The Muppet Show

The Muppet Show

The Muppet Show is a comedy television series created by Jim Henson and featuring the Muppets. After two pilot episodes produced in 1974 and 1975 failed to get the attention of network executives in the United States, Lew Grade approached Henson to produce the program in the United Kingdom for ATV. Five series of 120 episodes were broadcast on ATV and other ITV franchises in the United Kingdom from 1976 to 1981. The series was filmed at Elstree Studios, England. The Muppet Show is presented as a variety show, featuring recurring sketches and musical numbers intertwined with plotlines taking place behind the show. Kermit the Frog is portrayed as a showrunner who tries to maintain control of the overwhelming antics of the other Muppet characters, as well as appease the guest stars. The series is known for its uniquely designed characters; vaudevillian wit; physical slapstick; sometimes absurdist humor; and its slate of parodies. Each episode also features a different guest star. As the series' popularity rose, many celebrities were eager to perform with the Muppets on television and in film. The cast of performers over the course of the series consisted of Henson, Frank Oz, Jerry Nelson, Richard Hunt, Dave Goelz, Steve Whitmire, Fran Brill, Eren Ozker, Louise Gold, Kathryn Mullen, Karen Prell, Brian Muehl, Bob Payne, and John Lovelady. Many of the performers also worked on Sesame Street, whose characters made sporadic appearances on The Muppet Show. Jerry Juhl and Jack Burns were two of the head writers. The music was performed by Jack Parnell and his orchestra.

Year:
1976
8,828 Views

Kermit the Frog:
Okay, time, once again, for that furry, fuzzy, funnyman, fabulous, free-wheeling, fast and frantic Fozzie Bear!

Fozzie Bear:
Hey hey hey hey hey! W-wait, wait wait wait, froggy, not so fast. Tonight, I'm going to use your assistance. Yes, sir. You and I are going to tell the world's funniest joke. This is all spontaneous, unrehearsed. Right, froggy?

Kermit the Frog:
It's unrehearsed, right.

Fozzie Bear:
Okay, okay, okay. [clears throat] Now, frog of my heart, you will just wait until I say the word "hear". When you hear me say the word "hear", you will rush up to me and say, "Good grief! The comedian's a bear!"

Kermit the Frog:
Good grief! The comedian's a bear!

Fozzie Bear:
Check.

Kermit the Frog:
When you say the word "hear"?

Fozzie Bear:
Right.

Kermit the Frog:
Gotcha.

Fozzie Bear:
Okay. Now then... Hiya, hiya, hiya! You're a wonderful looking audience! It's a pleasure to be here!

Kermit the Frog:
Good grief! The comedian's a bear!

Fozzie Bear:
Not yet!

Kermit the Frog:
But you just said "here".

Fozzie Bear:
That was the wrong "here".

Kermit the Frog:
Which is the right "here"?

Fozzie Bear:
The other "hear"! [sends Kermit off] Go, go, go. Okay. Hey, hey, folks, this is a story you gotta love to hear!

Kermit the Frog:
Good grief! The comedian's a bear!

Fozzie Bear:
Will you stop that?

Kermit the Frog:
But you said "hear"!

Fozzie Bear:
Not *that* "hear"!

Kermit the Frog:
Well, which "hear"?

Fozzie Bear:
Another "hear"!

Kermit the Frog:
How'm I gonna know?

Fozzie Bear:
You'll know when you hear!

Kermit the Frog:
Good grief! The comedian's a bear!

[Rowlf is playing "The Entertainer" slowly]

Milton Berle:
"The Entertainer", right?

Rowlf:
Yep, that's the name of the song.

Milton Berle:
You know, most people don't know that there are words to that song.

Rowlf:
That's true.

Milton Berle:
You know what they're about? They're about the stars and the performers and the entertainers that appeared during the heyday of Vaudeville.

Rowlf:
You used to be in Vaudeville, didn't you?

Milton Berle:
Yeah, sure I was, but when I was a kid.

Rowlf:
How many performances did you do in Vaudeville?

Milton Berle:
Oh, I'd say between 80,000 and 100,000.

Rowlf:
Wow, you were really the entertainer, weren't you?

Milton Berle:
One of them... yeah, one of them. Many, many fond memories. [speaking, soulfully] Now the curtain is going up. The Entertainer is taking a bow. He does his dance step and sings his song, he even gets the audience to sing along. Yes, he knows just what to do, he knows how to brings down the house when he's through. Snappy patter and jokes, he knows what pleases the folks. The Entertainer: the Star of the Show.

[tempo increases and the Muppets come on the stage]

Muppets:
[singing] It was in Vaudeville and he was on the bill with all the singers, dancers, acrobats and clowns.

Fozzie Bear:
There was a dancing bear.

Rowlf:
Even a dog act there.

Scooter:
And a comedian who never let them down.

Muppets:
But when he came on to do his favorite song, he really wowed them in the cities and the towns. They came from near and far to see the Vaudeville star: The Entertainer!

[tempo slows]

Milton Berle:
[speaking, soulfully] Now the curtain is going down on the Entertainer: the artist, the pro. He was put on this earth to bring us laughter and mirth. The Entertainer: the Star of the Show.

The Newsman:
Here's a Muppet News Flash. Our newsroom has been flooded with calls today reporting that furniture all over town has been turning into monsters. Seven people have allegedly been attacked by a wandering pack of sofas at the east edge of town. A dining room table set for eight reportedly ate the eight it was set for.

[the camera pulls back to reveal the show being watched by a man at home]

The Newsman:
When contacted for comment, Sheriff David Goelz assured Muppet News Central that the rumor was false. According to Goelz, there is no way for a piece of furniture to turn into a monster.

[suddenly, the cushion the man is sitting on comes to life and tries to attack him]

The Newsman:
Scientists throughout the city confirmed that such an occurrence would be impossible.

[the man tries vainly to beat the cushion with a newspaper]

The Newsman:
Science tells all that inanimate objects cannot turn into monsters.

[suddenly, the man's cabinet comes to life, growing angry eyes and teeth and comes at him, growling]

The Newsman:
Still, these groundless rumors persist.

[the furniture monsters chase the man out of the room]

The Newsman:
The mass hysteria could be due to what psychologists are calling furniphobia, a dread fear of the rising price of home furnishings. The phenomenon does seem to relate to the cost of living increase during the past month.

[the man returns to the room, with the furniture monsters gone]

The Newsman:
But people are advised to relax, secure in the knowledge that their furniture will not turn into a monster. And that's all tonight from Muppet News. Good night.

[suddenly, static appears on the TV screen as it goes blank and the TV grows eyes and teeth and eats the man; cut to the Muppet news studio]

The Newsman:
That last item about furniture is ridiculous.

[suddenly, the news desk comes to life and eats the Newsman]


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