See PE'Z for the Japanese band. See Pez (artist) for the graffiti artist.''

PEZ is the shortened name of PEZ Candy Inc. It is also the name of two of its product categories, namely:

• pressed, dry candies, straight-edged and shaped like 3/8-inch- (1-cm-) long bricks, and
• pocket mechanical dispensers for such candy.

The name PEZ was derived from the German word for peppermint, Pfefferminz, the first PEZ flavor. PEZ was originally introduced in Austria, later exported, notably to the U.S., and eventually became available worldwide. The all-upper-case spelling of PEZ 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 brick-like PEZ candies.

Despite the world-wide recognition of the PEZ dispenser the company considers itself to be primarily a candy company, producing over 3 billion candy bricks each year in the U.S. alone http://pezco.securesites.com/stuff/about.php. 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 confectioner 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 U.S. 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".

In early 2006 the family of the original founder of the company bought back 32,5% of the stock from investment company PGH for 18 Mio. Euro. They now own 67.5% of the company. The headquarters are in Traun, Austria. The candies are produced in Traun, Austria and Orange, Connecticut. Dispensers are produced in Hungary and China.

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

• Pez Way in Boulder City, NV (near Las Vegas) is a connector, approximately 100 yards (100 meters) in length, between two longer streets.
• Pez Court in North Haven, CT (near New Haven) is a dead-end street, approximately 500 feet (200 meters) in length.

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:

• |*||||1958||Dispensing tablet container; tablet dispensing receptacle

• |*||||1969||Vending machine

• |*||||1975||Medicant-dispensing container

• |*||||1981||Tablet dispenser

• |*||||1991||Tablet dispenser

• |*||||1991||Tablet dispenser

• |*||||1992||Tablet dispenser

• |*||||1995||Candy dispensing system

• |*||||1996||Tablet dispenser

• |*||||2003||Animated candy dispenser and methods

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 it tells you the country of origin. 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. The company has a general rule against creating likenesses of real people having created only three in its history: Betsy Ross, Daniel Boone, and Paul Revere which were released in the 1970s as part of the Bicentennial series. 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

Barnyard friends: Cow, Duck, Sheep, Donkey, pig

Bugz: Ant, Baby Bee, Bee, Beetle, Centipede, Fly, Grasshopper, Ladybug, Worm

Charity: Barky Brown (Animal Welfare League NSW), Breast cancer awareness

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

College Football: LSU Football

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

Garfield: Garfield, Arlene, Odie, Nermal

Halloween: Skull, Witch, Mummy, Happy Ghost, Scary Ghost, Pumpkin, Slimy Ghoul

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)

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

Misc: Peter Pez, Psychedelic Hand, Psydelic Flower, Bubble man, E.T., Jack in the Box, PIF, Zielpunkt, Smiley Face, Bozo the Clown

Moomin: Only in Japan, five minis.

Mr. Bean: Mr. Bean, Irma Gobb, Teddy, Mini

The Muppets: Kermit the Frog with bow tie, Kermit the frog with green collar, Fozzie, Miss Piggy, Miss Piggy with eyelashes, Gonzo

NASCAR: Jeff Gordon, Kasey Kahne, Matt Kenseth, Bobby Labonte, Richard Petty, Tony Stewart, [[Rusty Wallace

Nintendo: Diddy Kong, Koopa Troopa, 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, Football 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

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

SpongeBob SquarePants: Spongebob, Patrick, Squidward, Embarrassed Spongebob

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

Super Heroes: Batman, Captain America, Incredible Hulk, Spider-Man, Thor, Wolverine, Wonder Woman

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

The Walt Disney Company

• Bambi, Thumper
• Bouncer Beagle, Chip, Daisy Duck, Dalmatian, Huey, Dewey and Louie, Donald Duck, Dumbo, Goofy, Gyro Gearloose, Mickey Mouse, Pluto, Scrooge McDuck, Webby
• Peter Pan, Captain Hook
• Mufasa, Nala, Pumbaa, Simba, Timon
• Mary Poppins
• Snow White, Dopey
• Pinocchio, Jiminy Cricket, Tinkerbell
• Lil' Wolf, Practical Pig
• Pooh Bear, Eeyore, Piglet, Tigger, Roo, Lumpy
• Zorro

Sports: Baseball, Basketball, Football, Hockey Puck, Baseball Glove, Soccerball

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

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

Ultraman I: Only in Japan, five minis.

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

Timeline of characters and heads

Trivia

• An episode of Seinfeld, "The Pez Dispenser", centered on PEZ. Jerry made Elaine laugh during a concert by placing a Tweety PEZ dispenser on her lap.

• One common misconception is that eBay was founded to facilitate trading PEZ dispensers. While founder Pierre Omidyar's wife is a PEZ collector, this story has since been revealed as an invention created for marketing purposes.

• The song "Rockstar" by Nickelback mentions a PEZ dispenser.

• In the NBC series The Pretender, the main character Jarod is seen munching on PEZ in nearly every episode. When one of Jarod's prized dispensers is snatched, Jarod finds the thief and locks him in his trunk, and drives around the city for a few hours before releasing him.

• Ska punk band Less Than Jake released an album called Pezcore, and PEZ dispenser motifs are common in the band's merchandise.

• American professional wrestler CM Punk has a purple pez dispenser tattooed upon him.

See also

• PEZ Card Game

References