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1976 UK / US TV series or program| The Muppet Show | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Created by | Jim Henson |
| Starring | Jim Henson Frank Oz Jerry Nelson Richard Hunt Dave Goelz Steve Whitmire Louise Gold Kathy Mullen Eren Ozker John Lovelady |
| Country of origin | UK / US |
| No. of episodes | 120 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 30 minutes per episode |
| Original release | |
| Network | ITV / syndicated |
| Release | 1976 – 1981 |
The Muppet Show is a television program featuring a cast of Muppets (diverse hand operated puppets, typically with huge eyes and large moving mouths) produced by Jim Henson and his team from 1976 to 1981. The show stars Kermit the Frog, also one of the main Muppet characters of Sesame Street. Whereas he was a happy, perky and almost grandfather-like character there on Sesame Street, here he is trying to keep control of the varied, outrageous, kinetic Muppet characters (and his temper), as well as keep the human guest stars happy and secure. The television show depicted a vaudeville or music hall style song–and–dance variety show, as well as the backstage antics involved in putting the show on.
The show was well known for outrageous, highly physical (slapstick), sometimes absurdist comedy, and particularly for using its puppet characters to create uniquely humorous parodies. Many major celebrities were eager to perform with the Muppets on television and in film. Each show featured a human guest star. The diverse roster of guests included Twiggy, Julie Andrews, Steve Martin, characters from Star Wars, Mummenschanz, and Alice Cooper.
Though they appear in various earlier forms (see Jim Henson), the Muppets gained widespread popularity on the landmark PBS live–action/puppet series Sesame Street. The Muppet Show became the cornerstone of Jim Henson's enormously popular ongoing productions. Other Henson Muppet creations were featured in the films The Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, and the Sesame Street–based Follow That Bird, as well as in a large variety of films, made–for–TV movies, direct–to–video children's releases, and television specials.
Major show writers included Jerry Juhl and Jack Burns.
Muppet performers over the course of the show include:
- Jim Henson
- Frank Oz
- Jerry Nelson
- Richard Hunt
- Dave Goelz
- Steve Whitmire
- Louise Gold
- Kathy Mullen
- Eren Ozker
- John Lovelady
History
Since 1969, Sesame Street had given Jim Henson's creations invaluable exposure; however, Henson began to perceive that he was being pigeonholed as a children's entertainer. He sought to create a program that could be enjoyed by young and old alike.
Two specials were produced and aired that are considered pilots for The Muppet Show. Neither led to the sale of a prime-time network series. However, the prime-time access rule had just been enacted, which took the 7:30 to 8pm ET time slot from the networks and turned it over to their affiliates. CBS suggested it would be interested in Henson's proposal as a syndicated series it could purchase for its owned-and-operated stations, to run one night a week in that time slot.
Enter Lew Grade, head of ATV. Grade offered a deal to Henson that would see his show produced at the ATV studios in England. ATV would network the show to other ITV stations in the United Kingdom, and its syndication arm, ITC Entertainment, would sell the show in the United States and around the world. Henson put aside his misgivings about syndication and accepted.
List of Muppet Show characters
- Kermit the Frog, director and host
- Miss Piggy, a glamorous diva pig
- Fozzie Bear, a (questionably talented) stand–up comic bear
- Scooter, the gofer (not a real gopher, a backstage "go–for"), nephew of the theatre's owner
- Gonzo aka The Great Gonzo, Gonzo the Great, stuntman, daredevil, performance artist
- The Swedish Chef, a cook with weird culinary habits
- Rowlf the dog, piano player
- Dr. Julius Strangepork the science officer in Pigs in Space
- Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, scientist and inventor, and his capable guinea pig/assistant, Beaker
- Camilla, a chicken (Gonzo's love)
- Sam the (American) Eagle, American patriot
- Dr. Teeth, band leader and keyboard player for Dr. Teeth and The Electric Mayhem
- Zoot, saxophone player in the Electric Mayhem and the Muppet Show's orchestra
- Janice, guitarist
- Guy Smiley, game show host
- Animal, the drummer
- Sgt. Floyd Pepper, bass guitarist
- Lips, trumpet player
- Lew Zealand, boomerang fish thrower, and obsessed with fish generally
- Statler & Waldorf, two old men who come to every show and heckle the performances
- Annie Sue, Miss Piggy's rival
- The Muppet newscaster
- Foo-Foo, Miss Piggy's dog
- Sweetums, 9–foot–tall monster
- Link Hogthrob, star of Pigs in Space, Captain of the USS Swinetrek. Also stars in "Bear Patrol"
- Beauregard, the stagehand
- Crazy Harry, pyrotechnician, enjoys his job far too much
- Robin, Kermit's nephew
- Uncle Deadly, sinister and a little scary
- Flying Zucchini Brothers, acrobats with a disastrous finish
- Pops, the door greeter
- Marvin Suggs, the Muppaphone man
- George, the janitor
- Mildred Huxtetter, George's dancing partner
- Mahna Mahna, the singer of the song by the same name, and the Snowths, the 2 pink creatures that sing Doo-doo-de-do-do!
