Ask Travis: A Master Replicas Photo Puppet Q&A Thread

Status
Not open for further replies.

King Prawn

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 13, 2002
Messages
736
Reaction score
11
Ask our question's here?

maybe we could ask are questions to Travis where it says title as you write your message (as above). I can see Travis missing a few questions seeing as we're all so excited and the threads getting longer each day. Some very good questions have been asked and I'd hate if Travis missed them and didn't answer some next time around. We could always post our questions in bold seeing as some are longer than others.

Anyway this is just an idea, we used to do this with Ken and it worked pretty well, made it much easier for everyone to follow.
 

ElecMayhem

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 13, 2002
Messages
342
Reaction score
30
Wow... FYI, you guys are killing me. I promised myself I would only come in a couple of times a week, but questions are pouring in, and I cannot resist... Aaarrrggghhhh!

Will the proposed larger replicas also come with the stands?
Fozzie will not have a stand. I assume this would be true of any of the larger Muppet Photo Puppets, but we're not there yet. Case, by case...

Other than online, where is the next largest marketing campaign aimed at?
... Wow. Truth be told, there's nothing else planned currently. (As I mentioned in the other thread, PR and Marketing Campaings are currently back burnered until I get a few other things sorted out.) Good question though! Bad answer.

What guidlines has Disney made so far and for the future, or is it a case by case scenario?
Ya know, Disney gets a lot of flack over the Muppets. While I agree that the company needs to DO MORE with the characters in terms of media... in terms of licensing, they're a lot of fun, and are fairly easy to work with.

Now, that's a double edged sword. The Jim Henson Company was very protective of the characters and -- with Palisades anyway, especially once we showed what we could do -- demanded perfection. Disney is a little more... what's the word? I don't want to imply that they're lax in any way... but they don't know the characters inside and out the way the Henson Company did. So there are different standards, and different ways of doing things. I can tell you that the Licensing folks at Disney are VERY passionate about the characters... but in a lot of ways, they (The Muppets) are still new to them -- are they are therefore something of an enigma.

Um... wait, did I even answer your question?

Hey Travis. Thanks for answering our questions. I would like to know how hard a challenge Gonzo was to make and if you think he is 90-100 % accurate?
Very, very challenging. Hm, let me put on more "very" in there. Very, very, very challenging.

Would I say he is 90-100% right? No. But not because he is not. I cannot answer that question because... it's going to depend on (a) what reference you look at, and (b) what you preconceived notions of what Gonzo should look like are. For instance, are you a Season 1 Muppet purist, who thinks that we should have made a S1 Gonzo? If so, then he's probably 78.3% WRONG! He is a very nice amalgamation of 30+ years of Gonzo.

Would there have ben any changes you would have made ie the sock nose or the suit colour?
The ****** nose. Again, not the structure, just the material. But I've addressed this before. For the record, I am fine with the color of the suit. Some of you will not be.

We all hope that Fozzie's mouth will close all the way please, can you give us some insite on that. Will his mouth close fully?
That is the plan, but we're not far enough into production for me to give you a real answer. I would have said yes for Animal once upon a time. But for one thing, Fozzie's tongue is thinner... so materials aside, it should not be an issue. I will tell you that Engineering was in here the other day looking into Fozzie's mouth! (No cavities, btw!)

And how will you defeat the foam issue when it comes up with puppets that are made out of mostly foam heads, such as Piggy, Waldorf, Statler etc?
I have no idea. Miles to go before I sleep... I will be working on this with Terry (hopefully!) very soon!

would you consider Scooter to be made?
Anything is possible. Yes, he will be considered. But let's see how Gonzo and Fozzie do first. (For those of you who don't know, Scooter is a nickname of mine from Palisades... So, I definitely want to see him made. Even though I am a little sick of the nickname...)

Travis! Congrats on Xander! I feel a Buffyverse influence in your name decision. :wink: Awesome. Does it feel wierd to be a Dad?
You are correct. And yes, it is very weird.

