Awesome Muppets

Sesame Street has been a kids’ institution since 1969. This clip of a song called Fat Cat comes from a 1973 episode and reminds us just how brilliant the show can be with its rhythms and rhymes. Jim Henson played both the orange-haired Bip Bippadotta and the lavender singer, while Frank Oz was the blue guy, and Jerry Nelson was green.

The finale of Dirty Dancing is one of the most iconic movie moments ever. So the idea that you could just swap out (I’ve Had) The Time of My Life and replace it with the theme from The Muppet Show doesn’t seem right. But Pandamoanimum proved otherwise with this perfectly-timed mashup. (Thanks, Rob!)

LEGO is finally releasing the Muppets Minifigures we’ve always wanted. Act out your favorite scenes with Kermit, Piggy, Animal, Gonzo, Fozzie, Rowlf, The Swedish Chef, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Beaker, and Janice, while Statler and Waldorf critique from the balcony. Sold as blind-bagged individual minifigs or in a six-pack.

Need to take the edge off of a hard week? Put on your headphones, take a sip of your favorite spirit, and listen to some smooth jams from the Monster Quintet. This series of easy listening musical interludes was produced for the Sesame Place theme parks back in the 1980s and is a must-watch Muppet fans.

Virtually every one of us has watched Sesame Street at some point. This HBO documentary offers a behind-the-scenes look at the beloved PBS kids’ series and its history through interviews with creators and performers, accompanied by some great archival footage. Premieres on HBO Max on 12.13.2021.

In this Halloween special, The Muppets find themselves as guests in Disney’s famed Haunted Mansion, challenged with surviving one night inside of its creep-filled walls. They’re joined by Will Arnett, Yvette Nicole Brown, Darren Criss, John Stamos, and another famous Henson, Taraji P. Premieres 10.8.2021 on Disney+.

Sesame Street’s The Count sings along with NY polka-punk band Gogol Bordello’s track Start Wearing Purple, a song about growing old and going senile, which seems rather ironic for a vampire who is likely immortal. At least he’s already the right color.

Thanks to Disney+, we’re in the midst of a The Muppet Show binge watch. One thing we don’t remember seeing was the part where Kermit the Frog blasts Carl Weathers in Predator. Thanks to Pixel Riot, we can now share this never-before-seen footage. You saying that Blain and Hawkins were killed by a f**king frog?

The Museum of Classic Chicago Television aka FuzzyMemories.TV dusted off this classic from the wonderful world of Jim Henson. This is the original 1969 versio of Mah-Na, Mah-Na, a skit that would later gain fame on The Muppet Show. The tune was originally created for a crazy Italian mondo flick, Sweden Heaven and Hell.

With its release on Disney+, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Broadway hit Hamilton is once again the talk of the town. Perhaps seeing a rainbow connection, Ricky Downes III recorded the entire musical in the voices of The Muppets. When Beaker started rapping, coffee came out of our nose. Act two here.

The Muppets are back with an all-new, unscripted series in which our beloved characters interview celebrity guests, improvise, perform in sketches, and other stuff they’re not willing to say yet. Coming to Disney+ starting 7.31.2020.

The Muppets regulars Statler and Waldorf are here to heckle all of your other action figures. Diamond Select Toys’ set includes both of the grumpy old men, along with a balcony for them to hang out in while they look down their noses at the rest of the world. Figures stand 3″ to 5″ tall.

Feeling a little blue? Kermit the Frog is here to bring a little sunshine into your day with a fresh performance of Paul Williams’ classic tune Rainbow Connection, as he socially distances alongside a country stream. We really need to rewatch The Muppet Movie now.

James Bruton is always making cool and amazing things. His latest build is a version of Tickle-Me Elmo that can actually move and walk around thanks to an array of nine servo motors and a wheeled robot that pushes it along. The design was inspired by that creepy teddy bear in the Spielberg movie A.I. Part one here.

Most of us had our first encounter with Muppets on Sesame Street. But it turns out that wasn’t Jim Henson’s first television show. Long before The Muppet Show, Henson created a quirky little show called Sam and Friends. Defunctland’s excellent miniseries explains how Henson – and Kermit the frog – got their start.

Mashup master Mylo the Cat diced up footage from the 1985 Sesame Street flick Follow That Bird to create a muppet version of the video for Beastie Boys’ 1994 classic Sabotage. The only thing missing are the cheesy ’70s mustaches.

You’ll never go in the water again… at least if you’re a chocolate chip cookie, you won’t. That’s because there’s a big, blue, insatiable monster lurking beneath the surface, ready to strike any minute and chomp on your ass. Firebeard’s t-shirt is perfect for any fan of muppets, cookies, sharks, or Steven Spielberg.

Public television meets public radio with a celebration of Sesame Street’s 50 years on TV, as Big Bird, Ernie, Bert, Grover, Oscar the Grouch, Elmo, Cookie Monster, Rosita, Abby Cadabby and a few people from the neighborhood regale us with 15 minutes of our childhood favorite earworms.

The guys at MetaFilter dug up this little gem that dates way back to 1976. At the close of the first season of The Muppet Show, the crew of series performed the opening song and a few skits without the Muppets or their voice actors. We had no idea the show was shot in England.

WIRED takes us behind the scenes with the cast of Sesame Street for a look at how the performers operate each of their Muppets, along with a few other cool tidbits about the art of puppetry. Their arms must get so tired over their heads like that all the time.

Avengers: Infinity War includes just about every major MCU character yet. But Marvel could have added many other characters under their parent company’s umbrella to round out the cast even further. Nerdist envisions what that movie might have been like.

Mylo the Cat presents another Muppet mashup, this time giving Miss Piggy the perfect song to sing, Rihanna’s 2012 megahit Diamonds. We’re pretty sure that Piggy would throw a major hissy fit if she found out her tiara was made from Cubic Zirconia.

It’s time to play the music, it’s time to light the lights… Heavy metal musician Leo Moracchioli takes on the theme song from The Muppet Show in the best possible way, with a puppet-filled music video, and a growly interpretation of the tune that would make Animal proud.

If there’s one tune that’s sure to get stuck in your head and rattle around all day, it’s the classic Mahna Mahna. This early appearance of the track on a 1969 episode of Sesame Street with crawl into your ear like that creature from Wrath of Khan, and won’t let go.

(PG-13: Language) Go Fozzie. It’s your birthday! America’s favorite stand-up comic bear parties his ass off in Mylo the Cat’s latest Muppet remix video. The clip got us wondering just how does a Muppet ingest liquor and weed, since they have no esophagus or windpipe.

Jim Henson & Frank Oz’s The Dark Crystal, is a masterpiece. Funko’s retro-style ReAction line is offering a series of figures inspired by the film, including The Chamberlain, Ursol the Chanter, Jen, Aughra, and Kira (with Fizzgig.) There’s also a Landstrider collectible from SDCC 2016.