1999: JFK Jr. dies, Home Improvement closes the tool shop, and Brendan Fullam and Chris Sheehan, two eighth graders, decide to follow their dream of playing in a band.

After adding drummer John Ravert and then bassist Kevin Grubb, they form Johnny Action Figure.

Members of the band Johnny Action Figure refuse to disclose the secret behind the group's name. Ravert insists the name is a big secret and no one can know the true story behind it; lead singer/guitar player Fullam claims he doesn't even remember how the name came about.

Now, six years later, Ravert and Sheehan attend Penn State, while Fullam attends Lebanon Valley College.

The band recently played at the Tall Shiva Hookah Lounge, 224 W. College Ave., on April 16.

"We're always open to gaining new fans ... we like playing in smaller places, and [The Tall Shiva Hookah Lounge] has a small stage ... but [we're] also not opposed to playing for bigger audiences at bigger venues," Fullam said.

Sheehan, also found the performance to be a fun show for the band.

"[For] this show, we got the opportunity to invite other bands to play with us and see new people outside our family and friends that we had never seen before," Sheehan said.

In March 2004, the band released its self-titled debut album and in January 2005, the band released the same self-titled album in Japan, with an additional bonus track and artwork. The band is open to having fans everywhere.

"If the opportunity came about [to tour in Japan], we would take it ... I would hope we would tour the U.S. first," Fullam said.

Either option appears possible, considering the band doesn't categorize its music to one specific genre or sound.

"We take a lot of traditional influences and put an indie-kind of edge to it," Sheehan said.

Fellow bandmate Fullam felt similar.

"Typically we don't go any further [when categorizing our music] than rock and roll ... the reason is because we don't like to pigeon-hole ourselves, we'd prefer to be free of any boundaries," Fullam said.

Fullam said the band has had influences in its career, ranging from Ben Folds Five and Neil Young to Wilco and Elliot Smith.

"We've always tried to avoid a specific influence ... [we] are not hard to categorize, yet we don't sound like everything else," Fullam said.

Compared to other local State College bands, Ravert and Sheehan feel that Johnny Action Figure possesses qualities that make them stand out.

"[There are] a lot of cover bands in State College that do the jukebox thing, but we're definitely an original band ... we've been together for six years, and we're only in our early 20s; a lot of bands haven't been together that long," Ravert said.

Sheehan agreed.

"[I don't] consider us a State College band since we're from Reading, PA, and I feel that we draw from a lot of different influences ... we take the band really seriously," Sheehan said.

Tyler Culp, a longtime employee of City Light Records, 316 E. College Ave, is also a fan of the band.

"I definitely think they are talented songwriters and really nice guys ... they have that regional connection that hits close to home," Culp said.

As for now, the band members have more than enough action in their lives.

"[We're] recording our second album, and in years to come [we] want to get tighter as a band and get noticed by a label," Sheehan said.

With weapons like an original sound and a passion for music, these action figures look forward to their future.

"As soon as we graduate college, the band will be full-time. For now, we have school limiting what we can do ... [we want] to tour and put out as many records as we can," Fullam said.