fox 8 news Cleveland
july 18th, 2014
INDEPENDENCE, Ohio -- People from all over the world are gathering in Independence for the 24th annual Pezamania convention.
It's the largest gathering of Pez collectors on the planet. "I got like a lot of Pez, like 20 Pez, and a Pez truck right here,” said Cole Hahn, a child collector. You don't have to be a kid to love Pez, just ask the hundreds of collectors and dealers who will be in Independence this weekend for the annual Pezamania convention at the Holiday Inn. Jim Blaine and his son drove in from Michigan with their Pez collection and they are looking forward to the convention. "I got into it about 14 years ago. I picked them up at a gas station thought they were cool and I started collecting them ever since,” said Jim Blaine, a collector. Organizers say people from all over the world will be in Independence for the Pez convention because they are Pezamaniacs. "They are realizing there's other crazy people out there that collect these things and cherish them and love them and covet them and it gives the world an opportunity to come out and meet crazy people and talk Pez, trade Pez, buy and sell Pez, eat Pez," said Linda Gliah, host of Pezamania. The Pez convention does not officially open to the public until Saturday, but if you are interested buying a Pez dispenser or the candy, all you have to do is come down to the hotel and you can negotiate with a dealer one on one. "Many people open the doors to their rooms display their Pez that are for sale or trade and just roan from room to room and shop," said Gliah. Marian Gomoll has been collecting Pez for 22 years and her collection is worth more than $30,000 dollars. She's owns some vintage dispensers that she's very fond of. "This is a purple cow, very rare from the 1970's, and it's valued at $1,400 dollars. I have a pink pony also from the 1970's that's probably valued at eleven, twelve-hundred,” said Marian Gomoll, a collector. |
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HARTLAND (WJRT) - (08/24/16) - Many people have a collection of something, but what makes this story so interesting is not just what this Hartland man collects - but how many of this popular sweet treat holders he owns.
"This room contains my actual collection and there's probably about 4,000 pieces; what I actually own is about 18,000," said Jim Blaine of his PEZ collection.
PEZ dispensers of every color, size, shape and theme line a room inside Blaine's home.
His fascination with the candy holders began at an early age.
"About sixteen years ago, I was working at a gas station and I saw them," Blaine explains. "They were a dollar back then, and I just thought they were cool."
Today, Blaine owns PEZ dispensers that range from pieces from Japan to handmade, fantasy holders to hundreds of dispensers of the same kind, also known as a PEZ army.
Out of all of his PEZ armies, he's best known among the collecting community for his Doctor Skill pieces - of which he owns nearly 1,400. Someday, he hopes to make it into the Guinness Book for this feat.
"It's like a rabbit hole so when you dive deep into what PEZ is all about, you get into the Yo-Yo's, you get into the lunchboxes, the custom pieces, the kid's train toys, and there's so much more to this," said Blaine.
And Blaine's collection has taken him far past Michigan over the years.
"I'd say I have friends in at least forty states and I've traded and sold PEZ in forty different countries," he said. "It's amazing to see different cultures and the way that people collect differently."
This weekend, Jim will host the first annual Michigan PEZ Convention which will be held Saturday, Aug. 27 at the Embassy Suites in Troy.
"It doesn't matter if you're a young kid collecting with your grandpa or a couple collecting or a single woman collecting in your 60's," said Blaine. "It doesn't matter if you collect the dollar ones or the thousand dollar ones. As this community, we just want to help each other grow our collections, share about PEZ and get to know each other as a family.
"This room contains my actual collection and there's probably about 4,000 pieces; what I actually own is about 18,000," said Jim Blaine of his PEZ collection.
PEZ dispensers of every color, size, shape and theme line a room inside Blaine's home.
His fascination with the candy holders began at an early age.
"About sixteen years ago, I was working at a gas station and I saw them," Blaine explains. "They were a dollar back then, and I just thought they were cool."
Today, Blaine owns PEZ dispensers that range from pieces from Japan to handmade, fantasy holders to hundreds of dispensers of the same kind, also known as a PEZ army.
Out of all of his PEZ armies, he's best known among the collecting community for his Doctor Skill pieces - of which he owns nearly 1,400. Someday, he hopes to make it into the Guinness Book for this feat.
"It's like a rabbit hole so when you dive deep into what PEZ is all about, you get into the Yo-Yo's, you get into the lunchboxes, the custom pieces, the kid's train toys, and there's so much more to this," said Blaine.
And Blaine's collection has taken him far past Michigan over the years.
"I'd say I have friends in at least forty states and I've traded and sold PEZ in forty different countries," he said. "It's amazing to see different cultures and the way that people collect differently."
This weekend, Jim will host the first annual Michigan PEZ Convention which will be held Saturday, Aug. 27 at the Embassy Suites in Troy.
"It doesn't matter if you're a young kid collecting with your grandpa or a couple collecting or a single woman collecting in your 60's," said Blaine. "It doesn't matter if you collect the dollar ones or the thousand dollar ones. As this community, we just want to help each other grow our collections, share about PEZ and get to know each other as a family.
DETROIT FREE PRESS
FRIDAY August 25th, 2017
Are you a PEZ fanatic?
The last few days have been a PEZ-A-Palooza at the Embassy Suites in Troy at 850 Tower Drive. All eyes, or well, heads, are on iconic PEZ dispensers at the 2nd annual Michigan PEZ Convention.
Registered attendees include collectors and dealers who have been gathering and talking and trading all things PEZ.
Related:
Local man crazy about PEZ, amasses collection of 17,000
On Saturday, the convention opens to the public from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Admission is $5, and free for kids 12 and younger. PEZ dealers and collectors will have displays of the candy dispensers. According to hosts Jim and Jody Blaine of Hartland, the first 200 paid admissions get a free PEZ dispenser.
For this year’s convention, Jim Blaine said, they've doubled the number of registered attendants and nearly tripled the number of dealers. PEZ fanatics from 22 states as well as from Austria, Japan, and Belgium are at the convention.
Blaine started collecting PEZ dispensers in 1999. He has amassed a collection of more than 30,000, including 1,400 of his favorite Dr. Skull Halloween dispensers.
The last few days have been a PEZ-A-Palooza at the Embassy Suites in Troy at 850 Tower Drive. All eyes, or well, heads, are on iconic PEZ dispensers at the 2nd annual Michigan PEZ Convention.
Registered attendees include collectors and dealers who have been gathering and talking and trading all things PEZ.
Related:
Local man crazy about PEZ, amasses collection of 17,000
On Saturday, the convention opens to the public from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Admission is $5, and free for kids 12 and younger. PEZ dealers and collectors will have displays of the candy dispensers. According to hosts Jim and Jody Blaine of Hartland, the first 200 paid admissions get a free PEZ dispenser.
For this year’s convention, Jim Blaine said, they've doubled the number of registered attendants and nearly tripled the number of dealers. PEZ fanatics from 22 states as well as from Austria, Japan, and Belgium are at the convention.
Blaine started collecting PEZ dispensers in 1999. He has amassed a collection of more than 30,000, including 1,400 of his favorite Dr. Skull Halloween dispensers.