The Muppet Show

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The Muppet Show
Genre
Created byJim Henson
Written by
Directed by
  • Peter Harris
  • Philip Casson
Starring
Theme music composer
Opening theme"The Muppet Show Theme"
Ending theme"The Muppet Show Theme" (instrumental)
Country of origin
  • United Kingdom
  • United States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons5
No. of episodes120 (
Multi-camera
Running time22–26 minutes
Production companies
Original release
Network
Release5 September 1976 (1976-09-05)[1] –
23 May 1981 (1981-05-23)
Related

The Muppet Show is a

ATV Elstree Studios in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire
.

The Muppet Show is presented as a variety show, featuring recurring sketches and musical numbers interspersed with plotlines taking place backstage and in other areas of the venue. Within its context, Kermit the Frog (performed by Henson) acts as showrunner and host, who tries to maintain control of the overwhelming antics of the other Muppet characters, as well as appease the rotating slate of guest stars.[2] The Muppet Show is also known for its uniquely designed characters, burlesque nature, slapstick, sometimes absurdist and surreal humour, and parodies.[3] As The Muppet Show became popular, many celebrities were eager to perform with the Muppets on television and in subsequent films.

The cast of performers over the course of the series included Henson, Frank Oz (credited as featured performer as well as creative consultant), Jerry Nelson, Richard Hunt, Dave Goelz, Steve Whitmire, Fran Brill, Eren Özker, Louise Gold, Kathryn Mullen, Karen Prell, Brian Muehl, Bob Payne, John Lovelady, Jane Henson, Peter Friedman, Betsy Baytos, and dancer Graham Fletcher. Many of the performers also worked on Sesame Street, whose characters made sporadic appearances on The Muppet Show. Jack Burns served as the head writer for the first season, before Jerry Juhl became the head writer from the second season. The music was performed by Jack Parnell and his orchestra.

The Muppet Show was produced by

Henson Associates. The series was premiered in the UK on 5 September 1976 and ended on 23 May 1981. The rights to the series have been owned by The Muppets Studio (a division of The Walt Disney Company) since they were acquired from The Jim Henson Company
in 2004.

History

Since its debut in 1969,

owned and operated stations. According to Henson's pitch reel, George Schlatter
was originally involved.

ATV Elstree Studios. ATV, as part of the ITV network, would broadcast the programme to other ITV stations in the United Kingdom, and its distribution arm, ITC Entertainment, would handle international broadcasts. Henson set aside his misgivings about syndication and accepted.[4]

Meanwhile, Henson's Muppets were featured in The Land of Gorch skits during the first (1975–76) season of the American comedy television programme Saturday Night Live. Although they lasted for only that one season on Saturday Night Live because of conflicts with that show's writers and producers, Henson and his team learned a great deal from being involved with the production. They gained institutional knowledge about adapting and quickly creating a television programme within a seven-day period. Henson also gained valuable friendships with multiple celebrities through his work on Saturday Night Live. Henson and his team were later able to use these skills and relationships on The Muppet Show.[5]

The Muppet Show was first aired in September 1976. By Christmas 1976, the series in the UK saw around 14 million viewers tuning in on Sunday evenings. In January 1977, over 100 countries had either acquired the series or were making offers, which had resulted in over £6 million in overseas sales.[6]

Overview

Opening and closing sequences

"The Muppet Show Theme" (written by Henson and Sam Pottle in 1976[7]) is the show's theme song. While the opening sequence changed from season to season, the overall concept remained the same. Each episode began with "The Muppet Show" logo on a title card. The centre of the "O" then opened to reveal host Kermit the Frog, who announced, "It's The Muppet Show, with our very special guest star, [name of guest star]!" usually cheering afterwards.

During the first season, the theme song contained a joke from Fozzie Bear and featured Kermit introducing the guest star ("To introduce our guest star, that's what I'm here to do, so it really makes me happy to introduce to you..."). At the song's end, Gonzo the Great appeared in front of the "Muppet Show" banner, attempting to play the "O" in "Show" like a gong, with various comical results.

From the second to fourth seasons, the joke and Kermit's introduction were replaced by a short quip from Statler and Waldorf, then a shot of the audience singing "Why don't they get things started?" The fifth season version had an extra verse from the hecklers ("Why do we always come here? I guess we'll never know. It's kind of like a torture to have to watch the show!"). At the end of the song, Gonzo appeared inside the "O" in "Show" to play the final note on a trumpet; again, with various comical results.

