Pizza Rocks
By: Matt Germany
Issue date: 11/19/08 Section: News
or many Memphians, Little Caesars' latest national TV spot, featuring an air guitarist rocking a packed crowd with rock licks from a giant, plastic pepperoni-covered guitar, may be a familiar sight.
Those who drive by the Little Caesars at the corner of Park Avenue and Mt. Moriah have no doubt witnessed the live act.
For the past two years, Chris Robinson has been rolling on the ground, jumping around and playing his pepperoni axe every way imaginable. The 19-year-old pizza peddler compares his performance to Michael J. Fox's memorable Chuck Berry cover in Back to the Future.
With headphones on, Robinson rocks out to metal bands like Tool, the Black Dahlia Murder and All That Remains.
Robinsons' antics earned him a local following, from MySpace pages, online message boards and Youtube videos to The Commercial Appeal.
"I can't go anywhere in Memphis without someone recognizing me," he said.
"Most people tell me, 'Dude, you should have been in that commercial,' but there are still some out there who think I got it from the commercial," Robinson said. "I guess they've been living in a hole or something.
When Robinson first started working for Little Caesars, he was told to stand outside and hold a sign advertising the pizza joint. Faced with an inherently mundane task, Robinson quickly discovered he would have to find some way to make his work interesting.
"On day one, I just stood there and held the sign," he said. For Robinson, doing a job a lamppost could do was simply too boring. "On day two, I brought my MP3 player and started rockin' out, just to do something to kill the time."
People quickly noticed Robinson jamming out on his then cardboard, rectangular sign, and he eventually amassed the cult following he has today.
"I started doing the air guitar thing, and whenever I did something different, people asked me to bring the air guitar back."
"It was supposed to be just something on the side, but whenever I quit playing, it breaks people's hearts."
Those who drive by the Little Caesars at the corner of Park Avenue and Mt. Moriah have no doubt witnessed the live act.
For the past two years, Chris Robinson has been rolling on the ground, jumping around and playing his pepperoni axe every way imaginable. The 19-year-old pizza peddler compares his performance to Michael J. Fox's memorable Chuck Berry cover in Back to the Future.
With headphones on, Robinson rocks out to metal bands like Tool, the Black Dahlia Murder and All That Remains.
Robinsons' antics earned him a local following, from MySpace pages, online message boards and Youtube videos to The Commercial Appeal.
"I can't go anywhere in Memphis without someone recognizing me," he said.
"Most people tell me, 'Dude, you should have been in that commercial,' but there are still some out there who think I got it from the commercial," Robinson said. "I guess they've been living in a hole or something.
When Robinson first started working for Little Caesars, he was told to stand outside and hold a sign advertising the pizza joint. Faced with an inherently mundane task, Robinson quickly discovered he would have to find some way to make his work interesting.
"On day one, I just stood there and held the sign," he said. For Robinson, doing a job a lamppost could do was simply too boring. "On day two, I brought my MP3 player and started rockin' out, just to do something to kill the time."
People quickly noticed Robinson jamming out on his then cardboard, rectangular sign, and he eventually amassed the cult following he has today.
"I started doing the air guitar thing, and whenever I did something different, people asked me to bring the air guitar back."
"It was supposed to be just something on the side, but whenever I quit playing, it breaks people's hearts."