Sun (Animatronic)
Manufacturer: Creative Engineering
The Sun Animatronic (Also the Building Animatronic) is a figure created by Creative Engineering Inc. for ShowBiz Pizza Place locations from 1980-1983. It is a very simple figure, as its only movements are raising from behind the backdrop and opening its mouth. During Concept Unification, Sun was retrofitted into Building.
Movements
The Sun features 2 movements, being its head raise, and mouth. The raise mechanism has a spring within the pole attaching the Sun to the raise block, this allows for a bouncing effect.
| Movement |
|---|
| Mouth |
| Raise Up |
It is notable that early Sun mechanisms used to have a body turn, however this was never programmed, and after the initial production batch the body turn was removed. This movement is mentioned on early movement lists and is installed on David Ferguson’s Sun animatronic.
Current Sun Animatronics
| Place | Address | Availability | Condition |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billy Bob's Wonderland | 5 Cracker Barrel Dr, Barboursville, WV 25504 | Public | Operational. |
| Creative Engineering, Inc. | 116 Shriners Club Rd, Pomona Park, FL 32112 | Privately owned, need contact for viewing. | Operational. |
| Smitty’s Super Service Station | 1545 MS-48 E, Sandy Hook, MS 39478 | Privately owned, need contact for viewing. | Operational. |
| Volo Museum | 27582 Volo Village Rd, Volo, IL 60073 | Public | Operational. |
| David Ferguson | Pendleton, IN | Privately owned | Operational. |
| John Zerwas | Minneapolis, MN | Privately owned | Operational. |
| Jack Turner | Independence, MO | Privately owned | Operational. |
| Andrew Lantka | Morris, IL | Privately owned | Operational. |
| ‘Mike’ | Unknown, MO | Privately owned | Operational. |
| Chris Giffen | York, PA | Privately owned | Operational. |
| Brian Aiken | Orlando, FL | Privately owned | Operational. |
| Finn | Bellingham, WA | Privately owned | Operational. |
| DreamFactory | Weierwiesstrasse 8, 9113 Degersheim, Switzerland | Public | Operational. |
| Wolmi Theme Park | 81 Wolmimunhwa-ro, Gaho-dong, Jung-gu, Incheon, South Korea | Public | Non-functioning. |
| Gulliver’s Kingdom | Temple Walk, Matlock Bath DE4 3PG, United Kingdom | Public | Operational. |
| Gulliver’s World | Shackleton Cl, Old Hall, Warrington WA5 9YZ, United Kingdom | Under Restoration. | Non-functioning. |
| Gulliver’s Land | Livingstone Dr, Milton Keynes MK15 0DT, United Kingdom | Planned Restoration. |
Current Building Animatronic
| Place | Address |
| Chuck E. Cheese | Charlotte, NC (7701 Pineville-Matthews Rd) |
Installations
| Location | Operating Dates | Serial Number | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Houston, TX (6760 Antoine Dr) | Jul. 15, 1981 - Sep. 2006 | 1-81 10-5 | Unknown |
| St. Louis, MO (2805 Target Dr) | Sep. 30, 1981 - 2006 | 1-81 10-13 | Unknown/Destroyed |
| Sharonville, OH (1429 E Kemper Rd) | Oct. 21, 1981 - Jan. 8, 1984 | 4-81 11-5 | Sent to Miami, FL (19191 S Dixie Hwy) |
| Cincinnati, OH (8801 Colerain Ave) | Nov. 11, 1981 - 2018 | 4-81 11-8 | Unknown |
| Orlando / Winter Park, FL (1300 Lee Rd) | Apr. 27, 1982 - Jan. 8, 1984 | 7-81 10-17 | Sent to Lafayette, LA (3221 Ambassador Caffery Pkwy) |
| Montgomery, AL (2940 E South Blvd) | Sep. 30, 1982 - Aug. 2013 | 1-82 10-18 | Unknown |
| Charlotte, NC (7701 Pineville-Matthews Rd) | Oct. 20, 1982 - Present | 1-82 10-23 | In store |
| Cincinnati, OH (3365 Highland Ave) | Nov. 11, 1982 - 1985 | 4-82 11-2 | Purchased by Jungle Jim's International Market |
| Phoenix, AZ (8039 North 35th Ave) | Oct. 28, 1983 - 2000s | unknown | converted to Building, then unknown/destroyed |
| Lexington, KY (1555 New Circle Rd) | Dec. 1, 1983 - 2007 | 1-83 11-1 | Unknown |
| Mesa (West), AZ (856 S Alma School Rd) | Aug. 30, 1984 - 1998 | unknown | converted to Building, then unknown/destroyed |
| Farmingdale, NY (229 Broadhollow Rd./Rt. 110) | 1993 - 2011 | 1-83 10-47 | Owned by private collector. |
Numbered in the order they appear. Reference in article text with .
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