Behind the Scenes of "The Muppet Movie"

[AndyWan Kenobi]

I think it was a little of each. He had to make it known to Jim that he was interested in doing more than being a utility man, and then proving that he could do it.

Thanks--I was guessing maybe it was a combo of the two, but it's nice to know.

 

[Was Once Ernie]

There has been alot of talk of maybe getting a second Mupptfest together or maybe even just getting alot of MC posters together for some type of fan weekend. If this were to ever happen I am sure everyone would love to have you there as much as I would.

Thank you! I would love to be a guest.

I now have the dubious distinction of being the guy that knew the guys. Not only with the Muppets, but in other fields as well. I'm always being interviewed on animation DVD sets because I worked with all the big names -- Disney's Nine Old Men, Friz Freleng, Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera, Daws Butler, etc.

 

[Was Once Ernie]

Did John Landis only perform grover, or did he perform another character as well?

I know that I have already asked about whether certain performers (like jerry Juhl and carroll Spinney) performed at the end, but do you know if Jim Hensons wife, Jane Henson, performed in that scene? I am not really sure if Jim Hensons family was around during filming muhc or not.

John Landis was only Grover.

I seriously doubt that Jane was there. She seems to have pulled back from performing around 1976. It was only a few years after The Muppet Movie was filmed that she and Jim were legally separated. My guess is she was in NY with the kids, who were still younger at the time.

Since it was filmed in the summer, the family may have come out to visit, but I doubt they were hanging around for long periods of time. Movie making is very slow and tedious.

 

[That Announcer]

Thank you! I would love to be a guest.

I now have the dubious distinction of being the guy that knew the guys. Not only with the Muppets, but in other fields as well. I'm always being interviewed on animation DVD sets because I worked with all the big names -- Disney's Nine Old Men, Friz Freleng, Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera, Daws Butler, etc.

Hey, that's neat! What sets have you been on so far? (Specifically, were you on "Fantasia" or its sequel?)

 

[rumtar_10165]

The answer is, the rainbow was put onto the film optically in post production. I think they felt that the scrim muted the colors of the Muppets too much.

Next, it was time to assign puppets to everyone. All the puppeteers were divided by height. Since I'm fairly short, I was sent to stand in the "Emmett Otter" line, because those characters are small and would be in the front of the pit. I waited in the line for a few minutes and then when no one was looking, I sneaked over to the Sesame Street line.

They were giving out the minor characters and Anything Muppets first, so when I got to the front of the line, I boldly asked, "Can I have Ernie?" The person giving out the characters said, "Sure. You might as well take Bert, too." (Many people had to do two characters because there were so many and so little space). But then he thought better of it and said I should just take Ernie.

Everyone had to be checked out by one of the main guys. They would decide if the character you had was right for you... or they might switch you with someone else. I knew I had to think of something to pass this test. I fumbled around, trying to put him on for the first time. As most of you probably know, some of the puppets have working hands, as opposed to the charcaters that have rods in their arms. Ernie has working hands, while Bert has rods. In the case of the hand puppets, generally the puppeteer works the mouth with his right hand and the character's left hand with his left hand, then a second puppeteer works the right hand. They coordinate movements by watching their performance in a TV monitor. Since there wasn't going to be a second puppeteer, they stuffed Ernie's right arm and pinned it up so it wasn't hanging loose. I finally got my left hand into Ernie's hand (it goes in through an extra sleeve attached at the elbow). Then I put my other hand in his mouth. Ernie has a large mouth, so in order to be able to operate it, there are levels of board built up on the inside, leaving specific finger spaces on the top and one on the bottom for your thumb that you can grasp. I mastered it just in time for Jim to check me out. I walked up to him, held out Ernie's arm toward him, and in Ernie's voice, I said, "Daddy!!" Jim smiled and said, "Oh, good. You keep him." I had passed the test and would remain Ernie for the rest of the shoot.

I guess I do a pretty good Ernie, because people who didn't know better kept asking me if I was the real Ernie. Of course I told them I was... no, I didn't... I always told them it was Jim. But that was a very flattering comment for them to make.

Next time: Part Three

But here's a little surprise quiz: Can you guess what well-known film director was the Muppeteer for Grover in this sequence?

lets see john landis?

 

[rumtar_10165]

I dream come true.

John Landis was only Grover.

I seriously doubt that Jane was there. She seems to have pulled back from performing around 1976. It was only a few years after The Muppet Movie was filmed that she and Jim were legally separated. My guess is she was in NY with the kids, who were still younger at the time.

Since it was filmed in the summer, the family may have come out to visit, but I doubt they were hanging around for long periods of time. Movie making is very slow and tedious.

I was very young at the time that the muppet movie came out, I think I was 13. Any way I watched the muppets from Sesame Street all the way to jim's last project.

In 1985 I wrote a letter and sent an audio tape to the muppets and they said that the voices was very good. (one they liked alot.) But they were not hireing.

5 years later Jim died, so did my dream of working with him.
But I still do puppets for churches and other events.
It is good to see someone who had there dreams come true.
What are you doing now a days?

 

[Was Once Ernie]

It is good to see someone who had there dreams come true.
What are you doing now a days?

Thanks for asking.

I do a wide variety of projects now, but mostly I write cartoons and comic books. With a partner, I just sold a brand-new short to Nickelodeon. We start production next month.

For Warner Home Video, I worked on a number of Hanna-Barbera DVD sets.

Earlier this year, I was one of the writers on a new series of "Tom and Jerry" cartoons.

I still perform occasionally and for about three years I used to appear in sketches on The Tonight Show, but it's now been about a year-and-a-half since they've called me. (Don't tell anyone, but I actually did Elmo's voice in one of the Tonight Show bits!)

 

[unclematt]

Are the new Tom and Jerry cartoons going to televised?

 

[AndyWan Kenobi]

Wow, Was Once Ernie, you really seem to have a varied career. It seems like you always have something to keep you interested.

 

[That Announcer]

I still perform occasionally and for about three years I used to appear in sketches on The Tonight Show, but it's now been about a year-and-a-half since they've called me. (Don't tell anyone, but I actually did Elmo's voice in one of the Tonight Show bits!)

ARRRRGH! You told the wrong person! Kill, Tobor, kill! Heh heh...

Don't mean it. I own a few of the Hanna-Barbera sets. Just bought "The New Scooby-Doo Movies", as a matter of fact.