Peter will be taking back up his blog tomorrow. Here is a subject near and dear to my heart.
The Muppets have been up for sale for a while. EM.TV has had them on the block for over a year. It looked like a deal was about to be struck and now it seems dead. Some of the other companies that were looking at obtaining the frog and company including Disney have withdrawn their offers. Then there is SciFi’s decision about not producing the 5th season of Farscape which is a whole other can of worms.
All this is very frustrating to long time Muppet Fans. I should know. I am one.
I started watching the Muppets when they were on Sesame Street. I already had a fondness for puppets that, according to my mother, goes back to the age of two with a set of Wizard of Oz puppets that were bundled with Downey Fabric Softener. But I digress. Then came the Muppet Show, which I think is one of the most brilliant TV shows ever. My siblings and I can still quote large chunks of sketches from those shows. I became a Muppet Fan. Jim Henson had a big effect on my life. I would not be the puppeteer I am today without the Muppets. I can’t imagine a world without Muppets, but I may if this whole mess with EM.TV is not sorted out. The Sesame Street characters are owned by the Children’s Television Workshop and are not part of the deal.
People talk about “Dark Crystal” and “Labyrinth” as movies that changed movie making and what is possible. Jim Henson had a HECK of a time getting the financing together for those films. One of the reasons he did the deal with Disney was to get some financial security for his company.
But all is not doom and gloom. FOX is still talking about doing a new Muppet Show based on the old one. Time Life is releasing the old Muppet show on VideoTape and DVD. Pallisades has some rocking action figures available with more on the way. Hot Topic and other teen trend stores and catalogues have Muppet related stuff for sale. There is talk of more Muppet movies on the drawing board.
I’ll cross my fingers that when the dust settles the company that Jim Henson started is owned by those who know and care about my favorite felt and fun fur friends.
• 
KERMIT: It’s the Muppet Show with our very special guest … Peter David!
It an’t easy being Green, or being rejected by prospective companies…
Some movies really benifit from Puppetering. I recently watched Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and that movie looks wicked awsome in part to the great puppetering (Which was done my Jim Hanson Company, I think). Now if they made a live action Turtle movie these days, they would probably do something stupid like having them be CGI created, which you can still see the diffrence between CGI and real people.
Keep Puppets and the Frog alive.
Ahh, the Muppets. Definitely a group that remains close to my heart as well. While my sister I certainly watched a lot of the Muppet Show, I got to know the characters best through the ‘big three’ movies: The Muppet Movie, The Great Muppet Caper, and The Muppets Take Manhattan. In my mind, nothing comes close. Right before I returned to college after winter break this year, I sat down and rewatched MM and GMC, and unlike so many childhood favorites, they were even better this time around. Always witty and intelligent, with a lovely innocence at the heart of it all. I sincerely hope that the Muppets will be around in new and old ways for many years to come.
I couldn’t agree with you more, Kathleen! I’m not a puppeteer, but a cartoonist-writer-improvisational comedic actor….and The Muppets have been HUGELY influential in my life as well! In my opinion, ‘The Muppet Show’ often stood toe-to-toe with ‘Monty Python’s Flying Circus’ when it came to being imaginative, satirical, boundary-pushing, surreal, and flat-out, fall-down funny!! I remember seeing…twice in my life, so far…a completely non-Muppet short film by Jim Henson that was as brilliant as ‘A Hard Day’s Night’-era Richard Lester. There were lots of quick-cuts and (again, I use this word) surreal, dream-like images. (One bit consisted of a cover being lifted off a dish, revealing Jim Henson’s head on a plate a la John the Baptist. He looks at the camera and weakly says: ‘Help’. An homage, perhaps??) It’s been at least twenty years since I last saw this little gem, and I wish I could remember the name of it!
Well, I could go on and on about the genius of Jim Henson, the joy of seeing the gang even in such small increments as Denny’s commercials (although both Statler & Waldorf’s voices were awful!) and the Weezer video, the coolness of the Pallisades action figures, the joy of re-discovery in the Time-Life releases (By the way, I received eleven VHS tapes until they stopped coming. The television ads say there’re TEN tapes in the series. Hmmmm), the attention to detail and history of the recent Christmas TV-movie (someone besides me remembered that Scooter’s uncle once owned the Muppet Theatre!), and….well, like I said, I could go on.
