puppet mouth

[BryanS]

Hi all its been a while since i have posted a thread.

I Have been thinking of building a puppet of my own that looks like my uncle that has a big mouth and eats alot but he dont have teeth LOL.

I was wondering if some of the builders here could point me in the right direction on how to make a cookie monster type mouth. my puppet needs to be able to swallow stuff Like cookie monster. does any one know how the mouth plates for that type of puppet mouth is made. I have been told that since cookie monsters mouth is so big that it has a glove made in it so your hand doesent slip. is that true? I am planning on using rubber for the mouth plates so it is flexable. and my puppet is going to have a big mouth I have looked at how the consumer monster puppet is made but it isnt able to swallow stuff. I am courious is cookie monsters mouth sewn together like the consumer monsters is. or is the material glued to the mouth plates first then glued into the puppets head.

 

[Ryan]

Cookie's mouth is made from a deflated basketball cut to size. There is a glove sewn into the mouthplate to make it easier to manipulate.

The hole in his mouth is essentially a long "sock", which is usually on the side of the mouth that isn't obstructed by your thumb (If your right handed, the hole would be on the opposite, or left side. The cookies/food slides down that sock, which is the same color as the mouth so it's unnoticeable.

Hope that helps.

 

[doctort13]

Here's a handy link:
http://consumermonster.com/

Thanks for the tip about using a basket ball.

Edited to add... I guess I should have read the complete message first...oops!

 

[MrsPepper]

Cookie's mouth is made from a deflated basketball cut to size. There is a glove sewn into the mouthplate to make it easier to manipulate.

The hole in his mouth is essentially a long "sock", which is usually on the side of the mouth that isn't obstructed by your thumb (If your right handed, the hole would be on the opposite, or left side. The cookies/food slides down that sock, which is the same color as the mouth so it's unnoticeable.

Hope that helps.

This is going to sound completely dumb, but I never realised that food ACTUALLY went down Cookie Monster's mouth. Even as a child, I always thought he ate so fast that the crumbs just went flying.

 

[Ryan]

This is going to sound completely dumb, but I never realised that food ACTUALLY went down Cookie Monster's mouth. Even as a child, I always thought he ate so fast that the crumbs just went flying.

Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't. Most of the time if he's eating a big batch of cookies, it's mimicked to look like he swallowed them. If he has to eat one thing, such as a ball, egg, etc, he usually would swallow it.

 

[BryanS]

Thanks for the Help and tips guys , I had no idea about the basket ball mouth plates either.

so your saying that the mouth plates made from the basket ball rubber has a hole cut in it toward the left side of his mouth and a seperate sleeve is made and sewn onto the otherside of the hole? is the sleeve left open at the bottom? or is it sewn up like a pocket? and does the glove have a sleeve attached to it too? how big would the hole in the mouth plate have to be?

 

[Was Once Ernie]

and does the glove have a sleeve attached to it too?

The glove in the 1979 and earlier versions of Cookie Monster did not have a sleeve attached to it. Although, that's not a bad idea. It might make him slightly easier to put on.

 

[BryanS]

I would think it would be easier with a sleeve attached to the glove some gloves are hard to put on anyway.

Ernie, was the glove inside cookie monster a soft cloth glove or was it a leather type glove. also were the fingers spread apart and sewn to the mouth plate or were the fingers sewn together and then sewn to the mouth plate?

Also i wanted to ask is the hole for him to swallow cut in just the bottom mouth plate to the left or in both top and bottom mouth plates? was it a big round hole cut in the mouth plate or a small oval shaped hole?

 

[Was Once Ernie]

Ernie, was the glove inside cookie monster a soft cloth glove or was it a leather type glove. also were the fingers spread apart and sewn to the mouth plate or were the fingers sewn together and then sewn to the mouth plate?

Also i wanted to ask is the hole for him to swallow cut in just the bottom mouth plate to the left or in both top and bottom mouth plates? was it a big round hole cut in the mouth plate or a small oval shaped hole?

Wow! Now you're really asking me to remember details from 35 years ago! I'll try, but there are people on this forum who have worked on the puppets much more recently and might have better answers than me.

The thing is, I didn't turn him inside out to look at the way he was constructed. I just put my hand inside. As I recall, the glove was a leather type glove, probably for durability. I don't know if the fingers were sewn together, but I can't think of a reason they would need to be, as long as they were firmly attached to the mouth plate.

Unless someone contradicts me, I don't think there are holes cut in the mouth plate. It's just not sewn or glued closed on the left side. If you watch him actually swallow things, they have to be "placed" into the hole for them to go down. That's why usually all that happens is cookie crumbs go flying everywhere.

Hope this helps!

 

[BryanS]

LOL Not Tring to sound Stupid here.
I kinda see how this works, But i am still having major trouble visualizing how it would be sewn or put together onto the mouth plates.and what about the glove how does it fit in to this with the swallow hole? also would the black fabric on the inside of the mouth be glued down to the mouth plates? or would it just be floppy on the inside of the mouth? could someone draw a diagram or something of some of this and how it would be sewn together. I just cant see it. or email me. Thanks.