Favorite Kermit Voice Actor? Jim Henson or Steve Whitmire?

[Pinkflower7783]

I love them both! I love Kermit!

On a slightly different note yet still on Jim Henson. Just watching The Muppet Movie and I'm not sure if this has been mentioned before but if you listen to the song Rolf and Kermit sing together the song ends with three voices XD When Kermit and Rolf hold out the O in the line "Hope something better comes along" they hold it out together and then Rolf badops with the piano... while still holding out the O haha!

Okay I'm gonna knit pick here just a bit but it's not spelled "Rolf" it's "Rowlf." Not trying to be rude but it really irk's me when names aren't spelled right.

 

[BooberGypsy]

Yeah I know it's Rowlf but I have a phone that keeps correcting it...

 

[cjd874]

Here's what I like about both of them:
I tip my hat to Steve Whitmire because he had the huge responsibility of taking over after Jim. Steve's singing voice is outstanding, and his Kermit sounds much cheerier. He really does the voice acting well, too. Jim didn't have to alter his voice much when performing Kermit, but Steve does, and he is great as the current performer of KTF.
Jim's Kermit was more versatile, capable of moving viewers to tears ("Bein' Green" or the scene in The Muppet Movie 1979 where Kermit chats with himself under the stars) and making us laugh out loud (routines with Miss Piggy, Grover, Fozzie, Cookie Monster, Floyd, Scooter, & others). Jim's Kermit had the ability to create memorable scenes with any character he interacted with, especially because Jim had a great rapport with the other Muppeteers.
So by a slight margin, I prefer Jim Henson's Kermit, even though I was born a few years after Jim's death.

 

[jvcarroll]

This is a loaded question because I enjoy both Kermit performers.

Jim Henson originated Kermit and performed him for 35 years, however the frog didn't become a household name until Sesame Street and Hey Cinderella. That means Jim's Kermit was most visible for about 21 years.

Steve Whitmire took over Kermit 22 years ago. Both representations are now on equal-footing as far as the frog's visibility is concerned. Steve's frog is also the Kermit that the current generation of young people grew up knowing.

Nothing beats the original. I prefer Jim's Kermit because he had a special way of balancing a keen wit with his laid-back nature. He was much more likely to speak his mind while Steve's Kermit seeks to please an audience by telling them what they want to hear. He also has a little more energy. Incidentally, I have noticed Kermit's sound becomes deeper and more Jim-like as Steve gets tired. Of course both interpretations experience a meltdown when his patience is tested, particularly by Piggy.

 

[Pinkflower7783]

I just wanna make clear by me saying I think one tends to do things better then the other that I am not disrespecting either one. I both regard them HIGHLY! I think Jim's Kermit was better at flying off the handle where as I don't think that is Steve's strength. I mean I know we've seen Steve's Kermit get mad at times although nowadays it seems even lesser but still when it HAS happened it just doesn't have that same whit to it that Jim was able to bring to it. Jim just had it.

I have to slightly disagree with saying Steve's Kermit tells the audience what they wanna hear because I remember Steve's Kermit telling an interviewer how he doesn't try to always listen to what the fans want he just wants to do things that he wants to do and be himself. Now granted I know Steve was in character but in someways I'd also like to think that was also Steve himself saying that as well.

However all in all I love Kermit and that's good enough for me.

 

[Drtooth]

This is a loaded question because I enjoy both Kermit performers.

That's exactly how to put it. It's hard to chose between the one who originated and created the role to the one continuing the role. That puts the spotlight on Steve, I think. That's not quite fair, since... let's face it, either Kermit was to get a new performer or the character died with Jim. When it comes to characters being recast, they're always in the Catch 22 of "I want so and so back" and "That doesn't sound like the So and so I know and love."

And I still object to the term "voice" when talking about a puppeted character. That's like saying Harrison Ford is the voice of Hans Solo to me. Every time a Muppet performer is mentioned by the media, it's ALWAYS "The voice of so and so." That annoyed me to no end when they reported the passing of Jerry Nelson. Sure, he was the voice of the characters near the end, but he was always a puppeteer before that.

 

[MrBloogarFoobly]

This isn't even a question. Kermit is part of Jim Henson's spirit. As good of a job as Whitmire has done, he's only a medium, channeling that part of Henson's soul (cheesy as that sounds.)

 

[MuppetGuy75]

I don't even have to think about this question! Jim Henson is and will always be Kermit to me. Steve does an amazing job and I'm glad he's able to continue the magic that Jim made with Kermit. Although voices are slightly different from one another, Steve has been able to create the same cute/funny appearance and looks that Kermit has always had. But as so many of you have said, Jim WAS Kermit... in so many ways.

God Bless Jim Henson

 

[Pinkflower7783]

And in a lot of ways Kermit is WAS also Jim.

 

[mupcollector1]

Jim, Steve is a great Kermit but there's a difference. Steve's Kermit is more energetic while Jim's Kermit evolved to be more mature and very adult human like which really gaves me the impression that Kermit is human. Kermit also had more of an anger management problem which I really miss about Kermit because Steve didn't really have Kermit being ticked off too much except for It's a very merry Muppet Christmas Movie. But personally it can't compare say the episode where Kermit fires Miss Piggy on The Muppet Show. Same goes with Miss Piggy, I much prefer Frank Oz's instead of Eric Jacobson's. Eric is also a great replacement but I found Frank to be funnier with his characters, for example Frank mentioned that Piggy was a character of pain. She pretended that she was a big star and which she isn't talented, she's overweight, Kermit doesn't love her, and he's a pig, the world is against her and her covering her pain is the joke. Frank disscribes his characters with great detail and I like that, it gives me a more 3D took inside what made the character.

I usually don't talk too much about Classic Muppets vs Current Muppets, as much as I just love to rant about it. lol I understand that there's fans here that like the current stuff more then I so I tend to not talk too much about it here. Unless there's a thread like this of course. lol