies -
Bella, Doodles, Fizz, Jake, Milo

Universal Monsters -
Creature from the Black Lagoon, Frankenstein, Wolfman

Ultraman I -
Only in Japan, five minis.

Warner Bros -
Bugs Bunny, Bugs Bunny (Back in Action), Cool Cat, Daffy Duck, Daffy Duck (Back in Action), Foghorn Leghorn, Henry Hawk, Merlin Mouse, Petunia Pig, Road Runner, Speedy Gonzales, Sylvester, Tazmanian Devil, Tazmanian Devil (Back in Action), Tweety, Tweety (Back in Action), Wile E. Coyote, Yosemite Sam, Yosemite Sam (Back in Action)

See also

External links