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The Muppets are a group of puppet characters created by Jim Henson starting in 1954–55. Although the term is often used to refer to any puppet that resembles the distinctive style of The Muppet Show, the term is both an informal name and legal trademark owned by the Walt Disney Company in reference to the original characters created by Henson.
Henson has said the word "Muppet" predated the show Sam and Friends. He would sometimes tell people the term had been created by combining the words "marionette" and "puppet", but he also said that it was really just a made-up word.[1]
After earlier unsuccessful attempts, the Walt Disney Company bought the Muppets in 2004.[2] Exceptions include characters appearing on Sesame Street (as they were previously sold to Sesame Workshop, although they have always had creative rights, only reimbursing the Jim Henson Company to create and provide their Muppet characters for their use) and the Fraggles of Fraggle Rock (which are still owned by the Jim Henson Company). The legal trademark on the term "Muppet" is currently held by The Muppets Studio, a wholly owned division of the Walt Disney Company, although Sesame Workshop and the Jim Henson Company continue to occasionally use the term on their characters with certain permissions from Disney.
The Muppets' latest television special, A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa, premiered on NBC on December 17, 2008. It was released on DVD on September 29, 2009.[3][4] A Halloween TV special featuring the Muppets was expected to air on ABC in October 2010,[5][6][7] but was shelved due to the 2011 film.[8]
The latest film, The Muppets, written by Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller and directed by James Bobin, was released by Walt Disney Pictures on November 23, 2011, to much critical acclaim and commercial success.[9]
A common design for a Muppet is a character with a very wide mouth and large protruding eyes.
The puppets are often molded or carved out of various types of foam, and then covered with fleece, fur, or any other felt-like material. Muppets may represent humans, anthropomorphic animals, realistic animals, robots, anthropomorphic objects, extraterrestrial creatures, mythical beings or other unidentified, newly imagined creatures, monsters, or abstract characters.
Muppets are distinguished from ventriloquist "dummies"/"puppets", which are typically animated only in the head and face, in that their arms or other features are also mobile and expressive. Muppets are typically made of softer materials. They are also presented as being independent of the puppeteer, who is usually not visible—hidden behind a set or outside of the camera frame. Using the camera frame as the "stage" was an innovation of the Muppets. Previously on television, there would typically be a stage hiding the performers, as if in a live presentation. Sometimes they are seen full-bodied. This is done by using invisible strings to move the characters' bodies and mouths, and then adding the voices later.[10]
Muppets tend to develop, as writer Michael Davis put it, "organically", meaning that the puppeteers take time, often up to a year, slowly developing their characters and voices. Muppets are also, as Davis said, "test-driven, passed around from one Henson troupe member to another in the hope of finding the perfect human-Muppet match".[11]
When interacting with Muppets, children tended to act as though the Muppets were living creatures, even when they could see the puppeteers.[12]
The Muppeteer or Muppet master always holds the Muppet above his head or in front of his body, with one hand operating the head and mouth and the other manipulating the hands and arms, either with two separate control rods or by "wearing" the hands like gloves. One consequence of this design is that most Muppets are left-handed as the puppeteer uses his right hand to operate the head while operating the arm rod with his left hand. There are many other common designs and means of operation. In advanced Muppets, several Muppeteers may control a single character; the performer who controls the mouth usually provides the voice for the character. As technology has evolved, the Jim Henson team and other puppeteers have developed an enormous variety of means to operate Muppets for film and television, including the use of suspended rigs, internal motors, remote radio control, and computer enhanced and superimposed images. Creative use of a mix of technologies has allowed for scenes in which Muppets appear to be riding a bicycle, rowing a boat, and even dancing on-stage with no puppeteer in sight.
Famous Muppets from The Muppet Show include Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Gonzo the Great, Rizzo the Rat, Rowlf the Dog, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and Beaker, Scooter, Statler and Waldorf, the Swedish Chef, Sam the Eagle, Sweetums, Robin the Frog (Kermit's nephew), and the band Dr. Teeth and The Electric Mayhem featuring Animal on the drums. Other well-known Muppets include Sesame Street characters such as Big Bird and Elmo, and the main characters of Fraggle Rock.
Television shows featuring Muppets have been The Jimmy Dean Show, Sesame Street, The Muppet Show, Fraggle Rock and Bear in the Big Blue House. Other series have included The Jim Henson Hour, The Ghost of Faffner Hall, Dog City, Secret Life of Toys, Muppets Tonight, The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss and Statler and Waldorf: From the Balcony. A recurring adult-oriented cast of Muppets (in a setting known as The Land of Gorch) were featured throughout the first season of Saturday Night Live.
