Exhibit (a)(5)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

December 17, 2004

              Fila-Fabbrica Italiana Lapis ed Affini S.p.A. Agrees
              to Acquire Dixon Ticonderoga Company for $7 Per Share

         MILAN ITALY and HEATHROW, FL, December 17, 2004 - Co-CEOs Gino N. Pala
and Richard F. Joyce of Dixon Ticonderoga Company (AMEX: DXT) and Massimo
Candela, CEO of Fila-Fabbrica Italiana Lapis ed Affini S.p.A. announced today
that they have reached a definitive agreement for the acquisition by Fila of all
the outstanding shares of Dixon common stock for $7.00 per share in cash. The
transaction has been approved by the boards of directors of both companies.
Under the terms of the definitive agreement, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Fila
will commence a cash tender offer within the next fifteen business days to
acquire all outstanding shares of Dixon common stock at a price of $7 per share.
It is likely that such offer will be commenced on or about January 7, 2005. The
price represents a premium of approximately 68% over the stock price at the time
the parties began negotiating in late August, 2004. Following successful
completion of the tender offer, any remaining Dixon shares will be acquired in a
cash merger at the same price.

         The consummation of the transaction is subject to the requirement that
at least 66 2/3% of Dixon's outstanding shares be validly tendered and not
withdrawn prior to the final expiration date of the offer, and other customary
conditions. Holders of approximately 28% of the outstanding Dixon shares,
including, Messrs. Pala, Joyce and other executive officers of Dixon, have
simultaneously entered into an agreement with Fila requiring them to sell their
Dixon shares to Fila upon the closing of the tender offer and at the same price,
and to vote their shares in favor of the merger.

         "Through the acquisition of Dixon, FILA will enter a market with a
great potential and will benefit from strong synergies. This transaction is an
example of our commitment to growth, even in a highly competitive environment
such as the American market", said Massimo Candela, CEO of Fila.

         "This exciting combination creates multiple opportunities for our
customers, employees, suppliers and partners," said Mr. Pala. Joyce adds, "It is
apparent that Dixon's manufacturing consolidation and restructuring efforts,
system investments and aggressive marketing and sales efforts these past few
years have not gone unnoticed within our industry. It is not surprising that we
would be viewed as a significant enhancement to FILA's global strategy.
Employees, customers and consumers will benefit from the greater resources,
scale and opportunities of the combined companies."

         Lazard & Co. served as Fila's financial advisor in connection with the
proposed transaction. After reviewing the terms of the proposed transaction and
receiving an opinion from Sheldrick, McGehee & Kohler, Inc. that the $7.00 per
share consideration to be received by Dixon's stockholders is fair from a
financial point of view, Dixon's board of directors approved the transaction and
agreed to recommend that Dixon's shareholders tender their shares in Fila's
tender offer and approve and adopt the merger agreement and the merger.


         The acquisition is financed by Banca Intesa, Italy's largest bank,
which has had an ownership stake in Fila since 1999 through its Merchant
Banking operations. Banca Intesa is also providing an additional back-up line
of credit in the event of a refinancing of any of Dixon's existing
indebtedness.

 Notice To Investors

         This announcement is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of
an offer to sell securities. The tender offer for the outstanding shares of
Dixon common stock described in this announcement has not commenced. At the time
the offer is commenced, a Fila subsidiary will file a tender offer statement
with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and Dixon will file a solicitation
and recommendation statement with respect to the offer. The tender offer
statement (including an offer to purchase, a related letter of transmittal and
other offer documents) and the solicitation/recommendation statement will
contain important information that should be read carefully before any decision
is made with respect to the tender offer. Those materials will be made available
to Dixon security holders at no expense to them. In addition, all of those
materials (and all other offer documents filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission) will be available at no charge on the Securities and Exchange
Commission's Website at http://www.sec.gov/.

About Dixon Ticonderoga Company:

         Dixon, with operations dating back to 1795, is one of the oldest
publicly held companies in the U.S. Its consumer group manufactures and markets
a wide range of writing instruments, art materials and office products,
including the well-known Ticonderoga(R), Prang(R) and Dixon(R) brands.
Headquartered in Heathrow, Florida, Dixon employs approximately 1,600 people at
eight facilities in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, the U.K. and China. For more
information about the company see Dixon's website at www.prang.com.

About Fila:

         FILA, with operations dating back to 1920, is a privately held Italian
company. It manufactures and markets a wide range of design and writing
instruments, art materials and modeling paste. Its leading brands in the
European market are Giotto, Tratto, Pongo, Das and Dido. Headquartered in Milan,
Italy, Fila's group employs about 600 people at four facilities in Italy,
France, Spain and Chile.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information

         Certain matters discussed in this press release are "forward-looking
statements" intended to qualify for the safe harbors from liability established
by the Private Securities Litigation Act of 1995. Such forward-looking
statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, which could cause
actual results to differ materially from those currently anticipated.
Stockholders, potential investors and other readers are urged to consider these
factors carefully in evaluating the forward-looking statements. In particular,
because the consummation of the Fila tender offer and the merger are
conditioned, among other things, on at least a 66 2/3% of Dixon's outstanding
common shares being tendered and not withdrawn prior to the final expiration
date of the offer and other conditions, there is not and can be no assurance
that the Fila tender offer or the merger will be


consummated. The forward-looking statements made herein are only made as of the
date of this press release and we undertake no obligation to publicly update
such forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.

Fila Media Relations Contact:      Dixon Ticonderoga Investor Relations Contact:

Mark Harnett                       Gino N. Pala, Co-CEO
MacKenzie Partners, Inc.           (407) 829-9000
212-929-5877
                                   Richard F. Joyce, Co-CEO
                                   (407) 829-9000