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Chuck E. Cheese

Chuck E. Cheese (formerly known as Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre, Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza, and simply Chuck E. Cheese's) is a chain of American family entertainment centers and restaurants founded in 1977 by Atari's co-founder Nolan Bushnell. Headquartered in Irving, Texas, each location features arcade games, amusement rides and musical shows in addition to serving pizza and other food items; former mainstays included ball pits, crawl tubes, and animatronic shows. The chain's name is taken from its main character and mascot, Chuck E. Cheese. The first location opened as Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre in San Jose, California. It was the first family restaurant to integrate food with arcade games and animated entertainment, thus being one of the pioneers for the "family entertainment center" concept.

Chuck E. Cheese
CEC Entertainment
Formerly
  • Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre (1977–1990)
  • ShowBiz Pizza (1987–1989)
  • Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza (1989–1993)
  • Chuck E. Cheese's (1994–2019)
Company typeSubsidiary
Nasdaq: CHKY (1981–1984)
Industry
FoundedMay 17, 1977; 46 years ago (1977-05-17)
San Jose, California, United States
FounderNolan Bushnell
Headquarters,
United States
Number of locations
568
Area served
Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, South America
Key people
  • Gene Landrum (original president and COO)
  • David McKillips (president and CEO)
ProductsPizza
Chicken wings
"Cheesy bread"
BrandsPasqually's Pizza & Wings[1] LankyBox Kitchen
ServicesArcade games
Birthday parties
Kiddie rides
OwnerApollo Global Management (2014–2020)
Monarch Alternative Capital (2020–Present)
Parent
  • Atari, Inc. (1977–1978)
  • Pizza Time Theatre, Inc. (1978–1985)
  • ShowBiz Pizza Time, Inc. (1985–1998)
  • CEC Entertainment, Inc. (1998–2020)
  • CEC Entertainment, LLC (2020–present)
SubsidiariesPeter Piper Pizza
Websitechuckecheese.com

After filing for bankruptcy in 1984, the chain was acquired in 1985 by Brock Hotel Corporation, the parent company of competitor ShowBiz Pizza Place. The merger formed a new parent company, ShowBiz Pizza Time, Inc. which began unifying the two brands in 1990, renaming every location Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza. It was later shortened to Chuck E. Cheese's in 1994 and Chuck E. Cheese in 2019. The parent company, ShowBiz Pizza Time also became CEC Entertainment in 1998.

History

Pizza Time Theatre

Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre was founded by Atari founder Nolan Bushnell, who sought to expand video-game arcades beyond adult locations like pool halls to family-friendly venues.[2][3] His experience in the amusement park industry, and his fondness for the Enchanted Tiki Room[4] and the Country Bear Jamboree at Disneyland, influenced his concept for Pizza Time Theatre.[5][6] He has said, "It was my pet project ... I chose pizza because of the wait time and the build schedule—very few components, and not too many ways to screw it up."[7]

Prior to founding Atari, Bushnell would drive around the Bay Area with Atari co-founder Ted Dabney looking at different pizza parlors and restaurants to brainstorm concepts. "Chuck E. Cheese was always his (Nolan's) passion project, even before Atari was a thing," said Dabney. "He wanted to start a business of family-friendly restaurants with amusement park midway games. I think initially it made no fiscal sense, so he shelved it for a while, but then when Atari took off, he had the means to pursue it, plus a built-in distribution model for Atari's new releases."[8]

When his first animatronic show was being assembled, Bushnell learned the costume he had bought for his main character, a coyote, was actually a rat, prompting him to suggest changing the name from "Coyote Pizza" to "Rick Rat's Pizza". His marketing team believed this name would not be appealing to customers and proposed "Chuck E. Cheese" instead. The company adopted the rat as their mascot.[9]

The first Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre opened in San Jose, California, in 1977.[10][2][11] In 1978, when Atari's then-corporate parent, Warner Communications refused to open additional locations, Bushnell purchased the rights to the concept and characters from Warner for $500,000.[12] Gene Landrum then resigned from Atari and was made the restaurants' president and chief operating officer.[13][14] By the end of December 1979, there were seven PTT locations, six in California and one in Nevada (Sparks).[15] Its animatronics were produced fully in-house by PTT employees.

ShowBiz Pizza Place

To expand beyond California and the west coast, Bushnell began to franchise, resulting in a co-development agreement between himself and Robert Brock of Topeka Inn Management in June 1979.[16] The agreement handed Brock exclusive franchising rights for opening Pizza Time Theatres in sixteen states across the Southern and Midwestern United States,[12] while also forming a company subdivision, "Pizza Show Biz", to develop the Pizza Time Theatres.[12]

Late in 1979, Brock became aware of Aaron Fechter of Creative Engineering, Inc. and his work in animatronics. In November 1979, he scouted Fechter's business and concluded that Creative Engineering's animatronics would be too strong a competition for Bushnell's work. Brock therefore requested that Bushnell release him from their co-development agreement, wishing to develop with Fechter instead.[12]

In December 1979 Brock and Fechter formed ShowBiz Pizza Place Inc., and Brock gave notice to sever his development relationship with Bushnell.[12][17] ShowBiz Pizza Place was conceptually identical to Pizza Time Theatre in all aspects except for animation, which would be provided by Creative Engineering.[12] ShowBiz Pizza Place opened its first location on March 3, 1980, in Kansas City, Missouri.[11]

Upon the opening of ShowBiz Pizza Place, Bushnell sued Brock and Topeka Inn Management over a breach of contract.[12] Brock immediately issued a counter-suit against Bushnell, citing misrepresentation.[12] The court case began in March 1980, eventually settling out of court with Showbiz agreeing to pay Pizza Time Theatre a portion of its profits over the following decade.[12] During this period, Topeka Inn Management changed its name to Brock Hotel Corporation and moved its headquarters to Irving, Texas.[12] Both restaurants experienced increased success as the video game industry became more robust.[12] To maintain competition, both franchises continually modified and diversified their animatronic shows.

