Rick, which is short for Retailtainment Interactive Coca–Cola Kiosk, entertained at the Wal–Mart on Garners Ferry Road.

This has been a week full of firsts for me. On Saturday I did my first radio interview, and Friday I had my first live interview with a robot! His name is Rick which is short for Retailtainment Interactive Coca–Cola Kiosk. Rick and his buddy Kevin Holley were down from Charlotte for the day to entertain kids of all ages at the Garners Ferry Wal–Mart.

Every time I stopped to talk to Rick he had a crowd of young and old vying for his attention and lively conversation. I was amazed at how quickly he took in information and how appropriately he responded to questions. He even had a really keen sense of humor.

In talking with Rick for just a few minutes I was able to get a quick background on him. He and his four brothers, named Rick, Rick, Rick, and Rick were designed and constructed from scratch four years ago by a company called AMG in California, so I guess we can say that he is one of a set of identical quintuplets born of a mother named 4.43825 in the year 2001.

Rick doesn’t walk, but he can move his arms and hands and is able to grasp objects placed within his reach. I asked him if I held out a five dollar bill, would he take it and he replied, “Naw, man! I’m not a thief!” You have to admire a robot with morals.

My personal favorite Coca–Cola product is Vanilla Coke, but Rick prefers good old Coca–Cola Classic just like my mom. Rick has a really cool voice which he says came “from lots of trial and error. They’d try something and finally they said, ‘AH! That kinda works!’”

Rick claims to be a simple robot with all of his programs contained in the display box on which he stands, but when you listen to his banter you realize he is much more complex than he admits. You see…Rick is intelligent. He learns.

He started off with a basic program and during his four years traveling around the 12 Southeastern states, he has heard probably millions of words, and he remembers everything he ever heard. Boy, I wish I could do that! That skill would come in really handy for a cub reporter!

Someone in the crowd asked Rick if he could speak Spanish. Rick replied, “Well, maybe a little bit but not really, but I think one of my brothers can speak Spanish. It all depends on what we hear.”

My interest in Rick stems from the fact that I have a morbid fascination with robots and have long entertained the notion of becoming a robotic engineer, but Rick serves an entirely different purpose for Coca–Cola. Rick is their most valuable promotion. He and Kevin travel around the 12 Southeastern states to build brand awareness, an important marketing concept.

Kevin notes, “Kids love Rick, and they associate him with Coca–Cola products. The parents love Rick, too, and they remember him. When the kids ask for Coke products they are more likely to purchase them because of their experience with Rick.”

In recent months, Rick and Kevin have visited Wal–Marts in Newberry, Lexington, St. Andrews, and Lower Richland. Maybe you will see them soon at a Wal–Mart near you. If you do, tell Rick I said, “Hi!”