We told you yesterday afternoon about the explosion in downtown Orlando that happened at the building in which Creative Engineering Inc. – the company owned by Aaron Fechter, who invented the animatronic band the Rock-afire Explosion as well as the arcade game Whac-a-Mole – was housed. The building has been condemned, but there's no word yet on whether Fechter's animatronic animal musicians, some of which used to be warehoused in the space, were damaged in the fire. But we thought we'd take a moment to remember some of our favorite Rock-afire Explosion characters, which used to be center stage at the now-defunct ShowBiz Pizza chain, which used to have a location in Orlando.
Revisiting Rock-afire Explosion: a gallery of characters
By Orlando Weekly Staff on Fri, Sep 27, 2013 at 10:13 pm
Scroll down to view images
Rock-afire Explosion was an animatronic band made up of robotic animal characters created by Orlando inventor Aaron Fechter. Photo via YouTube
It's main characters included Billy Bob Brockali, a talking bear who worked at a service station called Smitty’s Super Service Station. Billy Bob worked to invent "Goofy Gas," an alternative to gasoline that could solve the world's energy problems. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
One of Billy Bob's sidekicks was Birthday Bird, who perched on his guitar. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
A closeup of Birthday Bird.
Fatz Geronimo was a gorilla who played a keyboard. Photo via geekologie.com
Fatz was pretty intense. Here he is posing with Michael Jackson. Photo via Facebook.com/showbiz-pizza-place
Here's another view of Fatz playing his keyboards. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
Fatz had a pet – he was called Antioch the birthday spider. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
Beach Bear was the group's guitarist. He also seems to have been something of a beach bum. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
Every good band needs a cheerleader, right? That's what Mitzi Mozzerela was there for. She was the only female member of the Rock-afire Explosion. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
Choo Choo the baby bear sat in a stump on the stage and occasionally popped out to bob around to songs. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
Dook LaRue played the drums. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
Another view of Dook LaRue. Photo via chicacoreader.com
Owl was more of a prop than a character, and he sat onstage next to Dook LaRue's drum set. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
Rolfe and Earl were the antagonists of the Rock-afire Explosion. They criticized the band – and each other – during shows, providing comic relief and dramatic tension. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
Frog was, essentially, another prop. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
Looney Bird lived in a oil barrel and was something of a whacked-out proto-tecchie. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
The explosion also had Sun and Moon characters that contributed to songs and sometimes emceed shows. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
Uncle Klunk was a human character introduced in later years of ShowBiz Pizza. He did a segment called "Dear Uncle Klunk," and he commented on news and culture. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
The singing flowers were also part of the show. They weren't specific characters, but we like them because they remind us of the Chuckle Patch from the Magic Garden. Photo via Showbizpizza.com
Chava Communications
Read our sister publications
Orlando Weekly
PO Box 953127.
Lake Mary, FL 32795
© 2024 Orlando Weekly
