Petition For Disney To Release Muppets @ WDW & MT

[beaker]

I just want DIsney to release specials PERIOD. They don't even release their own Disney specials. Took them years to put Mickey's Christmas Carol on a Holiday DVD collection.

I don't see any datedness being a problem as far as the rides go. They could have a small disclaimer says... "If you love that ride that Beauregard and Piggy were on... well, yer out of luck!" Plus, it has one of their former Disney stars WAAAAAY before she had a Disney show, so you'd think they'd jump on releasing that sucker. But again, they're very bad with specials, even their own. I don't expect to see any of those DisneyTV Music Video specials (can you say music rights headache?) but GIMME Sports Goofy! I may have watched it twice online, but I want a clean, DVD transfer of it.

I really want to see Muppets at Disney AND Muppet Family Christmas (Disney apparently owns the entire special and doesn't even need to call SW and Henson from the rumor that was posted a while ago) and all that stuff released on a special collection of Muppet Specials. My Muppets at Disney tape has a very ANNOYING unscheduled commercial break in the middle of the opening scene.

Oh man, there's so many made for tv movies, specials, straight to vhs films and theatrical films that still are not on dvd as far as Disney goes. The strangest is the refusing to ever release Song of the South.

But why do you think Lions Gate has been pumping out Henson Muppet stuff left and right in the last couple years, in your opinion? Im guessing they just have more guys hip with it or something. Every Fraggle episode, animated and live action with single best of dvds. The Jim Henson Hour specials, the 1984 documentary, and Im sure theres a bunch Im forgetting. Heck I got that rare 2003 Best of Ed Sullivan Muppets dvd(forget who released that)

But yeah, so much Disney just plumb hasn't released. Best I can suggest is do what I do: buy good quality vhs of specials/movies you like that will never be released, and get a usb vhs to digital converter cable for your vcr to rip your old muppet tape specials and vhs so you can put em on dvdr(did that with all my Jim Henson Hour episodes and muppet specials)

 

[Drtooth]

Oh man, there's so many made for tv movies, specials, straight to vhs films and theatrical films that still are not on dvd as far as Disney goes. The strangest is the refusing to ever release Song of the South.

That really bugs me. Meanwhile, they have no problem with distributing their old 1950's and 60's lilly white fantasy films, and they don't think it's not PC to do so. If you change the Mark Twain character's name to "Upstanding African American Jim" doesn't make it so that bad stuff never happened. To me, hiding this stuff and pretending it didn't happen is WORSE than the fact it happened. We need to be educated. And no little kid's gonna want to watch this film anyway, only animation and film buffs. So here's the compromise... get someone famous to read a disclaimer somewhere on the DVD (The Looney Tunes sets apparently did that) and release it for sale online ONLY as a collector's edition for older, more mature animation/film buffs. Problem solved.

But they have a real problem with their own specials, I've noticed. So, I'm not surprised that we haven't seen Muppet Specials that weren't considered pilot films. and only because they were back up Special Features. Now, that would be the PERFECT place to put Muppets at WDW. They managed to fit the hour long Muppets on Puppets on Season 3.

But why do you think Lions Gate has been pumping out Henson Muppet stuff left and right in the last couple years, in your opinion? Im guessing they just have more guys hip with it or something. Every Fraggle episode, animated and live action with single best of dvds. The Jim Henson Hour specials, the 1984 documentary, and Im sure theres a bunch Im forgetting. Heck I got that rare 2003 Best of Ed Sullivan Muppets dvd(forget who released that)

I consider that due to the fact Disney has the muscle to make new Muppet stuff happen at a moments notice, while Henson needs backers, production companies, partners and all that to so much as make a puppet game show. When I see that they're releasing all the Henson entirely owned programming on DVD, well, that's definitely a way for them to get money for other projects. And that's exactly what Henson SHOULD be doing at this point. Take everything you possibly can that's not nailed down to the floor, put it on DVD and get Lionsgate to sell it. Plus, it puts their entire back catalog into the public eye, without having to make any new projects. If it gives them the money and strength they need to get actual projects off the ground, so be it. Disney doesn't need that kind of strength... but I just wish they'd hurry up with Season 4.

