A variety show still revered for its absurdist and slapstick humor debuted 50 years ago. It featured an irreverent cast of characters made from foam and fleece.
Well after “The puppet show“The original 120-episode series ended in 1981, the legend and legacy of Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Gonzo and other creations concocted by puppeteer and television producer Jim Henson has continued to grow. Thanks to the Muppets film franchise and the wonders of YouTubeTHE Wacky Gang continues to delight and expand its fan base.
Inasmuch as popular culture specialistI believe that the reign of the Muppets, which started in the 1950shelped shape global culture, including educational television. Along the way, the puppets and the people who bring them to life have made billions of dollars.
Kermit’s Origin Story
The Muppets, a puppet and puppet ensemble, first appeared on television in the Washington, D.C., area in 1955, when Henson created a short sketch show called “Sam and his friends» with his future wife, Jane Nebel.
Their motley cast of puppets, including one lizard-like character named Kermitsang parody songs and performed comedy sketches.
Henson’s designs soon appeared in segments on other television shows, including “Today” and late-night programs. Rowlf the dog appeared in Canadian dog food commercials before joining “The Jimmy Dean Show» as the host’s sidekick.
After this show ended, Rowlf and Dean performed on the “Ed Sullivan Show”, where Kermit had appeared occasionally since 1961.
From “Sesame Street” to “SNL”
While Rowlf and Kermit were making the rounds on variety shows, the reporter Joan Ganz Cooney and psychologist Lloyd Morrisett created a new educational program. They invited Henson to provide a Muppet ensemble for the show.
Henson waived his performance fee to retain his rights to the characters who became the most famous residents of “Sesame Street.” Characters like Oscar the Grouch, Cookie Monster and Big Bird were joined by Kermit who, at the time of the series premiere in 1969, was identified as a frog.
When “Sesame Street” became a hit, Henson worried that his Muppets would be typecast as children’s entertainment. Another groundbreaking show, aimed at young adults, offered him a chance to avoid that.
The debut of “Saturday Night Live” on NBC in 1975 – when the show was called “Saturday evening» – included a segment called “The country of Gorch,” in which Henson’s grotesque creatures drank, smoked, and made crude jokes.
“The Land of Gorch” segments ended after the first season of “Saturday Night Live.” https://www.youtube.com/embed/IxnG5X4Geak?wmode=transparent&start=0 The first season of “Saturday Night Live” included “Land of Gorch” sketches featuring creatures created by Jim Henson to entertain adults.
Miss Piggy gets her close up
“The Muppet Show” was years in the making. ABC finally aired two television specials in 1974 and 1975, which were supposed to serve as pilots for an American-produced “Muppet Show.”
After no American network picked up his offbeat series, Henson teamed up with Lew Grade, British entertainment entrepreneur to produce a series for ATV, a British network, featuring Kermit and other Muppets. The new set included Fozzie Bear, Animal and Miss Piggy – Muppets originally performed by frequent Henson collaborator Frank Oz.
“The puppet show” parodied variety shows that Henson had appeared on. The connections he made along the way paid off: Many of the celebrities he met on the sets of those shows would guest star on “The Muppet Show,” including everyone from Rita Moreno and Lena Horne to Joan Baez and Johnny Cash.
“The Muppet Show”, which was staged and filmed in a studio near Londondebuted on September 5, 1976, in the United Kingdombefore being broadcast in syndication in the United States on stations like WCBS in New York. https://www.youtube.com/embed/b8DijZ2aFxg?wmode=transparent&start=0 As the show’s opening and closing theme songs changed over time, they maintained a Vaudeville vibe despite the house band’s preference for rock and jazz.
The Muppets are coming to the big screen
“The Muppet Show” was a success, garnering a global audience of more than 200 million people. He has won numerous awardsincluding one Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Comedy, Variety or Musical Series – for which he beat “Saturday Night Live” – in 1978.
While his TV show was on the air, Henson worked on the franchise’s first film, “The Muppet Movie.” The road movie, released in 1979, was another success: it grossed more than $76 million at the box office.
“The Muppet Movie” earned two Oscar nominations for its music, including best song for “Rainbow connection.” He won a Grammy for the best children’s album.
The next two films, “The big puppet hug”, which was created in 1981, and “The Muppets Take Manhattan”, released in 1984, also earned Academy Award nominations for their music.
“Fraggle Rock” and the Disney agreement
The cast of “The Muppet Show” and all three films took a break from Hollywood while Henson focused on “Fraggle Rock“, a children’s television program broadcast from 1983 to 1987 on HBO.
Like Henson’s other productions, “Fraggle Rock” featured absurdist humor – but its puppets are not considered part of the standard Muppets gang. This co-production between Henson, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and British producers was intended for international markets.
The rapidly conglomerating media industry led Henson to consider partnerships with companies to help achieve his goal of further expanding the Muppet media universe.
In August 1989, he negotiated an agreement with Disney’s Michael Eisner who announced to Disney-MGM Studios an agreement in principle to acquire The Muppets, with Henson retain ownership of “Sesame Street” characters.
The announcement also included plans to open Muppet-themed attractions at Disney parks.
But less than a year later, on May 16, 1990, Henson is dead Since a rare and serious bacterial infection. He was 53 years old.
Muppets and mergers
Henson’s death led to The failure of the Disney deal. But the company licensed the Muppets to Disney, which co-produced “The Muppets Christmas Carol» in 1992 and «Puppet Treasure Island» in 1996 with Jim Henson Productions, then run by Jim’s son, Brian Henson.
In 2000, the Henson family sold the Muppet properties to a German media company. EM.TV & Merchandising AG for $680 million. This company experienced financial difficulties shortly after, then sold the Sesame Street characters to Atelier Sésame for 180 million dollars at the end of 2000. The Jim Henson Company purchased the remaining Muppet properties for $84 million in 2003.
In 2004, Disney finally acquired the Muppets and most of the media library associated with the characters.
Disney continued to produce Muppet content, including “The Muppet Wizard of Oz” in 2005. Its biggest success came with the 2011 film “The Muppets,” which earned over $165 million at the box office and won the Oscar for Best Original Song”Man or Muppet.”
“Most Wanted Muppetsreleased in 2014, grossed an additional $80 million worldwide, bringing total worldwide box office receipts to over $458 million for eight theatrical Muppets films.
The “Muppet Show” continues
The Muppets continue to expand their fandom across generations and genres performing at live concerts and appearing in several series and films.
Thanks to those many hits and occasional bombs, and the Personnel changes at Jim Henson Companythe Muppets adapted to changes in technology and tastes, which allowed them to stay relevant has new generations.
This troupe of felt and foam characters continues to entertain fans of all ages. Although many people remain nostalgic for “The Muppet Show,” two previous efforts to revive the series proven short-term.
But when Disney broadcasts its “The puppet show“Anniversary special on February 4, 2026, perhaps more people will get hooked as Disney looks to reboot the series.
Jared Bahir Browseassistant professor of critical sport studies, University of Colorado Boulder
This article is republished from The conversation under Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
