Official Character Descriptions from "The Muppets"

Earlier this weekend, our friends over at Stitch Kingdom were provided with some fantastic, official info from Disney about The Muppets. Over the next two days we'll be sharing with you what they've shared already, starting today with The Muppets Official Character Descriptions. Enjoy these fun, insightful looks at the characters we'll meet (and we've already met) in The Muppets this fall. Also, be sure to click on the links for Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzie, Gonzo, Animal, and Walter, so you can check out the new, official Facebook fan pages for each character!

GARY (Jason Segel) is loyal to his brother Walter—the two do everything together. "Gary is from Smalltown, USA," says Jason Segel (TV's "How I Met Your Mother," Forgetting Sarah Marshall), a longtime Muppet fan who created the role with himself in mind. "He's very naïve, sweet and innocent, and he's very much in love with his girlfriend Mary. He's torn between his brother and growing into a new phase of maturation where it's time to be with his girlfriend. He's lived with his brother forever so that is his big struggle."

The plot thickens when the trio decides to take a vacation. Says Segel, "The movie starts out with me and my brother Walter, whose wildest fantasy is to meet the Muppets. My goal is to take a vacation to L.A. with my girlfriend Mary. So we all come to L.A. and while taking a tour of Muppet Studios, which are now decrepit, we find out that they're going to be torn down to drill for oil. So we have to find Kermit, reunite the Muppets—who have disbanded because of professional rivalries—and put on a show to raise enough money to save the studio."

Gary throws himself into the effort, putting his relationship with Mary on the back burner—again. Will he ever be able to grow up and embrace true love?

With his Kermit t-shirt and watch, WALTER (Walter) is a devoted fan of the Muppets. The lifelong resident of Smalltown, USA, dreams of meeting his heroes one day, and feels that—just maybe—he belongs with them. So when brother Gary and his girlfriend Mary plan a trip to Los Angeles, Walter joins them with hopes of realizing his dream once and for all.

The role marks the big-screen debut for Walter, and one seemingly written for him. "I play Walter, the world's biggest Muppet fan," says the star, "which is a real coincidence, since I happen to be the world's biggest Muppet fan and my name is Walter. It's like I was made to play this part."

Walter finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time—or is it the right time?—when he overhears evil oil baron Tex Richman discussing a plot to destroy Muppet Studios. With the help of Gary and Mary, it's Walter who sets the plan in motion to reunite the Muppets and save the studio. His pure-hearted enthusiasm for all things Muppets just might save more than the studio, too.

MARY (Amy Adams) is a valued shop teacher in Smalltown, USA—at least if the number of apples on her desk are any indication. She is Gary's longtime girlfriend who often finds herself playing third wheel to Gary and his brother Walter.

Mary shares Gary and Walter's sweet, innocent disposition, but she's growing weary of sharing her boyfriend with Walter. She can’t help but hope for a magical proposal during their Los Angeles vacation, but her plans are derailed when news of Muppet Studios' pending demise spur the trio into expressly non-marriage-proposal action.

Amy Adams (The Fighter, Julie & Julia) was called on for the role—in a way that was impossible to miss, says the actress. "Jason and Kermit sent me an invitation to be in Disney's The Muppets—they asked if I'd read the script and consider the role of Mary. Kermit was a big part of my decision. I don't like to tell Jason that 'cause he’s a little sensitive that I might be partial to Kermit, but I am."

In Disney's The Muppets, KERMIT THE FROG (Kermit the Frog) lives a quiet, solitary life. It's been a few years since the Muppets last performed together and Kermit doesn't realize how much he misses his friends until he's tracked down by Walter, Gary and Mary from Smalltown, USA, and convinced to reunite with the rest of the Muppets to save Muppet Studios.

Returning to the role he made famous in six previous Muppet movies, "The Muppet Show" and countless TV specials and internet videos, is Kermit the Frog. "I've played other parts, like Bob Crachit  in A Muppet Christmas Carol and Captain Smollett in Muppet Treasure Island, says Kermit, "but I think me is my favorite part."

The role is a bit of a departure for the frog known for his unifying spirit and award-winning songs like "The Rainbow Connection." "The movie is filled with comedy, music and adventure—like all the Muppet movies," says Kermit. "But I play quite a dramatic role. You see a side of me that maybe you haven't see before—and I'm not just taking about new camera angles. Acting wise, I really stretch to play me. One of my favorite moments is singing a brand new original song called 'Pictures in my Head.' I walk through the halls of a big mansion looking at portraits of my Muppet friends and missing those guys. It was very emotional…and I think it will disprove critics who've said 'the frog can't emote.'"

Kermit, who's always the glue that holds the Muppets together, has a big job in this movie, going head to head with Tex Richman—a guy who's lost his laugh—to save the studio.

TEX RICHMAN (Chris Cooper) is a rich oil baron who's concocted a devious plan to destroy Muppet Studios, presumably to dig for the oil he claims is underneath.

