Sparks, NV (530 Greenbrae Dr)

Sparks, NV (530 Greenbrae Dr) is the seventh Pizza Time Theatre, the first to open outside of California, and the first franchised location, opening on December 20th, 1979, and lasting until 1984.^[1][4]

History

Pre-Opening

The building would begin construction in early October of 1979 in a former Safeway grocery store.^[4] The first mention of the location would be of a job posting for a assistant manager and technician on November 19th, 1979.^[3] In December PTT would note that the location would be opening on December 20th, and having its Grand Opening Party on Janury 7th of 1980. It would also be noted that the store was the first franchised location, owned by Gary Harwin, which would also be the store’s manager. Gene Finnigan, a contractor for PTT which had built 3 previous stores, and now the Sparks location, would be co-owning the venture as well.^[2] PTT would also note that they had previously recieved a $2,000,000 loan from Bank of America to expand stores into new areas, with this being likely one of the first stores to use that.^[1] Gary and his wife, Cindy, would get PTT themed licensed plates for their new venture, with hers reading “PIZZA TME”, and his reading “PZATME"^[2]

Opening

The store would open on December 20th, 1979. Sparks Mayor of the time, Ron Player, would greet the newcomer to the state, saying “We’re delighted to have Pizza Time join the Sparks scene. Our city is growing at a phenomenal rate and this is a great addition.".^[2][4] The store would have 325 seat capacity and 60 arcade games.^[4] On December 25th the store would post another job listing for bartenders.^[5] The store would send out 30,000 postcards to Reno and Sparks residents ahead of the opening, with Nolan Bushnell noting the store had “…gotten off to a faster start than any of the others.".^[4] On January 7th, 1980, the store would have its Grand Opening.^[1] At the grand opening, Cindy Harwin would hide diamond earrings in the pizza of a friend by the request of the friend’s husband, who was unable to make it to the opening and was celebrating his 20th anniversary back in Los Angeles. The store would also be featured on Channel 2’s ‘PM Magazine’ the same day.^[2]

1980’s to Closure

In mid-late 1980, the store would participate in the local Golden Key Dinner Club, a $20 6-month subscription that allowed customers to dine at various local restaurants, where after ordering multiple meals, the cheapest of them would be deducted from the final bill.^[8] The store would also be the only one aside from San Jose, CA (370 S Winchester Blvd) to not recieve Artie Antlers.

In July of 1981 the location would offer a baseball hat in multiple sizes when bringing in a coupon and buying a large pizza.^[11] By the end of the year the location had reported their walkaround had become a regular visitor to the Reno St. Mary’s Hospital, and that a fundraiser was held by PTT for the Sparks Chamber of Commerce.^[16]

In May of 1982 the store would recieve plans for a remodel, with it removing various walls and setting up the Balcony Stage to replace its shelf stage.^[17]

The location would close in 1984, and its auction set on December 5th of that year. The auction would be ran by Stanly M. Friedman, Inc..^[14]

Animatronics

Attractions