Mergers and restructuring

In 1981, Pizza Time Theatre went public; they lost $15 million in 1983. By early 1984, Bushnell's debts were insurmountable, resulting in the filing of Chapter 11 bankruptcy for Pizza Time Theatre Inc. on March 28, 1984.[11][18] Brock then bought the floundering company, finalizing the purchase in May 1985 and merging the two restaurant companies into ShowBiz Pizza Time Inc.[11][19]

After the merger, both restaurant chains continued operating under their respective titles, while major financial restructuring had begun.[11] During this period, Creative Engineering began to sever ties with ShowBiz Pizza Time (officially splitting in September 1990), resulting in the unification of the two brands. This is known as “Concept Unification”. By 1992, all restaurants assumed the name of Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza.[20][21] The name was then shortened to Chuck E. Cheese's by March 1994 after a redesigned concept.[11][22]

In 1998, ShowBiz Pizza Time renamed itself CEC Entertainment, Inc. to reflect the remaining chain brand.[23][11] CEC Entertainment has since acquired additional family restaurant properties, including 13 locations of the now-defunct Discovery Zone in 1999,[24] and all locations of Peter Piper Pizza in October 2014. Peter Piper Pizza still operates under that name.[25]

International expansion

 
Chuck E. Cheese's Boulevard Marina in Viña del Mar, Chile
 
Chuck E. Cheese's Mallplaza in Trujillo, Peru

In 1981, the restaurant franchise debuted in Australia under the name Charlie Cheese's Pizza Playhouse. The name change had to do with the common meaning of the word "chuck," which in Australia is a reference to the phrase "to throw up.". The first location, located in Surfer's Paradise, Queensland, relocated in 1982 to a location in Carina, Queensland. In January 2024, it was announced that Chuck E. Cheese would be making its return to Australia with a multi-unit franchise partnership with Royale Hospitality Group. [26] [27] Consecutively, Pizza Time Theatre, Inc. also opened at least one restaurant in Hong Kong and Singapore, which both closed shortly thereafter as a result of the initial company's 1984 bankruptcy.[26] Two locations in Puerto Rico franchised by Santa Rosa Enterprises would open in 1983: one in San Juan, Condado[28] in September of that year,[29] and one in the Santa Rosa Mall in Bayamón which would open in either November or December of that year.[30] Both stores would be short-lived and would approximately close by the end of 1985. Pizza Time Theatre also opened a location in Creteil, France in 1984 and planned to open a location in Ealing, England in the mid '80s, but the plan failed.[29]

In 1994, nine years after ShowBiz Pizza Time was formed, the first new international location would open in Santiago, Chile. More restaurants would open in the country, with 13 total stores as of 2023. In the late 90's, there was a plan to expand to Israel, 1998 saw the plan of expanding to Japan first opening in Tokyo. These never materialized. An expansion for the Philippines was planned, and the first location would have opened by 2000. However, these plans (like Pizza Time Theatre's plans for future expansion) never materialized. In the Middle East, locations would open in Saudi Arabia beginning in 2001, the United Arab Emirates in 2008, Jordan in 2019, Bahrain in 2021, and Qatar in 2022. Three new locations would open in Puerto Rico between 2003 and 2008. Another plan to open in the Glorietta mall complex of Makati City, Philippines, was greenlit in January 2013 but that also never happened.[31]

On March 6, 2012, the first Chuck E. Cheese in Mexico would officially open in Monterrey. "Ratón Chito," an unofficial character, previously represented Chuck E. in the country during the 1980's. This unique incarnation appeared throughout the ShowBiz (and later, Boomis) Pizza Fiesta chain of establishments, conceived as a result of closing Pizza Time Theatres in the United States. Assets from several store closures were shipped to the Mexican franchisees, with the intention of retrofitting the Pizza Time Players to better suit the country's market demographic.[32] Sally Industries of Jacksonville provided the controller equipment for these retrofits, as the animatronics arrived without their original control systems required for operation. The Ratón Chito aspect of ShowBiz Pizza Fiesta was later spun off into Boomis, separating itself from the rest of the company. These stores managed to successfully remain in operation until the 2000's, with one in Aguascalientes auctioning off equipment (including the retrofitted Chuck E. Cheese animatronics) as late as October 2018.[33]

In August 2022, it was announced that the first Chuck E. Cheese in Egypt would open in Sheik Zayed's Royal Mall, with the location opening in February 2024.[34][35]

In February 2023, a third Chuck E. Cheese location opened in Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago, after the Chaguanas location in 2014, and the San Fernando location in 2016, although the San Fernando location closed sometime in January 2023.[36]

At the time of the Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago opening, Chuck E. Cheese had planned additional international locations to open in Jamaica in late 2023, Guyana in 2024, and another in Jamaica by 2025, as well as a store in Romania, although it was unknown when that store would open.[36]

As of April 2024, Chuck E. Cheese operates nearly 600 corporate and franchised locations, as well as over 120 Peter Piper Pizza restaurants. They are located in 45 states domestically and in 17 foreign countries and territories around the world.[37]

Buyout and modern redesign

By 2012, CEC was struggling with decreasing revenue.[38] They ran a rebranding campaign, changing the rat mascot into a rock-star guitar-playing mouse.[39] In February 2014, Apollo Global Management acquired CEC Entertainment, Inc. for $54 per share, or about $950 million.[40][41] In October 2014, under Apollo Global Management, CEC Entertainment announced that they would purchase their Phoenix-based competitor, Peter Piper Pizza from ACON Investments.[42] In August 2017, the company began to pilot a new design concept at seven remodelled locations (three in Kansas City, three in San Antonio, one in Selma, Texas), branded as Chuck E. Cheese Pizzeria & Games. These locations feature more upscale decor with a "muted" interior color scheme, an open kitchen, the "Play Pass" card system to replace arcade tokens, and the animatronic stage show replaced by a dance floor area. These changes, along with expansions to food offerings, were intended to help the chain be more appealing to adults and encourage family dining as opposed to primarily hosting parties.[43][44]

In 2019, the corporation announced it would go public on the New York Stock Exchange through a shell company, Leo Holdings Corporation, of which Apollo will still own 51%.[45] Bloomberg also reported that after going public, Chuck E. Cheese would no longer have animatronic animals as part of the entertainment.[46] The proposed merger between CEC Entertainment and Leo Holdings Corporation was terminated on July 29, 2019.[47]

Financial trouble and second buyout

The COVID-19 pandemic has been financially damaging to the parent company, and with an estimated $1–2 billion in debt, the possibility exists of all CEC properties being forced to close if bankruptcy refinancing fails.[48] CEC Entertainment solicited $200 million in loans to finance a restructuring under bankruptcy protection.[49] They also filed a voluntary petition under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas on June 25, 2020.[50] In December 2020, CEC Entertainment, the owners of Chuck E. Cheese and Peter Piper Pizza chains, emerged from its June bankruptcy under the ownership and selling of its lenders led by Monarch Alternative Capital.[51][52]

Entertainment

Video arcade

 
A 2001 Chuck E. Cheese token

Since the company's inception, one of the primary draws for the business has been its video arcade offering inside restaurants.[2][23] Within the arcade, customers can play coin-operated video games or redemption games, the latter of which involves games of skill that reward players in the form of tickets based on score. Tickets can be redeemed later for merchandise, such as candy and toys. In late 2020, paper tickets were retired and replaced with electronic tickets, which are stored on the Play Pass cards.[53][54]

