The Four Little Shavers were a rare Pizza Time Theatre show that was exclusive to The Ice Cream Emporiums - a concept Ice Cream Parlor that was test marketed at select locations. The Shavers sang barbershop quartet songs, and their showtape consisted of vintage 1950s recordings from one of the most famous barbershop quartets of the era, the Buffalo Bills1.
The characters from left to right are named Nolan (holding the towel), O'Nolan (holding the cup), Curly (the bald one in the chair), and McNolan (holding the broom)1. The clever naming system was homage to PTT's founder Nolan Bushnell.
The Four Little Shavers were typical of the early multi-character PTT shows and had very few movements. They were a retrofit of The Beagles (original version), and each character could move their heads, body, and mouth. Curly had the most movements, as he could move and raise his arms. Like the original version of The Beagles, The Four Little Shavers were designed and produced by Harold Goldbrandsen and the Fantasy Forest Manufacturing wing of Pizza Time2. The background theatrical set, complete with mirrors, shaving mugs and barber pole was designed by animator Randy Nelson3.
The Four Little Shavers made their first appearance in August of 1981 at The Ice Cream Emporium of the Tampa Carrollwood Villages Pizza Time Theatre in Florida3. Soon after, they were also placed in the Brandon, Florida and San Antonio, Texas Ice Cream Emporiums as well.
If you have any additional information regarding The Four Little Shavers - documentation, audio, video, photos, etc; please contact us!
1 - PTT Theatrical Standards Manual
2 - ShowBizPizza.com correspondence with Harold Goldbrandsen
3 - The Pizza Times - Volume 1, Issue 2