But the truth, says Chris Cooper (Adaptation, The Bourne Identity), who portrays the villain, is that Tex has a personal vendetta against the Muppets. "He blames the Muppets for a terrible event that happened to him at his 10th birthday party," says Cooper. "He is unable to laugh and has vowed to destroy the Muppets."

But Tex Richman's inability to laugh doesn't stop him from taking part in other Muppet antics. He may be cold-hearted and conniving, but this oil magnate has a few secrets up his sleeve that are more fun than fiendish.

MISS PIGGY (Miss Piggy) showcases her diva attitude and big personality in a new made-to-order gig in Disney's The Muppets. As plus-size editor of Vogue Paris, she shares her sublime fashion sensibilities with readers worldwide... at least until Kermit shows up.

The Frog is there, of course, as part of his mission to reunite all the Muppets to save Muppet Studios from Tex Richman. But Miss Piggy can read between the lines: she knows an invitation for love when she sees it.  And really—how could she say no to Kermie?

Playing the role of Miss Piggy is none other than Miss Piggy (Muppets from Space, TV's "The Muppet Show"). "It's the role I was born to play," says the internationally famous star. "Moi plays a high-powered, confident, charismatic, gorgeous, scene-stealing star who saves the day and wins her frog’s heart." Her fans would expect nothing less.

FOZZIE BEAR (Fozzie Bear) lives to make people laugh. So during the Muppets' extended hiatus depicted in Disney's The Muppets, the stand-up comic bear was determined to keep his act and the spirit of the Muppets alive—even if it meant joining up with a Reno casino tribute band called the Moopets. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and the Moopets may be sincere, but they're also a little creepy.

"The Moopets recreate great Muppet moments," says Fozzie Bear (The Great Muppet Caper, TV's "The Muppet Show"), who is back on the big screen as his namesake, "at least that’s what they told me we were doing. Could've fooled me."

Regardless of who he shares the stage with, Fozzie will try anything to tickle the audience's funny bones: gags, novelties, whoopee cushions, banana peels, custard pies and recycled jokes that earn more winces than laughs—particularly from his in-house hecklers, Statler and Waldorf (aka "those two old guys in the balcony") In truth, Statler and Waldorf just might be the bear's biggest fans. Though they'd never admit it, they may actually be happy to see Fozzie and the Muppets reunited—and they might have to throw the bear a laugh or two this time if it means saving Muppet Studios.

VERONICA (Rashida Jones) is a network executive called on by the Muppets to air their studio-saving telethon. She's not easily swayed, and it'll take a big-name star to seal the deal.

Actress Rashida Jones (The Social Network, TV's "The Office") portrays the tough-as-nails woman to impress. "I play a hard-nosed, stressed-out TV executive," says Jones, "but I am the only one who gives the Muppets the chance to air their fundraising telethon. I definitely crack the whip, though, because I'm scared of losing my job and I’m scared it’s not going to be successful—I yell at Kermit a lot."

It won't be easy, but hopefully, Kermit can charm Veronica like he charms every woman, network exec and diva pig he encounters.

GONZO THE GREAT (The Great Gonzo) has been very busy since the Muppets last performed. In Disney's The Muppets, Kermit, Walter and the gang find that Gonzo's career is down the drain—literally. "I play a plumbing magnate," says the daredevil who returns to the role he single-handedly made famous. "In this movie, we see what happens when I pursue plumbing — my original career choice. Actually, show business and plumbing have a lot in common—especially when it comes to clogs and snakes."

It takes some convincing—and an increase in health insurance coverage—to get Gonzo back on stage. Fortunately, Gonzo (The Muppets Take Manhattan,  TV's "The Muppet Show"), a pioneer of all things weird, can't resist the temptation of the wild and wacky stunts he performs to earn the eternal admiration (not to mention shock and awe) of his audience—and one very special chicken named Camilla.

Gonzo's stage act, which includes shooting himself from a cannon, balancing a piano on his nose, or eating radial tires to classical music, will likely always end in disaster... but that's the whole point!

ANIMAL (Animal), the ultimate rock n' roll survivor, finally addresses a troublesome personality trait and finds himself in an anger management program in Disney's The Muppets. He's traded in his drums for a flute and is struggling to redefine his identity. As if...

But fear not, fans of the over-the-top, monosyllabic, appetite-with-legs drummer from Dr. Teeth's Electric Mayhem Band. Once reunited with the Muppets, Animal's incessant (yet innocent) pursuit of rock n' roll, food and women (not necessarily in that order) returns. "Me like," says Animal (Muppet Treasure Island, TV's "The Muppet Show"). "Movie good."

Be sure to visit StitchKingdom.com for even more Muppety goodness!

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, ryguy102390@gmail.com

News Update: September 9, 2011

NEWS UPDATE: September 9, 2011

All week long, MTV.com has been showcasing its Fall Movie Preview. And one of the films that the folks over at MTV are most excited about is, of course, The Muppets. They're so excited, in fact, that they sat down for an interview with Jason Segel, who apparently likes Muppets quite a bit. In the interview, Segel discusses Walter's favorite Muppet, great Fozzie Bear puns, how Rowlf just loves a nap, and much, much more. Be sure to give it a read, because it really is quite awesome.