The coin-op games originally accepted brass tokens issued by the company, stamped with various logos and branding that evolved over time. The company experimented with a card access method as a replacement for tokens in the late 2000s, which allowed customers to load credits onto a card that could then be swiped for access at arcade games and refilled later. It was tested under different names, including "Chuck E.'s Super Discount Card" and "Chuck E. Token Card.". In late 2016, a new card system known as "Chuck E.'s Play Pass" was introduced to replace tokens throughout the chain. [55][56][57]

Characters and animatronics

 
Chuck E. Cheese "Studio C Beta" animatronic, 2017
 
Munch's Make Believe Band "1 stage", 2009

Another primary draw for the centers since their beginning through the mid-2010s has been their animatronic shows.[58] There have historically been several different styles of animatronic shows in use within the company, details of which would vary depending on when the location opened, whether it was renovated, available room for animatronic stages, and other factors.[59] Over the years, these animatronics have often been supplemented by (and in recent years been completely replaced by) costumed characters.[60]

When the first location opened in 1977, the animatronic characters were featured as busts in framed portraits hanging on the walls of the main dining area. The original show featured Crusty the Cat (the first character to face retirement as he was soon replaced with Mr. Munch in 1978), Pasqually the singing chef, Jasper T. Jowls, the Warblettes, and the main focus of the show, Chuck E. Cheese.[61] By 1979, many restaurants had also added "cabaret" shows in separate rooms of each restaurant.[2] One of the early Cabaret characters was Dolli Dimples, a hippopotamus who played the piano and sang in the blues/jazz style of performer Pearl Bailey.[62][63] The in-house control system, which consisted of a 6502-based controller in a card cage with various driver boards, was called "Cyberamics".[64][65]

While Fechter separately produced the Rock-afire Explosion animatronics for ShowBiz Pizza through the early 1980s, Bushnell and Pizza Time Theatre continued work on characters for their portrait format and newer balcony performance stage shows under the umbrella of the Pizza Time Players.[66] Development on Cabaret concepts slowed greatly after Pizza Time Theatre Inc.'s bankruptcy in 1984 and its purchase by ShowBiz a year later. From 1985 to 1990, the merged company kept their brands (and their respective animatronics) mostly separate.[67]

 
Chuck E. Cheese’s 3-Stage, 1989 in Laurel, MD

After Fechter refused to sign over the rights to the Rock-a-Fire Explosion to Showbiz Pizza Time, Inc., "Concept Unification" was undertaken beginning in September 1990 and continuing through 1992 to eliminate Fechter's characters from ShowBiz locations.[68] The animatronics used for ShowBiz's Rock-a-Fire Explosion band were redressed as "Munch's Make Believe Band", with new costumes.[69] In the mid-1990s, the character Chuck E. Cheese began to see significant design changes. His vest (or suit) and derby hat were changed for a baseball cap, casual shirt, and optional sneakers in an attempt to appeal to a younger audience.[70]

In August 1996, a test stage at the Valley View Mall/Montfort Drive location in Dallas, TX, was created—the first attempt at a single-character animatronic stage, The Awesome Adventure Machine. This animatronic show consisted of neon flashy lights and items around the show. This stage took over what is commonly referred to as a "3-Stage" (a animatronic show converted from a former Rock-A-Fire Explosion show from Showbiz Pizza Place). This animatronic show was never installed in any other location and was removed the following year and replaced by Studio C.[71]

Beginning in December 1997 with the Brookfield, WI, and Dallas, TX, locations, the animatronics show was installed in new stores, referred to as "Studio C," consisting of a single animated Chuck E. Cheese character created by Garner Holt alongside large television monitors, lighting effects, and interactive elements.[72]

Characters

  • Chuck E. Cheese is the titular mascot, a mouse (formerly rat) who is the lead singer of the band. He is outgoing, friendly, and likes singing and entertaining families.
  • Helen Henny is the other lead vocalist, a female chicken who is into gaming. She is sometimes shown to have a crush on Chuck E.
  • Mr. Munch is the keyboardist, a purple monster-alien who has a habit of eating anything, including pizza.
  • Jasper T. Jowls is the guitarist, a bloodhound dog hailing from Tennessee.
  • Pasqually, the drummer and the only main human character, he hails from southern Italy and likes telling jokes.
  • Bella Bunny was first introduced in 2018 and later became a main character in 2020 as the band's tambourine player, a Hispanic rabbit who has her own garden.[73]

For stores still featuring animatronics, updated programs for the character are generally distributed on DVD, but for Studio C SD (Studio C Alpha, Beta, and Cappa stages) locations, they continue to use 3 DVDs and a 3.5 inch floppy disk.[74]

In mid-2022, a new system for running the animatronic shows (3-Stage, Cyberamics, and all Studio C SD and HD shows) was introduced that would, instead of using physical media such as DVDs, function using the store's Wi-Fi connection. The implementation of said device caused a problem for the Studio C shows, as their previous show system(s) had special file formats for programming signals; therefore the switch to the new system would cause no animatronic movements to happen, except for a "Random Movements" program. The Munch's Make Believe Band stages (CEI and Cyberamic shows) were not affected by this change of systems.[75]

Elimination of animatronics

In July 2012, the long-standing rat mascot was rebranded, changing to a slimmer rock star mouse who plays electric guitar. Voice actor Duncan Brannan, who for 19 years had characterized Chuck E. Cheese as a wise-cracking rat from New Jersey, was replaced with Jaret Reddick, the frontman and guitarist for the pop punk band Bowling for Soup.[39][76]

By 2015, the "Chuck E. Live Stage," also known as "Stage V2" or commonly referred to as the "Dance Floor," which featured no animatronics at all, a modernized dance floor, and performances only with costumed characters, had been created. In 2017, the chain announced that animatronic shows would be removed entirely in favor of this design in seven pilot locations.[77] After the pilot locations showed promise, retirement of animatronics at Chuck E. Cheese locations accelerated and continued through 2019, by which time 80 of its stores were expected to be retrofitted to the new design.[78][79]

In 2017, it was announced that every location would be removing their animatronic show and would be replaced with other attractions such as dance floors and trampoline areas. However, in 2023, the company selected one location in Northridge, California to be the only "legacy and new" store location that kept an animatronic stage. Northridge has the 2-Stage Cyberamic show. The grand reopening was held on November 10.[80]

Food

Pizza is the main focus of the restaurant portion of the business, but the menu features other items as well including cold-cut sandwiches, chicken wings, salad bar access, and desserts.[81] In addition, some Chuck E. Cheese locations offer alcoholic beverages.[82]

