![]() ![]() A typical teenager, she was considered "loose" by the rest of the Rock-afire Explosion, and is obsessed with gossip, boyfriends, pop music, and (appropriate for the time) Michael Jackson. Mitzi is a mouse, a fashion designer and a cheerleader. He would usually make sarcastic comments or ask other characters questions to throw off their act, but never in mean spirits. He introduced most of the shows and ordered other band members around, leading him and Rolfe into many arguments. Unofficial band front man, Fatz had a tendency to ramble. He is a parody of Fats Domino and Ray Charles. He would respond to questions with a caustic "What?" The character is unique in that, when set up properly, he had the ability to actually play a 4-piece drum kit in time with the music. ![]() Dook would often lose focus during shows and miss his cues. ![]() For this, the animatronic was retrofitted to include a pair of hands which popped up, holding a piece of paper for him to read. Some shows featured a segment where Looney Bird would answer fan mail. Usually, his head is the only thing ever seen, the rest of him supposedly hiding in an oil drum. Billy Bob was usually a mediator to the band's minor on-stage squabbles. A bear in overalls, he was the mascot for ShowBiz Pizza Place throughout its existence, and his image was on most of the chain's merchandise. Fechter also implemented computer programming that permitted some of the characters to move in rhythm with music, making it theoretically possible for them to play actual instruments.Ī child speaking with Billy Bob at the ShowBiz Pizza location in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The latex masks were designed to fit over various movable parts on the characters' faces, permitting them a range of facial expressions, including smiling and the raising of eyebrows. Additionally, Fechter implemented the use of latex masks for the characters' faces, as opposed to the fabric masks common in animatronics of the time. Unlike other animatronic shows of the early 1980s, the Rock-afire Explosion was designed to be life-sized, with most of the performers being about the size of an average adult human. All Rock-afire shows were produced completely in-house, with Creative Engineering employees not only manufacturing the characters, but also writing and performing their songs and skits. Production of the programming and audio for the show was done in-house by Creative Engineering, Inc. Reprogramming the Rock-afire characters to cover new songs, Fechter reached new and younger audiences and also re-connected with the older audience. In 2008, the creator and technical engineer of the band, Aaron Fechter reintroduced the ensemble as a cover band for a variety of pop, rock, and hip-hop groups, including acts ranging from the mid-20th century to the present. They would perform medleys of classic rock, pop, and country music, as well as original compositions. The characters in The Rock-afire Explosion were various animals ranging from a dog to a gorilla. ![]() In addition to overseeing the production of the animatronics, Fechter also provided the voices for several characters.įollowing the completion of rebranding, the show was sold to other restaurants and entertainment centers, such as Circus Pizza, Pistol Pete's Pizza, and Billy Bob's Wonderland. The show was created and manufactured by Aaron Fechter, through his company Creative Engineering in Orlando, Florida. The show was pioneering in many respects to other animatronic shows of the early 1980s, featuring life-sized characters capable of facial expression some were even programmed in such a way that they could actually play simple melodies on musical instruments. The Rock-afire Explosion is an animatronic band from Orlando, Florida that played in ShowBiz Pizza Place restaurants from 1980 to 1992. ![]()
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