Guest stars on some of these programs have occasionally had Muppet versions of themselves. It was a regular practice for the first few episodes of The Muppet Show, and ZZ Top, among others, have appeared as Muppet versions of themselves on Sesame Street. Muppet versions of real people have also appeared in other shows, such as in 30 Rock, when one of the characters, Kenneth Parcell, views his co-workers as Muppet-versions in episode "Apollo, Apollo" of March 26, 2009.
The puppet characters of Farscape, The Storyteller, Mother Goose Stories, The Hoobs, Construction Site and Dinosaurs, as well as from the films Labyrinth, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Buddy, The Country Bears and The Dark Crystal, are not considered Muppets,[13] as they were made by Jim Henson's Creature Shop, rather than by Henson's Muppet Workshop. The puppet casts of Puppet Up! and Tinseltown are also not considered Muppets as they were made by The Jim Henson Company after the sale of The Muppets in 2004. The Star Wars character Yoda was voiced by Frank Oz, one of Henson's regular performers, and is often referred to as a Muppet in media and reference works; he is not, however, a Muppet and Henson's organization was not involved in the character's design.
The Muppets' popularity has been so expansive that Muppet characters have been treated as celebrities in their own right. The Muppets have presented at the Academy Awards and Emmy Awards;[14] made cameo appearances in such feature films as Rocky III,[15] An American Werewolf in London[16] and Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium;[17] and have been interviewed on the newsmagazine 60 Minutes. Kermit the Frog was interviewed early on in Jon Stewart's run on The Daily Show,[18] guest hosted The Tonight Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, America's Funniest Home Videos and an April Fool's Day edition of Larry King Live;[19] and the frog has served as Grand Marshal of the Tournament of Roses Parade.[20] The characters also appeared in-character on such sit-coms and dramas as The Cosby Show, The West Wing and The Torkelsons.[citation needed] The music video for the Weezer song "Keep Fishin'" is premised on the band performing on The Muppet Show and features appearances by several characters. On September 28, 2005, the United States Postal Service released a Jim Henson and the Muppets postage stamp series.[21] The Muppets also appeared on Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve for the 2008 countdown on December 31, 2007. Kermit, Rizzo and others welcomed in the new year with a series of messages to welcome viewers back from the advertising breaks. After one such segment, with Kermit in Time Square, co-host Ryan Seacrest thanked his pal "Kerms" for the help bringing in '08.[22] Miss Piggy has appeared as a guest on The Late Show and Kermit the Frog appeared on Hollywood Squares and as one of the celebrity commentators on VH1's I Love documentary series. They appeared on ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition as special hosts on January 3, 2010. In September 2010, the Muppets launched a new online cooking show called "The Muppets Kitchen with Cat Cora".[23]
On July 25, 2007, the Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta announced the opening of a new Jim Henson Wing, which will house anywhere from 500 to 700 retired Muppets. The new wing will also include films, sketches, and other materials from the Jim Henson Company archives. The wing was originally slated to open in 2012, but has been delayed by a lack of funding and rescheduled for a possible 2014 or 2015 debut.[24][25]
From its earliest planning stages, Sesame Street was designed to be a show that would use music and singing as a part of the material being taught. So it was only natural to release the musical content on records, not only to reinforce the curriculum lessons for children when they weren't watching the show, but also because Sesame Street music is enjoyable just for its own sake.[26]
The first six albums were released by Columbia Records and Warner Bros. Records, both major labels with many years of experience. These were deluxe albums, issued in colorful gatefold covers, usually with bonus material such as posters, lyric booklets, and photos and drawings of the show's characters. This arrangement lasted for the first five years of the show.
During the summer of 1970, as The Sesame Street Book & Record became a best seller, Bob McGrath and Loretta Long also released their own children's albums. While not part of the Sesame Street canon (even though they both mention Sesame Street on their covers), they also became well-known albums because of the show's huge popularity.
In 1974, Sesame Street created its own series of records, on an independent label that was called Sesame Street Records, with a custom record label logo of the Sesame Street sign. These albums were manufactured by Children's Records of America from 1974 to 1976, and by Distinguished Productions from 1977 to 1984. Over 70 titles were produced over the ten-year run of the label. The catalog included reissues of all of the previous Columbia and Warner Bros. albums, although in less lavish packages than their original editions. At first, titles were only issued on vinyl, but over the years, they were also produced on cassettes and 8-track tapes.
