Talking Bird Collectible Toys
©1999 by Craig Conley

If you’d like a bird to give a pellet back to you, consider collecting PEZ™ or other plastic candy dispensers. Introduced to the United States in the early 1950’s, PEZ™ remains a favorite toy of the young and young at heart. PEZ™ collecting as a hobby is a relatively new phenomenon, however.

To date, half-a-dozen dispensers feature heads modeled after talking birds. Some of the heads are realistic, while others are highly stylized or cartoon-like. Whatever the design, one always tilts the bird’s head back to dispense a candy treat.

Check your local antique store, Salvation Army, or yard sales for old toys. Depending upon its condition and rarity, you could find a candy dispenser worth as much as your living bird! Your search may yield one of the following pop-culture totems with birds’ heads:

Cockatoo: Commonly available. Features a large head (color varies from yellow, green, to blue), a very large red or yellow beak, tiny black eyes on the sides of the head, no pupils, and a red feather on top of the head. Manufactured by PEZ™.

Raven: Commonly available, especially outside the United States. Features a large black head, white eyes at the front of the head, small black pupils, either a yellow or red beak, and red glasses. Manufactured by PEZ™.

Tweety (Warner Bros. character): Readily available. Features a large yellow head, a black feather on top of the head, white eyes at the front of the head, black pupils, and a very small red beak. Manufactured by PEZ™.

Parrot: Not readily available. Features a small green head (very realistic looking), white eyes on the sides of the head, small black pupils, and a green hook bill with black nostrils. Manufactured by Totem brand.

Parrot: Commonly available in foreign markets only. The head is also a whistle. Features a large red head, small white eyes at the front of the head, tiny black pupils, a large green circle around each eye, and a yellow hook bill. Manufactured by PEZ™.

Parrot: Not widely available. Features a small green head (cartoon-style), large white eyes at the front of the head, black pupils, a brown beak, brown cheeks, and a green feather on top of the head. Manufactured by Yummy brand.

For more information on dating your dispenser, value, and rarity, consult one of the following publications:

A Pictorial Guide to Plastic Candy Dispensers by David Welch. Bubba Scrubba Publications, 1991. $19.95.

The American Collectors Journal. P.O. Box 407, Kewanee, IL 61443.

Collectors’ Showcase: America’s Premier Collecting Magazine. #210, 7130 S. Lewis, Tulsa, OK 74136.