Speaking of The Muppets, big news this week as the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) granted the movie an official rating. The Muppets is rated PG for mild rude humor. Who knows what that pertains to in the film... but I like to think that they just gave it that rating as a precaution because Jason Segel and Jack Black are in it. I think it's an excellent sign that the film is rated PG, rather than G. A G rating would have turned away a lot of older movie-goers, but PG is the perfect spot for the Muppets to be to hit the widest amount of people.

Two more Muppet-related books have been announced as tie-ins to the movie. Oddly enough, information on either book can only be found on the UK Amazon, not the US. Check out the information and cover art for both below!

The Muppets: Lights, Camera, Action! Fan Book

Frogs, Hogs, Weirdos, and What-nots: An Unauthorised Guide to The Muppets

In other merchandise news for The Muppets, Adidas has announced that they will be releasing a limited edition set of Kermit the Frog sneakers called "Kermit the Frog x Adidas Superstar II." You can see a picture of one of the shoes at right, complete with an awesome froggy collar above the laces. I have to own these... no way around it.

In even more merchandise news, the first wave of readily-available Muppet stuff related to the movie has officially been released! Wal-Mart stores are now carrying numerous Muppet keychains to make your keys a little bit happier. There are numerous Miss Piggy variations, quite a few Kermits and Animals, at least one Gonzo, a nice group shot (with Kermit, Piggy, Fozzie, and Gonzo), a rubber Kermit M as used in the movie logo, and, finally, an awesome Electric Mayhem keychain (see at right). There are at least fifteen different keychains available... so if this is any sign of what we'll be getting come November, we're in for a treat!

Finally, yesterday marked the beginning of Fashion Week in New York, and you couldn't keep Miss Piggy away from it. The porcine diva showed up last night to be beautiful and mingle with fashionistas. Opening Cermony (which is apparently a company?) posted an interview with Miss P. that sheds some insight into her forays into fashion and her thoughts on numerous other things. But, luckily for us, our good friends at Stitch Kingdom were live at Miss Piggy's appearance and captured some excellent photos and video for us. Check out the video below, and look for the pictures on the link above!









The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, ryguy102390@gmail.com

The Muppets and Me at D23, Part 1

Ryan Dosier - Oh, hiya Muppet fans! How long it's been... I see that The British Correspondent reaped his patented havoc upon you all while I was away. Well, I think it was worth it. Let's see if you agree. This past weekend I journeyed out West, and like my pioneer brothers before me, I went in search of talking mice and singing frogs and dancing ducks. Well... maybe not exactly like the pioneers. But who cares about them? I got to go to the Disney D23 Expo 2011 from Friday, August 19th until Sunday, August 21st. While I was in the neighborhood (Anaheim, California, to be specific) I got to visit the Disneyland Resort as well.

And what a time I had, let me tell you! I arrived in Anaheim on Thursday afternoon, the day before the Expo. And what is a young Muppet fan in Anaheim to do with so much time on his hands? Go to Disneyland, of course! So off I went, towards the land of mice and FastPasses, and made my way to Disney California Adventure, home of Muppet*Vision 3-D. You'd think this means loads of Muppet stuff, yes? Well, unfortunately, no. As we've learned from Disney Parks visits in recent years, there is very little new Muppet stuff to buy. They did, however, have the new Muppet Monopoly and Muppet Yahtzee for sale, but other than that it was the same old stuff: old plush dolls, a Kermit mug, a Kermit water bottle, two t-shirts, two hats, and not much else. Slightly disappointing, but not surprising enough to be completely disappointing.

However, over in Downtown Disney, the shopping district adjacent to the Disneyland Resort, they have a store called D-Street where they sell the popular Vinylmation figures, including many exclusives. Some of these exclusives were the four 9" Muppet Vinylmation figures, Muppet*Vision Kermit, Animal, Sam the Eagle, and Gonzo the Great with a 3" Camilla the Chicken. On Thursday I bought Gonzo and Camilla, and by Sunday I bought Sam as well... and I'd rather not talk about how much of a dent that put in my wallet. However, once I got them home and displayed on my shelf with the rest of the Vinylmation figures (see right), I didn't think twice. They're awesome. D-Street still has plenty of each figure and DisneyStore.com has Gonzo and Animal for sale there as well.

But the exciting part of the trip came on Friday when the Expo began. Walking into the Anaheim Convention Center for the D23 Expo is an overwhelming experience. The entire covering of the first floor is flooded with Mickey Mouse, Lightning McQueen, Donald Duck, Stitch, Goofy, and, yes, even Kermit. On the show floor I found Amy Mebberson (artist of Muppet Peter Pan and others) and James Silvani (artist of Muppet King Arthur) working their own booth where they spent the entire weekend drawing Disney for people--including myself! Check out their amazingly beautiful work (Amy on the left, James on the right) that is currently on my wall (see the picture on the right). Yup. That really is Scrooge McDuck arguing intensely with Angus McGonagle. It is heavenly.

