For the first time ever, in 2005, PEZ offered an assortment of dispensers packaged as a unit and sold as a numbered, limited edition. The first offering was a nine-piece Star Wars set that included Darth Vader, Boba Fett, General Grievous, Emperor Palpatine, R2-D2, C3-PO, Chewbacca, Yoda and the Death Star. Walmart stores would receive an exclusive edition in different packaging that contained a special glow-in-the-dark Emperor Palpatine dispenser. The sets, limited to 250,000 units, were an immediate hit and sold out quickly.
Under Vittoria’s leadership, PEZ modernized internal infrastructures with modern computers and high-speed production equipment. While the internal workings were revamped, the front of the building and office areas received a much-needed facelift. Once again, PEZ had outgrown its limited warehouse space and was using offsite storage facilities to warehouse product. The difficulty of managing inventory and shipping from multiple locations necessitated the addition of a new, modern warehouse as well.
Joseph Vittoria, president/CEO of PEZ USA from 2004 to 2014.
The first gift sets PEZ ever offered. The regular set is pictured at top, and the Walmart exclusive set is pictured at bottom, circa 2004.
In March 2004, the first set of mini dispensers was released to the Japanese market with a series of Ultraman dispensers. The sets would conclude forty-nine sets later in November 2008 with Pokemon 6. These sets, not actually made by PEZ, were created though a licensing agreement with Bandai. Throughout this work, little mention has been made regarding any licensed products, mainly because these products weren’t actually made by PEZ and the scope of the topic is so vast that it would require a good deal of space to cover it all. Since these minis were actual dispensers, I felt they warranted mention.
When making a single piece of PEZ candy, it takes three thousand pounds of pressure to compress the sugar into the familiar brick shape.
The release schedule offered new sets every four to six weeks. The mini dispensers were only offered in Japan and were sold exclusively in vending machines. Sets included such series as Pokemon, Ultraman, Pingu, Dragon Ball Z and San-X. Most series would be unfamiliar to the average American collector. Each dispenser was packaged in an egg-shaped capsule. Completing a set had its challenges. The capsules were bulk filled into the machines and randomly dispensed with no hope of being able to select a particular character. The majority of sets had a capsule that was specific to the set. The capsules were sealed with a cellophane band that contained the name of the set and accompanying artwork. To find out what was inside, you had to tear away the band to open the capsule. Inside, there was one dispenser, a mini roll of PEZ candy and a paper fold-out insert that showed all the characters in that series. Even though the initial release was just over a decade ago, finding complete sets of dispensers with the vending capsules, inserts, bands and vending cards is difficult at best. Currently, there is strong interest in the collector community for these sets. Some sets consisting of only dispensers have recently sold for over $100.
A vending machine display card for the first series of mini dispensers: Ultraman, circa 2004.
In 2005, PEZ was asked by the State of Connecticut to participate in the BIG E. For those of you—including myself at the time—who had never heard of the BIG E, it’s the New England State Fair that is held annually in West Springfield, Massachusetts. As it turns out, this is a big deal in New England. The three-week event typically attracts more than one million people over the course of the show. PEZ agreed to participate for the first time and host a booth at the show. Each of the New England states—Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont and Maine—has a building on the grounds that is a replica of its statehouse. Each statehouse building is filled with attractions from that state showcasing its business. This would be the first time PEZ sold to the general public in a retail-type environment and would serve as the precursor to the Visitor Center that would open several years later.
The following year, licensing was acquired for the NCAA, which led to a host of college football dispensers. Also, PEZ once again got into the mint business. PEZ Mini Mints were launched, featuring works by such artists as Andy Warhol and Norman Rockwell reproduced on containers reminiscent of early dispensers. The line grew to include Elvis Presley and the famous PEZ Girl. The shakable container was a nod to previous PEZ designs and resembled a regular dispenser. The mint candy was unique in shape and had only a slight resemblance to the original PEZ candy tablet. Initial consumer interest was high, but competition at the retail level was fierce. Cost for prime placement in stores would ultimately lead to the decision to focus on the core business.