The Sesame Street Records label was shut down around 1984. Soon after, many Sesame Street titles began to be reissued on cassettes by an educational company called Sight & Sound. While some tapes used the original cover pictures, others had new cover pictures. An important historical footnote during this period is that in 1987, the very first Sesame Street CD was produced, called The Best of Sesame Street, and it would be the only CD produced until the early 1990s. In 1990, titles began to appear on Golden Music, which was the music division of Golden Books. A mix of new titles appeared, beginning with tributes to Jim Henson and Joe Raposo, along with reissues of older titles. Golden's license lasted until 1994.
In 1995, Sony Wonder began issuing a new series of titles. This was looked on with interest by some Sesame collectors, since Sony owns the back catalog of Columbia Records, who put out the very first Sesame Street LP in 1970. While that album has not yet been reissued on CD in its entirety, the second Columbia album, The Muppet Alphabet Album, was reissued as Sing the Alphabet. However, one section of dialogue was cut which referred to turning the record over, which wouldn't make any sense to CD listeners.
The Sony Wonder years culminated with Songs from the Street, an elaborate 3-CD boxed set produced in association with Sony Music's Legacy Recordings. This set was full of classic and rare tracks both from records and from live performances on the show. It also contained a detailed booklet about the history of the show, written by Christopher Cerf. It was the first time Sesame Street had received the boxed-set treatment from a major label, although several multi-LP boxed sets had been released over the years on Sesame Street Records.
On September 17, 2002, Rhino Records released The Muppet Show: Music, Mayhem, and More. In addition to the many Sesame Street and Muppets movie soundtracks available, this collection compiles music from various Muppets sources.
In 2007, Koch Records announced that it would begin distributing Sesame Street titles. The first titles began to appear in 2008, with reissues of albums that had previously been released on Sony Wonder. In addition to the main library of Sesame Street music, over the years, original cast albums have been sold at the Sesame Street Live shows.
Under Disney ownership, albums featuring "The Muppets" characters, have since been released by Walt Disney Records, including Best of the Muppets: The Muppets' Wizard of Oz (2005), The Muppets: A Green and Red Christmas (2006) and Muppets: The Green Album (2011), and The Muppets: Original Soundtrack (2011). Legal rights to Muppet-related songs such as "Rainbow Connection" and the "The Muppet Show Theme", are controlled by Fuzzy Muppet Songs and Mad Muppet Melodies, divisions of Disney Music Publishing.
Since the late 70s, numerous Muppet-related comic books have been released over the years. The first comic strips based on The Muppets appeared on September 21, 1981 in over 500 daily newspapers, just months after The Muppet Show ended its five year run. The Muppets Comic Strip was printed daily from 1981 to 1986. By the end of its initial run, the comic strip was seen in over 660 newspapers worldwide. Special strips were also created in color, exclusively for issues of Muppet Magazine.
The only film in the franchise to see a comic book adaptation was The Muppets Take Manhattan. The comic book series was adapted by Marvel Comics in 1984, as the 68 page story in Marvel Super Special No. 32, August. The adaptation was later re-printed into three limited series issues, released under Marvel's Star Comics imprint (November 1984 – January 1985).
In the wake of the success of the Muppet Babies television show, Star Comics began releasing the Muppet Babies comic book title on a bi-monthly basis. These were original stories, not adaptations of the show's episodes.
In the final Disney Adventures issue, with a cover date of November 2007, a one-page story single strip focusing on Fozzie Bear, Smedley, Statler, and Waldorf (with a cameo by Scooter) was released. Roger Langridge wrote and drew the comics intending it to be more long running.
In 2009, BOOM! Studios began publishing The Muppet Show Comic Book based on The Muppet Show and written and drawn by Roger Langridge. Additionally, BOOM! Studios also began publishing Muppet fairy-tale comic adaptations similar to The Muppet Christmas Carol and Muppet Treasure Island.
During the 90s, four Muppet sing-alongs were released by Jim Henson Video. They featured brand new material as well as music videos cut from previous shows and films. The first sing-along, Billy Bunny's Animal Songs, was notable at the time for being the first video release featuring Steve Whitmire performing Kermit. It was also the first production filmed after Jim Henson's death in 1990 and was immediately followed by production on The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson.
- Muppet Sing-Alongs: Billy Bunny's Animal Songs (1993)
- Muppet Sing-Alongs: It's Not Easy Being Green (1994)
- Muppet Sing-Alongs: Muppet Treasure Island (1996)
- Muppet Sing-Alongs: Things That Fly (1996)
During the 80s, several book-and-record sets were produced featuring characters from The Muppet Show and Muppet Babies. In addition, several interactive Playskool Talk 'n Plays based on the Muppets were produced including The Muppets: Opening Day at Peppermint Park.
