Retro | Food and Snacks | Life

The History Of The Pez Dispenser Is A Lot Weirder Than You Think

PEZ Candy

Basically everyone has owned a Pez dispenser in their lives, right? The iconic shape of the little candy containers is one of those things that have been around for generations.

You can get Pez dispensers with all kinds of characters on them, whether it's your favorite Disney characters, iconic super heroes, and even famous people like Elvis!

But apparently these weren't originally intended for children! Despite the fact that we really only remember them as these toy-like plastic figures, the original Pez dispensers were actually a little bit different.

They are actually shaped the way they are for a very specific reason: They are supposed to look like cigarette lighters!  

They were invented in Austria by a man named Eduard Haas III. He named them PEZ as a reference to the German word for peppermint "pfefferminz".

But why did they look like cigarette lighters? Well, their original purpose wasn't to be just a candy dispenser.

The Pez dispensers were made for adults who were actually trying to quit smoking. They originally didn't have all the cute little characters on top, they were just a simple plastic container that held the mints.

The old advertisements were targeted at adults. They made the dispensers look like old cigarette lighters to really try and show off that they can help you quit. They also put cigarettes with a little "X" over them on the candy packages.

It wasn't until the 1950's that Pez candy switched its outlook to focus on kids. They started making a bunch of other styles of dispensers, including little guns that would shoot the candy, robots, and little Santas.

The first dispensers that looked similar to the ones we would recognize now came out in the late 1950s. They started with characters like Popeye the Sailor Man and Mickey Mouse.

Over time they created Pez dispensers of all our favorite characters from TV and movies. Then, in 1987 they decided to add feet to the bottom of the dispensers so they could stand up easier.

By the 90s, Pez candy dispensers had become collectibles. They were still coming out with new ones each year, but people were now interested in owning older Pez dispensers for their collections.

Did you know that Pez dispensers were originally intended as an anti-smoking aid?

More Throwbacks

90s

Reptar Bars Are Back And They Are The "Superist" And The "Duperist" Versions Yet

Everyone remembers watching Rugrats as a kid, right? It was only the best kids' show ever. Those "dumb babies" as Angelica Pickles would say were a lot more clever than they let on, and in their many adventures they inspired us kids to believe that we could do anything. I mean, we don't have to question how or why a baby keeps a screwdriver in his diaper, because the logistics of where he got it or how he keeps it in there without hurting himself is beyond me, but that's not what matters here. What does matter is that these

Food and Snacks

Trix Cereal Is Finally Going Back To Their Classic Look And We Cannot Wait

Who else remembers eating a big ol' bowl full of Trix cereal in the morning before packing your lunch and heading off to school? Trix was the perfect cereal to eat, because a lot of us felt like we were tricking our parents into thinking it was healthy. Sure, we're eating sugary cereal, but it's fruit-flavored so obviously it's not as bad as Cocoa Puffs or something. Boy, were we wrong. Well, now we're all old enough not to care, we can eat sugary cereal if we want because guess what, cereal is delicious. But there's been one thing missing

Food and Snacks

15 Former Pizza Huts Now Trying (And Failing) To Be Something Else

We've said it before and we'll say it again, Pizza Hut is truly excellent. No, they aren't paying me to say that, but if they want to, I'm ready to make a deal. Back on track though, Pizza Hut has been around since 1958, and in their 60 year history they have managed to create quite the empire. Sure, a lot of other pizza places have come and gone in that time, and maybe they aren't as popular as they used to be, but Pizza Hut will always hold a special, pizza-shaped place in all of our hearts. If there

Food and Snacks

7 Reasons Why None Of Us Will Ever Forget The Glorious Pizza Hut Experience

I don't know about you, but for me, Pizza Hut wasn't just a restaurant. Pizza Hut was a magical place that only existed when you got a straight-A report card or had a birthday. There wasn't a location nearby to my town, so going to Pizza Hut was an event. But I think that even those who went more often still know all about the power of the Hut. Going to Pizza Hut doesn't seem like it's as big of a deal anymore, if anything people tend to forget it exists. But those of us who know the truth and

Food and Snacks

The Very Last Blockbuster Store Has Launched Their Own Exclusive Beer

Everyone who grew up in the 80s and 90s knows that Blockbuster was the coolest place in the world. Every opportunity you'd get, you'd rush down to the video store to search the aisles for your new favorite movie. You'd always check the new releases first, and if nothing sparked your curiosity, you'd head over to the older movies and search until something looked fun. It was always the best part of the week, and the fact that there is only one Blockbuster left in the country is kind of heartbreaking. 15 dollars later and you could have a blockbuster

Food and Snacks

Pop-Tarts Crunch Cereal Is Making A Come Back And The Wait Is Almost Over

If you were lucky enough to be alive in 1994 or 1995, you know that Pop-Tarts Crunch was the only cereal that mattered. Sure, it only lasted for those two years, but those of us who got to eat it, have been missing it ever since. It came in two delicious varieties: Brown Sugar and Strawberry, and honestly I can't pick a favorite. It was basically like having a big ol' bowl of Pop-Tarts and that's all we want. Pop-Tarts were already one of the most popular breakfast snack, probably because it was a way for all of us kids