I know The Muppets will too.
I’m also a huge Muppet fan. I just got the 15 DVD set from Time-Life in the mail and I’ve been giddy with anticipation of watching them all again. I’ve also been avidly collecting the toys from Palisades. (And I am in no way a toy collector.) They are absolutely outstanding! Can’t wait till the Swedish Chef w/Kitchen Deluxe Playset comes out. Hopefully the property will be taken over by someone who handles it properly. I’ve really enjoyed the later work they’ve been doing, especially the Christmas special. And Pepe the Prawn has rapidly become one of my favorite Muppets.
And who can forget that classic moment in the Muppet Movie (1978), wherein Jim Henson shows just what insight the Muppets have into the male-female dynamic?
To set the scene up, Kermit has been apparently abandoned by Miss Piggy during dinner, setting up a moment straight out of Casablanca, with Rolf the Dog as the piano player of solace.
Not to ruin the reparte (which is classic), Rolf gives Kermit his view on the great benefits of bachelorhood, including “cracking open a beer, taking himself for a walk and going to bed.”
Kermit muses, “Hmm. Nice and simple.”
“Yup. Stay away from women. That’s my mot-to.”
“But I can’t.”
“Neither can I. That’s my TROUBLE!”
Aahh. The Muppets yet again impart a timeless truth.
>>And who can forget that classic moment in the Muppet Movie (1978), wherein Jim Henson shows just what insight the Muppets have into the male-female dynamic?
To set the scene up, Kermit has been apparently abandoned by Miss Piggy during dinner, setting up a moment straight out of Casablanca, with Rolf the Dog as the piano player of solace.
Not to ruin the reparte (which is classic), Rolf gives Kermit his view on the great benefits of bachelorhood, including “cracking open a beer, taking himself for a walk and going to bed.”
Kermit muses, “Hmm. Nice and simple.”
“Yup. Stay away from women. That’s my mot-to.”
“But I can’t.”
“Neither can I. That’s my TROUBLE!”
Aahh. The Muppets yet again impart a timeless truth.<<
Not to mention the whimsical and wistful song that follows, the title of which ALONE sums it up: ‘I Hope That Something Better Comes Along’!
Hooper
“I am not a shrimp! I am a king prawn!”
“I think before you answer that question you’d better be real clear on the final destination of that finger. “
“Remember, if you experience any unpleasantness, please let me know. I would hate to miss it. “
“Kermit, you’re the best friend any alien could ask for”
I’m one of the few that liked Muppets in Space. im sure the company will continue.
One of the best franchises ever. The Muppet Movie is one of the funniest, and one of my favorite movies ever. It’s a rare form of entertainment that can be so funny and yet so full of heart. I hope Jim Henson knew the impact he had on lives. It was one of the things that made me the person I am today and established my sense of humor. I hope it works out. If not, who wants to chip in and buy it?
It’s funny. There are so many people (myself included) that had huge chunks of their definition of “what is funny” come from the Muppets, just there are so many people that think the Muppets are out of date because they’re puppets. it’s like the Muppets aren’t allowed to be funny anymore…just because they’re “low-tech” (which isn’t exactly true either, but that’s the perception), or because “puppets are for kids”, or for whatever other stupid reason that people want to give. The collective consciousness seems to think they have outgrown Kermit and company, but in all honesty, we could all probably use a laugh right about now…especially one filled with their brand of wide-eyed innocence.
Since I’m here…the Muppets do seem to have a thriving online community. great examples of which are http://www.muppetcentral.com and http://www.toughpigs.com Muppet fans should stop by, they’re really fun places to be.
I’m a huge Muppet fan too–as folks who know me well will confirm, Kermit the Frog is one of my all-time-favorite fictional heroes.
As long as we’re sharing favorite Muppet moments, some of my favorites include:
Opera star Beverly Sills guest-starring on the The Muppet Show. Fozzie somehow gets the idea that she’s a country/western singer. Sam the Eagle is thrilled to have a guest of such high culture–until he sees that Gonzo’s taught her the finer art of hanging spoons off your nose. The finale Pigoletto. Absolutely, one of my faves.