The Muppet Show theme
audio icon Sample [0:18] via

Each episode ended with an extended instrumental performance of "The Muppet Show Theme" by the Muppet orchestra before Statler and Waldorf gave the last laugh of the night, followed by

Zoot playing an off-key final note on his saxophone. Some last-laugh sequences had other Muppets on the balcony. For example, in one episode, the Muppets of Sesame Street appeared behind Statler and Waldorf, who told them, "How should we know how to get to Sesame Street
? We don't even know how to get out of this stupid theatre box!"

Every season, the TV version of the song was presented with re-worked lyrics. While the opening sequence evolved visually over the show's five seasons, the musical composition remained essentially the same. Over the years, the song has become a staple of the Muppets franchise as a whole.

Muppet Theater

The Muppet Theater is the setting for The Muppet Show, a grand old vaudeville house that has seen better days. In episode 106, Kermit identifies the name of the theatre as The Benny Vandergast Memorial Theater, although other episodes merely identify it as "the Muppet Theater". It is also identified as simply "Muppet Theater" in It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie. It is then that the theatre becomes registered as a historical landmark, and it cannot be shut down. In the film, the theatre is shown to be in New York City.

According to The Phantom of the Muppet Theater,[8] the theatre was built by a stage actor named John Stone in 1802. At some point, a production of Hamlet ran in the theatre, with Stone playing the title role. An alternative exterior is also shown in the book.

Locations seen in the Muppet Theater include

backstage right (which includes Kermit's desk), the dressing rooms, the attic (seen in four compilation videos released in 1985), the canteen, the prop room, the stage, Statler and Waldorf's box, the auditorium, reception, the recording studio, the stage door lobby, the boiler room and the back alley. Some of these sets were later re-used as the Happiness Hotel in The Great Muppet Caper. A replica of the theatre is used as the setting for the Muppet*Vision 3D attraction at Disney's Hollywood Studios
.

Scooter's uncle J.P. Grosse owns the theatre and rents it to the Muppets. In a deleted scene from It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie, Kermit reveals that J.P. has died and left the theatre to the Muppets in his will. This would have taken place some time after 1996, as J.P. can be seen (and referred to as such by the head of the KMUP network) in episode 107 of Muppets Tonight, the 1990s reworking of The Muppet Show.[9]

In the film The Muppets, a badly deteriorated version of the Muppet Theater is located next to Muppet Studios in Los Angeles. The Muppets reunite in hopes of raising enough money to buy the theatre from the oil magnate Tex Richman before he can demolish it and start drilling for oil on the site.

Characters and performers

Many of the characters who appeared on The Muppet Show have appeared in previous and subsequent Muppet productions.

Guest stars

No guest star ever appeared twice on The Muppet Show, although John Denver appeared both on the show and in two specials (John Denver and the Muppets: A Christmas Together and John Denver & the Muppets: Rocky Mountain Holiday), while Dudley Moore reappeared in the special, The Muppets Go to the Movies. Additionally, several guest stars from the series had cameos in the first three Muppet theatrical films, and the season four guest Alan Arkin had a cameo in The Muppets. Originally, the producers had to call on their personal contacts to appeal to them to appear, especially considering that doing so required an overseas trip to Britain. However, the situation changed when the renowned ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev offered to appear; his performance on this unusual TV programme produced so much favourable publicity that the series became one of the most sought after for various celebrities to appear in.[10]

Many episodes featured actors, such as

James Bond actor Roger Moore, while the final episode to be taped guest-starred the actor and dancer Gene Kelly. Mark Hamill appeared in one episode as both himself and Luke Skywalker, his role in the Star Wars film series. Two of Henson's childhood idols, Edgar Bergen and Milton Berle
, also guest-starred during the second season.

In 1977, Rita Moreno won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program for her appearance. The next year, Peter Sellers — who chose not to appear as himself, instead appearing in a variety of characters — and Bernadette Peters earned nominations for the same award.[12] One episode had the staff writer Chris Langham (who wrote some episodes of this show, starting in the third season) guest-starring when Richard Pryor was unable to make the taping of the episode at the last minute.

An early tradition was to present the guest star with a Muppet likeness of themselves as a parting gift at the end of the show, but this only lasted for the first two episodes produced, with Connie Stevens and Juliet Prowse. The high cost and effort of creating these unique Muppets, scheduling conflicts, and potential legal issues contributed to the decline of this practice, although Muppet caricatures and parodies continued to appear. The practice did, however, take place for actors Michael Caine and Tim Curry, who were the lead performers in The Muppet Christmas Carol and Muppet Treasure Island, respectively.

Recurring sketches

Fozzie Bear (left) and Rowlf the Dog (right) perform "English Country Garden" on episode 218 of The Muppet Show

Episodes

The Muppet Show ran for five seasons, with minor alterations taking place each season.