Onto the Muppets questions: Did you ever see this photo alteration that I posted on the MR Forum?
Yes I did... and for the record, I think you are pretty dead on with the eyeball placement. Here's the tricky thing on the eyes. (We all know that the pupli placement is the key to nailing these characters, right?) Since they're hand made, there will most likely be variations in the final product. I hate it, but it's a fact of this kind of manufacturing. Like I said, the one I have here looks good to me. But then, I think Animal looks pretty good too. It's going to come down -- please see one of my earlier answers -- to what you think Gonzo should look like. Cause his pupils have moved around over the years, too.

Next question: Even though Rowlf only appears on your wishlist, how likely is it that we'll see his addition to the fantastic MR Muppet line?
Oh man, you guys are killing me. He's on my wishlist, but nothing else is final beyond Fozzie. (Yes, Miss Piggy is officially still next, but even that could change.) If I had it my way, Rowlf will be next. But Miss Piggy is going to be expensive, and we're trying to stagger the larger and smaller characters (or, I should say, I want to stagger them!) But in terms of what percent chance.... Idunno. You guys are killing me with these math questions!

I was told there would be no math...

Is Pepe out of the question?
No, but he's not really on my radar either. I would sooner attempt all 4 (remaining) members of the Electric Mayhem Band, before I did Pepe. I guess I am more of a traditional fan, and unfortunately, my biases will be felt to some extent.

Would Scooter really be an option?
More than Pepe, yeah. Certainly.

How likely would a Dr. Teeth or even Janice be? :big_grin: :flirt:
I would put them higher up on the list, but for the fact that they are extremely complicated, and therefore would be very expensive. And -- again, this is just me talking outloud -- I would want to do all 4 band members together, since I wouldn't want to risk the line coming to an end before all 4 were produced. I don't know how feasible that would be, though.

Did Dave G give any insight on Gonzo?
No, but then... I've never successfully contacted him. He lives like half an hour from me... maybe I should just show up at his house.

I was just wondering if you had located a Pig head mold. As far as I know Heap is the only place to get a Pig head. Or is Terry going to make it by hand?
I believe we -- meaning Terry -- have found something. More on this later, once we actually start work on her.

Any thought on large scale display cases or maybe partnering with a company? and, that option would be great when it comes to S&W... Maybe a balcony set?
Are you insane? People are already complining about price points! Do you know how many we would have to sell, and at what price, to justify making such a thing? Palisades couldn't get it done on a 6 inch scale, and you want the real deal? I tell you what... next time you're out West, come to my house and we'll play with my power tools and build one. (I am not kidding, btw.)

I am halfway through making my own piggy - but mine is a puppet. I have made her dress with inspiration from Muppet Caper with my own twist, as far as a replica I agree that the Mupper Caper dress would be awesome
http://s264.photobucket.com/albums/ii188/jbpuppets/?action=view&current=piggy1.jpg
No question here... but I have to say. Wowee Keeermit, she is really good. Would you drop me a PM when you have a chance? I've been meaning to contact you...

Hey Travis is there a chance we can get a human sized replica of Scooters jacket.
I would have to look. I don't know that our license covers that, honestly. Because it was not human sized, and would therefore be apparel, not a replica. (I have reference for it, of course...)

maybe we could ask are questions to Travis where it says title as you write your message (as above). I can see Travis missing a few questions seeing as we're all so excited and the threads getting longer each day. Some very good questions have been asked and I'd hate if Travis missed them and didn't answer some next time around. We could always post our questions in bold seeing as some are longer than others.

Anyway this is just an idea, we used to do this with Ken and it worked pretty well, made it much easier for everyone to follow.
Good idea King Prawn... I have no idea if I've missed any questions... (So... many... questions...) That might help. (If it's good enough for Ken, it's good enough for me!)
 

Fozzie Bear

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 14, 2002
Messages
13,372
Reaction score
148
I don't keep up with the 'net enough. Congrats on the young'un, Trav!

It my perfect world, we would have the entire Electric Mayhem as Photo Replicas. Other than your projected list, what would be in your perfect world of Muppet Replicas?

Also, will you personally be working only with replicas, or anything under the Muppets' license? Again, I don't keep up too well and want to know what to beg for.

What all (merchandise, productions) is covered under the Muppets license? Die cast? Clothing (for those, like me even, who would love to have the Scooter jacket)? Knowing this, we'll know what we can begin begging for! UPDATE: You just answered this in the previous post. We posted at the same time.

