The single most important takeaway from the State of the Avocado thread is that I’m the #2 Community Engager. Obviously, people must love the animatronics I post. GET READY FOR A SERIES OF HEADERS!
During the mid-eighties, Showbiz Pizza was in what could be called a transitional period. They’d weathered the video game crisis, bought their bankrupt rival Pizza Time Theater, and had just hired a new CEO. Everything in the restaurants, from food to rides to lighting, was being re-evaluated – and the animatronic show that was the centerpiece of each restaurant was no exception. One of the more interesting experiments Showbiz tried was adding a licensed character to their show, one that would appeal to both adults and children. After considering Superman, Spider-Man and Garfield, they settled on…
Yogi Bear and Boo-Boo! Billy Bob, the ursine face of Showbiz Pizza, was removed from the stage and Rolfe DeWolfe and Looney Bird were converted into Yogi and Boo-Boo, respectively. The rest of the Rock-afire Explosion remained, and a show was recorded starring iconic Hanna-Barbera voice actors Daws Butler and Don Messick. Unfortunately, there’s no known video of Yogi in action; the show was only installed in three restaurants in Omaha, Augusta, and Colorado Springs in 1987, and the test didn’t proceed beyond that for unknown reasons. But, the full audio version of the show is available.
Also, Austria was robbed in EuroVision today. A song about being possessed by the ghost of Edgar Allan Poe is Peak EuroVision. Watch that too.
Have fun posting!