In March 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the restaurant began selling pizza, wings, desserts and more through food delivery services under the ghost kitchen Pasqually's Pizza & Wings. The Pasqually name comes from Pasqually P. Pieplate, who is a member of Munch's Make Believe Band, the Chuck E Cheese animatronic band. While food sold under this brand comes from the same brick-and-mortar kitchens as Chuck E. Cheese, the company claims to use different ingredients and recipes that cater to a more mature audience. Practically all of the Chuck E. Cheese stores in the United States are selling and delivering food under this virtual brand.[1][83]

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External links

  • Official website

chuck, cheese, character, character, formerly, known, pizza, time, theatre, pizza, simply, chain, american, family, entertainment, centers, restaurants, founded, 1977, atari, founder, nolan, bushnell, headquartered, irving, texas, each, location, features, arc. For the character see Chuck E Cheese character Chuck E Cheese formerly known as Chuck E Cheese s Pizza Time Theatre Chuck E Cheese s Pizza and simply Chuck E Cheese s is a chain of American family entertainment centers and restaurants founded in 1977 by Atari s co founder Nolan Bushnell Headquartered in Irving Texas each location features arcade games amusement rides and musical shows in addition to serving pizza and other food items former mainstays included ball pits crawl tubes and animatronic shows The chain s name is taken from its main character and mascot Chuck E Cheese The first location opened as Chuck E Cheese s Pizza Time Theatre in San Jose California It was the first family restaurant to integrate food with arcade games and animated entertainment thus being one of the pioneers for the family entertainment center concept Chuck E CheeseTrade nameCEC EntertainmentFormerlyChuck E Cheese s Pizza Time Theatre 1977 1990 ShowBiz Pizza 1987 1989 Chuck E Cheese s Pizza 1989 1993 Chuck E Cheese s 1994 2019 Company typeSubsidiaryTraded asNasdaq CHKY 1981 1984 IndustryPizzeria Restaurant Family entertainment centerFoundedMay 17 1977 46 years ago 1977 05 17 San Jose California United StatesFounderNolan BushnellHeadquartersIrving Texas United StatesNumber of locations568Area servedAfrica Asia Europe North America South AmericaKey peopleGene Landrum original president and COO David McKillips president and CEO ProductsPizzaChicken wings Cheesy bread BrandsPasqually s Pizza amp Wings 1 LankyBox KitchenServicesArcade gamesBirthday partiesKiddie ridesOwnerApollo Global Management 2014 2020 Monarch Alternative Capital 2020 Present ParentAtari Inc 1977 1978 Pizza Time Theatre Inc 1978 1985 ShowBiz Pizza Time Inc 1985 1998 CEC Entertainment Inc 1998 2020 CEC Entertainment LLC 2020 present SubsidiariesPeter Piper PizzaWebsitechuckecheese comAfter filing for bankruptcy in 1984 the chain was acquired in 1985 by Brock Hotel Corporation the parent company of competitor ShowBiz Pizza Place The merger formed a new parent company ShowBiz Pizza Time Inc which began unifying the two brands in 1990 renaming every location Chuck E Cheese s Pizza It was later shortened to Chuck E Cheese s in 1994 and Chuck E Cheese in 2019 The parent company ShowBiz Pizza Time also became CEC Entertainment in 1998 Contents 1 History 1 1 Pizza Time Theatre 1 2 ShowBiz Pizza Place 1 3 Mergers and restructuring 1 4 International expansion 1 5 Buyout and modern redesign 1 6 Financial trouble and second buyout 2 Entertainment 2 1 Video arcade 2 2 Characters and animatronics 2 3 Characters 2 4 Elimination of animatronics 3 Food 4 References 5 External linksHistoryPizza Time Theatre Chuck E Cheese s Pizza Time Theatre was founded by Atari founder Nolan Bushnell who sought to expand video game arcades beyond adult locations like pool halls to family friendly venues 2 3 His experience in the amusement park industry and his fondness for the Enchanted Tiki Room 4 and the Country Bear Jamboree at Disneyland influenced his concept for Pizza Time Theatre 5 6 He has said It was my pet project I chose pizza because of the wait time and the build schedule very few components and not too many ways to screw it up 7 Prior to founding Atari Bushnell would drive around the Bay Area with Atari co founder Ted Dabney looking at different pizza parlors and restaurants to brainstorm concepts Chuck E Cheese was always his Nolan s passion project even before Atari was a thing said Dabney He wanted to start a business of family friendly restaurants with amusement park midway games I think initially it made no fiscal sense so he shelved it for a while but then when Atari took off he had the means to pursue it plus a built in distribution model for Atari s new releases 8 When his first animatronic show was being assembled Bushnell learned the costume he had bought for his main character a coyote was actually a rat prompting him to suggest changing the name from Coyote Pizza to Rick Rat s Pizza His marketing team believed this name would not be appealing to customers and proposed Chuck E Cheese instead The company adopted the rat as their mascot 9 The first Chuck E Cheese s Pizza Time Theatre opened in San Jose California in 1977 10 2 11 In 1978 when Atari s then corporate parent Warner Communications refused to open additional locations Bushnell purchased the rights to the concept and characters from Warner for 500 000 12 Gene Landrum then resigned from Atari and was made the restaurants president and chief operating officer 13 14 By the end of December 1979 there were seven PTT locations six in California and one in Nevada Sparks 15 Its animatronics were produced fully in house by PTT employees ShowBiz Pizza Place Main article ShowBiz Pizza Place To expand beyond California and the west coast Bushnell began to franchise resulting in a co development agreement between himself and Robert Brock of Topeka Inn Management in June 1979 16 The agreement handed Brock exclusive franchising rights for opening Pizza Time Theatres in sixteen states across the Southern and Midwestern United States 12 while also forming a company subdivision Pizza Show Biz to develop the Pizza Time Theatres 12 Late in 1979 Brock became aware of Aaron Fechter of Creative Engineering Inc and his work in animatronics In November 1979 he scouted Fechter s business and concluded that Creative Engineering s animatronics would be too strong a competition for Bushnell s work Brock therefore requested that Bushnell release him from their co development agreement wishing to develop with Fechter instead 12 In December 1979 Brock and Fechter formed ShowBiz Pizza Place Inc and Brock gave notice to sever his development relationship with Bushnell 12 17 ShowBiz Pizza Place was conceptually identical to Pizza Time Theatre in all aspects except for animation which would be provided by Creative Engineering 12 ShowBiz Pizza Place opened its first location on March 3 1980 in Kansas City Missouri 11 Upon the opening of ShowBiz Pizza Place Bushnell sued Brock and Topeka Inn Management over a breach