Save the Muppets

[Kynan Barker]

Character strength comes from the performers, yes, but more so from the writing.

This is a side-issue, and a non-issue at that. It's not like this campaign is against good writing. I mean, we're also in favor of cleaner air, good manners and effective dandruff shampoo. We just don't need a campaign to make those points.

Kynan
savethemuppets.com

 

[Beauregard]

This is a side-issue, and a non-issue at that. It's not like this campaign is against good writing. I mean, we're also in favor of cleaner air, good manners and effective dandruff shampoo. We just don't need a campaign to make those points.

Kynan
savethemuppets.com

I see, however...

...I think a little too much stress is being put on the performers issue in this case. That is all. I agree in princile, but not necesserally in practice. If that makes sence?

 

[GelflingWaldo]

Victor Yerrid and Drew Massey have been performing Statler and Waldorf the last few weeks on that website.

And the two of them also performed Animal, Dr. Teeth, and Sam Eagle already.

 

[Fozzie Bear]

Dr. Teeth needed some work. The inflections were there, just not the voice. Should have been a bit deeper and more gravelly.

 

[OverUnderAround]

I just want to thank all for contributing to this positive healthy debate. Regardless of what one believes. It's fun to explore all scenarios and angles of such a situation.

My personal dream for this topic, (but not likely to happen) would be that the MHC casts no more than one additional puppeteer for each key role.

I think we can all agree that would be good. One additional Occasional Muppeteer per main character. I think that would be healthy for the company in the long term.

Not the five or ten people per character I have seen mentioned here.
(Actually... That's also something I have never heard any place else but here.)

I've never been told that the Occasional Muppeteer would work at a theme park either.

Hmm. I do believe I heard from the sources at one time that it might be three puppeteers hired. I don't know if they meant in total or per character.

It might be something like this:
Photo shoots (non-speaking)- that might go to novice puppeteers. (And that's not a threat to anyone's job.)
Cruise ship- that might go to better quality puppeteers.
TV appearances- Puppeteers with proven TV experience and/or whom have worked with the Henson's in the past.

 

[Kynan Barker]

My personal dream ... would be that the MHC casts no more than one additional puppeteer for each key role. I think we can all agree that would be good.

No, we really can't. One Muppet, One Voice!

I've never been told that the Occasional Muppeteer would work at a theme park either.

Muppets Holding Company's Martin G Baker told Jim Hill on September 13: "This new group of performers ... will only get the secondary jobs. When Kermit needs to appear at the opening of a mall or in a new show at the theme parks." (http://www.jimhillmedia.com/article.php?id=1643) (emphasis mine)

Kynan
savethemuppets.com

 

[theprawncracker]

That's so wrong-headed it's offensive. You're making a massive leap in logic here, and accusing people you don't even know of being too lazy to save their own jobs.

I don't think OverUnderAround was saying that, he never accused the Muppeteers of being lazy; first off; and secondly, he was saying that if Goelz and Whitmire had lost their jobs, they would have done something. He was saying that they haven't lost their jobs, just that they have been replaced in smaller 10 min. performances, also, how do we know that Yerrid and Massey have been hired as permanent performers of these characters?

And I must agree with Beau, I'm not against the petition, I'm just not for it.

 

[Kynan Barker]

I don't think OverUnderAround was saying that

I know exactly what he was saying. And silence can be interpreted any way you want. "The Muppeteers haven't spoken about this" doesn't, logically, point to any particular conclusion. It could mean they're for it, they're against it, they're on vacation, they've all just turned to mime, or even, that's just not their style. They've never publicly complained about anything before, not even Telling Stories with Tomie dePaola. Why should their silence now be interpreted as significant?

But hey, if you're going to make assumptions based on silence, try this: If they were all for this policy, don't you think they'd be free to say so? Don't you think MHC would want to put them front and center and say, look, the Muppeteers support this?

But the real point is, even if I heard that Steve, Eric, Dave, Bill, Brian and even Jerry and Frank were in favor of multiple Muppets, I would still be against the idea. It's a bad idea. It was a bad idea when Jim was alive, it was a bad idea when Jim's kids were in charge, it's a bad idea under Disney, and it'll still be a bad idea in 10 or 20 years' time. Two Statlers, three Waldorfs, eight Kermits, five and a half Chefs -- any combination of multiple Muppets is a bad idea. I don't care who inside MHC is for or against it, I just want it stopped. I've been absolutely 100% clear on this all along: We're not trying to save anybody's jobs, we're trying to save the Muppets.

also, how do we know that Yerrid and Massey have been hired as permanent performers of these characters?

We don't care! The whole point is that recasting for convenience inevitably hurts the characters. Every change, every swap, every new voice and new set of mannerisms takes the Muppets further away from who they are, and major decisions like that just shouldn't be taken lightly.

Kynan
savethemuppets.com

 

[OverUnderAround]

Muppets Holding Company's Martin G Baker told Jim Hill on September 13: "This new group of performers ... will only get the secondary jobs. When Kermit needs to appear at the opening of a mall or in a new show at the theme parks." (http://www.jimhillmedia.com/article.php?id=1643) (emphasis mine)

Kynan
savethemuppets.com

Well thank you for pointing that out Kynan, Marty Baker didn't mention that to me. Malls or themes parks were never mentioned in my presence.

 

[MGov]

I really wish more people would support this campaign on principle, because the idea of multiple Muppets really is abhorrent.

No.

Abhorrent is starving children.
Abhorrent is genocide.
Abhorrent is religious persecution.
Abhorrent is the homeless dying on the street.

Sorry I can't get behind your campaign. I guess I just have a different perspective of the goings-ons at a huge entertainment conglomerate than you.

Good luck though.