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Zizzle was a company based in Bannockburn, Illinois, United States, that made many types of electronics and toys based on original concepts as well as movie licenses. Founded in 2005 by Chief Executive Roger Shiffman and Chief Marketing Officer Marc Rosenberg, the company received licenses to produce toys, action figures, and playsets for Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, and also for Marvel as well as Nickelodeon's SpongeBob SquarePants and Dora the Explorer cartoons.

History

In 2005, at the American International Toy Fair, Roger Shiffman and his partners in a toy company called Zizzle dressed like pirates during a pitch to Walt Disney Company executives in a New York hotel. Zizzle, barely a month old at the time, was seeking the master toy license to produce and market the toys and action figures for the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise,[5] beginning with the 2006 film Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, among others products.[6] Among their products were $300 pinball machines. Zizzle was also the primary producer of toys for the third installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean series, At World's End.[4]

In 2006, Zizzle held a Jack Sparrow Lookalike Contest at FAO Schwartz in New York City. Zizzle's Jack Sparrow lookalike contest was a contest held by Zizzle LLC and FAO Schwarz on June 13, 2006 from 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm, where fans of the series could dress up as protagonist Captain Jack Sparrow, as well as other characters including Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann, and were judged based on how accurate their costumes and personality were to that of the character, as well as asked general questions about their costume, what they think about the series, and so on.[7][8] The judges for the contest included Janine DiGioacchino (General Manager of Madame Tussauds Wax Museum), Noah Robischon (Photojournalist for Entertainment Weekly), Carolina Bermudez (Z100 DJ), and most notably, Roger Shiffman (former CEO of Zizzle LLC).[9] Ron Rodriguez had won first place in the contest, receiving a new Volvo XC90 filled with Zizzle branded Pirates of the Caribbean toys in reward for his efforts. 2nd place had been Toby Markham, who received $2500 and a bunch of Zizzle Pirates toys, and in 3rd place was Chris Leidenfros, who received $1000 and a bunch of Zizzle Pirates toys, with both the toys in 2nd and 3rd place being given to the runner-ups in their own treasure chests.[10]

Zizzle shut down in 2009.[3]

Continuity

As Zizzle had exclusive licensing rights to create toys that capitalize on the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, they were able to include story elements that were otherwise not revealed onscreen. For instance, the "Place of Origin" for James Norrington was Great Britain, Davy Jones was "Presumed to be Great Britain", while both Will Turner and Bootstrap Bill Turner were in Glasgow, Scotland. Isla de Pelegostos was also identified by name in some products, such as the "Cannibal Chief" figure.[11][12][13][14] Some of the information included in the Zizzle products would appear on the official Pirates website.[15]

Commercials

Starting in 2006, Zizzle aired a number of different television commercials for their Pirates of the Caribbean products which were also hosted on their website.[16][17]

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) Commercials

Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End (2007) Commercials

Products

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006)

Basic Figures

Deluxe Figures

7" Figures

10" Glowing Figures

12" Figures

Playsets

Pirate Fleet

Motorized Figures

Weapons and Accessories

Miscellaneous

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)

Basic Figures

Deluxe Figures

7" Figures

12" Figures

Playsets

Pirate Captains and Crews PVC Figures (Available in 2 or 4 packs)

Pirate Fleet

Pirate Armada

Weapons and Accessories

Miscellaneous

Secrets of the Deep (2007)

Main article: Pirates of the Caribbean Secrets of the Deep collection

Basic Figures[26]

Deluxe Figures[26]

Comic Book 2-Packs[26]

Weapons

Dead Men Tell No Tales/Swashbucklers (2007-2008)

Main articles: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (toy line) and Swashbucklers

Basic Figures

Deluxe Figures

Playsets

Weapons and Accesories

External links

Notes and references

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 A Happy Tune for Zizzle's iZ? - BusinessWeek (August 23, 2005) (backup link)
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Shiffman's Zizzle Enjoys Exclusive Disney 'Pirates' License - Forbes
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 ZIZZLE TOYS Trademark - Serial Number 78500394 :: Justia Trademarks
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Powered by Toys: The Story Continues - The New York Times
  5. ↑ Zizzle Takes to the Seven Seas with Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest - Zizzle - ToyNewsI.com (October 24, 2005) (backup link)
  6. ↑ Zizzle - Daily Action Figure News - ToyNewsI.com - Archived
  7. ↑ Zizzle Jack Sparrow Lookalike Contest - Tiger Electronics Wiki
  8. ↑ Zizzle Jack Sparrow look alike contest - YouTube (September 12, 2007): "Held in New York, back in 2006. It was actually a contest to find the best Jack Will & Elizabeth. But they ended up choosing 3 Jacks, due to the low turnout of the other characters."
  9. ↑ Captain Jack from Pirates of the Caribbean is Back!!! and We Are Looking for His Look-Alike along with the Look-Alikes of Elizabeth Swann and Will Turner - Zizzle - ToyNewsI.com (June 7, 2006) (backup link)
  10. ↑ SFGate: Day In Pictures (June 14, 2006) backup link)
  11. ↑ Zizzle.com: Dead Man's Chest "Heroes and Villains" series 1 (backup link archived on January 07, 2007)
  12. ↑ Zizzle.com: Dead Man's Chest "Heroes and Villains" series 1 (backup link archived on March 5, 2007)
  13. ↑ Zizzle.com: Dead Man's Chest "Heroes and Villains" series 2 (backup link archived on January 7, 2007)
  14. ↑ Zizzle.com: Dead Man's Chest "Heroes and Villains" series 2 - backup link archived on March 5, 2007)
  15. ↑ DisneyPirates.com
  16. ↑ Zizzle.com | Pirates of the Caribbean (backup link archived on June 25, 2006)
  17. ↑ Commercials - ..:: Zizzle ::.. (backup link archived on August 20, 2007)
  18. ↑ Pirates of the Carribean Dead Men's Chest Flying Dutchman TV Commercial (2006) - YouTube (March 20, 2020)
  19. ↑ Zizzle Pirates of the Caribbean toys (2005) - YouTube (October 1, 2013)
  20. ↑ Zizzle Black Pearl Pirate Ship Playset Commercial 2005 - YouTube (November 4, 2025)
  21. ↑ Zizzle Sensor Sword and Spinning Dagger Commercial - YouTube (November 4, 2025)
  22. ↑ Zizzle Pirates of the Caribbean Singapore Playset Commercial - YouTube (November 4, 2025)
  23. ↑ Zizzle Jack Sparrow's Weapon Gear Commercial - YouTube (November 4, 2025)
  24. ↑ Zizzle Rockin' RC Black Pearl Pirate Ship Commercial - YouTube (November 4, 2025)
  25. ↑ Zizzle Pirates Whirlpool Melee Playset Commercial - YouTube (November 4, 2025)
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 Zizzle.com: Secrets of the Deep - .:: ZIZZLE ::.. (backup link archived on March 20, 2007)