Soundtracks

Awards and nominations

The Muppet Show was nominated for nine

Peabody Award in 1978.[18] Also in 1978, the show received the Television Award of Merit from the Mary Washington Colonial Chapter of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution.[19]

The series also won the top Variety Prize in the Golden Rose of Montreux international Contest in May 1977.[20]

Primetime Emmy Awards

Year Category Nominee(s) Episode Result
1977 Outstanding Comedy – Variety or Music Series The Muppet Show Nominated
Outstanding Writing in a Comedy-Variety or Music Series Jim Henson, Jerry Juhl, Jack Burns, Marc London, "Paul Williams" Nominated
Outstanding Continuing or Single Performance by a Supporting Actress in Variety or Music
Rita Moreno "Rita Moreno" Won
1978 Outstanding Comedy – Variety or Music Series The Muppet Show Won
Outstanding Directing in a Comedy-Variety or Music Series Peter Harris "Elton John" Nominated
Outstanding Writing in a Comedy-Variety or Music Series Jim Henson, Jerry Juhl, Don Hinkley, & Joseph A. Bailey "Dom DeLuise" Nominated
Outstanding Continuing or Single Performance by a Supporting Actress in Variety or Music
Peter Sellers Nominated
Bernadette Peters Nominated
1979 Outstanding Comedy – Variety or Music Series The Muppet Show Nominated
1980 Outstanding Comedy – Variety or Music Series The Muppet Show Nominated
Outstanding Directing in a Comedy-Variety or Music Series Peter Harris "Liza Minnelli" Nominated
Outstanding Writing in a Comedy-Variety or Music Series Jim Henson, Jerry Juhl, Don Hinkley, & David Odell "Alan Arkin" Nominated
Outstanding Video Tape Editing for a Series John Hawkins "Liza Minnelli" Won
Outstanding Art Direction for a Variety or Music Program Malcolm Stone "Beverly Sills" Nominated
Outstanding Costume Design for a Series Calista Hendrickson "Beverly Sills" Nominated
Outstanding Individual Achievement – Creative Technical Crafts Leslee Asch, Edward G. Christie, Barbara S. Davis, Faz Fazakas, Nomi Frederick, Michael K. Frith, Amy Van Gilder, Dave Goelz,
Marianne Harms, Larry Jameson, Mari Kaestle, Rollin Krewson, Tim Miller, Bob Payne, Jan Rosenthal, Don Sahlin, Caroly Wilcox
"Alan Arkin" Nominated
Edward G. Christie, Barbara S. Davis, Faz Fazakas, Nomi Frederick, Michael K. Frith, Amy Van Gilder, Dave Goelz, Larry Jameson, Mari Kaestle, Rollin Krewson, Tim Miller, Bob Payne, Jan Rosenthal, Don Sahlin, Caroly Wilcox "Kenny Rogers" Nominated
1981 Outstanding Comedy – Variety or Music Series The Muppet Show Nominated
Outstanding Writing in a Comedy-Variety or Music Series Jerry Juhl, David Odell, Chris Langham "Carol Burnett" Won
Outstanding Video Tape Editing for a Series John Hawkins "Brooke Shields" Nominated
Outstanding Art Direction for a Variety or Music Program Malcolm Stone "Brooke Shields" Nominated

Others

Year Association Category Nominee(s) Result
1977 British Academy Television Awards (BAFTA) Best Light Entertainment Programme The Muppet Show Won
'Harlequin (Drama/Light Entertainment) The Muppet Show Nominated
1978 Most Original Programme/Series Jim Henson Won
Best Light Entertainment Programme/Series Jim Henson Nominated
Best VTR Editor John Hawkins & Tim Waddell Nominated
Best Design David Chandler & Bryan Holgate Nominated
1979 Best Light Entertainment Programme/Series Jim Henson Nominated
Best VTR Editor John Hawkins Won
1980 Best Light Entertainment Programme/Series Jim Henson Nominated
1979
Grammy Awards
Best Recording for Children
Jim Henson Won
Peabody Awards Henson Associates Won
Golden Camera Best Entertainment Show Jim Henson Won
1977 Rose d'Or Light Entertainment Festival Golden Rose Won
1981
Young Artist Awards
Best TV Series for Family Entertainment Nominated

Home media

Compilation releases

In 1985,

Jim Henson's Muppet Video
banner. Ten videos were released, featuring original linking material in addition to clips from the show.

