Chuck E. Cheese animatronic band leaves all locations, except for Northridge

A decades-old rock band that hasn't aged a bit, recently announced its semi-retirement plan with a Chuck E. Cheese Northridge residency.

Chuck E, Mr. Munch, and crew have pulled the plug on their animatronic band's mainstay performances at Chuck E. Cheese locations across the nation, except for the one in Southern California, it was announced in early November. The band ahs been around since 1989, with retirement looming over the years due to operational costs and vandalism.

Representatives from Chuck E. Cheese said Munch's Make Believe Band will perform daily in Northridge, keeping nostalgia and childhood memories alive for guests.

"We want our fans to know that the decision to keep the band here is meant as a gesture of love and gratitude as our legacy continues to evolve in new ways," David McKillips, President and CEO of Chuck E. Cheese parent company said.

So while the giant-sized animal band with robotic movements and prolonged blinking eyelids leaves all but one pizzatainment location, the company says there will be updated family entertainment as they renovate fun centers nationwide.

New enhancements include a new state-of-the-art interactive dance floor, a giant video wall and screens, kid-focused arcade games, and new trampolines zones in select locations.

Chuck E. Cheese was founded in 1977 by Atari's co-founder, Nolan Bushnell, with the first location opening as Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre in San Jose, CA. It was the first family restaurant to marry food with arcade games and animated entertainment.

.As of August 2023, Chuck E. Cheese operates 568 corporate and franchised locations, as well as 122 Peter Piper Pizza restaurants. They are in 47 states across the nation and 17 countries and territories around the world, and now you have to go to Northridge to catch a performance by Munch's Make Believe Band