of contract 12 Brock immediately issued a counter suit against Bushnell citing misrepresentation 12 The court case began in March 1980 eventually settling out of court with Showbiz agreeing to pay Pizza Time Theatre a portion of its profits over the following decade 12 During this period Topeka Inn Management changed its name to Brock Hotel Corporation and moved its headquarters to Irving Texas 12 Both restaurants experienced increased success as the video game industry became more robust 12 To maintain competition both franchises continually modified and diversified their animatronic shows Mergers and restructuring In 1981 Pizza Time Theatre went public they lost 15 million in 1983 By early 1984 Bushnell s debts were insurmountable resulting in the filing of Chapter 11 bankruptcy for Pizza Time Theatre Inc on March 28 1984 11 18 Brock then bought the floundering company finalizing the purchase in May 1985 and merging the two restaurant companies into ShowBiz Pizza Time Inc 11 19 After the merger both restaurant chains continued operating under their respective titles while major financial restructuring had begun 11 During this period Creative Engineering began to sever ties with ShowBiz Pizza Time officially splitting in September 1990 resulting in the unification of the two brands This is known as Concept Unification By 1992 all restaurants assumed the name of Chuck E Cheese s Pizza 20 21 The name was then shortened to Chuck E Cheese s by March 1994 after a redesigned concept 11 22 In 1998 ShowBiz Pizza Time renamed itself CEC Entertainment Inc to reflect the remaining chain brand 23 11 CEC Entertainment has since acquired additional family restaurant properties including 13 locations of the now defunct Discovery Zone in 1999 24 and all locations of Peter Piper Pizza in October 2014 Peter Piper Pizza still operates under that name 25 International expansion nbsp Chuck E Cheese s Boulevard Marina in Vina del Mar Chile nbsp Chuck E Cheese s Mallplaza in Trujillo PeruIn 1981 the restaurant franchise debuted in Australia under the name Charlie Cheese s Pizza Playhouse The name change had to do with the common meaning of the word chuck which in Australia is a reference to the phrase to throw up The first location located in Surfer s Paradise Queensland relocated in 1982 to a location in Carina Queensland In January 2024 it was announced that Chuck E Cheese would be making its return to Australia with a multi unit franchise partnership with Royale Hospitality Group 26 27 Consecutively Pizza Time Theatre Inc also opened at least one restaurant in Hong Kong and Singapore which both closed shortly thereafter as a result of the initial company s 1984 bankruptcy 26 Two locations in Puerto Rico franchised by Santa Rosa Enterprises would open in 1983 one in San Juan Condado 28 in September of that year 29 and one in the Santa Rosa Mall in Bayamon which would open in either November or December of that year 30 Both stores would be short lived and would approximately close by the end of 1985 Pizza Time Theatre also opened a location in Creteil France in 1984 and planned to open a location in Ealing England in the mid 80s but the plan failed 29 In 1994 nine years after ShowBiz Pizza Time was formed the first new international location would open in Santiago Chile More restaurants would open in the country with 13 total stores as of 2023 In the late 90 s there was a plan to expand to Israel 1998 saw the plan of expanding to Japan first opening in Tokyo These never materialized An expansion for the Philippines was planned and the first location would have opened by 2000 However these plans like Pizza Time Theatre s plans for future expansion never materialized In the Middle East locations would open in Saudi Arabia beginning in 2001 the United Arab Emirates in 2008 Jordan in 2019 Bahrain in 2021 and Qatar in 2022 Three new locations would open in Puerto Rico between 2003 and 2008 Another plan to open in the Glorietta mall complex of Makati City Philippines was greenlit in January 2013 but that also never happened 31 On March 6 2012 the first Chuck E Cheese in Mexico would officially open in Monterrey Raton Chito an unofficial character previously represented Chuck E in the country during the 1980 s This unique incarnation appeared throughout the ShowBiz and later Boomis Pizza Fiesta chain of establishments conceived as a result of closing Pizza Time Theatres in the United States Assets from several store closures were shipped to the Mexican franchisees with the intention of retrofitting the Pizza Time Players to better suit the country s market demographic 32 Sally Industries of Jacksonville provided the controller equipment for these retrofits as the animatronics arrived without their original control systems required for operation The Raton Chito aspect of ShowBiz Pizza Fiesta was later spun off into Boomis separating itself from the rest of the company These stores managed to successfully remain in operation until the 2000 s with one in Aguascalientes auctioning off equipment including the retrofitted Chuck E Cheese animatronics as late as October 2018 33 In August 2022 it was announced that the first Chuck E Cheese in Egypt would open in Sheik Zayed s Royal Mall with the location opening in February 2024 34 35 In February 2023 a third Chuck E Cheese location opened in Port of Spain Trinidad amp Tobago after the Chaguanas location in 2014 and the San Fernando location in 2016 although the San Fernando location closed sometime in January 2023 36 At the time of the Port of Spain Trinidad amp Tobago opening Chuck E Cheese had planned additional international locations to open in Jamaica in late 2023 Guyana in 2024 and another in Jamaica by 2025 as well as a store in Romania although it was unknown when that store would open 36 As of April 2024 Chuck E Cheese operates nearly 600 corporate and franchised locations as well as over 120 Peter Piper Pizza restaurants They are located in 45 states domestically and in 17 foreign countries and territories around the world 37 Buyout and modern redesign By 2012 CEC was struggling with decreasing revenue 38 They ran a rebranding campaign changing the rat mascot into a rock star guitar playing mouse 39 In February 2014 Apollo Global Management acquired CEC Entertainment Inc for 54 per share or about 950 million 40 41 In October 2014 under Apollo Global Management CEC Entertainment announced that they would purchase their Phoenix based competitor Peter Piper Pizza from ACON Investments 42 In August 2017 the company began to pilot a new design concept at seven remodelled locations three in Kansas City three in San Antonio one in Selma Texas branded as Chuck E Cheese Pizzeria amp Games These locations feature more upscale decor with a muted interior color scheme an open kitchen the Play Pass card system to replace arcade tokens and the animatronic stage show replaced by a dance floor area These changes along with expansions to food offerings were intended to help the chain be more appealing to adults and encourage family dining as opposed to primarily hosting