Anyway... also on the show floor was the booth for WeLoveFine T-Shirts, a website that we've promoted multiple times on the Mindset. They were handing out, free to everyone, paper Kermit "crowns" for Expo guests to wear on their heads (see right). WeLoveFine was also selling some awesome Muppet t-shirts including Kermit in a tuxedo, Muppets 8-Bit, The Great Muppet Caper, and a women's shirt with Kermit Springsteen. Other than WeLoveFine, a couple other exhibitors were selling Muppet stuff including the upcoming makeup and nail polish lines, a preview of the 2011 Fozzie Bear Christmas ornament from Hallmark, and some new keychains featuring Kermit, Animal, and Beaker.

And then... it happened. The 2011 Disney Legends Ceremony. Hosted by Tom Bergeron (of America's Funniest Home Videos), the ceremony continues The Walt Disney Company's long-standing tradition of honoring those who contribute greatly to their success. Among this year's honorees were Regis Philbin, Anika Noni Rose (Princess Tiana), Jodi Benson (Ariel), Paige O'Hara (Belle), and, the final induction, someone named Jim Henson. It all started with Lisa Henson coming out to speak about her father, saying that her favorite Muppet had always been Rowlf. Then she introduced her brother, Brian Henson and Leslie Carrara-Rudolph, who would be performing the Jim and Jane Henson classic "I've Grown Accustomed to Your Face." It was extraordinary... and you can see it here:



Then Brian Henson said some nice things about Jim, saying that he could never do anything without making sound effects to go along with his movements. Even miniscule things like handing someone a pen, and Jim would make a goofy sound effect--a sort of "bwoooop," if you will. Then Brian and Lisa accepted the award and took a picture with the walk-around Sweetums from Disneyland, and walked off stage. Soon, the stage curtains opened, and a smaller stage rolled out carrying a piano, lots of foliage, a dog, and a frog.



Kermit the Frog and Rowlf the Dog, Jim Henson's first two superstar characters, coming out to sing and honor their friend, performer, and creator Jim Henson with his most prolific song, "Rainbow Connection." The last time that Kermit and Rowlf shared a duet was in 1979 in The Muppet Movie. It was an incredible experience. Mid-way through the song, Kermit and Rowlf asked us all to sing along with them and I can say here and now that getting a chance to sing a song with Kermit the Frog is something that I wish everyone everywhere could have the chance to do. It was the most magical moment I've experienced. Seeing Kermit and Rowlf together again at last, honoring Jim, and a Disney ceremony, was more than I ever expected. It gave me hope and happiness and everything in between.

Then came Saturday, the day of The Walt Disney Studios presentation where Disney would trot out big stars, directors, and more to show off their upcoming feature films. This included John Lasseter (head of Pixar and Disney animation), Robert Downey, Jr., Sarah Silverman, Jack MacBrayer, Jennifer Garner, Scarlet Johanson, Cobie Smulders, Jeremy Renner, and Jason Segel, Kermit the Frog, and Miss Piggy. It was just as great as you'd expect. Unfortunately, cameras and cell phones were strictly forbidden from the presentation, but the following is a very accurate transcript of what happened from ComingSoon.net and EW.com...

There was a star that was late for their big D23 appearance. When Disney's head of production Sean Bailey introduced Miss Piggy, Kermit the Frog and Jason Segel to talk about The Muppets at D23 this Saturday, the curtain pulled back and revealed Kermit and Segel sitting in director's chairs--but Miss Piggy was nowhere to be seen.

"You've worked on a movie with her," said Kermit when Segel pointed this out, "was she ever on time?"

"I love you, Kermit!" shouted an audience member. "I love you too!" replied Kermit.

Kermit went on to thank his fellow cast members. "Our movie stars the beautiful and talented Amy Adams! ... And the equally talented but less beautiful Jason Segel--no offense."

"I love you, Jason!" shouted another audience member. "I love you too and look forward to meeting you in person someday!" responded Segel.

Segel turned his attention to the clips of the movie they brought, saying there was a problem as they did not include Miss Piggy.

"She'll tear this whole arena apart if she finds out!" said Kermit.

"But she's not here," said Segel.

"Good point," replied Kermit as a motorcycle revved it's engine from backstage. The curtain parted again to reveal a motorcycle with none other than Miss Piggy in the sidecar, soaking in the adoration from all of her fans.

Once Kermit nervously explained that the second clip would feature "...almost all the Muppets." Piggy wasn’t too pleased. "Where’s [chairman of Walt Disney Studios] Rich Ross?" shouted Piggy as she stormed off the stage.

And then we were treated to two clips from the movie. MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD.

Clip #1: Gary (Segel), his girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams), and their Muppet buddy Walter are driving around Bel Air, Calif. at night, trying to locate the home of Kermit. They finally find it: a deserted-looking mansion with a driveway fence that has the faces of Kermit and Miss Piggy painted on it. There’s no doorbell, so Walter asks Gary to throw him over the fence. But Gary fails to toss Walter high enough, and the fence that Walter slams into winds up being electrocuted—clearly Kermit and Piggy have encountered enough stalkers to warrant such an elaborate security system. (NOTE FROM RYAN: The Walter-shocking scene was MUCH shorter than in the trailer maybe two seconds long at most.)