A set of four Hello Kitty dispensers was offered for the first time in a metal tin, similar to a small lunchbox with a swivel handle. This was the introduction to a progression of gift tins built on this basic concept. The initial offering was a success that continues today with numerous variations and a variety of additional licenses and dispensers.
The year 2006 was a notable one, marking the first time the long self-imposed rule of not depicting real people on a dispenser would be broken. The Teutels of Orange County Choppers (OCC) fame were the first living people to have their likeness made into a PEZ dispenser. They were the real-life motorcycle-building family on cable television that featured the father and his two sons. The show enjoyed great success and high ratings for a number of years. Each episode would feature the building process of a custom-themed chopper and a wide variety of arguments and disagreements among the family members.
The inclusion of these dispensers provided a new demographic for the company: teens. The agreement to produce these dispensers came with a reciprocal agreement for OCC to build a custom-theme chopper for PEZ. The chopper build was not a feature bike shown on television, but it can be seen in the background during several other episodes. The chopper served as a brand beacon for many years, traveling to industry shows and special events. The unique features such as the candy pack gas tank, dispenser spoked wheels and Darth Vader oil tank were just a few custom features that accented the one-of-a-kind paint job. The longer you look at the bike, the more PEZ-related detail will begin to emerge, like the rear view mirrors shaped like PEZ candy tablets and the custom PEZ dispenser holders on either side of the seat (now that I think of it, not a bad feature for all motorcycles!).
Stretched out and just over twelve feet in length, the chopper presented its challenges to the rider. The broad stance of the handlebars coupled with the wide turning radius make navigating it a challenge for even seasoned riders. The hard tail rear end and open drive belt and primary make for a chopper that is way more fun to look at than to ride long distances. Most of the time, it remained off the road; it was instead the signature display hanging from the ceiling of the main corporate offices. Anyone driving by could catch a glimpse of the motorcycle hanging through the front windows of the atrium. Later, the bike was moved to the Visitor Center to hang high above the front entrance. Eventually, it moved to the second-floor mezzanine, where it could finally be viewed from eye level. The flashing LED lights on the wheels and engine and under the gas tank pulse to give the look of it being in motion even while sitting still.
In 2007, PEZ celebrated eighty years as a brand. This milestone event was celebrated around the world. Select items from the European archive were sold, and special limited-edition sets were created and auctioned off. A percentage of proceeds from these sales was donated to a charity benefiting children. Peppermint candy was again offered in the European markets, this time exclusive to the special eightieth anniversary creations. The special retro-style candy packs were the lead-in to a regular line of peppermint candy offered several years later.
Disney was also celebrating an eightieth anniversary. To help celebrate, PEZ offered a special three-piece gift set featuring tiny, full-figured Mickey Mouse dispensers, each representing different eras: Steamboat Willy, pie-eyed Mickey and contemporary Mickey. The tiny Mickeys were small rubber figures set atop a round blue base. The dispensers wer
e unique to anything that had been done before. The set included the remake of a vintage Mickey Mouse movie poster all set behind the silhouette window of the iconic Mickey Mouse ears.
The custom PEZ-themed chopper built by Orange County Choppers, circa 2006.
Do you know what licorice, coffee and chlorophyll all have in common? They were all once PEZ candy flavors.
Elvis Presley became the next gift set. The three-piece set in a record-shaped tin included a three-song CD. Each Elvis dispenser was a depiction of a different decade of the King’s career. The Elvis set was a huge success and finally offered consumers the chance to own a real Elvis Presley PEZ dispenser. The first mention of an Elvis dispenser came years earlier in a Tommy Lee Jones/Susan Sarandon legal thriller in 1994 titled The Client. In the movie, a young boy named Mark Sway witnesses the suicide of a mafia lawyer and is then tracked to help take down a mob family. One of the thugs sent to kidnap the boy tries to entice him by offering some candy from “Elvis PEZley.” The boy refuses the candy, remarking, “I bet it’s poisoned.” He runs off, and a chase ensues. The movie dispenser was strictly a prop but played a prominent part in the scene. It would be more than a decade before the dispenser was actually produced.
