The Mysteries of Muppetry?

[jacobmaraia]

In the Introduction thread, I mentioned that curiosity is part of the reason I'm here. There seem to be a lot of talented, informed folks running wild in these pages, and I'm hoping to benefit from any info you guys and gals are willing to share with a new puppet builder.

I've found lots of info -- most of it on the blogs of people who post on this sight! -- but I've got so many questions ...

First on the list: What does the inside of a Muppet's head look like? I've seen mouthplates on a few sites (I'm thinking of the wonderful Rachet tutorial from Swazzle) and I've seen the Foam Book style "finger-tubes" and I've got a simple Roly pattern from Project Puppet, and they do things their own way, but I'm wondering if any of these are close to the Henson Co's style?

Muppet mouths are so expressive (mostly), and I'm trying to wrap my head around building a mouth for my own puppet that can be even partially as expressive without my thumb creasing the lower plate to give my puppet a permanent frown.

Thanks to everybody willing to share the secrets, and thanks to all of you for inspiring me!

 

[Super Scooter]

There's no official material used for Muppet mouths. Some Muppets have wooden mouthplates, some have plastic, and some have rubber mouths. If I remember right, I think Caroll Spinney wrote in his book that Big Bird's beak is fiber glass.

I think the Muppets use pretty much every technique available. Whatever works the best for the character they're creating.

This is just based on stuff I've read. Maybe some of our forum members who work/worked for the Muppets could tell you more.

 

[Buck-Beaver]

This is one of the better designs for a mouth/puppet head you'll find on the internet. It's not the only one and it won't work for everything, but it's one of the best imho.

 

[jacobmaraia]

Wow! Thanks so much! Now, onto Question Number Two! Heads!

I've seen and read things about head-shapes. I know that Kermit's head is just the hand of the performer, and I've read that Piggy's head is now molded, but curiosity is a terrible, terrible thing. I watch Floyd Pepper and Janice singing in the Muppet Movie and I can't help but wonder how they were put together. Were they done with a single, special pattern (ala Project Puppet?), or were they made using the "wedge pattern" I've read about on older posts (although any links to that pattern were broken, sadly). How did Fozzie's conehead come about? And is it the same way that Bert's conehead was made?

Ah, questions, questions, questions...

Thrown into this mix is a picture I saw of the construction of Pops from the book Of Muppets and Men that I checked out at my local library. It kind of looked like his head was made from an hourglass-shaped piece of foam with two circles on either side to fill in the gaps. Ah, the unending desire for knowledge!

I love that you're all willing to share the info you've got, and if there's another post I should be reading where you've already answered some of these questions, maybe you can point the way for me. There's so much to catch up on, and I'm still baffled by the idea that there are so many people out there who are interested in this as much (or in quite a few cases even more!) as I am. You guys rock! Thanks!

 

[Buck-Beaver]

I think most of those puppets were made by patterning sheets of foam, much like the Project Puppet patterns. You could also accomplish most of the round shapes using the wedge method (email me privately and I can send you the wedge pattern).

Really, the best way to answer these questions is to just start building puppets; I think most people here agree that you have to build several puppets before you can really get a feel for how to create different shapes. You have to experiment a lot and try making different shapes.

 

[Super Scooter]

Yeah, there's a lot of trial and error in puppet building, especially if you're making your own patterns. I started work on a dog puppet recently and was experimenting with a new pattern for my foam. I put it together, but it just didn't work right for the character design. I was able to adjust the foam a bit so that it works great for another puppet altogether, and I figured out the right way to make the dog the way I want him to look.

So, yeah. Experiment. (mmm, spearmint)

 

[jacobmaraia]

I've been using the trial-and-error method and I think I'm coming along nicely ... at least it seems the learning curve has grown for me. My one big problem so far has been trying to shape and cut foam when my toddler runs off with the pieces. I end up shouting things like, "Bring back daddy's pinhead puppet, sweetheart!"

(in case you couldn't tell, that's me and Mimsey doing our Beaker and Bunson Honeydew impressions at my sister-in-law's wedding last November)

I'm always looking for new ways, though, and of course I'm looking to crack The Mysteries of Muppetry!

Like ... What are the eyes made from? Specially molded plastics? Are the pupils decals or are they painted on? Oooh, the questions!

 

[muppetperson]

Some of the eyes used to come from a ball toy where you put one inside the other(Wacky stacks/stax) to get different size eyes.Now I would say they are vacuformed plastic.(unless it is another form of variation, such as foam tubes(like Floyd) or black beads)
The pupils are usually a type of black velour or felt and stuck on.

 

[StreetScenes]

i've got a mouth question to add--what type of material makes a kermit type mouth, that is flexible enough to scrunch up and make all those expressive faces, but firm enough to hold its shape for normal speaking? or does most of kermit's flexibility come from his head?

 

[Fozzie Bear]

I'd like to direct you to www.projectpuppet.com. I fully endorse their site for making puppets. Begin with one of their patterns and tutorials and that will help you learn pretty quick about making good puppets and how to move on toward creating your own.