The International Muppet Show

[BlueFrackle]

Guys,

Here is a page about the two versions of 'Halfway Down the Stairs' that were shot.

It would be great to see if anyone has any ideas about this !

http://www.angelfire.com/space/collect/Halfway.html



Thanks

 

[Twiddlebug]

Halfway Down the Stairs

I'm going to try to answer the question " why were there two "Halfway's" taped?". The brown background was from the Muppet Show but the blue one was done on Top Of the Pops and since Top was done live in front of an audience it was redone there live. This means it had a different director, set designer, and lighting director. It is obvious that the stairway that Robin is sitting on is the same piece, so they must have been saving money on that person and the set builders as well, however, the Top's was a promotional show meant to sell records and so the lighting is a more zippy blue instead of a homey, warm brown. Now, as to why the one from Top'O was later edited into the Harvey Korman Show(this will only be speculation)I think that the blue one was better. Remember that the original one was done near the end of the first season and as I recall the last piece of the day. The Top'O was after we had been in the states making the Muppet Movie and when we came back everyones energy was pumped ,even more so when we found out what great responce the Brits gave the show.Other than that, I can only say, Your guess is as good as mine.
Be good to your friends and stay well.
Twid

 

[SillyRed]

It's actually a song based on the poem by A.A. Milne, Pooh author.

The carpeting on the stairs differs too.

 

[anathema]

The carpet is the same, it just looks different because of the lighting.

While TOTP was normally taped live, 'Halfway Down The Stairs' was a pre-recorded insert, not something shot in the TOTP studio. As such, it would have most likely been produced at the ATV studios, not the BBC.

The version of the show which contains the blue-lit version is in fact a complete re-edit of the show - it differs from the earlier one in many places. (It's not the only show that got re-edited - Rita Moreno, Joel Grey and Ruth Buzzi were re-done too). I don't know why this was done.

I'm interested to hear you say that TMM started filming as early as 1977! Was this the camera tests, or actual footage for the final film?

 

[BlueFrackle]

Twiddlebug,

Thanks for the answer !

It was a complete mystery up until now !

 

[Twiddlebug]

I beg to differ with Anathema's opinion that Halfway version on TotP's was pretaped in the ATV Studio. It was done in the TotP's studio with a live audience. You are correct about the carpet on the stairs however. It was the same set piece from the original show.

 

[anathema]

Do you have any more information on this? Given the apparent size of the (empty) studio it was shot in, I'm curious to know how it was done.

 

[Twiddlebug]

Halfway Down the Stairs

It was done in , NOT an empty studio , the Top Of The Pop's studio. I was there mate. The director of the Muppet Show, Peter Harris played the piano just as he did for the the MS version and I sang it and performed it in front of a live audience. That may account for your impression that it was the same track that was used on the show. The same person played, the same person sang and it was done on the same set piece stairs, but in a different place.TOTP. But thanks for your input.

 

[anathema]

Please accept my apologies - it was not my intention to give offence. I should have phrased my comments more carefully.
I think what may have confused me is that the copy I've seen of this did not seem to include the normal 'background noise' I'd expected from a TOTP studio recording, but that could of course have been a redubbed copy.

Thank you very much for sharing your memories with us!

 

[Gorgon Heap]

Good to see you!

Good to see you, er, hear from you, no, uh, read text from you! Aw, skip it! Good to have you here, Twiddlebug, or should I say Mr. Nelson.

I was at Muppetfest, and got your autograph, but it was strange, as I went down the line starting from Bill, who I wasn't all that familiar with, I made it to Steve, and Dave, getting more awed/nervous as I went along, and by the time I got to you, set apart from the others with your own table and an assistant to boot, I just got silent. Couldn't say anything. So now, I will try.

Let me first say that it's hard to find good strawberries this time of the year in the states. No, just kidding (although it's true). First thing I want to say is I hope you continue your wonderful work with the Muppets for years to come. You've provided an innumerable plethora of characters, probably the most of any Muppeteer. I can almost always tell which voices are yours, and yet when I think about it they all sound so different; it's like Christopher Finch said in his book, you're "the Mel Blanc of the Muppet world."

Second, Thog is one of my favorite Muppets, in fact my new Instant Messenger screen name is Thogboy23 (23 for the Kaye Ballard episode of The Muppet Show) and I even made my own buddy icon for it (a first!) I was sorry to hear from one of the puppet builders that this puppet no longer exists and will likely not be rebuilt. He was never used much, but I always liked him (I'm the one who's been pushing Ken Lilly to make Thog as an action figure). I wanted to ask, is it difficult to perform the full-body characters? I've heard they're heavy and I bet it gets hot in there.

I was next in line to ask a question during the Muppet Show panel Q & A- I was going to ask about working with Zero Mostel. There have been many things said about him, that he was brilliant but difficult to work with, and that he was fine in road productions but would get bored staying in New York and would do inappropriate things onstage (wishing everyone a Happy Halloween, announcing the results of the heavyweight fight, etc.) I'm guessing that working with the Muppets would've been unique enough to keep him on his toes and keep him from misbehaving.

What I'm asking is what was it like to work with him, if you can recall? Also, The Muppet Show was one of his last performances, he died three months later (and three months before it was even broadcast); did you find that the Muppet folks ever got close to the guests in such a short time? Was there any sort of collective reaction to his or any other guest's death, esp. since The Muppet Show was one of his last performances, certainly his last on television? It's an interesting distinction when you think about it, your show providing a Broadway giant with one of his last hurrahs.

Well, that's it, in a very large nutshell (I come from a line of long-winded men, for which I can only apologize). Thanks for stopping by, thanks for reading this, and take care.

David "Gorgon Heap" Ebersole