It’s Friday and here at MousePlanet that usually means it’s time for another Disney Top 5 or perhaps some more great Disney Stuff, but to this particular MousePlanet writer this particular Friday is a little different. In just a few short days something major is going to happen. It’s something I’ve been waiting years for. It’s something that’s long overdue. It’s something that I just can’t believe took this long. So what is it? What’s this big event that I’ve been waiting years for? Could it be…that…in just a few days…The Muppets might actually be staging their long awaited comeback? Only time will tell, but the fact of the matter is that this coming Wednesday, November 23rd is a date that I’ve been waiting for and I’m guessing there are a few of you out there that have been waiting for as well. The 23rd is the date that Disney’s The Muppets finds it’s way into theaters, and I can’t wait.
Kermit the Frog. Photo courtesy of Google Images.
I was born in 1968, which put me at Ground Zero for Muppet Madness. I was part of the first generation raised on Sesame Street. I was the perfect age for The Muppet Show, the ensuing Muppet movies, and I had a front row seat to watch the worldwide Muppet Mania unfold. When I was a kid, quite simply put, The Muppets were everywhere. The biggest stars of the day were on The Muppet Show and in The Muppet Movie. The Muppets were on toy store shelves. They were on the covers of magazines. They were on Saturday Night Live. They were on the news. Kermit the Frog hosted The Tonight Show, for goodness sake. Adults and children the world over fell for them and I was right there, soaking it all up.
I never got over my Muppet Fever either. They stayed with me. In my college dorm room side by side with the Bruce Springsteen and Grateful Dead posters was a huge poster of Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem (yeah, I know…you’re envious. Believe me, I wish I still had that poster.) The Muppets were a part of me. They are a part of me still. So, exactly how happy was I when I began my college internship with Jim Henson Productions in the spring of 1990? I would actually pinch myself at times to see if I was really standing there in the Muppet Mansion on 69th Street in Manhattan surrounded by Muppet paraphernalia and steps away from Jim Henson himself. It was a dream come true for sure. Touring the creature shop, walking down Sesame Street, watching Jim operate Kermit, poring through boxes of rare videos and just being there every day was a treat for anyone, let alone a Muppet fan as big as me. Getting to sit and talk with Jim, just the two of us in his office for about 25 minutes…well…you can imagine what that was like for me. I talked about it here on MousePlanet some time ago.
Being there as a part of the company when we lost Jim was quite an experience as well. The world felt such a deep sadness when Jim died. His influence was global. He changed the world with his art form and his inner circle was devastated by his passing. Attending the memorial service and subsequently being hired as an employee of the company further entrenched me into this wonderful family of creative folks. Working on his tribute special, The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson was an amazing experience. Here I was, surrounded by all of the Muppets and the creators and performers that brought them to life. It was sad and emotional and fun all at the same time. But it solidified just how creative this team was. I watched as they struggled through the details and fought back the tears as they all worked together for the first time without their quiet, genius leader to guide them.
All things considered, I didn’t spend all that much time working there, just shy of a year, but it had a big affect on me. As if I didn’t love The Muppets enough, now they were an even bigger part of me.
The lifelong Disney fan in me was intrigued by the “marriage” of the Mouse and the Frog. I cherished them both, but I saw the differences in the two companies and I wondered how the union would work. Jim felt that he was leaving his creations in good hands with Disney, and you’d have to trust the man’s judgment.
Outside the “Muppet Shop” at the Studios. Photo by Chris Barry.
And then…reality set in. Granted, I’m a big fan of MuppetVision 3D at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, but let’s not forget, Henson himself was involved with the creation of this wonderful attraction dripping with Muppet details. Of course, that was more than 20 years ago. And what have my beloved Muppets been doing the past 20 or so years? Not so much, really. Sure there have been some Muppet films; Muppets From Space, The Muppets' Wizard of Oz, Muppet Treasure Island. Quite frankly, there were some fun moments in them but overall I wasn't so impressed. Granted, the original trilogy of Muppet films are a tough act to follow, but one would think that Disney could have utilized these characters a lot more over the years. The Muppets actually have been appearing more in the merchandise world. I've picked up some cool things in the Disney Store and at the shop in Hollywood Studios, but nothing in comparison to the heyday of The Muppets. Why is that?
The Stage 1 Company Store at Disney's Hollywood Studios. Photo by Chris Barry.
In reality, they have the license to the characters, but there hasn't been anything to promote. These days you need that synergy. You have to create a demand for merchandise by having the Muppet characters out there on television and in the movies. Then the kids (and let's be honest, the grown-up kids) can start clamoring for toys and t-shirts and whatnot. A generation of kids have been growing up with these characters on the periphery at best. More than likely, unless a parent like me is playing the old Muppet tapes and DVDs for their kids, most children don't even know these characters at all and that's just a shame.
I'm quite sure that there are “suits” out there within the Disney organization and elsewhere that are standing behind the, “if it's not CG, the kids won't like it” argument. That's a load of hogwash. I played The Muppet Show for all three of my kids and guess what…they liked it and they laughed and they watched it again on their own. If they didn't like it or couldn't identify with it, I would know. Kids are brutally honest. My oldest knows I worked for The Muppets and understands my connection. The younger guys don't and they still like these characters. I'm hoping that things like the recent re-release of The Lion King and it's almost 3 week number one run at the box office will convince people that it doesn't have to CG to be a success. There's also a certain red fuzzy Muppet on Sesame Street that blows a hole in that whole “it has to be CG and 3D “theory as well. I'm quite sure that Elmo is still massively popular and he's about as old school as one could get.
So, will this next edition of The Muppets be a success? I certainly hope so. There are a number of things that are encouraging to me. First of all, the idea for this movie didn't come from within Disney. Now that may seem like an unusual plus, but let's consider what the Muppets have gotten from within the company so far. I'll actually just leave that one as…enough said.
The idea for this film came from actor Jason Segel of How I Met Your Mother and Forgetting Sarah Marshall fame. I think Segel is a likable and funny guy. Most important though is that he is a self professed raving Muppet fan. He has made no secret about his desire for The Muppets to come back and to come back in a manner that they were accustomed to and a manner that they deserve. He wants to do an old school Muppet movie, one that like all the great Muppet features will appeal to adults and kids alike. That, to me, is the biggest plus of all. Segel seems to speaking for me and for all the other die hard Muppet fans out there that have been waiting and wondering about the fate of their beloved pieces of felt.
I thank him for taking the opportunity and using his fame to get inside the doors at Disney and pitch an idea to resurrect the Muppets properly. Let's hope he doesn't fail all of us. Sorry for the pressure Jason, but we've all been waiting a long time for this and we just want it to work.
The Disney PR machine seems to be behind the film, and I'm enthused by what I've seen and read about so far. So now the rest is up to us. I'll be there on November 23rd, with my family. Will you? If this film doesn't do well, who knows what will happen to Jim's amazing creations. If it scores and scores big…well…who's to say how big they'll come back? I don't want to be too hopeful, but I keep waiting for that Muppet dark ride at Hollywood Studios or a Jim Henson version of Walt Disney; One Man's Dream. How about that sequel to The Dark Crystal? I could go on and on.
In the meantime until next week, I'll just follow Kermit's advice from The Muppet Movie, “Life's like a movie. Write your own ending. Keep believing. Keep pretending.” I have faith that the Muppets can come back. I don't think that the end of their movie has been written yet and I want to keep believing and keep pretending along with them for a long time to come.
Thanks for reading and I hope to see you next time with a “Top 5 Things That I Just Loved About The New Muppet Movie.”
