After a few twists, the Virgin Mary pretzel is back on eBay!

After a few twists, the Virgin Mary pretzel is back on eBay!

Tools

By Elissa Harrington

NORTH EUGENE - It's the pretzel that swept the globe.

Just 24 hours ago a pretzel shaped like the Virgin Mary was going for 2-million dollars on eBay. Today, it's down to 5 grand. Many are wondering what happened and for the four men selling the item, the experience has been filled with just as many twists and turns as the pretzel that started it all.

"It has been an emotional rollercoaster from the worst Dr. Phil episode," says Chad "Tanner" Haney.

It seemed to good to be true. And maybe it was. The pretzel shaped like the Virgin Mary hit eBay Wednesday and could have made four local radio dj's million dollar men.

Drew Tydeman, one of the pretzel sellers and a radio host at KFLY FM described what is what like watching the bids pour in. "It was at 4 thousand, 6 thousand, a hundred thousand and by 6pm last night it was at 2 million dollars."

But then a bid for 99 million? That's when eBay pulled the pretzel and said they had violated a food rule because it was not listed as perishable. "I was just like, we're done," says Marcus Bridges. Bridges was in charge of the eBay account and had been in contact with the company since the item was posted. "I was white in the face." Tydeman jokes about how serious some of their bidders have been. "Some people are like, do you have a letter of authenticity? Well no. But we have a Rold Gold bag with a sell-by date."

They re-posted the item but by that time around 50 knockoff's were already up. One of them was going for 16 grand. "They have a Virgin Mary shoelace!" says Tydeman.

But not everyone is hopping on the pretzel bandwagon. There are some out there who think comparing the snack to a holy image is downright demeaning. Father Joseph Sergott, OP at the St. Thomas Moore Newman Center says, "To be honest with you, I think it's pathetic. I think it's a deep search for God but i think they're searching in the wrong place."

And in Australia an internet group was planning a boycott of the auction site. We even found a page on wikipedia devoted to these so-called phenomena. They listed everything from Jesus on a tortilla to the "Pope Tart."

Back at their station these radio hosts watched Friday as their snack climbed back to a little over 5 thousand dollars. It's a far cry from 2 mil but for now, it's just enough to bring the once out of control situation back to Earth. "I'm the same old generic Tanner," jokes Haney. "And my fifteen minutes are up, oh, right about now!"
Icon
Current Temp 61.0 °F
Overcast
More Weather
New:

Upload directly from your mobile device.

Learn how

YouNews

This content requires the latest Adobe Flash Player and a browser with JavaScript enabled. Click here for a free download of the latest Adobe Flash Player.

On Demand

Resources and info you need to prepare for the switch to DTV.

Viewer Poll

Summer is now in full swing. What kinds of news feature stories are you most interested in? Mark all that apply

  • Things to do with kids
  • Travel within 100 miles
  • Travel within Oregon
  • Gardening
  • Health & fitness
  • Fishing
  • Golfing
  • Biking and hiking
  • Other (Send story ideas to kvalnews@kval.com)

Marketplace