Suddenly, Kermit appears on the driveway behind Gary, Mary, and Walter. As Kermit walks toward the trio, he’s silhouetted by an enormously bright white light and we hear an angelic choir singing. It’s as if God himself were approaching. But seconds later, we see the source of that blinding light and Messianic music: On the street, a bus carrying members of the Good Shepard Church Choir just happened to be driving by. Walter immediately faints.

Next, we’re inside Kermit’s home with Gary, Mary, and Walter. It’s clear that Kermit has been living in the past. During the middle of a conversation, a robot butler enters the room with a tray of outdated sodas such as New Coke and Tab. Kermit asks the robot, whom he simply calls "80s robot," to please leave and the clip ends.

Clip #2: Kermit, Rowlf, and Fozzie break off the chain around the door to the Muppet Theater. Kermit walks in slowly, nostalgically, hearing echoes of himself (Jim Henson) introducing "very special guest star, Bob Hope!!" and the announcer (Jerry Nelson) shouting "PIIIIIGS IIIIIIN SPAAAACE!" Most of the Muppets gang, plus Gary, Mary, and Walter, enter. Fozzie Bear insists that there's no way to rehearse with the theater in that condition, as Floyd Pepper remarks, "Who fired the maid service?" With offers to help from Gary, Mary, and Walter, the Muppets start cleaning. Smash cut to... Scooter sweeping. Very slowly. Cut to the Muppets gang watching as Kermit remarks, "Well this is boring." Walter looks at the group and says, "Don't you guys remember? You're the Muppets! You're supposed to do things like this with... with music!" Dr. Teeth pulls out a boom-box, presses play, and thus begins a montage set to Starship’s 1985 hit "We Built This City."

As the group cleans, Kermit starts going through his old Rolodex, calling various celebrities with the hope that they may take part in a telethon (to presumably save the Muppet Theater from being demolished by an oil tycoon). Again, Kermit is a bit behind the times. We see him cross off Molly Ringwald’s name, and he doesn’t get very far in trying locate President Jimmy Carter.

Meanwhile, the Muppets are cleaning. We see Fozzie uses Walter tied to  a pole with a sponge on his back to clean higher places--Walter is elated. Rowlf hammers away at something. Floyd removes the tarp from Animal's drum set, and Animal goes berserk. Chickens feather-dust the seats. Mary changes a lightbulb while Marvin Suggs sits in the audience sits banging away on Muppaphones. Fozzie pulls out an old picture and shows it to Link Hogthrob and Gonzo and says, "Look at this goofy 80's haircut I had back then!" the picture is revealed to be exactly the same Fozzie we see today. Rats skate across the soapy floor on old toothbrushes. The Swedish Chef incinerates some moldy talking food in a refrigerator. Scooter opens a closet and there's Beauregard sweeping away, Scooter shouts, "Beauregard!" Beau just looks up and says, "Oh, Scooter, there you are! Where has everybody been?"

The clip ends with the camera circling around the large group of Muppets (as seen in the trailer). Cut to Kermit, still in his office, looking completely exasperated and somewhat distraught. Cut back to Dr. Teeth as he stops the tape and the gang surveys the now spotless theater.

That's all we can fit in for D23 coverage in this post! Check back tomorrow for even more coverage including two Muppet performers, a Muppet fan-site operator, and much, much more!

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, ryguy102390@gmail.com

The Many Faces of Non-Muppets

Good Moorning to you my friends and fellow Moopet fans. It is I, the British Corespoondent, once again reporting to you live (mostly) from an undisclosed location that looks a little like the inside of a suitcase tagged and sent on a plane from Reno to the Paris Backlot to catch my new favorite touring tribute band playing live on the next leg of their world tour. If oonly I could figure out what act they are suppoosed to be a tribute to... I noticed that the Janooce one looks a little like a female Mike Jagger, but other than that it is hard to tell who they are supposed to be. I am sure I have seen something similar somewhere in the past...but cannot for the life of me pin it doown.

Speaking of tributes, I see that your regular host, Ryan, is attending a tribute to the great Jim Henson at D23 this weekend at the Disney Legends event. He poosted on twitter that Brian and Lisa Henson are supposed to be appearing, and that everyone is wearing Kermit Crown hats (whatever those may be?). Luckily while he is away updating us via his twitter account (loocated here) I am free to poost whatever I should so fancy on here!

So, I see that soome of you are a little skeptical of my big fandoom leap from Muppets to Moopets (how funny that they have similar names...weird) perhaps because you woonder how I can be a fan of a tribute band when I could have the real thing (if only I could figure oout what the real thing is...), so I wanted to show you that oover the years there have been plenty of amazing (and semi-amazing, and doown-right-terrible) tributes, even to the fuzzy, furry guys that this site was originally created for (The Muppets, I mean, not the fans or Ryan's cat).