In 2008, a licensing deal with Major League Baseball saw the release of almost a dozen new baseball teams. The dispensers, in the shape of a baseball with the team logo printed in the center of the ball, were a huge hit in regional markets but presented a challenge for collectors. These dispensers would mainly be offered to markets around that team. If you want to collect them all, chances are you will have to make some trades with other collectors or take to the Internet and buy online. The license was expanded later to include several additional teams and baseball caps, in addition to the baseballs with the team logo.
Some people have made the assumption that dispensers were made for all thirty MLB teams. In fact, only twenty-one of the thirty teams have been represented. The nine teams without dispensers are Kansas City, Tampa Bay, Toronto, Oakland, Washington, Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, San Diego and Arizona. Although there is an Arizona Diamondback dispenser, it’s from the game day promotion and not part of the regular release offered at retail.
To date, NFL teams have never been licensed. The only football dispensers that have been done are for a handful of college teams and a line of non-licensed PEZ Sports balls that include a football, baseball, basketball and hockey puck. Several college team basketballs have been offered for Syracuse, UConn, Ohio State, Kentucky, North Carolina and Fairfield. Several basketball teams for the NBA were offered but only for special game day promotions. They include the Washington Wizards, New Jersey Nets, Seattle Supersonics, Connecticut Sun and Washington Mystics (WNBA).
As the decade came to a close, licensing was moving as fast as ever, and products continued to expand with additions to the Star Wars line that included Ahsoka, Anakin Skywalker and Obi Wan Kenobi to coincide with the Star Wars franchise movie release of Clone Wars. Classic Disney characters were revamped and expanded to include Pete the Cat, Woody from Toy Story and classic animal friends Marie from Aristocats, one of the Dalmatians from 101 Dalmatians, Bambi and Baloo from Jungle Book. Wizard of Oz was the gift set offered in 2009, and it sold out in record time. To date, it’s been one of the bestselling gift sets PEZ has ever offered.
DISPENSER TIMELINE: 2000s
2000 Bugz: ladybug, grasshopper, worm, beetle, flutterfly, caterpillar, bee, baby bee, fly; Charlie Brown/Cubs promo; eBay dispensers; Crystal Easter: panda, chick, bunny, lamb; Fuzzy Friends Bears: Gilbert, Buddy, Jade, TJ; Fuzzy Friends Dogs; Fuzzy Friends Cats; Peanuts: Charlie Brown, Lucy, Snoopy, Woodstock, Peppermint Patty, Joe Cool; Simpsons: Marge, Homer, Bart, Lisa, Maggie; Spiderman large head
2001 bride and groom limited editions; Bubbleman glow-in-the-dark; psychedelic hands crystal remakes; Chicago Cubs Joe Cool; Chicago Cubs Homer Simpson; Jungle Mission; Magic Dispenser; Peter PEZ remake; Pokemon: Pikachu, Meowth, Mew, Psyduck, Koffing; Minnesota Twins TC Bear; Winnie the Pooh: Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, Tigger
