Paas (; trademarked as PAAS) is an American brand of
Easter egg
Easter eggs, also called Paschal eggs, are eggs that are decorated for the Christian holiday of Easter, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. As such, Easter eggs are commonly used during the season of Eastertide (Easter season). The ...
dye
Juan de Guillebon, better known by his stage name DyE, is a French musician. He is known for the music video of the single "Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical ele ...
that is owned by
Signature Brands, LLC.
History
The original Paas Easter egg dye was invented by American William Townley, the owner of a drug store in
Newark, New Jersey
Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...
, where he concocted recipes for home products. In 1893, he figured out how to concentrate dye in tablet form and launched the modern Easter egg dyeing kit.
[. Retrieved on 2009-03-22] The original price of each tablet was five cents, and customers would make the dye by combining the tablets with water and vinegar. Townley eventually renamed his business the Paas Dye Company. "Paas" comes from ''Passen'',
Pennsylvania Dutch for
Easter
Easter, also called Pascha ( Aramaic: פַּסְחָא , ''paskha''; Greek: πάσχα, ''páskha'') or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in t ...
.
[ Retrieved on 2009-03-22]
In 1901, according to a State of New Jersey inspection report, seven men and twenty women were employed in Townley's production facility at 60 Shipman Street in Newark. Paas eventually became the largest manufacturer of Easter egg dyes, and Philip B. Townley succeeded his father as head of the company.
Products
* Traditional - with 5 dye tablets to mix with vinegar and water
* Beaded
* Hologram
* Crack & Color
* Stencil
* Zoo Fun
* CAMO
* Sports Fanatic
* Egg Scribblers
* Egg Heads
* Sparkling Glitter
* Speckled Eggs
* Tie Dye
* Eggs-A-Glow
* Tattoos
* Egg Splash
* EggArounds
* EGGspress Yourself
* Color Cups
* Grip 'n' Dip
* Color Snaps
* Active Volcanoes
Popular culture references
*Comedian
Patton Oswalt
Patton Peter Oswalt (born January 27, 1969) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. His acting roles include Spence Olchin in the sitcom ''The King of Queens'' (1998–2007) and narrating the sitcom '' The Goldbergs'' (2013–2023) as adult ...
does a routine about the traditional dye kit.
*The Paas dye kit is prominently displayed in an episode entitled "
Fantastic Easter Special
"Fantastic Easter Special" is the fifth episode of the eleventh season of the American animated television series ''South Park'', and the 158th episode of the series overall. It first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on April 4, 20 ...
" of ''South Park''. The Marsh family are coloring eggs with a Paas dye kit, and Stan begins asking his father why people color eggs at Easter time.
*An animated Easter special ''
Peter and the Magic Egg'' (1983) starring the voice of
Ray Bolger
Raymond Wallace Bolger (; January 10, 1904 – January 15, 1987) was an American actor, dancer, singer, vaudevillian, and stage performer (particularly musical theater) who started his movie career in the silent-film era.
Bolger was a major B ...
was created as a tie-in to the product. Since its release, the four main animals from said special: Feathers the Duck, Cotton the Rabbit, Terrance the Turtle, and Lollichop Lamb would serve as the mascots for the product for years to come. In recent days, only the former two continued to serve as the mascots, while the latter two were eventually dropped.
*NBC television show ''
30 Rock
''30 Rock'' is an American satire, satirical sitcom television series created by Tina Fey that originally aired on NBC from October 11, 2006, to January 31, 2013. The series, based on Fey's experiences as head writer for ''Saturday Night Live' ...
'' (in season 7, episode 1, "The Beginning of the End") mentions the egg dyeing company as owning the market, asking "when was the last time you bought a non-PAAS egg dye kit?"
References
External links
Paas Official Website
1893 establishments in New Jersey
Easter egg
History of Newark, New Jersey
Manufacturing companies based in Newark, New Jersey
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