History

Color photo of original Rick Rat Walkaround

The Rick Rat Walkaround was a rat costume that sparked the idea for Nolan Bushnell's new restaurant after he bought it in 1974. The original costume was ordered by Bushnell at the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions convention after he mistaken the suit to be a coyote, which inspired the original name for the restaurant he was creating for Atari, Coyote Pizza. Upon discovering that this was a rat costume, he changed the name to Rick Rat's Pizza. This was later changed to it's final name, Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre, as having a restaurant centered around a rat would seem unappealing to guests. The name "Rick Rat" was only a placeholder, and the character was later renamed Chuck E. Cheese.

This costume was never used in any of the Chuck E. Cheese locations, and was only used as the Atari Mascot when the restaurant first opened.

Design

The Rick Rat costume had a tan long, pointed snout with a large black nose and large downturned ears. The fur was long and gray, with a round pink stomach portion, and he also had a long pink tail.The modern Chuck E. Cheese designs were mostly based off of the Rick Rat walkaround, the main changes being that the tan eyelids were replaced with light blue colored ones, the ears became upturned, the size of the nose was decreased, and the pink belly was removed. The character was also changed into a mouse for a more kid-friendly approach.

Current Whereabouts

The current location of the Rick Rat costume is unknown, and the suit is most likely no longer in existence.

Other facts

Pin of the Rick Rat costume character from Casa Bonita

The original costume was used at a restaurant called "Casa Bonita" in the mid-70's
The reason why Bushnell kept the rat costume was because he believed that his company would someday compete head to head with Disney
Rick Rat's original name was going to be "The Big Cheese", but Marriot already had a trademark over the title. Instead of waiting for the name's trademark to expire, though, the company decided to go for a more creative name. Thus, "Chuck E. Cheese" was created.