parties 43 44 In 2019 the corporation announced it would go public on the New York Stock Exchange through a shell company Leo Holdings Corporation of which Apollo will still own 51 45 Bloomberg also reported that after going public Chuck E Cheese would no longer have animatronic animals as part of the entertainment 46 The proposed merger between CEC Entertainment and Leo Holdings Corporation was terminated on July 29 2019 47 Financial trouble and second buyout The COVID 19 pandemic has been financially damaging to the parent company and with an estimated 1 2 billion in debt the possibility exists of all CEC properties being forced to close if bankruptcy refinancing fails 48 CEC Entertainment solicited 200 million in loans to finance a restructuring under bankruptcy protection 49 They also filed a voluntary petition under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas on June 25 2020 50 In December 2020 CEC Entertainment the owners of Chuck E Cheese and Peter Piper Pizza chains emerged from its June bankruptcy under the ownership and selling of its lenders led by Monarch Alternative Capital 51 52 EntertainmentVideo arcade nbsp A 2001 Chuck E Cheese tokenSince the company s inception one of the primary draws for the business has been its video arcade offering inside restaurants 2 23 Within the arcade customers can play coin operated video games or redemption games the latter of which involves games of skill that reward players in the form of tickets based on score Tickets can be redeemed later for merchandise such as candy and toys In late 2020 paper tickets were retired and replaced with electronic tickets which are stored on the Play Pass cards 53 54 The coin op games originally accepted brass tokens issued by the company stamped with various logos and branding that evolved over time The company experimented with a card access method as a replacement for tokens in the late 2000s which allowed customers to load credits onto a card that could then be swiped for access at arcade games and refilled later It was tested under different names including Chuck E s Super Discount Card and Chuck E Token Card In late 2016 a new card system known as Chuck E s Play Pass was introduced to replace tokens throughout the chain 55 56 57 Characters and animatronics nbsp Chuck E Cheese Studio C Beta animatronic 2017 nbsp Munch s Make Believe Band 1 stage 2009Another primary draw for the centers since their beginning through the mid 2010s has been their animatronic shows 58 There have historically been several different styles of animatronic shows in use within the company details of which would vary depending on when the location opened whether it was renovated available room for animatronic stages and other factors 59 Over the years these animatronics have often been supplemented by and in recent years been completely replaced by costumed characters 60 When the first location opened in 1977 the animatronic characters were featured as busts in framed portraits hanging on the walls of the main dining area The original show featured Crusty the Cat the first character to face retirement as he was soon replaced with Mr Munch in 1978 Pasqually the singing chef Jasper T Jowls the Warblettes and the main focus of the show Chuck E Cheese 61 By 1979 many restaurants had also added cabaret shows in separate rooms of each restaurant 2 One of the early Cabaret characters was Dolli Dimples a hippopotamus who played the piano and sang in the blues jazz style of performer Pearl Bailey 62 63 The in house control system which consisted of a 6502 based controller in a card cage with various driver boards was called Cyberamics 64 65 While Fechter separately produced the Rock afire Explosion animatronics for ShowBiz Pizza through the early 1980s Bushnell and Pizza Time Theatre continued work on characters for their portrait format and newer balcony performance stage shows under the umbrella of the Pizza Time Players 66 Development on Cabaret concepts slowed greatly after Pizza Time Theatre Inc s bankruptcy in 1984 and its purchase by ShowBiz a year later From 1985 to 1990 the merged company kept their brands and their respective animatronics mostly separate 67 nbsp Chuck E Cheese s 3 Stage 1989 in Laurel MDAfter Fechter refused to sign over the rights to the Rock a Fire Explosion to Showbiz Pizza Time Inc Concept Unification was undertaken beginning in September 1990 and continuing through 1992 to eliminate Fechter s characters from ShowBiz locations 68 The animatronics used for ShowBiz s Rock a Fire Explosion band were redressed as Munch s Make Believe Band with new costumes 69 In the mid 1990s the character Chuck E Cheese began to see significant design changes His vest or suit and derby hat were changed for a baseball cap casual shirt and optional sneakers in an attempt to appeal to a younger audience 70 In August 1996 a test stage at the Valley View Mall Montfort Drive location in Dallas TX was created the first attempt at a single character animatronic stage The Awesome Adventure Machine This animatronic show consisted of neon flashy lights and items around the show This stage took over what is commonly referred to as a 3 Stage a animatronic show converted from a former Rock A Fire Explosion show from Showbiz Pizza Place This animatronic show was never installed in any other location and was removed the following year and replaced by Studio C 71 Beginning in December 1997 with the Brookfield WI and Dallas TX locations the animatronics show was installed in new stores referred to as Studio C consisting of a single animated Chuck E Cheese character created by Garner Holt alongside large television monitors lighting effects and interactive elements 72 Characters Chuck E Cheese is the titular mascot a mouse formerly rat who is the lead singer of the band He is outgoing friendly and likes singing and entertaining families Helen Henny is the other lead vocalist a female chicken who is into gaming She is sometimes shown to have a crush on Chuck E Mr Munch is the keyboardist a purple monster alien who has a habit of eating anything including pizza Jasper T Jowls is the guitarist a bloodhound dog hailing from Tennessee Pasqually the drummer and the only main human character he hails from southern Italy and likes telling jokes Bella Bunny was first introduced in 2018 and later became a main character in 2020 as the band s tambourine player a Hispanic rabbit who has her own garden 73 For stores still featuring animatronics updated programs for the character are generally distributed on DVD but for Studio C SD Studio C Alpha Beta and Cappa stages locations they continue to use 3 DVDs and a 3 5 inch floppy disk 74 In mid 2022 a new system for running the animatronic shows 3 Stage Cyberamics and all Studio C SD and HD shows was introduced that would instead of using physical media such as DVDs function using the store s Wi Fi connection The implementation of said device caused a problem for the Studio C shows as their previous show system s had special file formats for programming signals therefore the switch to the new