The Muppet Show characters have been making worldwide appearances at Disney theme parks and the Disney Cruise Line since their first attraction, Muppet*Vision 3D, opened on May 16, 1991, at Disney's Hollywood Studios (known then as Disney-MGM Studios), part of the Walt Disney World Resort. Notable for being the final Muppets project to be produced by Jim Henson, the attraction had a subsequent opening on February 8, 2001, at Disney California Adventure Park, part of the Disneyland Resort. Directed by Henson and written by Bill Prady, the show is a 3-D film featuring the Muppets in a plot similar to what was seen on The Muppet Show.
Walt Disney Imagineering designed a free-roving, audio-animatronic that was later tested at Disney California Adventure Park and at Epcot at Walt Disney World. It is currently deployed at Hong Kong Disneyland[27]
Muppet-like and Muppet-inspired puppets star in the 2004 Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Avenue Q (which disavows any relationship with Sesame Workshop or the Jim Henson Company, possibly to avoid lawsuits from the two companies). Peter Jackson's film, Meet the Feebles is another parody of the Muppets. A vomit-spewing Kermit the Frog was a recurring character on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, and the Muppets were frequently "pre-empted" at the beginning of episodes for the Canadian series You Can't Do That On Television. Seth Green's short-lived show Greg the Bunny was about sentient hand-puppets working in a Muppet-like children's show. Many other movies and television shows such as The Simpsons, Family Guy, The West Wing and Robot Chicken have referenced The Muppets—for a more comprehensive list, see Muppet Wiki.
As a method of regaining a wider audience, The Muppets began to produce and air their own comedy shorts on the popular video sharing site YouTube.[28] After the "Muppets: Bohemian Rhapsody" was posted on the Muppet Studios' YouTube Channel, it ultimately gained 25 million views and took home two Webby Awards. Videos are being posted on the site regularly.[29] Recently, the Muppets starred in an online web series with Cat Cora called "The Muppets Kitchen With Cat Cora", where they show people how to cook several items.
On March 31, 2008, First Showing revealed details about the new Muppet film.[30] It was announced at Disney's D23 Expo that the title would be The Cheapest Muppet Movie Ever Made.[31] The title was later referred to as The Greatest Muppet Movie of All Time.[32] In January 2010, James Bobin signed on to direct The Muppets, the newly renamed film which already had Jason Segel, Amy Adams and Chris Cooper cast as the film's main characters, and Flight of the Conchords member Bret McKenzie serving as music supervisor.
Filming wrapped up in February of the following year and The Muppets was released on November 23, 2011. The film was met with a positive reception, commercial success and an Academy Award win.
In December of 2011, Google released a video of the Muppets as a way to promote their social networking site; Google+.[33] The Muppets are seen socializing with one another on Google+ in synchronization to Queen's "Under Pressure".
After the film's success, Disney secured a deal with Bobin and Nicholas Stoller in March of 2012, to direct and write, respectively, a new installment.[34][35]
On March 20, 2012, the Muppets received a collective star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The ceremony featured such notables as former Walt Disney Studios chairman Rich Ross, The Jim Henson Company's Lisa and Brian Henson, and incumbent Muppeteers; Steve Whitmire, Eric Jacobson, Dave Goelz, Bill Barretta, Peter Linz, David Rudman and Matt Vogel. The ceremony coincided with the release of The Muppets on home media.
- ^ Henson, Jim (September 21, 1998). Interview with Judy Harris. http://www.muppetcentral.com/articles/interviews/jim1.shtml. Retrieved December 30, 2011. "It was really just a term we made up. For a long time I would tell people it was a combination of marionettes and puppets but, basically, it was really just a word that we coined. We have done very few things connected with marionettes.".
- ^ "Disney buys Muppets as bid prospect fades". The Independent. February 18, 2004. Archived from the original on June 22, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080617141515/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20040218/ai_n12772234/print. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
- ^ DVDizzy.com and UltimateDisney.com: The Ultimate Guide to Disney DVD and Beyond.
- ^ "Letters to Santa" DVD Details!". The Muppet Newsflash. June 6, 2009. http://muppetnewsflash.blogspot.com/2009/06/letters-to-santa-dvd-details.html. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
- ^ Muppets at D23: Movies, DVDs, and Merchandise News!
- ^ "The Muppets at D23". The Muppet Newsflash. September 17, 2009. http://muppetnewsflash.blogspot.com/2009/09/muppets-at-d23.html. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
- ^ D23 Update: Special Muppets Presentation.
