Springfield, PA (381 Baltimore Pike)
Springfield in March 2012, right before closure. (PC: Google Maps)
Springfield, PA (381 Baltimore Pike), Store #529 was a Celebration Station that opened on December 15th, 1984, closing around February 1989. The location then became a Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza that opened on December 4th, 1990, which closed on April 15th, 2012. In November 2012, the Chuck E. Cheese's was relocated to Springfield, PA (371 Baltimore Pike), built just blocks away from where the previous location once stood at Stoney Creek East Plaza. The original building has since been demolished.
History
Celebration Station (1984-1989)
Springfield, PA (381 Baltimore Pike) first opened as a Celebration Station on December 15th, 1984 with a W.O.O.F. Radio animatronic show. It was built adjacent to the Stoney Creek East Plaza, right next to Andrew Drive. By 1989, the store was struggling financially under Whiteco's ownership and permanently closed that February. In August the same year, an auction was held at the location to sell off Celebration Station assets, including the W.O.O.F. Radio animatronics. Marc Glassman, founder of Marc's Grocery Stores, had recently created the Marc's Funtime Pizza Palace chain of restaurants at the time, acquiring assets from former Pizza Time Theatre and ShowBiz Pizza Place locations. It was through this auction that Marc's purchased the W.O.O.F. animatronics for one of their stores (currently unidentified). Although details are scarce, it is confirmed that Marc's did not acquire the original TRIAD show controller equipment, nor the original soundtracks produced for W.O.O.F. through the Springfield auction.
Chuck E. Cheese's (1990-2012)
Just one year after the closure of Celebration Station, Showbiz Pizza Time, Inc. bought the building space, opening a Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza store on December 4th, 1990. The existing layout of the former Celebration Station was left intact, though abiding by the SPT 1988 Remodel Program with it's store fixtures and walls. A prototype of the Cyberamics Road Stage, one of four built, was tested at the Springfield, PA store (being the second overall). The prototype was converted to a finalized design by 1992, and was ultimately the only Road Stage ever installed in Pennsylvania.
Sometime in the mid 1990's, Springfield underwent the SPT 1992 Remodel Program, removing fixtures from the previous remodel and replacing the Road Stage with a 2-Stage. As a high-level balcony seating surrounded the walls of the showroom (a product of the Celebration Station), unique record posters were fabricated by Corman and Associates especially for Springfield, with parody art and discs being separated to a poster each. By the 2000's, Chuck E.'s Tuxedo & Derby were replaced with the Cool Chuck outfit, with Jasper's PTT mask being replaced outright, and the lift curtains removed entirely. By Summer 2009, the Cool Chuck clothing was replaced with the Avenger outfit, and the Cyberamic Chuck E. was strangely given walkaround Chuck E. ears.
Springfield, PA in its original location was meant to undergo the CEC 2005 Remodel Program sometime after being rolled out store-wide. However, this plan didn't materialize, due to the small space of the building (resulting from its placement within the Stoney Creek East Plaza and previous tenant of Celebration Station). As early as 2011, plans were made to completely redevelop the site of the location. The current Chuck E. Cheese's in Springfield, PA permanently closed on April 15th, 2012, in favor of constructing an all-new store just blocks away from the previous space. Springfield, PA (371 Baltimore Pike) opened on November 14th, 2012, accommodating for the CEC 2005 Remodel Program and installing a Circles of Light stage with a Chuck E. Cheese 16m (Animatronic) instead of relocating the existing Cyberamics 2-Stage. The previous building in Stoney Creek East was demolished soon after.
Stages
| Stage | Installed | Removed | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| W.O.O.F. Radio | December 1984 | February 1989 | One of two W.O.O.F. Radio shows installed in Pennsylvania. Purchased by Marc Glassman of Marc's Funtime Pizza Palace in August 1989. |
| Road Stage Prototype | December 1990 | 1991/1992 | Second Road Stage ever installed. One of four Road Stage Prototypes built. Converted to the finalized Road Stage design between 1991-1992. |
| Road Stage | 1991/1992 | 1995/1996 | Only Road Stage to ever be installed in Pennsylvania. |
| 2-Stage | 1995/1996 | April 2012 | One of seven (or eight) 2-Stages installed in Pennsylvania. |
Animatronics
| Animatronic | Manufacturing Date | Whereabouts | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harry Hound (W.O.O.F. Animatronic) | 1983-1984 | Unknown | Purchased by Marc Glassman of Marc's Funtime Pizza Palace in August 1989. |
| Purrscilla Purr (W.O.O.F. Animatronic) | 1983-1984 | Unknown | Purchased by Marc Glassman of Marc's Funtime Pizza Palace in August 1989. |
| Big Bear (W.O.O.F. Animatronic) | 1983-1984 | Unknown | Purchased by Marc Glassman of Marc's Funtime Pizza Palace in August 1989. |
| Doc Fox (W.O.O.F. Animatronic) | 1983-1984 | Unknown | Purchased by Marc Glassman of Marc's Funtime Pizza Palace in August 1989. |
| Major Moose (W.O.O.F. Animatronic) | 1983-1984 | Unknown | Purchased by Marc Glassman of Marc's Funtime Pizza Palace in August 1989. |
| Howard Le Trec (Animatronic) | 1983-1984 | Unknown | Purchased by Marc Glassman of Marc's Funtime Pizza Palace in August 1989. |
| Accu-Duck (Animatronic) | 1983-1984 | Unknown | Purchased by Marc Glassman of Marc's Funtime Pizza Palace in August 1989. |
| Chuck E. Cheese (Cyberamic) | Unknown | Unknown/Destroyed. | |
| Helen Henny (Cyberamic) | Unknown | Unknown/Destroyed. | |
| Mr. Munch (Cyberamic) | Unknown | Unknown/Destroyed. Mask sent to Levittown, PA and was later destroyed. | |
| Jasper T. Jowls (Cyberamic) | Unknown | Unknown/Destroyed. | |
| Pasqually (Cyberamic) | Unknown | Unknown/Destroyed. | |
| Wink | 1991/1992 | Unknown/Destroyed. | Added when converted to finalized Road Stage |
Gallery
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Springfield's Celebration Station Grand Opening Advertisement (1984)
Videos
| Link | Description | Filming Date | Publish Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYYZrqfSuEM | A birthday party video of Springfield as a Celebration Station featuring W.O.O.F. Radio and game room. | 1984-1989 | July 16, 2021 |
| https://youtu.be/LxvPbiWC0Mk?si=oe8I_fSV2ygyOXT8 | A birthday party video of Springfield as a Celebration Station featuring the exterior, W.O.O.F. Radio, and game room. | 1986 | April 14, 2024 |
| https://youtu.be/8qx9r02cQu0 | A birthday party video of Springfield as a Chuck E. Cheese's featuring the Prototype Road Stage and game room. | March 5, 1991 | May 6, 2020 |
| https://youtu.be/kPB8pgCzMwo?t=189 | A birthday party video of Springfield as a Chuck E. Cheese's featuring the exterior, 2-Stage, and game room. | July 1998 | October 21, 2012 |
| https://youtu.be/VayKDS_1Q5Q | Springfield, PA's showroom tour just months prior to closure as a CEC. | January 26, 2012 | February 8, 2012 |