I’ll also mention last year’s It’s a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie on NBC, which I just loved–it had typical Muppet heart, but it was manically funny too. (I loved Fozzie’s chase scene, where he gets inadvertantly painted green then mistaken for a Grinch…) The balance between earnestness and humorousness has been off in a lot of recent Muppet projects; this one seemed to have gotten the balance a bit better.
Then, of course, there’s the great Muppet*Vision 3D experience at Disney-MGM theme park in Florida…
I do hope the Muppets get purchased by someone who can and will do the Muppets right. A big challenge, without Jim Henson, but one I hope someone rises to…
Favorite Muppet moments?
1) During an episode of the soap opera “Veterinarian’s Hospital” Dr. Bob relates the fact that one of his ancestors was a Viking but not a very good Viking. In fact he was a bad Viking. “How bad was he Dr. Bob?” “He was so bad they called him the pillage idiot!” Ouch.
2) For some reason there was a moose wandering around backstage of the theater and Kermit finally stops him and asks him what his name is and the moose replies “Mickey. Mickey Moose.” Ouch again.
3) James Coburn is the guest star and he is teaching Animal anger management techniques. During a meditation session they are attacked by ninjas and Animal’s anger is justified. Hey, it could happen.
BTW, I reserve the right to have misremembered the previous moments.
Fazhoul
“My God! You’re like a trained ape! Without the training!”
Hooper, could the film you saw have been Henson’s student film “Timepiece?” I haven’t seen it myself, but it was excerpted in some of the tributes to Henson. Did it have a man painting an elephant pink? If so, that was “Timepiece.”
Ah, I just love the Muppets. My favorites have to be Gonzo and Sweetums (he’s that big, brown, shaggy monster).
I originally grew up watching Sesame Street. I remember watching The Muppet Show when it was airing on Nick at Nite for a very short period of time. Muppet Babies and Fraggle Rock also hold some fond memories for me.
I got Muppet Treasure Island on DVD for Christmas. It’s a great movie. One of the funnier Muppet movies if I do say so myself. Though I will have to refresh my memory on the others.
For the record, I love the Muppets, but I couldn’t resist posting this gem from Larry Groznic:
http://www.theonion.com/onion3902/i_appreciate_the_muppets.html
>>Hooper, could the film you saw have been Henson’s student film “Timepiece?” I haven’t seen it myself, but it was excerpted in some of the tributes to Henson. Did it have a man painting an elephant pink? If so, that was “Timepiece.” <<
“Timepiece”! Yes! That’s it!! Thank you, Doug!!
Hooper
Yes the piece is called “Timepiece” and it is a classic.
My favorite Muppet Show moment was Zero Mostel and his poem “Fears” which will live in the back my mind for ever.
In the realm of Muppet surreal: I was at the San Diego ComicCon this past year talking to Mark Hamill at the Bongo Booth while the Pallisades booth was showing the Muppet show with Mark. Past and Present collide. Mark said that he had a lot of fun doing that episode
Count me in as another Muppets fan. The original film is, for me, still the most magical — but I have been pleasantly surprised by how much I’ve enjoyed the post-Henson films.
I missed the Christmas special this year, though, darn it. Does anyone know if it’s available in video stores?
Hey, Kathleen, how about that priceless moment on ‘Farscape’ a couple of weeks ago, as Aeryn Sun reacted to the classic bit from the early days of ‘Sesame Street’ of Kermit reciting the alphabet with the little girl?
(Kermit and a little girl…who looked to be about four years old…recite the alphabet together, until she impishly decides its more fun to provoke Kermit by randomly substituting the name ‘Cookie Monster’ in place of the next letter in the progression!! Kermit leaves in a huff. After a beat, the girl calls out ‘I love you’ to the now off-screen frog. Which, of course, brings Kermit back to her for a sweet ending to the whole thing. Completely unscripted and spontaneous!!)
“This girl is slow!”
“Again with the Cookie Monster!”
Who knew company synergy could be so laugh-out-loud funny??
Hooper
I love the Muppets. Jim Henson Productions as a whole are still some of the best family entertainment out there.
Some of my favorites Muppet Show episodes would still be the Halloween shows; one starring Vincent Price and the other Alice Cooper.
