Chuck E. Cheese’s Pizza Time Theatre was started by Atari founder Nolan Bushnell as a means to distribute Atari games to a larger, younger audience.
In 1979, Showbiz Pizza Place took the successful idea and became a direct competitor for Bushnell. Both found massive early on, but as the video game market changed Chuck E. Cheese’s Pizza Time Theatre declared bankruptcy resulting in Showbiz Pizza Time buying the franchise. The two eventually consolidated forming what we know today as Chuck E. Cheese’s.
Though the first Chuck E. Cheese’s no longer stands, its cheesy residue will stay caked in our hearts forever.
Two Chicago Area Locations and First Chuck E. Cheese Added to Historic Registry [PRLog via PRlog.org]
Top photo by downing.amanda| Flickr
G-RHYMES
Tuesday, July 26, 2011 at 10:26 AMREMINDS ME OF BILLY BOBS AT KNOX IN THE 80′S.
AerintheDUDE
Tuesday, July 26, 2011 at 11:03 PMI remember being about 2 years old and being taken to Showbiz Pizza for some party. The Gorilla/Ape/Purple-Beast on drums scared me so much that I hugged the opposite wall of the building the entire time :-P
Ah… childhood. How utterly terrifying-a-time you were…