created by jim henson show ran from 1976 to 1981 troupe of puppets appealed to children and adults...
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Created by Jim HensonShow ran from 1976 to 1981Troupe of puppetsAppealed to children and adultsMuppet Theater- on stage sketches and songs, backstage antics
Kermit the Frog- producer/host of Muppet Theater
Had task of keeping guests and Muppets happy
Fending off Miss Piggy’s advances
Fozzie Bear- lovable, inept comic, Kermit’s second banana
Miss Piggy- glamorous starlet, Kermit’s would-be love interest
Gonzo the Great- buzzard like creature with obsession with chickens
Rowlf- piano playing dogStatler and Waldorf- two hecklers
The Electric Mayhem- ultra cool house band
Scooter- Kermit’s gofer- his uncle owned the theater
Jim Henson formed a partnership with Frank Oz
Created pairs of Miss Piggy and Kermit, Ernie and Bert (on Sesame Street), Kermit and Fozzie Bear
Swedish Chef- Henson’s voice, Oz’s hands
Original Kermit was made out of a green coat discarded by Jim Henson’s mother, and old ping pong balls for eyes
Muppets were made from foam rubber and soft materials so they would seem more realistic
Henson pioneered use of the camera frame as a sort of stage
“muppeteers” were out of sight by simply holding the muppets above their heads and filming the suspended muppets from the “waist” up
Human guests would stand on platforms or muppeteers would work from pits similar to those used by orchestras to ensure the illusion was not broken
Henson investigated all relevant new technologies to keep this illusion going
Remote control, partially motorized muppets and some degree of CGI animation is now used to allow muppets to do things impossible for normal puppets
Henson had also worked on Sesame Street- starting in 1969
Currently one of the longest running programs in television history
The Muppet Show- filmed in England (American television rejected his ideas)
Appealed to parents and children watching
Kermit interviewed massive stars- Diana Ross, Christopher Reeve, Johnny Cash, Elton John, John Cleese, Alice Cooper, Roger Moore, John Cleese, Harry Belafonte, Dizzy Gillespie, Lynn Redgrave, Julie Andrews, George Burns, Steve Martin, both Candice and Edgar Bergen, Sylvester Stallone, Liberace, etc
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