PEZ Letter

May 29, 1997

Kay Pee Import-Export Co. Ltd.
1010 St. Catherines St. West
Rm. 539 Montreal, Que
H3B 1G4


Dear "Pez"imists,

I have been eating PEZ candy for many of my 27 years, and it just seems like I can never get enough! Recently, while visiting a neighbourhood grocery store, I purchased two Star Wars movie character PEZ dispensers (Darth Vader and Yoda). I was excited to see my favourite movie made into my favourite candy! Until that day, I had been exclusively using a late 70's Bugs Bunny dispenser for PEZ. Well now I eat the deliciously chalky pellets from all three dispensers! Your company is to be praised for importing the world's greatest flavoured, rectangular-shaped, hard candy. However, after all these years I have a few questions that you may be able to answer:

1) I have heard that PEZ candy is entirely sugar and calorie free, and chock full of vitamins C and E. Is this true? If so, how come I keep gaining weight while eating PEZ by the pound?

2) What does PEZ mean? Do the letters (P, E and Z) each stand for something?
(some guesses)
- Plan Everything Zodiacally?
- Personal Environment Zone?
- PREZ? (maybe the R was left out by mistake)
- Perfectly E-Z? (easy)
- Planet Earth Zapped?
- People Exercise Zippers?

3) Will there ever be new flavours like Mint, Cinnamon, Chocolate, Prune or Liver?

4) Do you have a PEZ cap or t-shirt (XL) that you could send me? I don't know if there is such apparel lying around there but I'd be proud to wear it!

Thanks so much for taking your valuable time to answer my questions. If you cannot answer, or if you have a difficult time finding a t-shirt or cap, could you please send me the PEZ company head office address? It looks like it is in Europe somewhere (Hungary or Austria). Thanks a lot! You guys are great!

Popping Every Zit,

Dairn M Peters

PEZ Reply

August 15, 1997


Dear Dairn,

We received your letter. Listed below are answers to your questions.

1) There are no vitamins added to PEZ candies and sugar has calories.

2) PEZ is an abbreviated word for peppermint in German.

3) There will not be any new flavours as you described but there is a possibility of peppermint.

4) Sorry but we do not have any PEZ apparel lying around to give you.

Yours truly,
KAY PEE IMPORT EXPORT CO. LTD.

Andrée Folliet

Tootsie Roll Letter

October 9, 1996

Tootsie Roll Industries
Chicago, Illinois
USA
60629


Dear Tootsie Titans,

I have been enjoying your chocolate Tootsie Rolls for many years and plan on relishing them for many years to come. In fact, Tootsie Rolls are my favourite candy, bar none! If it wasn't for my co-worker, Dick, and his obsession for your fine product, I would probably be your biggest fan in the world!

Dick and I are testers for a major light bulb manufacturer in Canada. We screw bulbs into tester sockets, flip a switch, and then unscrew the bulbs (possibly the MOST BORING job on the planet!). In the bright (and then dark... bright, then dark) confines of the testing area, our throats can get quite dry and hoarse, so we chew on Tootsie Rolls to keep our taste buds occupied. Dick, however, goes through twice as many Tootsie treats as I do in a given shift, popping them into his mouth faster than I can say, "Bob's your uncle!" But here's the kicker: I gain weight by the ton eating your product, while Dick is the picture of perfect health (and I exercise every day, while he sits on the couch and watches Oprah reruns)! Is this fair??? No, darn it!

Anyways, my question for you would be, is there anything addictive in your Tootsie Rolls? I've looked at your ingredients on the wrapper and it all seems pretty normal to me, but the way we go through your product (we purchase in bulk), I think we may be "Tootsie Roll dependent." Can you tell me if there are any secret addictive ingredients (cocaine, nicotine, cod liver oil supplements)? Thanks for taking the time to respond to my question. Dick will be really excited to hear your reply! Is it possible to send me a Tootsie Roll cap for my collection? That'd be great!

Future Tootsie Roll Fan Club President,

Dairn M Peters

Tootsie Roll Reply

November 13, 1996


Dear Dairn:

Thank you for your letter. We appreciate when our consumers take time to address us with their questions and concerns.

We also appreciate the interest that you have in our company and our products, and so we are pleased to be able to tell you that we now have a catalogue of Tootsie Roll products available. Please call 1-800-554-4772 to receive your copy. We hope you will enjoy it.

Thanks again for writing.

Sincerely,

TOOTSIE ROLL INDUSTRIES INC.

Janet M. Vasilenko
Consumer Relations
Administrator