Showbiz Pizza Tribute to the Circus (Partially Found Animatronic Show; 1986)
Official Release
Segments of this tape were officially released in 1986 under the title Circus/Monkees and included three segments:
- Monkees Medley
- Tribute to the Circus medley
- The Curly Shuffle
The issue most fans have with this tape is how short it is, especially since the Monkees Medley was recycled from the 1983 Beatles White Album showtape, only with Rolfe and Earl's original intro cut and the ending trimmed. This tape was recorded/released around a time when Creative Engineering and Showbiz corporate were at odds with each other, so new shows from CEI were a rare find; the release of this tape in July would mark the last known new tape released that year. The beginning of the following year would mark Showbiz's continued attempts at replacing the CEI voice actors, a notable downhill turning point for the companies' partnership.
Discovery of Lost Segments
In recent years, it was discovered that the reason this tape appears so short is that it is- the tape was supposed to be a full-length show themed around the circus, much like Showbiz's previous shows Magic Night and Country Night, but most of the segments were never released in an official capacity for reasons unknown. While the full setlist has yet to be uncovered, it is known that the circus medley featured in the final tape is actually the Ride Medley; the tape in its entirety was going to be Tribute to the Circus before it was cut and Monkees was added. There was also going to be an as-yet-unnamed and still lost Rolfe and Earl segment, and a Mitzi cover of Smokey Robinson's Tears of a Clown. There has been talk of a cover of Leo Sayer's The Show Must Go On, but confirmation of its existence has yet to be found.
Found Segment
On July 13th, 2024, as part of Billy Bob's Wonderland's 4th annual Billycon celebration, it was announced that Tears of a Clown had been found on a physical reel owned by an unnamed contributor about a month before the event. While the animatronics' programming was not found with the audio, Instagram user rockafirefan123 was able to program the show for audience viewing. Tears of a Clown, along with several other lost shows from other tapes, debuted that same day on the Billy Bob's Wonderland stage.
You can view Tears of a Clown on the chimeranimatronics YouTube channel here.