Pizza John shirt: DFTBA pre-order of John's pizza-mustache photo shirt (2010)
project history · status: last documented in 2013 (looked back on in 2026) · last event: milestone (2013-01-29) · last mentioned: 2026-09-28
The Pizza John shirt, a photo of John with a pizza mustache designed by Valerie2776, went on DFTBA pre-order in February 2010 and came back in stock in November 2010; later videos looked back on it as the design that led to Pizzamas.
Parts: John asks Nerdfighters to buy the pizza shirt, back in stock at DFTBA.com/pizza (November 2010)
Told alongside: Pizzamas 2012 edition: the Pizza John collection, six limited designs on pre-order · John's Pizza John mustache, worn on camera as a recurring bit (2011) · DFTBA posters: Nerdfighter-designed posters sold at DFTBA.com (2011) · Childhood stories: Hank's proposed vlogbrothers theme week (February 2010)
About: Pizza John, DFTBA Records, Valerie2776
| date | event | what | video |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010-02-24 | announced | The description opens a DFTBA pre-order of the pizza mustache shirt from the fan photo, closing in a week and shipping mid-March. | JOHN GREEN IS FAT. video description |
| 2010-11-15 | milestone | John announces the pizza shirt is back in stock at DFTBA.com/pizza: ordered today, it ships tomorrow, until it runs out. | Hey! You! Fix the Budget! 00:00:29 |
| 2012-11-08 | milestone | For about the next 72 hours, six variations Hank made on Valerie2776's original Pizza John shirt design are on pre-order at DFTBA.com, then disappear forever. | VOLT! A Dream Comes True. 00:03:01 |
| 2013-01-15 | looked back | John tells the story behind the Pizza John shirt: his love of pizza plus a five-minute mustache, merged into the design by Valerie2776. | An Evening of Awesome at Carnegie Hall 00:58:19 |
| 2013-01-29 | milestone | John says this is why their shop now focuses on royalties for Nerdfighter designers: he splits Pizza John shirt royalties half-and-half with its designer Valerie2776. | Across Three Continents: A Tale of Tumblr, Copyright, and Excellent Posters 00:00:58 |
| 2014-11-12 | looked back | Hank looks back on the Pizza John shirt: Valerie2776 posted the traced image, John said he wanted it as a shirt (clip shown), they made it and some people bought it. → refers to JOHN GREEN IS FAT. | The History of Pizza John! 00:01:47 |
| 2015-11-09 | looked back | Hank points those confused by Pizza John to his video from last year (2014) on the history of Pizza John, which he worked hard on and thinks is good. (hedged) | Enjoy My Stupid Dancing! (Pizzamas Day 1) 00:01:04 |
| 2016-11-10 | looked back | Dave introduces Valerie, who lives in Missoula and works for VidCon, as the designer of Pizza John, which led to Pizzamas: her lasting legacy. → refers to The History of Pizza John! | The Museum of Pizza Johns Past 00:00:35 |
| 2021-08-17 | looked back | John's example is Pizza John: does he own it because it is his face from a screenshot of his video, or Valerie because they made the design? And who owns it when Alice makes one? | Who Owns Nerdfighteria? 00:01:27 |
| 2021-10-04 | looked back | John wonders how something Valerie designed all those years ago turned into all of this, and says he is so, so grateful. | PIZZAMAS IS HERE! 00:03:28 |
| 2026-09-28 | looked back | For new viewers, John explains that Valerie2776 created Pizza John almost 20 years ago. | Death. Taxes. Pizzamas. 00:01:52 |
What is said about it
6 statements, by date (the events above are the turns of the thread; these are the details).
- 2010-02-24 · JOHN GREEN IS FAT. — announcement: John says he loves a fan photo of himself with a brief mustache and the word 'pizza' under his face, and wants it as a shirt. (playful) — 00:01:27
- 2010-03-01 · The Marriage Ref SUCKS — announcement: John says the funny pizza shirt is available until Wednesday (3 March 2010), with a link in the doobly-doo. — 00:02:14
- 2010-11-15 · Hey! You! Fix the Budget! — announcement: John announces the pizza shirt is back in stock at DFTBA.com/pizza; orders placed today ship tomorrow, until it runs out. — 00:00:29
- 2013-01-15 · An Evening of Awesome at Carnegie Hall — John says the Pizza John shirt comes from his liking pizza and once having a mustache for five minutes; Nerdfighter Valerie2776 merged the two into the design. (playful) — 00:58:19
- 2014-11-12 · The History of Pizza John! — Hank: A nerdfighter screencapped that moment; Valerie2776, now the brothers' community manager, adjusted the contrast, traced it in Illustrator and made it white on red: that was Pizza John. — 00:01:44
- 2014-11-12 · The History of Pizza John! — Hank: Valerie2776 posted it on her blog; John saw it and said he wanted it as a shirt, so they made one and some, not many, people bought it. — 00:01:57