I'm glad you're working on this line, Travis. It's good to know a Muppets fan is in the ranks!
 

Was Once Ernie

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 16, 2005
Messages
959
Reaction score
4
Hi, Travis!

I sent you a PM... did you get it?

(At least that should be an easier question to answer!)

:stick_out_tongue:
 

ElecMayhem

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 13, 2002
Messages
342
Reaction score
30
Hi, Travis!

I sent you a PM... did you get it?

(At least that should be an easier question to answer!)

:stick_out_tongue:
YAY! An easy one! Actually, yes I did get it... and I apologize for not responding yet. I've made a commitment to be on here answering public questions, and so I've been using whatever spare time that I have to do just that.

That said, I will PM you back now... since there's a bit of a lull between question sessions.
 

Rowlfharris

Member
Joined
Dec 20, 2006
Messages
20
Reaction score
0
Plastic/vinyl parts on Muppet replicas

Hi Travis, thanks for all your really informative answers!

Do you have any opinion on solving the foam head dilemma using a plastic/vinyl "dolls head" substitute rather than fabrics & foams? (more info in my earlier post: http://forum.muppetcentral.com/showpost.php?p=610444 ).

Though it compromises these replicas being totally soft goods, I can't see how the "Gonzo 'sock' solution" could ever be used for the scale of moulded foam-work on Piggy & others. And it seems that MR tried very hard but couldn’t find any alternative for Gonzo.

Would you be totally opposed to hollow semi-flexible plastics or vinyl being used for difficult parts of the photo-muppets in place of foam heads?





 

Fozzie6

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2006
Messages
75
Reaction score
31
Can you give us any insight into the "Muppets Moments" figurines that are slated to be released this year? Maybe a release date, size, or what they'll look like? Thanks!
 

MuppetCaper

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 11, 2007
Messages
1,020
Reaction score
12
Don't forget about our Gonzo pictures Travis, the shipping date seems so far away and we need something to pacify us fans! :concern:
 

theprawncracker

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 14, 2004
Messages
13,202
Reaction score
534
Hey there Travis! I want to commend you on doing this for us ravenous fans here! Public Relations is something I LOVE to see in a company, and who better to do it than you? :big_grin: Anyway, on to my questions...

Are your photographers told how to display the replica prototypes when they take pictures of them for the site? I ask because some of the poses seems strange and some seem rather (please don't take this offensively) lazy. Such as the picture of the Gonzo replica leaning against something. It seems like a very bad angle.

This might've been asked/answered elsewhere, but... Will the Gonzo replica have poseable eyelids? Also, will his mouth be moveable?

Is there a projected price-range for the resin figures planned for later this year? Will you be able to get more obscure characters made into resin figures as opposed to full-blown replicas?

And just a little annoying fan-boy question... Will the resin figures be in-scale with the Palisades figures? If so, would you consider making sculptures of some of the "missing pieces" of the Palisades line? (e.g. Sal, standing Robin, Bean Bunny, Bobo, etc.)
 

Kevin Knight

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 31, 2007
Messages
176
Reaction score
0
Isn't Gonzo's shipping date like in 12 days? Dear Lord!

Travis, wow thankfully your job requires this type of interaction with the public eh?

With (we'll say then, the probability of) no stands for the larger replicas please tell me we'll still be issued the same size adhesive numbered plaque for the subsequent replicas? I have not applied my plaques to the stands as I have plans to use them in a wall sized display case later on.

Will MR be sending Animal, Gonzo, or Fozzie on a nationwide "trip" like Kermit did? That was a very good idea that would be very cool to see again. Heck I'd even be willing to start the trip here in Hartford. Ya know the saying start at the bottom! LOL Hey we're the insurance capital of the world. Especially with the absence on-line of Star Wars products to look at!

With the timelines that you've seen so far, as a hypothetical, ballpark, when can you look for Fozzie to ship? I ask cause I really haven't a clue or where in the process MR's at right now.

Lastly,

With the problems encountered with that blue alien weirdo, will this change MR pre-order policies of not offering it up until at least the first item is off the production line? **** for photo's sake at least! **** that thing!


Kevin

CAN'T WAIT FOR FOZZIE TO BE IN THE LIVING ROOM NEXT TO HIS BEST FRIEND!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top