- ^ Hill, Jim (April 29, 2010). "With new merch & a new movie in the pipeline, there's no stopping the Muppets now". Jim Hill Media. http://jimhillmedia.com/editor_in_chief1/b/jim_hill/archive/2010/04/29/with-new-merch-a-new-movie-in-the-pipeline-there-s-no-stopping-the-muppets-now.aspx. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
- ^ Fleming, Michael (March 12, 2008). "Segel and Stoller take on Muppets". Variety. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117982291. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
- ^ Christopher Finch Jim Henson: The Works 1993, ISBN 0-679-41203-4.
- ^ Davis, Michael (2008). Street Gang: The Complete History of Sesame Street. New York: Viking Press. p. 166. ISBN 978-0-670-01996-0.
- ^ Morrow, Robert W. (2006). Sesame Street and the Reform of Children's Television. Baltimore, Maryland: Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 84. ISBN 0-8018-8230-3.
- ^ Judy Harris (9/21/82). "Jim Henson's Muppets". Cinefantastique. http://users.bestweb.net/~foosie/henson.htm. Retrieved February 14, 2012.
- ^ http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ZwEhAAAAIBAJ&sjid=_nQFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1093,3089733&dq=muppets+academy+awards+1980&hl=en
- ^ Nicole A. (November 23, 2011). "The Muppet Brand in Other Mainstream Movies". Yahoo! Movies. http://movies.yahoo.com/news/muppet-brand-other-mainstream-movies-162000275.html. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
- ^ An American Werewolf in London (IMDB).
- ^ Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium (IMDB).
- ^ TheDailyShow.com
- ^ Thomas Tennant. "Larry King Live: An Overview". About.com Guide. The New York Times Company. http://talkshows.about.com/od/larryking/a/KingOverview.htm. Retrieved February 13, 2012.
- ^ ABC's Extreme Makeover – Home Edition
- ^ United States Postal Service (September 28, 2005). Jim Henson, Muppets, get stamps of approval. Press Release.
- ^ New Year's Rockin' Eve 2008 (2007) (TV).
- ^ Pilat, Kasia (September 18, 2010). "Awesome of the Day: The Muppets Kitchen". Paste Magazine. http://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/awesome_of_the_day/2010/09/awesome-of-the-day-the-muppets-kitchen.html. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
- ^ Pousner, Howard (December 2, 2011). "With Muppets on-screen, puppet center works to secure Henson legacy". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. http://www.accessatlanta.com/atlanta-events/with-muppets-on-screen-1249213.html. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
- ^ "Nation's Largest Puppetry Center to Open Jim Henson Wing in Atlanta" (Press release). Center for Puppetry Arts. July 25, 2007. http://www.puppet.org/pdf/R-Henson.pdf. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
- ^ O'Dell, Cary (1977). Women Pioneers in Television: Biographies of Fifteen Industry Leaders. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 254. ISBN 0-7864-0167-2.
- ^ "The Themed Entertainment Association’s 15th Thea Awards – Delightfully Disney – Muppet Mobile Lab Profile". Themed Entertainment Association. http://www.themeit.com/thea_15annual/articles/Disney.pdf. Retrieved September 30, 2009.
- ^ Muppet Studios' YouTube Channel
- ^ O'Neill, Megan (July 20, 2010). "How The Muppets Made A Comeback On YouTube". http://www.socialtimes.com/2010/07/how-the-muppets-made-a-comeback-on-youtube/. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
- ^ Billington, Alex. "Jason Segel Reveals New Muppets Movie Details". First Showing. http://www.firstshowing.net/2008/03/31/jason-segel-reveals-new-muppets-movie-details/. Retrieved May 8, 2008.
- ^ New Disney ‘Pirates,’ ‘Muppet,’ Beatles Movies Announced At D23 Expo | Access Hollywood – Celebrity News, Photos & Videos
- ^ Rosenberg, Adam (May 3, 2010). "The Muppets Are Coming! 'American Woman' Goes Viral On Memorial Day, 'Lost' Promo This Wednesday!". MTV Movies Blog. http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2010/05/03/the-muppets-are-coming-american-woman-goes-viral-on-memorial-day-lost-this-wednesday/. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
- ^ Willaims, Christopher (December 9, 2010). "Google+ gets Muppets boost". The Daily Telegraph. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/google/8981219/Google-gets-Muppets-boost.html. Retrieved January 10, 2012.
- ^ Brodesser-Akner, Claude (March 1, 2012). "New Muppets Movie Going Ahead, But Without Jason Segel As a Writer". Vulture. http://www.vulture.com/2012/03/new-muppet-movie-in-the-works-but-without-jason-segel.html. Retrieved March 1, 2012.
- ^ Vejvoda, Jim (March 1, 2012). "No Jason Segel for Muppets Sequel". IGN. http://movies.ign.com/articles/121/1219805p1.html. Retrieved March 1, 2012.
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