One example of a Muppet Tribute is the effortlessly superb rendition of Mahna Mahna by the band known mostly for its baking inspired name. I heard that even Marie Antoinette was something of a fan of this band as she is famously recorded in history as saying, "Let them listen to Cake."

A similarly epic tribute can be attributed to the KC Girls who performed Mahna Mahna for the Youtube Millions to much aplomb. (It can be seen here). I feel they really have it down to a fine art and my favorite thing about this video (if I can pick a favorite!) must be the girl in green waiting throughout the entire skit, just to pick up the phone. We should pay tribute to such a tribute!

Another tribute was performed by Jason Mraz (America's answer to James Blunt) with this sweet meloodious version of the Rainbow Connection. (He also sang it with Paul Williams, which can be seen here.)

This actually awesome indie rock band provide a unique twist to the oopening music of Muppet Treasure Island. I had this as my ring tone at one stage, but once scared a bus load of oold people when it went off whilst I was doing independent research into the DNA left in chewing gum under bus seats.

Of course who can forget when The Commodores released a tribute track to that morning scene in Muppets From Space (some 22 years previous to the moovie's release).

Below is a true tribute from a true Muppet Fan (the kind of fan who not oonly writes fan-fiction in his spare time, he also pleads with Disney, negotiates a contract, persuades his friends to produce and direct, pulls in all his celebrity friends as cameos and then releases a movie on the big screen starring our beloved Muppets! Just 95 days to go for you lucky Americans, while we Internatioonals have to wait for AGES.)

And finally, it brings us to a track off of The Green Album, an album entirely devoted to Tributing the Muppets (and the occasional Otter). Its Andrew Bird with Being Green!

So you see...my leap from Muppets to Moopets is not so drastic as it may seem. After all, it follows a strong tradition of tributes to great musical moments!

If only I could figure out which musical moments the Moopets are actually referencing...

Is the name "Miss Poogy" some kind of hint?

(Images pinched from Moopet Wiki)

TIME Magazine Gets a Little Muppety

Ryan Dosier - Greetings, Muppet fans! As we promised yesterday, today we'll be taking a more in-depth look at the new article for TIME Magzine written by Joel Stein, "Comeback Kids: On the Set of the New Muppets Movie." This new, fairly awesome article has quite a bit to say about The Muppets the movie and the Muppets the characters along with their fans, the people making said movie, and more. We figured that the best option for looking into this article would be reading it through and highlighting the important parts of it, much like we did with our look into the recent New York Times article. So... let's get started, shall we?

I'm not sure whether the vibe is coming from the Muppets or from Jason Segel, but everyone is really happy on this set. Actually, I'm not sure there's much of a difference between the Muppets and Segel, the 31-year-old star and co-writer of the new Muppets movie (in theaters Nov. 23). Between takes, Segel out-Muppets the actual Muppets, his grin still Kermit-wide long after the real Kermit the Frog closes his mouth and collapses around puppeteer Steve Whitmire's hand.

There's a lot going on here... first, I love that everyone on the set is really happy. How often do you hear that about the set of a movie? Not very. The Muppets do have that effect, however... making everyone happy. Good to see they've still got it. Second, Jason Segel is once again showing us that he is right for this project (as if we haven't already seen that proven time and again). Just by reading this it is obvious to me that what we're seeing is the realization of a Muppet fan's dream. It's as if one of us was getting the chance to act alongside Kermit... and based on how excited he is to be there, I would not hesitate to call Segel one of us.

The script for The Muppets is sweet, old-fashioned and smart, much like the beloved first three Muppet movies.

We haven't really heard all that much about the script... at least not since very early drafts were leaked. What a wonderful compliment to Segel and Stoller's script this sentence is! In essence, this sentence hits the three words that Muppet fans have been wanting from the Muppets for years as they've struggled to find their footing (or whatever those without feet have) in the entertainment industry again: sweet, old-fashioned, and smart. Muppet fans have voiced their opinions of too cynical Muppets (e.g., snarky Kermit interviews) or Muppets trying too hard to be hip (e.g., Muppet Star Search in The Muppets' Wizard of Oz) and especially Muppets with dumbed-down humor that no longer plays to all ages (e.g., Letters to Santa). Well, based on this sentence it appears we may be able to put those fears to bed... or at least put on clean sheets.

On the set today, Cooper yells at Kermit with such ferocity and stomps so convincingly around the stage off camera that some mistakenly think he's spending the entire shoot in character as the villain.

Ooh... that's interesting, isn't it? Love to hear that Chris Cooper is taking his villain role very seriously. That's awesome. And all good Muppet villains have their yell-at-or-threaten-Muppets moment... Doc Hopper's "You can do my commercials live... or stuffed," Nicky Holiday holding a gun to Kermit's head, Ebeneezer Scrooge's "UNEMPLOYMENT LINE!" tirade, and even K. Edgar Singer's "DON'T... LAUGH... AT ME!" Very good to see that Tex Richman will be carrying on that tradition.