2002 Star Wars: Jango Fett, R2-D2, Clone Trooper; USA Heart; Arizona Diamondbacks (baseball); E.T.; Philadelphia Kixx (soccer ball); Washington Mystics (basketball); New Jersey Nets (basketball); Seattle Supersonics (basketball); Washington Wizards (basketball); Chicago Cubs Charlie Brown; 50th Anniversary Golden Glow; Pinky Pink Panther; Halloween remakes: witch, jack-o’-lantern; Skull Sourz: apple, pineapple, blue raspberry, watermelon; Tweenies: Jake, Fizz, Milo, Bella, Doodles, Zinnafant Elephant; Japanese convention heart; crystal ball; USA convention witch; Bob the Builder: Bob, Wendy, Pilchard the Cat, Spud the Scarecrow; Christmas remakes: Santa, reindeer, snowman, elf, polar bear with Santa hat
2003 Formula 1 pull-and-go cars; NASCAR pull-and-go cars; Disney Extreme: Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Pluto, Goofy, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck; Linz Convention heart; PEZ-A-Go Go 7 clowns; USA convention snowman; Scoop (Bob the Builder); Charlie Brown Yankees promo; fireman and policeman crystal limited editions; Planet Earth; emergency heroes: fireman, policeman, policewoman, construction worker, nurse, guardsman, K9 dog, jet pilot, scuba diver; Funky Faces: open smile, sunglass smile, nerdy face, smiley face, winking smile, mischievous smile, angry face, embarrassed face, smiley tongue, kissy face, cheeky eyelashes, crying face, baby face; LSU Tigers (baseball); PEZ Sportz: baseball, basketball, football, hockey puck; Retro Regulars; Jungle Book: Shere Khan, Bagheera, Mowgli, Baloo, Kaa; School Tools; Star Wars limited editions: Darth Vader, C3-PO, Yoda
2004 Looney Tunes Back in Action: Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Tweety Bird, Tasmanian Devil, Yosemite Sam; Metro Stars hockey puck; Easter remakes: pink bunny, lamb, chick in egg, egg baby; Novartis lion; Roo and Lumpy (Winnie the Pooh); Shrek: Shrek, Fiona, Donkey, Puss in Boots; Sponge Bob: Sponge Bob, Squidward, Patrick; PEZ stopwatch; Sweden soccer ball; Crystal Earth; USA convention bee; PEZ-A-Go Go 8 (Funky Faces); Boston Scientific; Breast Cancer Awareness hearts; Maximare Elephant; Incredibles: Dash, Helen Parr, Bob Parr, Jack Jack; Rigs; Lion King: Nala, Timon, Mufasa, Pumbaa, Simba; Jeffrey the Bunny (Dylan’s Candy Bar mascot)
2005 Barky Brown; Barnyard Babies plush: cow, duck, pig, lamb, donkey; Mr. Bean: Irma Gobb, Mini Cooper, Mr. Bean; teddy bear; Bundesrat; Bratz: Jade, Chloe, Yasmine, Sasha; Connecticut Suns (basketball); USA convention chick; Christmas Crystal: reindeer, Santa, snowman, elf, polar bear with hat; Crazy Animals (color crystal): lion, octopus, shark, frog; FX Toy Show (psychedelic hand); Halloween remakes: skull, witch, pumpkin, mummy; Linz convention (crystal hand); Hello Kitty: Aloha Kitty, Kitty with Rabbit, Hello Kitty, My Melody; Hurricane Katrina; Maximare Elephant (crystal); Madagascar: Marty the Zebra, Gloria the Hippo, Alex the Lion; NASCAR helmets: #17 Matt Kenseth, #2 Rusty Wallace, #24 Jeff Gordon, #43 Richard Petty, #9 Kasey Kahne, #20 Tony Stewart, #18 Bobby LaBonte; Disney princesses: Jasmine from Aladdin, Belle from Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella; Safari Babies plush: hippo, tiger, alligator, monkey, elephant; Sesame Street: Cookie Monster, Zoe, Bert, Ernie, Elmo, Big Bird; Star Wars: Emperor Palpatine, General Grievous, Death Star, Chewbacca; Star Wars gift sets; Sesame Street limited editions: Big Bird, Elmo, Cookie Monster; Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (series 2): Raphael, Michelangelo, Leonardo, Donatello; Walgreens trucks
