Posts by SirRobTheBrave
The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence
“Sex and Violence”
After the first Muppet Show pilot, The Muppets Valentine Show, failed to be picked up to series, Jim Henson and Co. shot yet another pilot in December 1974, which like Valentine, made it to air as a special on ABC (this one in March 1975) but the network similarly opted to not take it any further. And as much as I sympathize with the frustration Jim must have felt, I can’t actually say that I entirely either disagree with or don’t understand ABC’s decision. Although, as with Valentine, this special, Sex and Violence–available as a bonus feature on The Muppet Show Season 1 DVD set–displays many of the features that would become beloved Muppet Show staples, this show has still not yet found its voice.
Read MoreWhat’s My Line, Etc.
Kermit and Jim on “What’s My Line?”
And now, for the first time in a very long time–given how much footage I found for Sesame Street season 6 and my unexpectedly extended hiatus–we have another assemblage of miscellaneous Jim Henson-related clips, all of which range from late 1974 to early 1975.
The most interesting is probably the first one, an appearance that Jim and Kermit made on What’s My Line?, which aired on November 16th, 1974. What’s My Line? was a game show that began in 1950 and ran all the way through 1975 in which a panel consisting of 4 celebrity guests would at first try to guess a contestant’s occupation through yes or no questions, and then, in the second round, be blindfolded in order to guess
Read MoreSesame St S6: Bert and Ernie #2
“Cups and Saucers”
Today: the final batch of Sesame Street Season 6 clips, all of which include Ernie and most of which feature Bert, as well. I particularly love the twist at the end of “Cups and Saucers”, in which Ernie is counting a pile of 4 cups and 4 saucers, stacked one on top of the other. Bert comes in, absolutely terrified that Ernie is going to break them while counting, and his panicky reactions as Ernie points to and touches each, one at a time, is priceless. Ernie then can’t help having a little fun with his good old buddy, so when he prepares to take them to the kitchen he bobs back and forth precariously, pretending to nearly drop them and psyching Bert out. Bert yells that he’s going to break them, but Ernie assures him that’s not going to happen. He’s already glued them all together! Ba dum dum siss.
Read MoreSesame St S6: Bert & Ernie
“The Blackout”
Today, we once again reach a slew of Bert and Ernie sketches. As I’ve probably said at some point before, while I couldn’t possibly cover the entirety of Sesame Street on this blog, I try to do as much of Bert and Ernie as possible, since they were not only performed by Jim Henson and Frank Oz but the characters were very much based on Jim and Frank’s actual relationship, Jim being the more playful one and Frank often being a bit more of a fussbudget.
In a great many of the Bert and Ernie scenes, Ernie would playfully and intentionally drive Bert up a wall, often feigning innocence. In “The Blackout”, our first sketch today, however, Ernie does seem genuinely heartfelt, albeit thoughtless. Ernie wakes up in the middle of the
Read MoreSesame Street S6: Misc.
For today’s post, we have a bunch of miscellaneous clips from Sesame Street‘s sixth season. The first 2 are more Sesame Street Fairy Tales, as told by people from the street and acted out by the Muppets, the first being “The King’s Picnic”:
So, a pretty simple Sesame Street set-up and pay-off: a king assembles all of the people in his kingdom to have a picnic and asks them all to come back and bring various sorts of food so they can have a great big feast. If one so chooses, one could read into this a rather dark story about a despotic ruler who, rather than sharing his wealth and food with the kingdom, demands his subjects provide him with sustenance. I mean, come on, King, this would be pretty rude behavior from a neighbor, let alone a reigning monarch.
Read More