 

[FloydPepper77]

I'll help, that is one of my favorite specials! I still have the copy I recorded when it aired! I converted it to DVD now but still have the VHS....let me know what I can do to help!

 

[minor muppetz]

Oh man, there's so many made for tv movies, specials, straight to vhs films and theatrical films that still are not on dvd as far as Disney goes. The strangest is the refusing to ever release Song of the South.

And yet Disney seems to have most if not all of it's politically incorrect shorts on DVD by now.

Heck I got that rare 2003 Best of Ed Sullivan Muppets dvd(forget who released that)

That was released by Goodtimes, a year before Disney bought the Muppets. Of course the Ed Sullivan clips are owned by whoever owns the show, not Henson or Disney. Not sure if Goodtimes needed to negotiate with Henson on that release or not (the packaging and credits do not list copyright/trademark credits for the Muppets).

 

[beaker]

And yet Disney seems to have most if not all of it's politically incorrect shorts on DVD by now.



That was released by Goodtimes, a year before Disney bought the Muppets. Of course the Ed Sullivan clips are owned by whoever owns the show, not Henson or Disney. Not sure if Goodtimes needed to negotiate with Henson on that release or not (the packaging and credits do not list copyright/trademark credits for the Muppets).

Short of NBC releasing a "Best of Land of Gorch", the 2003 Ed Sullivan Best of Muppets dvd has to be the most out of left field release to date. And is definitely a must have for any fan; just amazing to see the early incarnations of a lot of famous Muppet and Sesame characters(as well, some of the truly out there existential ideas Henson had going in the 1960's)

 

[dwmckim]

I wouldn't worry at all about MT! Since the TMS box sets first came out, they've said that MT! would be the logical followup once all five seasons of TMS have been released. Yeah, the waiting's hard but that's all it is - the wait. It will happen eventually.

As for Muppets @ WDW it seems a no-brainer that since Disney bought the Muppets, that the special would be released at one point or another (either as a main feature or bonus feature). I'm actually kind of disappointed that Disney didn't take advantage of the timing of the Muppets doing the whole Give a Day promotion that it didn't happen earlier this year.

 

[Drtooth]

I wouldn't worry at all about MT! Since the TMS box sets first came out, they've said that MT! would be the logical followup once all five seasons of TMS have been released. Yeah, the waiting's hard but that's all it is - the wait. It will happen eventually.

Yeah, but can we hold out until 2059?

 

[beaker]

I wouldn't worry at all about MT! Since the TMS box sets first came out, they've said that MT! would be the logical followup once all five seasons of TMS have been released. Yeah, the waiting's hard but that's all it is - the wait. It will happen eventually.

Being a Muppet fan is *all* about waiting. If I were to have come from the future and said to you all right here on Muppet Central in 1998, that you all will have to wait til the year twenty eleven to get that "Muppet rennaissance", that big Muppet Comeback...people would think I was nuts or be disappointed.

And yet, that is just the nature of reality. Waiting. Of course, I already went ahead and downloaded all of the MT episodes and put em to dvdr; as I no longer put any faith in the waiting game.
"Oh, in 7 years if I'm patient Disney may release this or that". Forget that, Ive been downloading and vhs transfering like crazy the last couple years. Im grateful to Lions Gate tho, and am estatic about all their releases

 

[Drtooth]

I wish they would just consider releasing MT on TMS's off time as far as releases go. There's all this Muppety goodness outside of Muppet babies (and that's a copyright headache when it comes to the old film clips unless they release...ugh... best ofs) that needs to be released, and they're taking their time giving us a general release date for the fourth season. And times' running out on 2010.

 

[G-MAN]

In response to "The Best Of The Land Of Gorch" Those skits are on DVD you just need to pick up the SNL Season sets that have them