Sesame Street was my first english teacher which resulted in my speaking both french and english by age 6.
All i hope is that no companies like Disney, Saban or MTV put their grubby hands on what are classic characters and make a travesty out of them. i.e. Xtreme Muppets!
How could people forget to include the musical recordings that the released, especially the ones with John Denver? There was one about the Rockies, and an enjoyable Christmas one too. I sure hope that somebody keeps the muppets around. I grew up with the original Muppet Show, and it was great how the puppets worked with live actors. I think that the chemistry was almost palpable, rather than lacking like it does currently between CG characters and actors. And how could people forget to mention the Swedish Chef? He was such a great character. But I’m rambling, so I’ll shut up.
Chris
Hey, I just recalled this:
Does anyone remember the PAD-scripted X-Factor 73, and its Kermit cameo (with the dialogue referencing the original Muppet Movie)? I loved that!
(X-Factor 73, you may recall, also reprised dialogue from the Rocketeer film (for which PAD of course did the novelization (and which starred Jennifer Connelly as Jenny (even though in the comics she was called Betty (and now Connelly is going to be playing another comic book “Betty” in the Hulk film (and PAD is doing *that* novelization too! (and… and… Connelly’s first major film role was in Jim Henson’s “Labyrinth”, and she was interviewed about it by Kermit himself in Muppet Magazine (and wow, wouldn’t it have been cool if PAD had put Kermit in a Hulk issue — gosh, my favorite two green fictional characters in one scene!))))))).)
[pant pant]
I too received 15 videos from Time/Life, but for some reason they are only offering 10 now.
There are so many fun memories from the original Muppet Show. And the Time/Life tapes are a great reminder. I’ve finally been able to convince my children (ages 5 and 7) that the Muppets are more than Elmo and his crayon world!!!
Some random memories: Peter Sellers’ and John Cleese’s appearances. Priceless. The Banana Boat Song with Harry Belafonte and Fozzie. And a couple that I remember that are not “yet” available. Jean Stapleton wanting to do a number with her favorite Muppet who turns out to be Crazy Harry! And Christopher Reeve’s appearance as well. I hope they release more soon!
And BTW, does anyone remember the original Sesame Street with Mr. Hooper, the original owner of Hooper’s Store, and a little African-American Muppet named Roosevelt Franklin?
Somebody cue the “memories” music…
Posted by Jason:
“I missed the Christmas special this year, though, darn it. Does anyone know if it’s available in video stores?”
Not in stores, but NBC is selling it on their shopnbc.com site as part of a video/CD set. I don’t think you can buy the video separately, though…
Posted by Jason:
“I missed the Christmas special this year, though, darn it. Does anyone know if it’s available in video stores?”
Not in stores, but NBC is selling it on their shopnbc.com site as part of a video/CD set. I don’t think you can buy the video separately, though…
And BTW, does anyone remember the original Sesame Street with Mr. Hooper,
At age 42, I have friends who still greet me (a la Big Bird) with: “Mr. Looper! Mr. Cooper! Mr. Blooper!”….when they aren’t saying with a Robert Shaw burr: “Yuir hands’re soft frum countin’ munny all yer life, Mister Hooperr…”! But I digress….
the original owner of Hooper’s Store,
Ah, the great Will Lee. A class act, who even in his untimely death, provided a touching and powerful moment for the viewing audience when…rather than CTW recast his part…it was revealed that Mr. Hooper died suddenly off-screen,as well.
and a little African-American Muppet named Roosevelt Franklin?
Not only him, but also Herbert Birdsfoot (Grover’s original foil.”Heyyy, Her-bie Bay-beeee!!”), and the guy in the slouch hat and trenchcoat (“Psst! Hey, Bud!”) who tried to sell Ernie…’hot’?!…letters and numbers!!
Come to think of it, remember when the Muppets on ‘Sesame Street’ were…gritty?? When they had real jobs?? When they were hardhats and policemen and longshoremen and mailmen. When they were ‘the people in your neighborhood’, and not so much the namby-pamby, cutsie, PC, generic fuzzy monsters and the like!
Hooper
Hey, Kathleen, how about that priceless moment on ‘Farscape’ a couple of weeks ago, as Aeryn Sun reacted to the classic bit from the early days of ‘Sesame Street’ of Kermit reciting the alphabet with the little girl?