system would cause no animatronic movements to happen except for a Random Movements program The Munch s Make Believe Band stages CEI and Cyberamic shows were not affected by this change of systems 75 Elimination of animatronics In July 2012 the long standing rat mascot was rebranded changing to a slimmer rock star mouse who plays electric guitar Voice actor Duncan Brannan who for 19 years had characterized Chuck E Cheese as a wise cracking rat from New Jersey was replaced with Jaret Reddick the frontman and guitarist for the pop punk band Bowling for Soup 39 76 By 2015 the Chuck E Live Stage also known as Stage V2 or commonly referred to as the Dance Floor which featured no animatronics at all a modernized dance floor and performances only with costumed characters had been created In 2017 the chain announced that animatronic shows would be removed entirely in favor of this design in seven pilot locations 77 After the pilot locations showed promise retirement of animatronics at Chuck E Cheese locations accelerated and continued through 2019 by which time 80 of its stores were expected to be retrofitted to the new design 78 79 In 2017 it was announced that every location would be removing their animatronic show and would be replaced with other attractions such as dance floors and trampoline areas However in 2023 the company selected one location in Northridge California to be the only legacy and new store location that kept an animatronic stage Northridge has the 2 Stage Cyberamic show The grand reopening was held on November 10 80 FoodPizza is the main focus of the restaurant portion of the business but the menu features other items as well including cold cut sandwiches chicken wings salad bar access and desserts 81 In addition some Chuck E Cheese locations offer alcoholic beverages 82 In March 2020 during the COVID 19 pandemic the restaurant began selling pizza wings desserts and more through food delivery services under the ghost kitchen Pasqually s Pizza amp Wings The Pasqually name comes from Pasqually P Pieplate who is a member of Munch s Make Believe Band the Chuck E Cheese animatronic band While food sold under this brand comes from the same brick and mortar kitchens as Chuck E Cheese the company claims to use different ingredients and recipes that cater to a more mature audience Practically all of the Chuck E Cheese stores in the United States are selling and delivering food under this virtual brand 1 83 References a b Castrodale Jelisa April 2 2020 Trying to Support a Local Pizza Joint Just Make Sure It Isn t Actually Chuck E Cheese Food amp Wine Archived from the original on May 18 2020 Retrieved May 18 2020 a b c d Packer Linda October 1979 Catering To Kids PDF Food Service Marketing pp 46 47 Archived PDF from the original on March 18 2009 Retrieved March 3 2009 Kent Steve L The Ultimate History of Video Games From Pong to Pokemon and Beyond The Story behind the Craze That Touched Our Lives and Changed the World Roseville CA Prima Pub 2001 Benj Edwards May 31 2017 Robots Pizza And Sensory Overload The Chuck E Cheese Origin Story Fast Company Pizza Time s Vaudeville Theatre PDF Western Foodservice March 1979 Archived PDF from the original on March 18 2009 Retrieved March 4 2009 Storey Ken May 26 2020 Chuck E Cheese might be trying to hide who they are but Orlando still owes a lot to this mouse Orlando Weekly Archived from the original on October 16 2020 Retrieved August 20 2020 Madrigal Alexis C July 17 2013 Chuck E Cheese s Silicon Valley Startup The Origins of the Best Pizza Chain Ever The Atlantic Archived from the original on December 15 2019 Retrieved January 26 2017 GamesIndustry International October 18 2010 Ted Dabney interview Games Industry Biz Podcast Gamer Network Limited Retrieved February 20 2023 Guy Raz February 27 2017 Atari amp Chuck E Cheese s Nolan Bushnell How I Built This Podcast Stitcher NPR Archived from the original on March 13 2017 Retrieved March 12 2017 If Chuck E Cheese goes away so does a bit of San Jose history The Mercury News June 27 2020 Retrieved October 10 2023 a b c d e f g Company History Chuck E Cheese Official Site CEC Entertainment Inc Archived from the original PHP on January 6 2012 Retrieved May 4 2009 a b c d e f g h i j k Kinkead Gwen July 1982 High Profits from a Weird Pizza Combination PDF Fortune pp 62 68 Archived PDF from the original on March 18 2009 Retrieved March 3 2009 Atari Inc Business is Fun Marty Goldberg Curt Vendel Syzygy Press 2012 pp 325 334 Ponder Erica Building a Strong Business Network with Dr Gene Landrum Houston Style Magazine Archived from the original on March 11 2016 Retrieved March 10 2016 Pizza Time The Sacramento Bee December 2 1979 p 93 Archived from the original on March 8 2021 Retrieved May 30 2020 Industry Notes Los Angeles Times June 2 1979 p 87 Archived from the original on March 11 2021 Retrieved May 30 2020 Rock afire Explosion Brochure PDF Press release Creative Engineering Inc 1980 Archived PDF from the original on March 18 2009 Retrieved March 3 2009 Bankruptcy is Filed by Pizza Time Inc Honolulu Star Bulletin Associated Press March 2 1984 p 30 Archived from the original on March 8 2021 Retrieved May 28 2020 Oates Sarah July 15 1985 Chuck E Cheese Gets New Lease on Life The Washington Post Archived from the original on March 27 2021 Retrieved February 28 2021 Prewitt Milford September 1 1990 ShowBiz Parent Merges Concepts Into One Big Pie PDF Nation s Restaurant News pp 12 3 Archived PDF from the original on November 6 2015 Retrieved March 3 2009 Showbix parent merges concepts into one big pie PDF ShowbizPizza com September 1 1990 Archived PDF from the original on November 6 2015 Retrieved August 20 2016 1994 FORM 10 K U S Securities and Exchange Commission 2009 Archived from the original on August 29 2016 Retrieved August 20 2016 a b Investor Relations PHP Chuck E Cheese official site CEC Entertainment Inc Archived from the original on July 12 2012 Retrieved May 31 2017 Discovery Zones shuts down over 100 Fun Centers Jun 30 1999 CNN Archived from the original on March 18 2020 Retrieved May 30 2020 Chuck E Cheese buys Phoenix s Peter Piper Pizza The Arizona Republic Retrieved May 30 2020 a b VegaNova Chuck E Cheese s Collectables showbizpizza com Archived from the original on August 8 2016 Retrieved February 21 2016 Chuck E Cheese to enter Australia www pizzamarketplace com January 11 2024 Retrieved January 12 2024 El Mundo 1985 02 03 Archivo digital de El Mundo gpa eastview com Retrieved October 10 2023 a b The Pizza Times December 1983 PDF El Mundo 1983 10 10 Archivo digital de El Mundo gpa eastview com Retrieved August 26 2023 Chuck E Cheese s restaurant to open in PH January 23 2013 Retro Pizza Zone Showbiz Pizza Fiesta Retro Pizza Zone May 3 2015 Retrieved June 22 2023 Retro Pizza Zone Boomis Pizza Fiesta animatronics Retro Pizza Zone October 7 2018 Retrieved June 22 2023 Egypt Is Getting Its First Chuck E Cheese in Sheikh Zayed Lovin Cairo August 9 2022 Retrieved January 23 2023 Iconic brand Chuck E Cheese opens first location in Africa Yahoo Finance February 28 2024 Retrieved March 11 