Political PEZ dispensers debuting this weekend

It was in a parking lot that Gary Doss first laid his eyes on two of the rarest PEZ candy dispensers in the world.

"These were a step beyond the Holy Grail. It’s like getting God’s pipe,” said Doss, owner and curator of the Burlingame Museum of PEZ Memorabilia.

Created in 1961 as a gift to a current U.S. president, PEZ Candy Inc. produced both a Democratic donkey dispenser and a Republican elephant dispenser. These two dispensers have a combined estimated value of $20,000 to $25,000. This weekend, those two ivory candy dispensers will be debuted. Visitors are asked to make a $10 donation which will benefit InnVision Shelter Network. Doss, a collector of the candy dispensers for 20 years, had seen some great fakes of the two political figures. Many had pieces put together from other dispensers. But Doss was originally skeptical when contacted by the Delaware seller.

A Democratic donkey PEZ was presented to President John F. Kennedy on his 1961 trip to Vienna, Austria. As recently as September of this year, PEZ Candy claimed only two Democratic donkey dispensers existed, and both are currently in the hands of PEZ Candy Inc. The Republican elephant is also one of the rarest of all PEZ dispensers, with only eight other examples known to exist.

In early September, the seller sent a number of photos to Doss which piqued his interest. These looked to be the real thing. The two met at a bank parking lot in a suburb of Philadelphia. After examining the dispensers, Doss gave the man a cashier’s check for an undisclosed amount. Now Doss plans to debut the political candy dispensers this weekend — days before the presidential election. A volunteer with InnVision Shelter Network since 2009, the event will be in partnership with the local nonprofit dedicated to ending homelessness.

Guests will have access to the entire museum, including the Classic Toy Museum and the Banned Toy Museum.

The Burlingame Museum of PEZ Memorabilia is located at 214 California Drive, Burlingame. Event hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information about the museum visit www.burlingamepezmuseum.com. For more information about InnVision Shelter Network visit www.ivsn.org or call 685-5880.