(Kermit and a little girl…who looked to be about four years old…recite the alphabet together, until she impishly decides its more fun to provoke Kermit by randomly substituting the name ‘Cookie Monster’ in place of the next letter in the progression!! Kermit leaves in a huff. After a beat, the girl calls out ‘I love you’ to the now off-screen frog. Which, of course, brings Kermit back to her for a sweet ending to the whole thing. Completely unscripted and spontaneous!!)
“This girl is slow!”
I’m a children’s librarian. When I do storytime with the kids, sometimes we’ll sing the ABCs and I’ll goof around by “making mistakes” halfway through, singing the wrong letters or putting in other words so that the kids can go “no that’s wrong” and do the whole “we’re smarter than the grownup” routine. At times I’ll get all the way to Y and then finish with “and Cookie Monster.” I thought I was just being silly, but it wasn’t until that episode that I realized I was reliving a childhood memory.
I was in Manhattan last week, and my brother came up with the idea of tracking down the business office of the Jim Henson Company. I managed to get the address from the Muppet Central site, and we were briefly allowed to take pictures of a mural in the lobby. I also caught part of the Sesame Street pilot at the Museum of Television & Radio.
I’d briefly chatted with the receptionist, and I dated myself by referring to both the Jimmy Dean Show and the Tale of Tinker Dee pilot. Feels weird talking about the Lachoy Dragon to a guy who couldn’t have been born before 1980.
Wow… favorite Muppet moments… so many to choose from!
Alan Arkin accidentally getting the “Dr. Jekyl & Mr. Hyde” treatment from Muppet Labs and then going berserk on a hillside full of cute and fuzzy bunnies…
The “Huggy Wuggy Mugger Wugger” sketch… or was it “Huggy Buggy Wugger Mugger…?”
“Can You Picture That” from the Muppet Movie…
…and of course a certain bizzare weirdo character with a big nose who had this touching sensitive side to him. At one point in my life I found myself needing to pick out a new middle name for myself, so guess what I picked? (Yes, that is my real middle name listed below. Could’ve been worse, at least its not my first name.)
So if nobody steps up to the plate to buy them, what happens? EM.TV just shuts them down? Wow, I hope not.
I’m a huge Muppet fan. Whether it is The Muppet Show, the various Muppet movies, Fraggle Rock, Emmett Otter’s Jug Band Christmas, Dark Crystal, and the tons of Creature Shop collaborations.
Jim Henson and The Muppets were the biggest reason I majored in Radio/Television/Film in college. I had a crazy dream that I would one day be a Muppeteer, standing alongside Jim Henson, Frank Oz, Dave Goelz, Jerry Nelson, Richard Hunt, Carroll Spinney, Steve Whitmore and the dozens of other unsung outstanding Muppet performers.
I was devestated when I heard of Jim’s death, and I was unsure of the future of this wonderful franchise and now it seems we’re all on pins and needles again waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Here’s hoping, eh?
— Mike
Does anybody else remember the episode where a mad scientist muppet sang “Time in a Bottle.” Throughout the song he drinks potions, consistently growing younger, until, right at the end of the song he drinks a final potion and POOF, he’s the ancient scientist again. That one scene, to this day, has to be one of the most melancholy, touching pieces I’ve seen in my life. It truly showed the genuine heart that the Muppets were capable of.
On a slightly lighter, related note, I realized the other day, after watching Farscape that the Jim Henson Company would be the PERFECT company to produce the (apparently) upcoming Metroid movie. Unfortunately, it probably won’t happen. More than likely, the story will be crap and the effects will be budget CGI. *SIGH* At least they can’t take the movie I’ve imagined away from me…
Dan, I remember that specific sketch as well. I totally agree with you about it. Pure magic.
Who can forget Steve Martin’s classic appearance as the waiter in The Muppet Movie? (Off topic-Did that man EVER have any color in his hair?)
Or there’s the Veterinarian’s (sp?) Hospital sketch where they start operating on the telephone. Heck, any of the VH sketches are great. I think it’s what first started my love of puns, good and bad.
Gonzo as…. Nerth? Vader. The mask is classic.
