| Worlds Fair |
In February of 1999 I was contacted by Richi Belyski (PCN) inquiring about any information I may have regarding the 1982 Knoxville Tennessee Worlds Fair dispenser. I had just finished taking pictures of my dispensers and asked him if he would like to have a picture. I didn't realize at that point that this was an extraordinary dispenser. In fact, when I took the picture of him, I had no idea that he was different from my other Astronaut B dispenser and was wondering what the marking on the side stem was and proceeded to take an additional picture of the side stem.
Discussing the Worlds Fair dispenser with some friends, I learned that it was believed to have been a give-away at the 1982 Worldsfair in Knoxville Tennessee and that there actually had been a few variations, 2 of which we know for sure.
I will let Richi tell you the story as he published it in his April/May 1999 newsletter. Here is the exact reprint of this article:
| That's right !! Check out page 3, you will see a full-page ad from Sue Ellen Headley and Dean DuVall. Look where it says, "Only for the Big Spender". The ad and the price are real! They are asking $100,000 for one dispenser! When Dean inquired about taking out an ad in the newsletter he told me he had some rare duplicates he wanted to sell off. When I saw the price I couldn't believe it. I did some investigating into the "1982 Worlds Fair" dispenser and didn't find out much. I checked with all of the experts in the hobby, PEZ USA and some former PEZ USA employees. No one knows how this dispenser exists. The only thing I do know is it's here and is has been. In the early 90's John Laspina held a few telephone auctions. In his May 1993 auction he auctioned off a "1982 Worlds Fair" dispenser. John told me it sold for $981. This dispenser originally came from the family of a PEZ employee. |
Since the auction I found it has changed hands several times and is now the same dispenser that is in the possession of SueEllen and Dean. They paid a considerable abmount of money for that dispenser. I can safely say that it is more than I ever heard of a PEZ dispenser selling for. Up until now it was believed to be the only one in existence ! While researching the story I found another oner! This one also came from a "former PEZ employee". I can not divulge the name of its current owner. I can tell you that it will be on display at the First Northeast PEZ Collector's Gathering in Orange CT on May 1st. During the time this dispenser was made, PEZ USA was in between "PEZidents" Curt Allina and the current "PEZident" Scott McWhinnie. I'm unable to contact the two "PEZidents" during that transition time. From what I am told Konsul Haas (Austria) might have been the source for the dispenser. For some unknown reason he could have had a couple dispensers made and shipped to the US. |
Maybe, someone in the US was supposed to try to get a promotion going with the "1982 Worlds Fair". No one seems to know for sure. All I can say is two "1982 Worlds Fair" dispensers ended up in here in the US. Anyone else have one? The 1982 Worlds Fair dispenser that SueEllen and Dean own is an Astronaut B with a white helmet and a green stem. The second one found recently is an Astronaut B with the blue stem and matching helmet. It looks like the same one that is the "70' PEZ Power" magnet sets. Will the "1982 Worlds Fair" dispenser sell for $100,000? Time will tell. Does the existence of the second dispenser decrease the value of the first dispenser? I don't think so, but it does tell us a little more about this dispenser. By having two variations of the same dispenser it seems that PEZ was serious about a proposal to the 1982 Worlds Fair committee."
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