Muppets in the crate

[minor muppetz]

In The Great Mupet Caper, when the crates that Kermit, Fozzie, and Gonzo were in hit the water, were the puppets radio controled, or were the performers underneath them in a situation similar to The Rainbow Connection from The Muppet Movie, or was it a little bit of both? I noticed in the ride shots that the characters seem to look a bit mechanical when they talk (and they don't move their arms, unless you count Gonzo lifting the door of his crate), but in close-ups their movements seem more natural (and Fozzie did move one of his arms in his close-ups).

 

[Squonk]

In The Great Mupet Caper, when the crates that Kermit, Fozzie, and Gonzo were in hit the water, were the puppets radio controled, or were the performers underneath them in a situation similar to The Rainbow Connection from The Muppet Movie, or was it a little bit of both? I noticed in the ride shots that the characters seem to look a bit mechanical when they talk (and they don't move their arms, unless you count Gonzo lifting the door of his crate), but in close-ups their movements seem more natural (and Fozzie did move one of his arms in his close-ups).

I think I'd always figured it was a little bit of both. The wide shots do have a sort of "stiffness" to the characters movements.