See also Kermitage: Character Guide
Recurring skits
- At the Dance – Laugh-In style one liners from the characters as they ballroom dance. The sketch was a regular during the first season but was used less frequently from the second season onwards.
- Muppet Labs – the latest invention from Dr. Bunsen Honeydew with his assistant, Beaker, getting the worst of its inevitable malfunction. The character of Beaker was introduced in the second season; during the first season Bunsen hosted Muppet Labs by himself, however the writers soon realized that another character was needed to show Bunsen's failings.
- Muppet News Flash – a news announcer gives a newsbrief only to typically have some disaster befall him (usually the same disaster he was just describing). In the first season, the Muppet News Man read out new items that occasionally featured the guest star for that week playing a character that was somehow involved in the news item.
- Pigs In Space – parody of science fiction shows like Star Trek, but also old 40's sci–fi serials. The space craft is called USS Swinetrek and the title VO is a parody of main ST competitor "Lost in Space". The voice of the announcer was performed by Jerry Nelson.
- Swedish Chef – Cooking show parody
- Vend–a–face – A vending machine that offers unique services that usually mean agonizing contortions of the muppets dumb enough to feed the machine.
- Veterinarian's Hospital – parody of soap opera General Hospital and other medical dramas which consists of Dr. Bob (Rowlf) cracking jokes in the operating room with Nurses Piggy and Janice; each installment ends with Dr. Bob and his nurses looking around in puzzlement as a disembodied voice tells viewers to tune in next time. On one occasion, both this sketch and At the Dance went on at the same time with the dancers dancing in the Vet's Hospital set. On a second occasion, the cast of Vet's Hospital appeared on the Swedish Chef set and on a third occasion, Doctor Bob and Nurse Janice appeared on the Pigs in Space set. The voice of the announcer was originally performed by John Lovelady but from the Phyllis Diller episode, Jerry Nelson took over the role.
- Wayne and Wanda – Every song this duo attempted ends in disaster
- Bear on Patrol – Fozzie is an unlucky police officer and Link Hogthrob is his stupid superior who always get into the silliest situations with the criminals brought in. The voice of the announcer was performed by Jerry Nelson.
List of guest stars
No guest star ever appeared twice on the Muppet Show.
Home video
Select episodes can be currently be found on VHS and DVD. Buena Vista Home Entertainment, a division of The Walt Disney Company, released the first season on DVD in August 2005. Bits of the show also pop up in movies sometimes (An American Werewolf in London and Rocky III). The rights to the episodes and characters used in The Muppet Show, and subsequent film outings, were bought in February 2004 by The Walt Disney Company.
However, several songs have been cut from the Season 1 DVD release due to music licensing issues. There have also been some cuts in the intro sequence, and backstage scenes leading up to these songs.
- "Stormy Weather" (Joel Grey Episode) Sung by Wayne and Wanda;
- "Gone With The Wind" (Jim Nabors Episode) Sung by Jim Nabors;
- "The Danceros" (Jim Nabors Episode) Sung by The Danceros;
- "All Of Me" (Paul Williams Episode) Sung by Two Monsters;
- "Old Fashioned Way" (Charles Aznavour episode) Sung by Charles Aznavour with Mildred;
- "You’ve Got A Friend" (Vincent Price Episode) Sung by Vincent Price, Uncle Deadly and a chorus of Muppet Monsters;
Spin-offs
The Muppet Show characters went on to star in The Muppet Movie, which was the first film to feature puppets interacting with humans in real–world locations, and later films such as The Great Muppet Caper and The Muppets Take Manhattan.
The Jim Henson Hour featured many of the same characters, plus new and boldly different content. The format was later revived as Muppets Tonight in 1996. The first 10 episodes aired on ABC while the rest aired on The Disney Channel. There is talk of a new revival of the format, with FOX being the initial serious contender. Disney is using the America's Next Muppet mini-series to test the viability of a full-fledged series.
See also
- The Muppets
- Muppet Babies
- Le Bébête Show
- List of television programs
- "Mahna Mahna"
- Adult puppeteering
- Sam Pottle