There are moments when you get the feeling someone is going to walk in and tell everyone the Muppets aren't real and a lot of people are going to cry.

...Huh. I don't really know what that means, but I think I like what it's implying. Now, I don't want anyone in the movie to flat out say, "you aren't real, you're puppets," that would not be good. But if somehow they have tapped into the magic of the Muppets--the fact that no, they aren't really real, but they are more than real to so many, many people--in such a way that it has the emotional resonance of, say, Toy Story 3... then yes, I'm all for that.

The Muppets' producers compiled a list of more than 100 actors and singers who wanted to be in the film. Jack Black, Neil Patrick Harris, Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms, Kathy Griffin and Mickey Rooney, among others, made the cut...They created a celebrity-telethon scene so they could work everyone in. "We wanted an Elmo cameo, but that wasn't going to happen," Stoller says. "There's too much money resting on that guy."

Wow... lots going on here, huh? More than 100 actors and singers? Sheesh! I mean... I guess if I sat down and tried really hard I could come up with a list of 100 actors and singers I would like to see work with the Muppets, but no matter how you slice it, that's impressive. Also, this seems to be official confirmation that Ed Helms (of The Office and The Hangover) will be making a cameo in the film, so that's nice, he's fun. What I wonder, though, is how many people is "everyone" that they worked into the celebrity-telethon scene... and how much "everyone" will actually have to do other than just sit there and have their face on camera.

No Elmo cameo? Sad day... that would have been awesome and I'm sure very tongue-in-cheek. Ah, well... but I do have to wonder how much money is resting on Elmo and if it was Disney or Sesame Workshop that ultimately said no deal.

It's been a while since there has been money resting on the Muppets: the past 20 years haven't been kind to them. There were direct-to-DVD films. Miss Piggy did Pizza Hut commercials. Felt gathered dust.

I'm really glad that TIME chose to acknowledge this. One, because they obviously did their research, and two, because they aren't afraid to point out the flops of the past 20 years and show how much this franchise needs fresh energy put into it.

Even a snarky gossipmonger like Perez Hilton, a recent visitor to the set, gets a little Muppety around the Muppets. "He was a really nice guy," says Walter, a boyish new Muppet, who in the movie is Gary's best friend from their small town and likewise idolizes the Muppets. "Perez asked me if I was involved in any scandals. I said, 'Not any that I know, but I'm sure you'll tell me if I have.'"

I hope this doesn't mean that Perez Hilton is in the movie... and if it does, I hope he's just in the background of the telethon scene. But, aside from that, isn't this the first time we've had a direct quote from Walter? He hasn't "spoken" before this that we've heard... at least I don't think. So that's fun. And he's already adorable and funny which makes me like the little guy even more.

Amy Adams can sing every lyric of every song I can name from 1979's The Muppet Movie.

Who knew I could love Amy Adams more than I already do?

Segel says he has watched The Muppet Movie more than 50 times — and that was before he even thought of pitching a new version.

See? One of us.
And now Disney is spending $50 million on a movie with singing and puppets and old friends saving the day by putting on a show! Either Segel knows something about America that the rest of us don't, or he's about to go back to full-frontal nudity.

That's either the most hopeful thing I've read about the movie... or the most morose. But one can't deny that Joel Stein pretty much hit the nail on the head with this closing line of the article. Either the Muppets and their signature brand of nice, fun, warm, old-fashioned, smart comedy will strike a chord with today's audience which undeniably lacks such entertainment today... or the Muppets will fail to reach today's more jaded viewers. I think I'm going with the first option until I hear otherwise.

And now comes the time where we pull out some notable quotes from people interviewed in the article and talk about them. (The quotes, not the people. Well... maybe the people too.)

"Every time we have a new thing on the set, [Jason] says, 'Do we own that? Do I own that? Can I own that?' I told him, 'You can't have the Muppet Show sign over your driveway. You'll never get married.'" ~ Amy Adams

Dear Amy... Does this mean that if I want to get married I need to start losing the Muppet stuff? Is this what Sophie's Choice was about?!

"I have somebody on watch outside my trailer because [Jason Segel] is so into the Muppets and moi. I'm thinking of getting a restraining order." ~ Miss Piggy
Love... love, love. Piggy rocks for being herself here, Segel rocks for being an obsessed Muppet fan, and... yeah. Awesome.

"There has to be a time when stupid jokes and warmth and puns come back." ~ James Bobin, Director

With this one quote, James Bobin has disspelled any and all worries I had about him helming this project (and there weren't that many to begin with). Stupid jokes, warmth, and puns is basically all I am!

"If you could peel away Jason's skin, there may be felt underneath," ~ Todd Lieberman, Producer

I think the same could probably be said for all obsessed Muppet fans, no? Man... why aren't Jason Segel and I best friends?

"I'm probably a bigger fan of what I grew up watching than what I've been a part of." ~ Eric Jacobson

Now this is very, very interesting. I don't think that many of us would agree with Eric on this quote--that the classic stuff is more entertaining than recent projects. I'm really hoping that The Muppets will be the beginning of things that Eric, and all of us, can say we love just as much as the stuff we grew up with.