To combine Muppets and Trek: The Swedish Chef has been assimilated. Borg Borg Borg.
For those who are interested (everyone here right now, it seems) and are not informed, there is a Muppets 25th Anniversary CD out. (Saw it by pure chance in Wal-Mart and HAD to get it.) It contains songs that were performed on the show, plus songs from the different movies as well. The liner notes are rather enlightening. My personal, minor quibbles with it:
The opening theme provided is short. The Statler and Waldorf lines are not included. It does not include the opening themes to either the Pigs in Space, Swedish Chef or Veterinarian’s Hospital sketches. They do include Gonzo’s “I’m Going To Go Back There Someday”, but it is the version from Muppets in Space, rather than the classic and, IMO, superior version from The Muppet Movie.
People listed several moments that sparked more memories. When Peter Sellers was on the show I remember him doing a musical number as a one man band. The only thing I remember of the song is the refrain,
“Cigareetes & whiskey & wild, wild women,
They’ll drive you crazy, they’ll drive you insane!”
I also remember a musical number that I think was just the Muppets, no guest star. The song was “For What It’s Worth” by Buffalo Springfield. It starts out with a forest scene and hunter quietly walking through the woods. A rabbit pops out of a tree stump out of sight of the hunter and begins singing
“There’s something happening here
What it is ain’t exactly clear
There’s a man with a gun over there
Tellin’ me I got to beware”
As the song went on more and more woodland creatures joined in the song. I still consider this the first “music video” that I ever saw.
Fazhoul
“There are so many people (myself included) that had huge chunks of their definition of “what is funny” come from the Muppets”
Agreed.
And I agree with Tizzy. Two of my three favourite MUPPET bits were indeed where Fozzy ruins poor Belafonte’s rendition of DAY-O and the bit with Sellers where he asks Kermit “Who would you like me to [impersonate]?” “How about ‘Peter Sellers’?” “Sorry, I can’t do him any more. I’ve had him surgically removed.”
But, my favourite line – indeed one of my all-time top comedic moments – is the one where they had the show’s head writer as the guest. At the end of the episode Waldorf & Statler [after whom my friends and I named our ‘Waldorf & Statler Bad Film Appreciation Society’]
COMMENT: “It was a classic show business story.” “Yeah, he came to this theatre a nobody, and left it a has-been.”
Subsequently, my doctor told me I should be careful because I could do myself grievous damage laughing so hard.
When Jim died, the Muppets lost their focus, just like when Walt Disney died and it took YEARS for them to get back on track.
The cool thing about the Muppets was that kids AND adults could watch them and be entertained without cringing. They were hip and witty in their own way. Now, they’ve become strictly commercial “kiddie” fare for the teletubbies set with diminishing wit. Muppet Treasure Island was okay, but everything seems subpar for some reason. They need a new captain taking charge of that ship, IMO.
Now, they’ve become strictly commercial “kiddie” fare for the teletubbies set with diminishing wit.
Joe, did you see the latest Christmas special? If you missed it give it a chance, you might be surprised.
For me, that was the classic Muppets back again. Chaos reigns in the Muppet Theater, Kermit goes on one of his classic tirades… all the “frantic” stuff I thought the Muppets had been missing since Jim Henson’s death. And definitely not aimed at just kids– I’d heard that NBC required that it be edited down, but as I watched it I kept saying to myself, “This is the toned down edited version?!?”
For me, it was definitely a sign that they were back on the right track.
Favorite Muppet moments:
1. John Cleese as a pirate turning to the nagging muppet parrot on his shoulder and saying, “How would you like to be an ex-parrot?” I’m sure most of the kids watching that would never have gotten it.
2. Link Hogthrob and other swine playing Vikings and singing “In the Navy”.
3. The Jabberwocky sketch, after the Jabberwocky has been killed, laments, “Can I put my body back on so I can go home?”
4. Marty Feldman and Cookie Monster.
I also want to put in another plug for Muppetvision 3D at Walt Disney World (and, I think it is now at Disneyland as well). It may be the last project Jim Henson worked on, and it is amazing! You sit in a recreation of the theater from the Muppet Show, complete with animatronic Statler and Waldorf. You are then treated to a 3-d movie which goes about as well as every other project the muppets attempt.
