Mommy’s Plate

Okay.  Okay.  His name is really Chuck Entertainment Cheese.  Can you tell that I’m not a big fan of the guy? Ogre enlightened me yesterday about the little rat and I thought I’d share. 

First, I have to point out that Ogre grew up right here in Plano and I grew up in South Carolina for the most part.  This means that our childhood experience with this sort of “dining” and “entertainment” came via Showbiz Pizza.  Ogre, being the video game junkie that he is, has extremely fond memories of this place. Me, not so much, I remember the dancing bear who wore overalls and looked a lot like Smokey the Bear and the catch phrase “Where a kid can be a kid!”, but that’s about it. After reading my Fiasco post where I mention Chuck E. Cheese, Ogre decided to find out whatever happened to good ol’ Showbiz Pizza, what he told me solidified my initial gut feelings…that his name should be 

Chuck Evil Cheese!

Turns out, that Chuck E. Cheese’s was the brainchild of Atari co-founder Nolan Bushnell TO INTRODUCE VIDEO GAMES TO CHILDREN AT A YOUNGER AGE! Isn’t that slimy??  I totally see it, now that it’s been pointed out to me!

Some guy named Robert Brock was also impressed by some animatronics when he initially partnered with Chuck E. Cheese Pizza Time Theater and Bushnell, but then he went and saw some other dude’s animatronics and weaseled his way out of his contract stating that there was no way they could compete. Brock then joined the guy who had the better animatronics to make SHOWBIZ PIZZA PALACE!

So Brock and Bushnell each had their arcade/entertainment pizza joints.  Brock’s Chuck E. Cheese’s flourished in the western United States while Showbiz Pizza dominated the south.  They definitely had their hey-day, but the advent of home video-gaming systems would prove to be their downfall.  Ogre told me that he played some Atari game at Showbiz so many times that it prompted their family’s purchase of the Atari for their home.  It’s interesting that the Atari founder would be done in by his own doing!  

Bushnell developed huge debts and filed for bankruptcy.  Showbiz Pizza bought out Chuck E. Cheese’s and for awhile they operated both restaruants.  After some restructuring, Showbiz Pizza chose to phase out the Showbiz Pizza Place restaurants and in 1992, only the Chuck E. Cheese restaurants remained.  In 1995, Showbiz Pizza Place renamed itself CEC Entertainment, Inc.

I have noticed a “comeback” of Chuck E. Cheese in recent years, there’s even a new one that opened in the last year off George Bush in Garland.  I also did not realize that it’s headquartered right here in DFW, in Irving, Texas.  Apparently, they also turned the rat into a mouse, so pardon the fact that I called the rodent a rat earlier, he’s a gnarly-looking mouse.

References and Resources for you:

Chuck E. Cheese’s Wiki