"I relate to the Muppets on a very deep level. They care about being nice to people. I don't really care about much besides being nice." ~ Jason Segel

How can you not absolutely love this guy? His heart is obviously in the right place. He is one of us... and he's making the new Muppet movie. This article, more than anything else, has firmly established what a perfect match Jason Segel and the Muppets are. Time and again Jason has proven himself to be smart, capable, and dedicated... but it all culminates in the writing of this article.

Joel Stein's article here is not one of uninformed optimism or cynicism... it is one that allows the optimism to flow through the facts and the quotes of the people bringing the project to life and that acknowledges the cynicism with equally important facts and hard-hitting quotes. Joel Stein doesn't know what will come from this movie... Jason Segel doesn't know either... and nor do I. But based on everything we have seen, read, and heard about this project... I don't think we should all start selling our Muppet stuff just yet.

Final image furnished by our good friends at ToughPigs





The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier

It's TIME to Play the Music

It seems like everyone is talking about The Muppets these days. And with good reason--in less than 170 days the first Muppet theatrical feature film in over 12 years will hit theaters and it could, maybe, might, possibly make or break the Muppets' future in the show business as anything more than nostalgic fuzzy faces.

TIME's latest online exclusive article "On the Set of the New Muppet Movie" takes this opportunity to talk to many of the people who have had a hand in this film including Jason Segel, Nicholas Stoller, Eric Jacobson, Peter Linz, Miss Piggy, and Walter. These insightful interviews are chock-full of information that we've all been silently wondering about... such as "Could Elmo possibly have a cameo?" and "What about Ed Helms? Is he in?" or "How much of a Muppet fan IS Jason Segel, really?" plus a lot more.

This really is a great article full of tons of info that we all really needed to hear/read, so be sure to check it out and be sure to check back on The Muppet Mindset tomorrow for our break-down of what exactly this article means, piece by piece.

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier

"Green With Envy" Official Trailer

Finally... the movie we've been waiting for. The first official trailer for the new romantic comedy starring Jason Segel and Amy Adams, Green With Envy is finally online! Check it out below and see what all the fuss is about!



Needless to say... I know what I'll be doing come November 23rd.

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier

Jason Segel and Amy Adams Are Crazy (about The Muppets)

Greetings, Muppet fans! Do you remember a few months ago when we couldn't go a day without having a News Update featuring loads and loads of cameo rumors, on-set pictures, Jason Segel interviews, and more all about this fall's The Muppets? Well, since they wrapped filming news has been pretty quiet from the Mouse House and the mouth of Segel--that is, until yesterday, when all smell broke loose (it smelled like strawberries) (rethinking that... this could be a bad sign).

Tuesday was CinemaCon 2011 in Las Vegas where all the big studios (Paramount, Dreamworks, Disney) got together to show off their biggest upcoming features to theater owners wanting to get butts in their seats (or seats in their seats, even). Disney's big show included action sequences from Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, revealed that the Monsters, Inc. sequel would in fact be a prequel, and showed off stuff from Winnie the Pooh. But... of course you don't care so much about that. What you want to know is... what the heck did they say about The Muppets?!

Well, it turns out... a lot. According to quite a few sources (including The Hollywood Reporter), Jason Segel and Amy Adams were on hand to introduce the first official footage from the film. The Reporter states that "Disney impressed" with the footage, which is either journalistic fancy wording or a really good sign. Jason and Amy also revealed that there are four new songs in the film, along with callbacks to classic Muppet songs, as reported by LatinoReview. (e.g., "Rainbow Connection," "Mahna Mahna," which we had heard about previously.) Also semi-notable... this article confirms that Miss Piggy is relocated in Paris after the Muppets separate in the film. The Wrap also highlighted Segel's joking that, "I do not do any full frontal nudity. Kermit on the other hand..."

Then yesterday the news kept coming in, especially from CinemaBlend, which posted an exclusive, awesome video interview with Segel and Adams along with a very enlightening article about what was included in the footage shown and what else went down at the presentation. Be sure to read the article then watch the video below:



I don't know about you... but that video not only made my day (yesterday), but it made me even more incredibly excited for this movie--which I didn't know was possible (okay, yes I did). The tone that Jason and Amy have already is exactly perfect for the film and if they carry that through the movie--even plussing it--then we are in for quite a treat. I love Amy saying, "We're really putting on a show!" and "It takes a real, concerted effort to be joyful." I am so excited to have both of these incredibly talented actors to play along with the Muppets in this movie. And I firmly believe that it is going to be nothing but joyful.

Finally, our friends over at StitchKingdom confirmed that the title treatment we showed off in January is indeed the official title treatment for The Muppets. Make sure you enlarge the picture on the webpage linked above to see it hi-res. The Kermit M is textured and fuzzy and I love it. (PS - That logo makes an epic desktop background... just sayin'.)

And in case you somehow still don't know...

The Muppets will be released in United States theaters on November 23, 2011

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier