The Brand New Ask Jim Lewis Thread

[dwayne1115]

Another factor as to how Piggy's character has changed for the worst in recent years:

In the past, Piggy DID care about the other Muppets in addition to Kermit, even though they annoyed her, and did have compassion for them and others (like with the octopuses in the James Coburn TMS episode and with Beauregard in the Joan Baez TMS episode).

Even as recently as VMX and TM, she admitted to loving the other Muppets like family and regarded them all as her friends. However, in some recent appearances, including some promos for TM, she said that the others were only Kermit's friends, not hers. That's quite sad and something that really needs to be corrected, since ALL the Muppets ARE her friends and she does care about them all deep down.

Your right, and I think that it really shows how much she not only cared for Kermit, but all the Muppets in The Muppets Take Manhattan when Kermit went missing, Piggy took the role of leader, and did it very well I might add.

 

[MrBloogarFoobly]

Kermit is an example of a character who hasn't been Flanderized, necessarily, but he has been given lots of prozac. Kermit used to be a bit high strung, with a little bit of a mean streak. He was charismatic, but vulnerable. Now, he's pretty much Hey Arnold! - Mellow, meek, and prone to "go get 'em" speeches.

Now, you could chock it up to the performers changing, but it would appear as if Jim Henson and Steve Whitmire had/have similar personalities, with the same playful, sometimes dirty or naughty sense of humor. It clearly comes out in Rizzo.

(And then I stepped back for a moment and realized we're talking about puppet frogs and pigs. Haha. Muppet Fandom...)

 

[Duke Remington]

Wow now I have to figure out how to put all this in a question. It's a good question amd I agree with you about the way the writing style for Piggy has changed over the years This might very well be one of the best or most talked about questions we have ever done with this, so I want to ask it right.

Have you asked him this yet?

 

[dwayne1115]

Have you asked him this yet?

No I'm sorry I have not I was kind of waiting to see if anyone had any other questions. If not then after Thanksgiving I will ask.

 

[Duke Remington]

No I'm sorry I have not I was kind of waiting to see if anyone had any other questions. If not then after Thanksgiving I will ask.

Okay. Just curious.

I REALLY want him to stop ruining Piggy's character and stop depicting her as such as a big one-dimensional jerk who goes around yelling at and hitting people every other minute, no matter how contrived the reason. Getting mad at another woman for innocently standing next to Kermit, for example, is pathetic, awful, way too mean-spirited and needs to stop, since it crosses the line! Plus, the whole "what did you say? HI-YA!" schtick needs to be dropped--it's just as annoying and irritating as doing the whole "set-up-jealous-Piggy-and-watch-her-hit-someone" routine instead of writing actual material for these things.

The pig seriously needs to recieve more negative karma, fall victim to a slaptick again, resume expressing that she DOES care about the other Muppets and referring to them as her friends and, most of important of all, she needs to be treated to another "Friends hug, they don't spy" type of conversation.

He also needs to stop making Kermit such a coward and too unafraid to stand up to the pig, since Jim's Kermit DID have the guts to stand up to the pig, put her in her place or even yell at her at times when she crossed the line in the Muppet Show days.

 

[dwayne1115]

Okay. Just curious.

I REALLY want him to stop ruining Piggy's character and stop depicting her as such as a big one-dimensional jerk who goes around yelling at and hitting people every other minute, no matter how contrived the reason. Getting mad at another woman for innocently standing next to Kermit, for example, is pathetic, awful, way too mean-spirited and needs to stop, since it crosses the line! Plus, the whole "what did you say? HI-YA!" schtick needs to be dropped--it's just as annoying and irritating as the whole "set-up-jealous-Piggy-and-watch-her-hit-someone" routine. (She seriously needs to recieve more negative karma, fall victim to a slaptick again and, most of all, be treated to another "Friends hug, they don't spy" type of conversation.)

He also needs to stop making Kermit such a coward and too unafraid to stand up to the pig, since Jim's Kermit DID have the guts to stand up to the pig, put her in her place or even yell at her at times when she crossed the line in the Muppet Show days.

Well in Jim's defense I think one of the last major productions he has written have been A Very Merry Muppet Christmas, Kermit Swamp Years, and he helped with the Studio DC shows. Most of the more recent things have been written by other people, which personally I have a problem with. So I am not sure if it's all Jim's fault, but I will still ask the question.

 

[Duke Remington]

Well in Jim's defense I think one of the last major productions he has written have been A Very Merry Muppet Christmas, Kermit Swamp Years, and he helped with the Studio DC shows. Most of the more recent things have been written by other people, which personally I have a problem with. So I am not sure if it's all Jim's fault, but I will still ask the question.

Good point. But if that's truly the case, I do think he and the others need to speak out and tell those other writers how to write for the characters properly. Especially in those often-stupid guest appearances where they seem pretty much forced to do the schticks that we loathe and despise (various talk shows, Good Luck Charlie, possibly the Lady Gage special, etc.)--the writers for those things REALLY don't understand the characters and need those kinds of coachings.

 

[dwayne1115]

Personally I could not agree more! I have said, and have had some people agree with me that Jim should be the new head writer of the Muppets. Of you listen to some of the Muppeters they always seem to talk about Jim in a very high regard, due to the fact that he has great way of writing for the Muppets. Sadly last I heard he is not doing much writing for the Muppets anymore, which is a waste.

 

[Duke Remington]

Personally I could not agree more! I have said, and have had some people agree with me that Jim should be the new head writer of the Muppets. Of you listen to some of the Muppeters they always seem to talk about Jim in a very high regard, due to the fact that he has great way of writing for the Muppets. Sadly last I heard he is not doing much writing for the Muppets anymore, which is a waste.

True. The last things I remember him writing for were the Muppet viral videos and The Muppets' Kitchen with Cat Cora. Unless I'm proven wrong.

If it's true that Lewis isn't really writing for the Muppets anymore, and if the character Flanderizations are truly not his fault, then they should get him back and make him the next Jerry Juhl or at least start consulting him on these things to make sure the characters get written properly in the future and not be depicted so one-dimensionally.

 

[dwayne1115]

True. The last things I remember him writing for were the Muppet viral videos and The Muppets' Kitchen with Cat Cora. Unless I'm proven wrong.

If it's true that Lewis isn't really writing for the Muppets anymore, and if the character Flanderizations are truly not his fault, then they should get him back and make him the next Jerry Juhl or at least start consulting him on these things to make sure the characters get written properly in the future and not be depicted so one-dimensionally.

According to Muppet Wiki Craig Shemin wrote the cooking show, but I do recall asking Jim about the one that had patrol bear, and he said that Fozzie's costume was the original from the Muppet Show skits.
Here is the article for that:
http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Cooking_with_Cat_Cora

I was also looking at the last interview we did with Jim, for the Muppet Mindset, and I think if you read that and some of our other interviews and Q's and A's the answer may be there. Still it will be interesting what he has to say about your question.