Videos included:

In 1993, Jim Henson Video released two compilations under the It's the Muppets banner, Meet the Muppets and More Muppets, Please! Later, three volumes of The Very Best of The Muppet Show were released on VHS and DVD in the UK (volume 3 was a release of full episodes as opposed to compilations). Unlike the Playhouse Video releases, It's the Muppets and The Very Best of The Muppet Show did not include any original footage or guest star clips, but all compilation collections did include material cut from the original US broadcasts.

Series releases

In 1994,

Somewhere Over the Rainbow
".

Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment
and Jim Henson Home Entertainment by which time Time-Life had released its tenth volume.

Buena Vista Home Entertainment released the first three seasons on DVD between 2005 and 2008. 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
.

Several songs were cut from the series 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. However, episodes that used Disney music remained unaltered (for example, episode 14 of series 1 used "Never Smile at a Crocodile" from Peter Pan).

  • "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 Huxtetter
  • "You've Got A Friend" (Vincent Price episode) sung by Vincent Price, Uncle Deadly and a chorus of Muppet Monsters

The only uncut release of Season 1 on DVD so far is the German DVD release by

Buena Vista Home Entertainment Germany in 2010 (which also contains English audio). However, the intro and end credit sequences on this release are in German. In addition, the Paul Williams episode is missing a scene following "All of Me" wherein Fozzie and Scooter first discuss the "Old Telephone Pole bit". This scene does appear (albeit slightly abridged) in the international release. The German version also lacks the song "In My Life" performed by Twiggy, instead substituting it with a performance of "Lean on Me" by German singer Mary Roos.[21]

DVD name Ep # Release date Content
Season One (1976–1977) 24 9 August 2005
Season Two (1977–1978) 24 7 August 2007
Season Three (1978–1979) 24 20 May 2008

Streaming

The Muppet Show was released for streaming on Disney+ on 19 February 2021.[22] However, two episodes featuring guests Brooke Shields and Chris Langham are omitted from the streaming service. In several European countries, the episode with John Denver is omitted as well.[23] A content advisory was attached to several episodes describing "negative depictions and/or mistreatment of people or cultures."[24]

See also

References

  1. ^ The Observer; London (UK), 5 September 1976
    "Get Switched On!". Evening Times. Glasgow. 4 September 1976. pp. 8–9 – via Google News.
  2. ^ "The Muppet Show". Guide to Comedy. BBC. Archived from the original on 17 December 2004.
  3. The San Francisco Chronicle
    . Retrieved 19 December 2010.
  4. ^ Collins, Andrew (10 February 2012). "Welcome back, Muppets". Radio Times. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  5. .
  6. ^ "Welcome to the Muppet show". The Guardian. 29 January 1977. p. 13.
  7. ^ Fuzzy Muppet Songs; Walt Disney Records Label, 1976
  8. .
  9. ^ Mifflin, Lawrie (10 March 1996). "Following in the Frog's Footsteps". The New York Times. Retrieved 19 December 2010.
  10. ^ McKim, D. W.; Henson, Brian. "The Muppet Show: Rudolf Nureyev". Muppet Central. Retrieved 19 July 2009.
  11. ^ "The 10 best Muppet Show guests". The Observer. 22 January 2012. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
  12. Emmys. Archived from the original
    on 8 October 2012. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
  13. ^ "20 Gonzo Facts About The Muppet Show". 3 July 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  14. .
  15. ^ a b "The Muppet Show | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
  16. ^ "Bafta Awards Data Base". Bafta.
  17. ^ "Emmy Awards Official Site". Emmys. Retrieved 12 August 2010.
  18. ^ "The Muppet Show". Peabody Awards. Archived from the original on 11 June 2010. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  19. ^ "Jim Henson's Red Book". Henson. Archived from the original on 15 March 2012. Retrieved 19 January 2012.
  20. ^ "Muppets top it", The Observer, 15 May 1977
  21. ^ Wurm, Gerald. "Muppet Show, The (Comparison: US DVD – German DVD)". Movie Censorship. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  22. ^ O'Neil, Patrick (19 January 2021). "Play The Music And Light The Lights: "The Muppet Show" Streams February 19 Only On Disney+". Disney Media & Distribution Entertainment. Archived from the original on 19 January 2021. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
    - Shafer, Ellise (19 January 2021). "'The Muppet Show' Coming to Disney Plus in February". Variety. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  23. ^ "Complete List: What's Missing from the Muppet Show on Disney Plus". What's on Disney Plus. 19 February 2021.
    - Aquilina, Tyler (20 February 2021). "Here's why certain Muppet Show episodes are missing from Disney+". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
  24. ^ Shafer, Ellise (21 February 2021). "Disney Plus Adds Content Disclaimer to Select 'The Muppet Show' Episodes". Variety. Retrieved 21 February 2021.

External links