Fred
Flinstone Pez is soon to be a page right out of history. |
Pezhead
Monthly: Fred Flintstone Pez, the Pezhead
community was shocked and saddened to learn this past
month that the Flintstones set is going to be retired
by the Pez company. This of course means that you, along
with fellow dispensers Barney Rubble Pez, Pebbles Pez,
and Dino Pez, will no longer be produced and will eventually
no longer be sold in stores. What are your thoughts on
the news of this occasion?
Fred
Flintstone Pez: You know, I have to be
honest, we all kind of knew this day was coming. Back
in 1993 when Barney, Pebbles, Dino and I first hit store
shelves, we never thought that we would enjoy ten years
of retail bliss. And now that it's all winding down, I
have nothing but warm memories about our fantastic Pez
journey.
PM:
That's good to hear. Do you have any plans
for your upcoming retirement?
FFP:
Well, when I first heard the news, I met with the gang
and we batted around some ideas like moving to Florida,
driving across the country in a Winnebago, or just hanging
out at the mall all day. But then we realized that no,
we are Pez dispensers! Countless others before us have
retired, and like them we have an obligation to spread
|
the fruity
goodness of Pez as far as we can, and as long as we can. There
is always someone else who could use a Pez. So, while I don't
want to speak for the others, I for one plan on hitting the flea
markets, the yard sales, and of course the Pez conventions.
PM:
Once a Pez, always a Pez. However, Fred Flintstone
Pez, I'd imagine it is a little surreal to be retiring at the
same time as your daughter, isn't it?
FFP:
You can say that again. I had such high hopes for her outlasting
me, but I have to remind myself that she's been out there as
long as I have. My, how they grow.
PM:
Looking back over the years, do you wish anything
could have gone differently for the Flintstones Pez set?
FFP:
Well, sometimes we did find it a little unfair that we were
never given the courtesy of updates to the set. It would have
been great if Wilma Pez, Betty Pez, and Bam Bam Pez could have
joined us somewhere along the way. Dino Pez often wondered aloud
why others such as Looney Tunes and Disney were given "cool"
or "extreme" makeovers, and we were not. I found myself
reassuring him that we didn't need any makeovers, because we
are after all a modern stone age family.
PM:
Fred Flintstone Pez, thanks much for speaking
with us. I have one final question, and it's a rather difficult
one to ask. To be frank, the Flintstones set has been on the
shelves for a long time, and people who rush to the stores in
search of the latest and greatest dispensers are often disappointed
when all they can find is you. How much do you really think
Pez collectors will miss you?
FFP:
Wow, that's a really humbling question. If I had tear ducts,
I think I might be on the verge of crying right now. But I do
see your point, and it's not like I'm ignorant to the reality
of the situation. Chances are the four of us won't be entirely
missed by those hundreds of collectors who already have us as
part of their collection. But I'll tell you what, there will
come a day when collectors new to the hobby will only hear of
us in stories from "back in tha day." It will be a
sad day indeed when we are remembered as mainstays of the Cartoon
Network and children's multivitamins, and not as Pez dispensers.
If that's the case, I think we're all Yabba Dabba Doomed.
