Lexington, KY (1555 New Circle Rd)
A shot of the store’s current exterior (PC: Jonathan Martin)
1555 New Circle Rd, Store #963 was a Showbiz Pizza Place that opened on December 1, 1983 with a Rock-Afire Explosion, which is still open to this day.
This location received Concept Unification either in 1991 or 1992, which was replaced with a Studio C Beta, 16m in 2007 or 2008, and then received 2.0 in 2019.
History
Lexington opened on December 1st, 1983 as the second Showbiz Pizza Place in Kentucky, after Paducah which opened the year prior, in the Woodhill Circle Plaza. Lexington received the 1988 Remodel in around 1998-1989. They then underwent Concept Unification in 1991. Lexington then received another remodel in the Mid 1990's which involved the removal of elements from the 1988 remodel such as The Blue & White Awnings, checkers around the store, & neon lights. Then in 2006 or 2007, they received the CEC 2005 Remodel which involved the store being expanded, therefore gutting the current showroom, replacing the 3-Stage with a Studio C Beta 16m, & turning the current Showroom into a gameroom. Then they would receive the 2.0 Remodel in 2019, replacing the Studio C Beta 16m with a Dance Floor. As of October 2022, they are the second last former Showbiz in Kentucky, as the Owensboro location closed in 1998. They were a franchise store, and were acquired by corporate on September 16th, 1996, along with many other locations and closing Rochester (Penfield), NY.
Stages
Originally, Lexington had a Rock-Afire Explosion, as all other Showbiz Pizza Place's did, they would have it for a few years, until sometime in 1991, when they would undergo a process known as Concept Unification, this was to replace the RAE with the Chuck E. Cheese characters. They would have the 3-Stage until either 2006 or 2007, when they would replace it with a Studio C Beta, 16m, this was the first and only Studio C Beta in Kentucky, as Louisville has a Studio C Alpha, and Bowling Green had a Studio C Cappa. They would have the Beta until 2019, when they would undergo the 2.0 remodel, replacing the Studio C Beta with a Dance Floor. They were the second 2.0 in the state, after Paducah, which received 2.0 in 2018. Lexington would be the most recent 2.0 in Kentucky until March of 2022, when Florence would receive 2.0, and then Bowling Green received it in June of 2022, making Louisville the last non-2.0 store in Kentucky.
| Stage | Installed | Removed |
|---|---|---|
| Rock-Afire Explosion | November 1983 | 1991 |
| 3-Stage | 1991 | 2006 or 2007 |
| Studio C Beta, 16m | 2006 or 2007 | 2019 |
| Dance Floor | 2019 | Still In Use |
Videos
| Link | Description | Filming Date | Publish Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMsl1Zfix4w | Only known footage of this location as a Showbiz Pizza | July 29, 1990 | March 14, 2020 |
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6N2n75xYW08 | Reopening event after 2.0 | November 6, 2019 | November 6, 2019 |
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTJziPFhia8 | A store tour from before this location got 2.0 | July 6, 2019 | July 6, 2019 |
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dktXRGuCYvE | Documentation on Lexington's history. | October-November 2022. | November 14, 2022 |
Animatronics
| Animatronic | Serial | Whereabouts |
|---|---|---|
| Chuck E. Cheese / Rolfe DeWolfe | ?-?? 1-?? | Destroyed |
| Pasqually / Dook Larue | ?-?? 2-?? | Destroyed |
| Mr. Munch / Fatz Geronimo | ?-?? 3-?? | Destroyed |
| Jasper T. Jowls / Beach Bear | ?-?? 4-?? | Destroyed |
| Helen Henny / Mitzi Mozzarella | ?-?? 5-?? | Destroyed |
| Billy Bob | ?-?? 6-?? | Destroyed |
| Pizzacam / Looney Bird | ?-?? 7-?? | Destroyed |
| Munch Jr. / Choo Choo | ?-?? 8-?? | Destroyed |
| Building / Sun | ?-?? 10-?? | Destroyed |
| Moon | ?-?? 11-?? | Destroyed |
| Antioch | N/A | Destroyed |
| Wink | N/A | Destroyed |
| Chuck E. Cheese 16m (Studio C) | N/A | Destroyed |
Gallery
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Shot from the center stage. (PC: Corman and Associates)