2024 a b Chuck E Cheese opens at The Falls at Westmall Loop Trinidad amp Tobago Loop News Retrieved February 16 2023 Investor Relations Chuck E Cheese Archived from the original on January 19 2024 Retrieved January 19 2024 Chuck E Cheese s parent boosts its per share profit Dallas News February 2 2012 Archived from the original on March 11 2021 Retrieved May 21 2020 a b Candice Choi July 3 2012 Chuck E Cheese being replaced with hipper image Yahoo News Associated Press Archived from the original on November 22 2019 Retrieved April 5 2020 Gasparro Annie Hoffman Liz January 16 2014 Apollo Global to Buy Chuck E Cheese Owner The Wall Street Journal Retrieved November 18 2021 Apollo Global Management Announces Completion of Its Acquisition of CEC Entertainment Inc MarketWatch Archived from the original on March 5 2014 Retrieved March 5 2014 Chuck e Cheese s parent acquires Peter Piper Pizza October 17 2014 Archived from the original on June 22 2020 Retrieved June 19 2020 Channick Robert Chuck E Cheese s breaking up the animatronic band Chicago Tribune Archived from the original on September 3 2017 Retrieved September 4 2017 Whitten Sarah August 9 2017 Chuck E Cheese s is getting a major redesign CNBC Archived from the original on August 18 2017 Retrieved September 4 2017 Ruggless Ron April 8 2019 Chuck E Cheese s plans merger public trading Nation s Restaurant News Archived from the original on June 5 2019 Retrieved April 9 2019 Patton Leslie April 8 2019 Animatronic Animals Won t Be Part of the Public Chuck E Cheese Bloomberg Archived from the original on March 9 2021 Retrieved May 21 2020 Chuck E Cheese parent calls off merger with Leo Holdings Reuters July 29 2019 Archived from the original on October 28 2021 Retrieved October 28 2021 Peterson Stephen June 13 2020 Chuck E Cheese heading to bankruptcy JC Penney at Emerald Square hanging on The Sun Chronicle Archived from the original on June 14 2020 Retrieved June 14 2020 Haddon Soma Biswas and Heather June 7 2020 Chuck E Cheese in Talks With Lenders About Financing Deals The Wall Street Journal ISSN 0099 9660 Archived from the original on December 18 2020 Retrieved June 14 2020 Shafer Ellise June 2 2020 Chuck E Cheese Files for Bankruptcy Variety Archived from the original on November 9 2020 Retrieved June 27 2020 Chuck E Cheese to Leave Bankruptcy With 490 Million Less Debt wsj com December 15 2020 Retrieved December 16 2020 Fantozzi Joanna January 4 2021 Chuck E Cheese parent CEC Entertainment emerges from bankruptcy nrn com Nation s Restaurant News Retrieved January 5 2021 Games amp Rides Chuck E Cheese Official Site CEC Entertainment Inc Archived from the original PHP on June 27 2009 Retrieved May 13 2009 Bankrupt Chuck E Cheese moves to destroy 7 billion prize tickets Fox Business September 16 2020 S Travis CEC Token Cards CSS Showbiz Pizza com Archived from the original on July 5 2011 Retrieved March 3 2009 S Travis Super Discount Card Poster 9Irving TX 2006 JPG Showbiz Pizza com Archived from the original on December 3 2014 Retrieved August 29 2016 Chuck E Cheese s Switches from Tokens to Stored Value Cards Annoys Token Lovers March 8 2018 Loftus Jamie August 25 2017 A History of Chuck E Cheese s Animatronic Band Vice Archived from the original on March 11 2020 Retrieved March 5 2020 S Travis Pizza Time Theatre Stage Shows CSS Showbiz Pizza com Archived from the original on March 1 2009 Retrieved March 3 2009 Chuck E Cheese is largely eliminating a big part of its history Here are a few more things you might not know about the pizza chain Fortune Retrieved January 5 2024 Pizza Time Theatre Program PDF Atari 1977 Archived PDF from the original on March 18 2009 Retrieved March 3 2009 Mace Scott December 21 1981 Rat dishes up pizza computerized entertainment Infoworld p 8 Archived from the original on October 29 2021 Retrieved October 11 2019 Pizza Time Theatre 1979 Kooser Rd Portrait Footage archived from the original on June 15 2020 retrieved May 28 2020 Pizza Time Theatre Balcony Show Photograph 1 1981 Archived from the original on March 18 2009 Retrieved March 3 2009 Pizza Time Theatre Balcony Show Photograph 2 1980s Archived from the original on March 18 2009 Retrieved March 3 2009 Top 10 Extinct Chuck E Cheese Animatronic Characters amp History archived from the original on February 3 2020 retrieved May 28 2020 Oates Sarah July 15 1985 Chuck E Cheese Gets New Lease on Life Washington Post ISSN 0190 8286 Retrieved January 5 2024 The Rock afire Explosion Dir Brett Whitcomb Connell Creations 2008 Loftus Jamie August 25 2017 A History of Chuck E Cheese s Animatronic Band Vice Archived from the original on March 11 2020 Retrieved March 7 2020 Chuck E Cheese Chuck E Cheese s Characters www showbizpizza com Retrieved January 5 2024 CHUCK E CHEESE RODENT AND RESTAURANT GETS NEW LOOK scholar lib vt edu Retrieved January 5 2024 Chuck E s New Look PDF Press release Garner Holt Productions 1998 Archived PDF from the original on March 18 2009 Retrieved March 3 2009 LLC CEC Entertainment Chuck E Cheese Summer Concert Road Show Back for Third Annual Family Event www prnewswire com Retrieved January 5 2024 Chuck e Cheese still uses floppy disks in 2023 but not for long January 11 2023 Notopoulos Katie March 7 2023 Chuck E Cheese Still Uses Floppy Disks To Make Its Rodent Mascot Dance For Now BuzzFeed News Retrieved January 5 2024 Chuck e Cheese Voice Actor Says He Was Blindsided by Mascot Makeover The Hollywood Reporter July 3 2012 Archived from the original on September 25 2020 Retrieved April 5 2020 Brown Jennings August 17 2017 Chuck E Cheese s Animatronic Band Is Starting to Break Up and Fans Are Heartbroken GizModo Archived from the original on August 17 2017 Retrieved August 18 2017 Chuck E Cheese unveils new restaurant design gets rid of tokens ABC7 Chicago November 12 2019 Archived from the original on March 16 2020 Retrieved March 5 2020 Chuck E Cheese Says Goodbye to Tokens and Their Animatronic Robot Band at Over 80 Locations People Archived from the original on June 11 2020 Retrieved May 26 2020 CHUCK E CHEESE ANNOUNCES NEW BAND RESIDENCY IN NORTHRIDGE CA www investorsobserver com Retrieved November 2 2023 Nutritional Information PDF Chuck E Cheese Official Site CEC Entertainment Inc January 2009 Archived from the original PDF on February 6 2009 Retrieved May 13 2009 Lieberman Al amp Esgate Patricia 2002 Location Based Entertainment and Experiential Branding The Entertainment Marketing Revolution PDF Illustrated ed FT Press p 272 ISBN 0 13 029350 4 Archived from the original on March 2 2019 Retrieved May 13 2009 Coley Ben July 10 2020 Chuck E Cheese is Serious About Pasqually s Pizza amp Wings qsrmagaazine com QSR Magazine Archived from the original on July 13 2020 Retrieved July 14 2020 External links nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chuck E Cheeses Official website Portals nbsp Companies nbsp Food Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Chuck E Cheese amp oldid 1216750536 Entertainment, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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