Riff Raff Statue / Embassy Theatre, Hamilton, New Zealand
This plaque sits next to a statue of Richard O’Brien’s character Riff Raff. It is also on the site of the Embassy Theatre in Hamilton, New Zealand, since demolished. It commemorates both Hamilton’s most famous son and the cinema that spawned his comic creation.
Plaque Transcription:
“The Rocky Horror Picture Show is an international interactive phenomenon that is truly a cult classic. Since 1973, Richard O’Brien’s cocktail of comedy cabaret and cross-dressing has seen audiences in fishnet tights do the time warp again and again.
O’Brien moved to Hamilton in 1957 and worked in a barber shop in the Embassy Theatre which stood on this site. He credits the many B-grade, late night double feature movies he watched here as much of the inspiration for Rocky Horror.
The Embassy Theatre was opened in 1915 as the Theatre Royal, and was used as a major venue for stage shows, concerts and political rallies until the 1960′s. The stage then closed but the Embassy remained as a picture theatre, affectionately known as the “Flea-Pit” until its closure in 1989. Despite protest, the theatre was demolished in 1991
This statue celebrates the international success of Hamiltonian Richard O’Brien and a piece of Hamilton’s cinematic history.”
The statue is next to 198 Victoria Street, Hamilton, New Zealand and has its own webcam and website (http://www.riffraffstatue.org/page/riffraff_178.php)
PS – I live in London, I just visited Hamilton.