After seeing Muppetvision, go to Pleasure Island and visit the Adventurer’s Club. You won’t be sorry.
Robert
I thought Muppets Tonight had a lot of moments in the tradition of the original show. Such as Garth Brooks in Hassidic dress singing “If I was a Rich Man” or when Bobo the Bear was trying to romance Cindy Crawford while Rizzo fed him lines via radio. Worked well until Rizzo’s nephew came back from the fair and Rizzo says “Nice balloons, can I play with them” (sound of someone being hit inside the dressing room).
David
If I understand correctly, Jim Henson virtually reinvented the concept of puppets on television. His character ‘walked in’ from ‘offstage’ instead of just popping up, interacted in three dimensions with humans instead of being confined to a stage, etc.
‘The Muppet Show’ was one of the most brilliantly funny television shows ever, and it almost didn’t happen. Henson had wanted to do a show of that kind for years but was repeatedly turned down because people thought puppets were kiddie show stuff. Finally, some British company agreed to finance it and the rest is history. (You’ll get a less confused, more accurate version of that story from the MUPPET SHOW 25th ANNIVERSERY CD liner notes.)
Some classic Muppet moments not mentioned yet…
John Cleese being dragged through a series of costume changes in an attempt to have him do a musical number. (“The moment the curtain closed, four monsters grabbed me and stuffed me into this! (costume)”)
A cow –Not a muppet, an actual cow– turning up backstage at the theatre. (“It must’ve sneaked in.” “Scooter, cows don’t sneak.”)
Robin, Kermit’s nephew, singing ‘Give Me Some Magic’
Those utterly bizarre opening musical numbers (Penguins at the North Pole singing ‘Lullaby of Broadway”, for instance)
Kermit’s only rule about booking guest-stars (“No puppets”) being bent to allow Henson’s inspirations and heroes like Edgar Bergan and Senor Venscez, as well as up-and-comers like Mummechenz, to share the spotlight.
And so on and so forth.
Posted by michael pickens:
“Kermit’s only rule about booking guest-stars (“No puppets”) being bent to allow Henson’s inspirations and heroes like Edgar Bergan and Senor Venscez, as well as up-and-comers like Mummechenz, to share the spotlight.”
Yes! Another great moment in, I think, Edgar Bergan episode…Gonzo aksed Kermit what the puppeteer guest-star did that was so impressive. Kermit explained puppeteering as a guy with a special doll who makes it wiggle. Gonzo is incredulous–doll-wiggling will never catch on–and walks off. Kermit faces the camera and says, “I didn’t have the heart to tell him.”
I was a big, big, BIG fan of the Muppets when I was young. I enjoyed watching them on both Sesame Street and the Muppet Show, as well as the movies. And it was such sadness for me too when Jim Henson passed away in 1990. He brought such greatness to entertainment. I sure hope that they can make it really big again soon, and from what’s been discussed here, it certainly does look like they can soar again in the next few years! Ole! Thanks for bringing the Muppets up for discussion, they’re something that I’ve always loved so much too!
Another long-time Muppet fan heard from — Lisa and I had “The Rainbow Connection” playing as the second half of the recessional for our wedding less than a year after Jim Henson passed away. Henson’s not one who can be replaced, easily or otherwise.
(Of course, the first half of the recessional was the instrumental “Love Theme from Mystery Science Theater 3000,” so take any alleged depth here with a big grain of salt. 🙂
Some favorite old-time Muppet moments:
1) Almost the whole Mark Hamill show, but particularly the “what else can you do?” “I gargle Gershwin.” (When Mark was signing during Comic-Con weekend a few years ago, we almost asked him to gargle Gershwin for us, but figured the odds of his memories being that specific more than twenty years later were slim. A shame.
2) Harry Belafonte. “Turn the World Around.” ‘Nuff said. (The “Fozzie gets stuck in the typewriter” bit there is awfully funny, too.)
3) Chris Reeve in Vets’ Hospital. “Don’t worry, I’ll have you fixed in no time.” “Never say ‘fixed’ to a dog!”
