Speaking Of Finger Puppets

[Censored]

Does anyone remember a book of "punch out" paper Sesame Street muppets from the early 70's? The book had photos of the muppets that could be punched out and wrapped around fingers. There was a very early book that had the early muppets in their original appearances (like Herry Monster with a blue nose". Then another one came out with newer muppets like The Amazing Mumford and the muppets' appearances were updated as well. Anyone else who remembers?

 

[HerryGrail]

Yes...they are great collectibles I remember from my childhood. Within the last year I found both intact on eBay and bought them for very little. My idea was to frame each page in its entirety, but I haven't gotten around to it yet. (Yes, Herry has his blue nose!) Keep on the lookout!

Around the same time there was a flat sealed bag that included three paper "puppets"...Ernie, Bert, and Cookie Monster. You pulled a tab attached to fishing line and they opened up, sort of like holiday centerpieces. You could pull the tab to open and close their mouths, or attach them at a slit in the back and stand them up. Mine were long gone, but again I found them recently on eBay.

 

[Censored]

Yes...they are great collectibles I remember from my childhood. Within the last year I found both intact on eBay and bought them for very little. My idea was to frame each page in its entirety, but I haven't gotten around to it yet. (Yes, Herry has his blue nose!) Keep on the lookout!

Ah, glad someone else remembers! I'd actually like to have TWO copies. One to frame and one to play with! LOL In the original booklet, Oscar and his can were separate punchouts and you'd slide him through a slot in the lid. In the second booklet, Oscar and his can were one piece.

The other puppets with a tab you mentioned are not ringing a bell, but I may have just forgotten them.

There were also the rubber Sesame Street finger puppets that were sold on blister cards. They've probably made plenty in recent years, but in the seventies they had Ernie and Bert (with real hair), Cookie Monster, Oscar, Grover, Big Bird, and Sherlock Hemlock. Their mouths couldn't really move, but the instructions said that you could use your hand to move their mouth up and down.

 

[HerryGrail]

The original Ernie and Bert had tufts of furry hair, while later ones had a kind of "permed" hair that wasn't nearly as nice. There also were Roosevelt Franklin and Salesman finger puppets, and Herry and Count ones from the same line that are very rare (both have hands on their torsos like the others...there was an Applause Count that looked a lot like this original Child Guidance series but he had a raised arm). I never saw the Herry or Count ones even though I was wild about these (and the full hand puppets) when they came out. I've only recently become aware of and acquired them.

I like them because they were done early enough that there was an effort to duplicate the puppets exactly rather than to add "cuteness" to them. The Sherlock Hemlock, for example, is sculpted so you can see the Kermit-like folds in the back of the sides of his mouth. This is also true of the small PVC sets Child Guidance made. Now, with the Palisades and Sideshow products, this focus on authenticity is happily back in vogue.