2006 Mini Mints; Barky Brown (crystals); Disney Cars: Mater, Lighting McQueen, Doc Hudson, Sally Porsche; Chicken Little: Abby, Chicken Little, Fish Out of Water; NCAA college footballs: University of Florida, Louisiana State University, University of Texas, University of Georgia, University of Alabama, Penn State, University of Michigan, Florida State; FX Toy Show; Hard Rock Café; Hello Kitty gift tin; Hello Kitty (printed stems): Hello Kitty, My Melody, Kuririn, Hello Kitty with Rabbit; Ice Age 2: Scrat, Manny, Diego, Sid; Looney Tunes soccer balls: Bugs Bunny, Tasmanian Devil, Tweety Bird; Looney Tunes sports: Bugs Bunny, Tweety Bird, Tasmanian Devil; Mrs. Claus; Coach Whistles; Halloween black cat; Orange County Choppers gift set: Paul Sr., Paul Jr., Mikey; Open Season: Elliot, Mr. Weenie, Boog, McSquizzy; Over the Hedge: Stella, Verne, RJ, Hammy; Cuddle C
ubs plush; Walmart trucks; Linz convention (football); Disney princesses: Aurora from Sleeping Beauty, Ariel from Little Mermaid
2007 Disney princess gift set; Golden Compass: Golden Monkey, Pantalaimon “Pan,” Ragnar Sturlusson, Iorek Byrnison; Bee Movie: Adam Flayman, Barry B. Benson, Pollen Jock, Vanessa Blomme; eightieth anniversary Silver Glow; USA convention baby bee; Snow White; Best of Pixar: Mike, Sulley, Buzz Lightyear, Nemo; Crystal K9 Dogs; Elvis gift set; Choco Cat (Hello Kitty); Hello Kitty Crystals: Kuririn, Hello Kitty with Rabbit, Hello Kitty and My Melody; Kyoro Chan Birds; Meet the Robinsons: Carl, Wilbur, Bowler Hat Guy, Lewis; Mickey and Minnie eightieth anniversary (gray and white); Mickey Mouse eightieth anniversary; Mozart & Sissi; NASCAR hauler sets: Dodge #9 Kasey Kahne, Dewalt #17 Matt Kenseth, Home Depot #20 Tony Stewart, STP #43 Richard Petty, Rusty’s Last Call #2 Rusty Wallace, Dupont #24 Jeff Gordon; NASCAR haulers; NASCAR helmets: #48 Jimmy Johnson, #8 Dale Earnhardt Jr.; NCAA college footballs: Notre Dame, Ohio State; Party Animals plush: donkey, elephant; Ratatouille: Emile, Linguini, Remy, Skinner
2008 NASCAR Daytona 500 hauler, helmet, pull-and-go car; NASCAR All Star Race: hauler, helmet, pull-and-go car; Crystal Santa; Chick-fil-A cow; Crystal Valentine Hearts; Wall E; Eve; Easter remakes: bunny, lamb; Disney fairies: Tinkerbell, Silvermist, Iridessa; NCAA college footballs: Utah, University of North Carolina, University of Washington, Virginia Tech, Washington State, Nebraska, Brigham Young; NCAA college basketballs: University of North Carolina, Ohio State; Gary the Snail (Sponge Bob); Hello Kitty full body; Kung Fu Panda: Po, Tigress, Monkey, Shifu; Lightning McQueen play set; Goofy; Shinkansen trains; Mini Mints (Elvis); Looney Tunes: Tweety Bird, Tasmanian Devil with printed stems; Pirates of the Caribbean: Captain Jack Sparrow, Davy Jones, Will Turner; Bruce the Shark; cats and dogs plush; Winnie the Pooh: Pooh Sleuth, Tigger; Darby; Buster; Star Trek gift set: Uhura, Chekov, McCoy, Kirk, USS Enterprise, Spock, Scotty, Sulu; Giant Eagle hauler; Walmart hauler; Major League Baseball: Cubs, LA Dodgers, San Francisco Giants, New York Mets, Boston Red Sox, Detroit Tigers, New York Yankees, Baltimore Orioles, St. Louis Cardinals, Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians; Batman play set: Batman, Joker, Riddler, Two-Face
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