And I’ll second the “Muppets Tonight” praise — for the most part, they got it very right. Loved the Garth Brooks show (“he said he was gonna do a country song!” “yeah, but he never said what country.”), but I think my absolute favorite moment there came in with the Billy Crystal episode, when Rizzo and Clifford are fighting over who has to tell him the bad news. Naturally, he pops up and asks, “tell me what?”
“Uh … uh … uh… ” and then Rizzo blurts out, “Soylent Green is people?”
Abso-fraggin-lutely classic.
TWL
Psted by Tim Lynch:
“Another long-time Muppet fan heard from — Lisa and I had “The Rainbow Connection” playing as the second half of the recessional for our wedding…”
That’s great! At our wedding, my wife and I danced to “The Rainbow Connection” as our first dance. (Our recessional was the end theme to Star Wars, which starts out surprisingly bridal; the gasps of recognition among our guests when they realized what was being played were priceless.) Then this past fall, when my sister got married she played “Rainbow Connection” during the cocktail hour, so my wife and I–and our new baby daughter!–had to dance amid the revellers. Quite fun.
Yes, Muppets Tonight! was also great–there were so few episodes, I’m expecting them to turn up in a DVD set someday. One of my favorite moments was Seymour (the Elephant) and Pepe (the Prawn) and their vaudeville routine–not so much for the routine itself (“What do you get if you cross an elephant and a rhino?” “‘Ell if I know!”) but for the outtakes they aired over the closing credits.
I’m glad Pepe made it to the big time, but I kinda miss Seymour…
From Muppets Tonight the Garth Brooks episode. The piece that had me on the floor way Clifford and Rizzo talking about Garth while this large Kabuki Guy is stomping around in the background. The conversation is ended and I think RIzzo says” Hi Garth” and the Kubuki guy straightens up and says “Hi guys” and you are hit with the revelation of Garth Brook in Kabuki make-up. I DID fall out of my chair laughing.
Kath
Ali writes (in response to me mentioning “The Rainbow Connection” as recessional music):
“That’s great! At our wedding, my wife and I danced to “The Rainbow Connection” as our first dance. (Our recessional was the end theme to Star Wars, which starts out surprisingly bridal; the gasps of recognition among our guests when they realized what was being played were priceless.)”
Heh. I had that happen for the few guests who recognized the MST3K theme — in fact, during the rehearsal we had to stop for a few minutes because one of the ushers was doubled over in laughter. (Only one non-wedding-party guest recognized it, and he just flashed us a broad grin.)
The SW “Medal Ceremony” music is great for weddings, though — we’d arranged all the processional/recessional music ourselves, but I had my father in charge of general pre-wedding and post-wedding music. He picked the SW piece as the first post-wedding piece of music, which made lots of people think it was the “third half” of our recessional. Not intentional on our part, but it worked well enough!
Obligatory Muppet content: “UN-believable.” (Pepe, when the “elefino” joke falls flat.)
TWL
Robert – Muppets 3d was fantastic! I saw it shortly after it came out (maybe a year after, not sure). I can tell you this much about it: It’s worth the price of Disney World admission alone just to go and see that 3 or 4 times, taking at least one of those times to watch nothing but Statler and Waldorf. The entire show, they sit there and watch everything on screen, reacting to everything even when they don’t speak. Not a lot going on really, but they never stop moving. It’s very hypnotic.
I saw it over 10 years ago. I certainly hope it hasn’t changed since then.
Since we’re recounting favorite Muppet moments, here are a couple of mine:
Harry Belafonte’s “Turn the World Around” was probably the most moving song for me — it was like listening to Paul Simon before I knew who Paul Simon was. And “Banana Boat” with Fozzie was unspeakably funny, as it’s been mentioned here.
Rita Moreno singing “Fever” with Animal on drums was among their most brilliantly staged comedy bits ever. “My kinda woman!!!”
And as for favorite Muppets, I’ve always loved Dr. Teeth (he was like George Clinton for kids) and Lew Zealand — The Boomerang Fish Thrower! — these are both a couple of hysterical characters that, though they were never in the lineup of main characters (Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem were the house band on the Muppet Show, it’s true), I always got the feeling they were among Jim Henson’s favorites when considering the parts they played in the movies and such — such as Dr. Teeth and the band being the Deus Ex Machina in the Muppet Movie and every appearance by Lew Zealand (they were all the same, so why bother distinguishing them?)