Pac-Man Bank

The Pac-Man Bank (パックマン貯金箱 Pakkuman Chokinbako) was a novelty coin bank created by Tomy in 1974. It is the oldest known incarnation of Pac-Man as a character, predating the Pac-Man video game by several years.
The bank consisted of a spring loaded arm and a mouth that would open and shut. The user had to use skillful timing to fling the coin into Pac-Man's mouth with the arm. The bank is rather small, about the size of a small cup.
These banks were rather popular toys; their popularity led to the release of a board game and a water game several years later. Following the release of the Pac-Man arcade game, Tomy would release a variant of the bank in the United States.
== Models ==
Several models of Pac-Man banks exist. They include:
* Pac-Man Bank - The original, released in 1974. The banks were originally released in red, green, and yellow; these variants were followed by a set of translucent designs. Most models use sticker labels for the eyes, though a few variants use googly eyes. It is referred to as "Je Je" on the packaging in English, and "Pacman" (パックマン, Pakkuman) on the packaging in Japanese.
* Pac-Man UFO - A redesigned model with a considerably different design; featuring raccoon-like eyes and a strange mouth shape, somewhat reminiscent of Tomy's Pac-Man board game.
* BIG PAC MAN - A larger model compared to the original versions; has a bowtie and an indented head.
* Biyadaru Bank (ビヤダルバンク) - A Pac-Man sitting in a biyadaru (beer barrel); some versions read "BEER!" while others read "SKÖL!". This bank effectively doubles as a board game, being a loose adaption of Tomy's Pop-up Pirate from 1975. The player(s) insert coins into the slots on the barrel, and one "lucky" coin slot will make Pac-Man jump out of the barrel; Pac-Man holds a key in his mouth, which is used to unlock the bank.
* Tomy Pac Man - U.S. model, released in 1982. It is based on the "Pac-Man UFO" model, but has darker eyelids and Tomy's English Pac-Man logo stamped on the front.
* Packman - A series of reprints of the original 1974 model; they were released in 2005 by Omnicl and HeartLand, both of which are branches of Tomy. The 2005 models were produced in the original three colors (red, yellow and green), alongside newly-created black, white, and pink variants. A second set was released featuring translucent yellow, green, and pink designs.https://web.archive.org/web/20071009125753/http://www.omnicl.com/packman/index.htm
** A few additional "licensed" Packman models were released based on other IPs: these include Mickey Mouse, Doraemon (in both blue and yellow forms), Stitch (from Lilo & Stitch), and "Tinkerbell" (a bear mascot for a children's clothing brand; not connected to Peter Pan).
* Packman Dust Box - Garbage can taking the design of the original bank, where trash is launched into Pac-Man's mouth.
* Cap-Man - An unreleased (?) model that stores bottlecaps rather than coins; designed for the purpose of "recycling" the caps. An additional "talking" variant was also developed with a built-in speaker. It was scheduled to be released in June of 2013, but was seemingly canceled.https://news.livedoor.com/article/detail/7349572/
== Connection to Pac-Man ==
As an intellectual property, Pac-Man is most commonly associated with the arcade game of the same name, released in 1980. However, that game was created by Namco, and had no connection to Tomy whatsoever. As to if Namco's Pac-Man was just coincidentally similar to Tomy's Pac-Man, or if there was an intent to "copy" Tomy's toy line, is unclear.
It is believed that Namco and Tomy reached a private settlement over both parties' usage of Pac-Man - with no direct legal action being taken. Tomy seemingly received the exclusive toy rights for the arcade adaption of Pac-Man in Japan - this lasted about 10 years. A similar agreement was made in North America, but it was non-exclusive and only lasted until December 1st, 1983."Tomy Corporation also has a license to produce [Pac-Man toys]. This license expires on December 1, 1983 and was part of a quit claim assignment by Tomy to Midway of any rights it might have claimed in the mark Pac-Man as well as in Tomy's mechanical game of the same name." (https://casetext.com/case/midway-mfg-co-v-bandai-america-inc) Meanwhile, Namco continued to release Pac-Man video games until (and past) Tomy's closure in 2006.
== Trivia ==
*A series of Pac-Man Bank-derived products were produced by an unknown company in Hong Kong with English packaging; it is unknown if these products were licensed by Tomy, or if they were some form of bootlegs. Known models of this type include "The Big Mouth Money Box", which is nearly-identical to a "googly-eyed" original model, and the "Auto-Action Frog Saving Bank", which gives the banks webbed feet.
*The 2005 banks were likely renamed to "Packman" due to Namco holding full control over the Pac-Man trademark by this time period.
*The Omnicl website appears to label the yellow "Packman" bank as being "new", while other colors are unlabeled; suggesting the yellow model was released later on. This may suggest that some level of legal verification was required to release the 2005 bank in Pac-Man's trademark yellow coloring.
== Gallery ==
Tomy-merch-JP-1970s-pacman-bank-1.jpg|Several Pac-Man banks; the black-colored one is likely from the 2000s "Packman" series, while the others are original 1970s models.
Tomy-merch-JP-1970s-pacman-bank-0.jpg|An original model red bank, on top of its box.
Tomy-merch-JP-1970s-pacman-bank-2.jpg|An original model red bank facing the side.
Tomy-merch-JP-1970s-pacman-bank-transluscent-0.jpg|An original model translucent-gray bank.
Tomy-merch-JP-1970s-pacman-bank-googly-eyes-0.jpg|A variant of the original model yellow bank with googly eyes.
Tomy-merch-JP-1970s-pacman-ufo-bank-0.jpg|A red UFO model with its box.
Tomy-merch-JP-1970s-pacman-ufo-bank-1.jpg|A yellow UFO model.
Tomy-merch-JP-1970s-big-pacman-bank-0.jpg|Big Pac Man bank.
Tomy-merch-JP-1970s-pacman-bank-store-display-0.jpg|A Pac-Man Bank store display, showcasing an original green bank and a "Big" yellow bank.
Tomy-merch-JP-1970s-pacman-bank-store-display-1.jpg|A wall-powered store display, showcasing an original red bank and a "Big" yellow bank.
Tomy-merch-JP-1970s-biyadaru-bank-0.jpg|A "SKÖL!" Biyadaru Bank with box.
Tomy-merch-JP-1970s-biyadaru-bank-1.jpg|A "BEER!" Biyadaru Bank, loose.
Tomy-merch-US-1980s-pacman-bank-0.jpg|U.S. "Pac Man Bank" model.
Unknown-merch-HK-19xx-the-big-mouth-money-box-0.jpg|The Big Mouth Money Box, a variant from an unknown Hong Kong company.
Unknown-merch-HK-19xx-frog-saving-bank-0.jpg|Auto-Action Frog Saving Bank, a variant from an unknown Hong Kong company.
Unknown-merch-HK-19xx-frog-saving-bank-1.jpg|Two Auto-Action Frog Saving Banks.
Tomy-merch-JP-2000s-heartland-omnicl-packman-0.jpg|Back of the box for the 2005 "Packman" models.
Tomy-merch-JP-2000s-heartland-omnicl-packman-2.jpg|A 2005 "Packman" pink bank.
Tomy-merch-JP-2000s-heartland-omnicl-packman-dust-box-0.jpg|Front of the box for the Packman Dust Box.
Tomy-merch-JP-2000s-heartland-omnicl-packman-dust-box-1.jpg|A yellow Packman Dust Box compared to a standard-size model.
Tomy-merch-JP-2010s-capman-0.jpg|A green Cap-Man bank.
== External links ==
* Operation video
== References ==
Category:Merchandise