Burlingame Museum of Pez Memorabilia
A Burlingame, California museum devoted to PEZ dispensers and other collectible toys, operating from 1995 until its permanent closure in July 2019.
Last updated August 26, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.
Overview
The Burlingame Museum of Pez Memorabilia was a museum in Burlingame, California, dedicated primarily to PEZ candy dispensers and related collecting culture. It opened in 1995 and was operated by Gary and Nancy Doss, a couple who had collected PEZ dispensers for more than a decade before establishing the attraction. The museum grew out of a computer store operated by the Dosses. They initially displayed some of their collection in the store, but found that visitors were more interested in the dispensers than in the computers, prompting the transition toward a dedicated museum experience. The institution presented itself as a comprehensive collection of PEZ history and claimed to include an example of every PEZ dispenser ever sold. Its displays covered character-based and commemorative dispensers associated with the PEZ brand, including examples connected to popular entertainment properties. Among the notable objects cited in descriptions of the museum were a Wonder Woman dispenser signed by Lynda Carter and a Garfield dispenser signed by Garfield creator Jim Davis. These objects helped position the museum as both a collector destination and a showcase for the cultural history of a mass-market novelty product. In 2004, the museum expanded beyond PEZ by adding the Classic Toy Museum. This section broadened the institution's subject matter to familiar twentieth-century toys and playthings, including Tinker Toys, Erector Sets, Lincoln Logs, Mr. Potato Head, View-Masters, Colorforms, LEGO, Play-Doh, Slinkys, and other items. A related Banned Toys Museum section examined products that had been recalled or prohibited for safety, regulatory, or appropriateness-related reasons. The expansion made the venue a wider popular-culture and toy-history attraction rather than a PEZ-only collection, while PEZ remained its defining theme. The museum also became involved in a trademark dispute with PEZ Candy, Inc. In 2009, PEZ sued the museum for trademark infringement and sought the profits the museum had earned during its previous fourteen years of operation. The dispute was resolved out of court in 2010, and the settlement allowed the museum to remain open. The litigation distinguished the museum's independent collecting and exhibition activity from the commercial brand whose products formed the core of its collection, and it became one of the institution's most consequential business events. After more than two decades of operation, the Burlingame Museum of Pez Memorabilia permanently closed in July 2019. It is therefore a defunct museum brand rather than an active visitor attraction. Publicly documented information identifies the Dosses as its operators and describes its principal exhibitions, expansion into broader toy collecting, trademark litigation, and eventual closure, but does not establish a continuing corporate owner, successor institution, or current operating website.
History
The Burlingame Museum of Pez Memorabilia opened in Burlingame, California, in 1995. It was run by Gary and Nancy Doss, who had already spent more than ten years collecting PEZ dispensers. The museum's origins lay in the couple's computer store, where they put some of their dispensers on display. Customer interest shifted toward the colorful candy dispensers, leading the Dosses to develop the collection into a museum attraction. PEZ formed the institution's central subject. The museum claimed to possess an example of every PEZ dispenser ever sold, an ambitious collecting goal that made it a destination for enthusiasts and visitors interested in advertising characters, licensed entertainment properties, and the evolution of a recognizable consumer product. Reported highlights included a Wonder Woman dispenser signed by Lynda Carter and a Garfield dispenser signed by Jim Davis. The institution broadened its scope in 2004 by adding the Classic Toy Museum. Its displays included such widely known toys and games as Tinker Toys, Erector Sets, Lincoln Logs, Mr. Potato Head, View-Masters, Colorforms, LEGO, Play-Doh, and Slinkys. It also incorporated the Banned Toys Museum, a section concerned with toys that had been recalled or prohibited because of safety issues, regulatory concerns, or questions of appropriateness. This expansion connected the PEZ collection to a larger narrative about toy design, nostalgia, collecting, and changing social standards. The museum faced a significant legal challenge in 2009 when PEZ sued over alleged trademark infringement. The company sought the museum's profits from its first fourteen years. The parties reached an out-of-court settlement in 2010, and the museum was allowed to remain open. The case was the principal documented dispute affecting the institution's operation and reflected the legal sensitivity surrounding the use of a commercial brand name by an independent exhibition venue. The Burlingame Museum of Pez Memorabilia permanently closed in July 2019. No successor operation, continuing parent organization, or current museum program is established in the available reference material. Its historical significance rests on its unusually focused PEZ collection, its expansion into a broader toy museum, and its role as a specialist collector attraction in California.
- 2019
Permanent closure
[1]The Burlingame Museum of Pez Memorabilia closed permanently in July.
- 2010
Trademark case settled
[1]The dispute was settled outside court, allowing the museum to continue operating.
- 2009
PEZ files trademark lawsuit
[1]PEZ sued the museum for trademark infringement and sought profits from the museum's preceding fourteen years of operation.
- 2004
Classic Toy Museum added
[1]The institution expanded its scope with a Classic Toy Museum featuring well-known toys and related memorabilia.
- 1995
Museum opens in Burlingame
[1]Gary and Nancy Doss opened the museum after customer interest in the PEZ dispensers displayed in their computer store surpassed interest in the computers.
Products and positioning
A specialist popular-culture museum built around an extensive PEZ dispenser collection and expanded into the history of mass-market toys and controversial or recalled playthings.
Museum exhibition · 1995
PEZ dispenser collection
The museum's principal exhibition consisted of PEZ candy dispensers and related memorabilia. It claimed to represent every PEZ dispenser ever sold and included character and licensed-property examples. Reported highlights included a Wonder Woman dispenser signed by Lynda Carter and a Garfield dispenser signed by Jim Davis.
Museum exhibition · 2004
Classic Toy Museum
Added in 2004, the Classic Toy Museum broadened the venue beyond PEZ. Its displays covered familiar toys and play systems including Tinker Toys, Erector Sets, Lincoln Logs, Mr. Potato Head, View-Masters, Colorforms, LEGO, Play-Doh, Slinkys, and other collectible or nostalgic objects.
Museum exhibition
Banned Toys Museum
The Banned Toys Museum was a related display focused on toys that had been recalled or banned for reasons including safety concerns and questions of appropriateness. It placed toy collecting within a broader historical and regulatory context.
Controversies
Brand decisions
2010
Resolve trademark dispute out of courtOtherBackground
PEZ's 2009 trademark lawsuit challenged the museum's use of the PEZ name and sought profits from its prior operation.
Action taken
The museum and PEZ settled the case outside court.
Aftermath
The settlement permitted the museum to remain open until its eventual permanent closure in 2019.
2004
Expand from PEZ into broader toy historyStrategyBackground
The museum had been established around PEZ dispensers but sought a wider collecting and visitor proposition.
Action taken
It added the Classic Toy Museum, displaying a range of well-known toys and related memorabilia, along with a Banned Toys Museum section.
Aftermath
The venue developed from a single-brand memorabilia attraction into a broader toy museum while retaining PEZ as its central theme.
Sources1 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/burlingame-museum-of-pez-memorabilia · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled