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Sam and Friends BookWith the new Muppet Movie on its way next week and all the hype surrounding it, I thought it'd be great to go ahead and list my all time personal favorite Muppets and I encourage others to do the same.
For my list, I am sticking only with Muppets that are generally associated with The Muppet Show and any spinoffs of that (movies, Muppets Tonight, TV specials, etc). Sesame Street & Fraggle Rock are excluded on my list, though you can list characters from that if you want.
20) Bobby Benson's Baby Band = The True Muppet Babies! In addition to the more well known Muppet Rock & Roll Sensation, The Electric Mayhem, and our favorite piano playing dog Rowlf, there were some weird musical acts on The Muppets. Marvin Suggs & The Muppaphones, The Ugga Wugga Monster, and too many others to name. But the Baby Band always tickled my funny bones. Just the way they sounded while singing & playing instruments was enough to make me giggle like an idiot. They only made a few appearances, which is probably for the best. The act didn't wear itself thing and we got a couple of neat musical numbers out of it, my favorite being their version of "Pennsylvania 6-5000".
What always confused me most though was what exactly was Bobby Benson to these babies? Was he their father? Or is there a more sinister aspect to this. Is he their abductor that forced them into show business? Was he a hustler that trained midgets that looked like babies to scam people with a seemingly amazing act? Well he was arrested in one episode, so it could make you wonder. What ever the case, The Baby Band was one of the best musical acts in the show.
19) Merdidops = I would love to visit the planet Koozebane. Wouldn't you? It seemed liek there were quite a few segments dedicated to alien lifeforms on this alien world, but these pink furry whack a moles were my favorites! Another group of characters that appeared very sporadically (only really having one major segment dedicated to them), these creatures are best known for only communicating by saying what we assume to be the name of their race: MERDIDOP!!! Their major shining moment came when Dom Deluise guest starred on the show. While playing a visitor to Koozebane, Deluise finds himself the unwitting victim of their playful torture. The skit itself is a personal favorite of mine. Between Deluise flipping out trying to stop them, their trickery to avoid him, and the constant repetition of Merdidop while shooting steam out of their heads was just golden.
18) Bad Polly Lobster = This little guy only made one appearance and that was in the movie he was designed for: Muppet Treasure Island. One of the highlights of this film was the creativity they put into creating Long John Silver's pirate crew. It really is a neat looking group of characters and some of them are quite fun. I also have to throw some love over to Blind Pew who managed to be both scary & hilarious at the same time. But there were various others too: Clueless Morgan, Mad Monty, Angel Marie, Old Tom, Real Old Tom, and, uh Dead Tom (one of the best gags in the movie) made for a nice fresh group of Muppets. They were mostly ugly & deformed looking which put them at a nice contrast to the cuter & more classic looking characters.
My favorite of the whole bunch though was Polly. I kind of saw him as an evil Rizzo. He was a smaller Muppet but with a sarcastic attitude, but being a Pirate, he was quite the ruthless little fellow. I also love the idea of making Long John's pet a lobster who acts like a parrot. That's typical Muppets lunacy at its best. But he was so mean for such a silly idea for a character that I couldn't help but love him. When capturing Gonzo & Rizzo, and torturing the former, Polly has probably my favorite line in the film: "This won't work! He likes it! Let's torture da rat!". The Pirate Muppets in this film, including Polly, haven't seen the light of day since this film, and that's probably because the characters fit into this story so specifically that its hard to fit them in anywhere else. But I hope one day I get to see Bad Polly in a Muppets project again.
17) Mahna Mahna = This shaggy haired little guy is to The Muppets what The Singing Frog was to The Looney Tunes. The Frog is recognized as a major character from Warner Studios, but really only had the one animated short to his credit. Well, its the same thing here. You ask anybody about The Muppets and they'll probably bring up the song "Mahna Mahna" somewhere in the discussion. Heck, just walk into a crowed area, shout Mahna Mahna, and see how many people join in. This musical segment was performed throughout Henson's career, done on Sesame Street, and various talk shows, most famously The Ed Sullivan Show. It is also well known for being featured on the very first episode of The Muppet Show. The song itself is unbelievably catchy, even though all the words are nonsense. The central character has been referred to as Mahna Mahna because of what he says during the song, and this little non-conformist has left a legacy with just one little phrase.
16) Dr. Teeth = Who doesn't love The Electric Mayhem? The Muppets' very own Rock Band provided some of the greatest music to ever be associated with the franchise. I love all the characters in the band. Floyd, Janice & Zoot all have their great quirks & traits, but it is band leader Dr. Teeth that stands out to me. A large part of that is the rockin' voice that Jim Henson himself provided for the character. Dr. Teeth might even be my favorite Muppet to imitate for that very reason (and no I'm not good at it, lol). He's got a look and personality that really reminds me of the late great Wrestling Superstar "Macho Man" Randy Savage, but Dr. Teeth came first, so who knows? Maybe Teeth inspired Savage. Anyways, this green skinned snazzy rock star was a very charismatic presence for The Muppets and was apart of some of their greatest musical numbers. If it wasn't for "Rainbow Connection", I would probably tell you that "Can You Picture That?" is my all time favorite Muppet Song. I also have to mention that my favorite song on the John Denver/Muppets Christmas Album is The Electric Mayhem's version of "Little Saint Nick"
With the passing of Jim Henson, it also meant that many of the characters he played would be shelved, and that unfortunately included Dr. Teeth who was largely forced into the background. However, with the OK Go Mupper Music video and the new movie coming out, Dr. Teeth is making a comeback, and I couldn't be happier.
15) Uncle Deadly = Without a doubt the most underutilized Muppet character ever. What really got my attention with Deadly was how evil & sinister looking he was. Every other Muppet on the Muppet Show at the time, even the "rough around the edges" types like Animal & Sweetums, were at least a little cute. But not Deadly. He looked like an early design for the Skeksies in The Dark Crystal! I really liked the idea of a Muppet that was a villainous character and they could have gotten more out of it than they did. He first appeared along side Vincent Price, which is perfect, and I think they could have done more old school Horror type of skits with him. They also had him appear as a Snidley Whiplash style villain in a couple melodramas with Piggy as the victim and Wayne as the hero. Again, that's a very good way to use him, and I wish they had done more with that as well.
Deadly is most well known though for being "The Phantom of the Muppet Theater" who had an entire episode of the show dedicated to him haunting the theater and tormenting The Muppets in the process. It was really a memorable showing, and I'm surprised that wasn't enough to ensure his longevity. After Season 1, unremarkable characters like Hilda, George the Janitor, Wayne, & Wanda faded away, but somehow Deadly got pushed into the background with them which is really a shame.
One of the most exciting pieces of news for me about the new Muppet film was that Uncle Deadly would be making his return as a sidekick to the lead villain Tex Richman. Not only that, but it will be Deadly's first significant role in a Muppet film, and hopefully newer fans will get to see "The Phantom of the Muppet Theater" and see why he left such an impression.
14) Sam the Eagle = The self appointed censor of The Muppet Show is a laugh riot with his dry delivery & his anger driven rants about the low moral & cultural standards of the show he is a part of. One key trait that made Sam work so well (besides the brilliant voice of Frank Oz) was his face. Those ridiculously dark & bushy eyebrows combined with his hilarious shifty eyes made him one of the more expressive Muppets. He started off as the one that would introduce Wayne & Wanda, the only act he approved of, but fortunately the creators realized that they could spread Sam's wings (pun fully intended) and do more with him as a character.
For me, Sam was at his best whenever he was interacting with the guests on the show. In particular, his reaction to Rudolf Nureyev & Alice Cooper were priceless. I also loved watching Sam go up to the podium and deliver his holier than thou speeches about society only for something bad to happen to him as a result. But no Sam moment was funnier than when he shared a musical moment with Rowlf. You haven't seen comedy until you've heard Sam dryly sing "Titwillow".
The joy of Sam is that he is a character that completely goes against The Muppet mold of heart & insanity. It provided a great clashes & interactions with the others. He is one guy that doesn't get the appeal of what he's apart of ("Why am I Here?" "Why are they Clapping?"). I don't know why he's there either, but I think I speak for most Muppet fans when I say, I'm glad he is.
13) Bobo The Bear = Pepe the King Prawn has been the one character from Muppets Tonight that has gone on to become one of the main Muppets. He seems to be polarizing among the fans, but to me he's OK. However, if I had to pick a favorite from The Muppets Tonight crew, its Bobo without a doubt. This droopy faced & silly looking bear has provided some of the funniest lines for The Muppets in the last decade and a half. Every time the lug is on screen, I just know something funny is going to be said. He was my favorite part of "Muppets From Space" and he by far had the best line in "Letters to Santa"
Nathan Lane: Those guys are rubbing me the wrong way (turns to Bobo who is massaging his arm), what are you doing?
Bobo: I'm rubbing ya the right way!
What I love about him is that he's typically pitted against The Muppets (and will be again in the upcoming film) but seems like a well meaning guy with a hear of gold. That usually makes him the subject of verbal abuse from his boss and presents him as a great comedic element to make lighten up the scenes with the bad guys. Pepe has his place & is here to stay, but I can never get enough of Bobo and I hope he plays a role in the Muppets for a long time.
12) Crazy Harry = Basically Harry is little more than a running gag. He runs around, somebody says something that could be interpreted as a reference to an explosion, and then Harry sees it as an invitation to set off an explosive ("You know I hear this movie is dynamite!" BOOM!). Its a simple gag, but it never stops being funny! Not only is a great opportunity for puns, but visual as well as there are no restrictions for him. I always loved the look of the puppet too, especially those big bug eyes. He's a very uninhibited & wild force of nature, probably surpassed only by Animal within The Muppets (could you imagine if those two worked together? Oh man, that'd be nuts). As is usually stated with Harry, his all time greatest moment came when he shared the stage with Jean Stapleton who sang "I'm Just Wild About Harry" while he played his instrument "The Explodiphone" which he used to blow up the set while she sang her song. It remains one of my favorite celebrity/Muppet moments ever and it was great to see him get big time spotlight at least once.
What amazes me is how un-politically correct Crazy Harry is, especially in a post 9/11 World. I mean think about it. He's a dark skinned, bearded man, that runs around indiscriminately blowing things up. Harry had already faded away before 9/11, and I never dreamed he'd ever be back. But here we are in 2011 and we're starting to see him more and more, and yes, he is going to be in the new Muppet movie! I guess I really over thought the whole Un-PC aspect with him, and it'll be great to have my favorite bomb crazy wild man-puppet back!
11) Rowlf the Dog = The history of Rowlf the dog has ties to very early in Jim Henson's career, and in many ways, he embodies everything that is great about The Muppets. As I've said before, I love The Muppets for their music, and Rowlf was their best musical act. His piano playing acts rank up there as some of the classiest moments in the show and some of them are the funniest. It seems like whenever he's performing by himself, you are guaranteed a classy musical number, and whenever he interacts with somebody like Fozzie Bear or Sam the Eagle, you get something insanely silly.
Going back to The Muppet Movie, I think Rowlf's finest musical moment is "I Hope That Something Better Comes Along" when he sings with Kermit about their mutual lady problems. Its a nice little song and perfectly captured Rowlf's character: A fun loving piano player that lends & ear and turns smiles upside down with his music.
But Rowlf wasn't just a piano player. Like I said, his history goes back to before The Muppet Show, and was usually a great source of comedy. I've only seen a few of his appearances on The Jimmy Dean Show and I can honestly say they are some of the finest examples of Henson's brilliant performing skills & comedy. And that comedic side to Rowlf was put to good use in The Muppet Show, most notably in The Veterinarian's Hospital skits where we get to see Rowlf roll out bad puns by the 2nd.
Unfortunately, Rowlf was the biggest character to be semi-retired after the passing of Jim Henson, and was definitely the biggest character we lost. Rowlf's lovable nature and piano playing magic was definitely missed and I am very happy to see my favorite musical dog making a comeback in recent years.
10-9) Dr. Bunsen Honeydew & Beaker = It is impossible to really have one without the other, so I grouped them together. Personally, I just love The Muppet Labs skits. The insane inventions of Honeydew provided some of the greatest humor that the show ever had. Not only were the inventions themselves outlandish, but what really made the skits work was the fact that they were tested on his lab assisstant poor old Beaker. Beaker looks like a guy that is permanently in a state of shock, and working with Honeydew as his permanent guinea pig, its easy to see why. The first Season of the Muppet Show featured Muppet Labs with just Honeydew, and they were fine, but Beaker added so much to the segments that its hard to picture the two not being together. Oddly enough, part of what gave Beaker such great legs as a character was his bizarre speech pattern which allowed for some comedy in music in addition to being part of The Muppet Labs.
There are so many great Muppet Labs bits that its hard to pick a favorite, but I am going to go with the one where Gilda Radner got involved. It was rare when one of the guest stars would get in on The Muppet Labs bits, so that was an instant stand out and her being used as the test subject instead of Beaker gave us some nice funny reactions from him. Of course the test with glue ended up with Gilda's tap dancing number later in the show involving her swinging poor Beaker around the stage because they were glued together. It was great stuff.
I would say that this lovable duo made learning fun, but nah. All they did was reinforce the idea that mayhem & insanity made for great comedy!
8-7) Statler & Waldorf = They are even more closely tied together than Bunsen & Beaker are, so no way I was going to separate them either. The two old hecklers provided some of the greatest insults you'll ever here in The Muppet Show and their constant presence throughout the show was always a delight. If they hate the show so much, why do they keep going? They don't even seem to know. But their involvement reinforces the idea that in a live stage show, the audience can be a part of the show too, and The Muppet Show wouldn't have been the same without them.
Statler & Waldorf's presence throughout the show was so constant & heavy that its hard to pick out favorite moments, but my all time favorite is their go around with Milton Berle. I can honestly say that them heckling him is one of the funniest things I have ever seen anywhere, and its one of the great classic Muppet/Celebrity interactions. Their role in The Muppet Show almost makes me feel like they inspired Mystery Science Theater 3000/Rifftrax style of comedy. They are cynical. They are mean to the other characters we love, but in a way, they just found another way to enjoy the show, so we can laugh right along with them.
6) Animal = He is to The Muppets what The Tasmanian Devil is to the Looney Tunes. With Animal's popularity, its hard to imagine that he was never really a main character. But this Wild Drummer for The Electric Mayhem is such a wild force of nature with a purely uninhibited spirit, that you'll never forget him once you've seen him. Whether he's chasing women, going nuts on his drums, eating everything in sight, or just shouting at the top of his lungs while doing all those things, Animal remains one of the most memorable Muppet characters.
5) The Swedish Chef = BORK! BORK! BORK! I'll just say it right now. My favorite regular sketch on The Muppet Show was The Swedish Chef. I could watch all of those segments in a row and on an endless loop for hours on end and never stop laughing. Frank Oz & Jim Henson both handled this character (Oz the hands & Henson the voice & head) and this collaboration was pure magic. Sometimes it was even obvious that it was it was two different people working the Chef because the hands would do something wacky and the head would react with surprise. And who doesn't love that voice spoken with Mock Swedish? From the zany methods to cooking & preparing his foods to the weird foods themselves, The Swedish Chef segments provided nonstop laughs. It is impossible for me to pick a favorite Chef sketch on The Muppet Show because they were all great, but I think my all time favorite Chef moment was in Muppet Family Christmas where planned to cook Big Bird for Christmas Dinner! Now that's comedy! Like The Muppet Labs never teaching me a thing about science, I never learned a thing about cooking from The Swedish Chef, but I laugh every time I think about his bits.
OK, there are no surprises in who the Top 4 are. If you are even vaguely familiar with The Muppets, you can probably guess who they are:
4) Fozzie Bear = The (bad) comedian of The Muppet Show has become one of its greatest recurring characters. The fact that Fozzie is a bad comedian has only made him even more lovable in a way as its hilarious to watch him fail miserably. Bits like "The Rhyming Song", the "Good Grief, The Comedian's a Bear" bit and various others all provide great humor for the show, though not in the way poor Fozzie intends (lol). His rivalry with Statler & Waldorf the hecklers was also a great joy to watch.
But in addition to being a comedian, there is also a genuine heart to the character that makes him so endearing. He's almost childlike in a way and he seems to love what he does. Seeing him interact with the celebrities was always a treat, particularly his interactions with Raquel Welch & Milton Berle. He has fully embraced being a Muppet and can't see himself doing anything else with his friends, and that kind of devotion & loyalty is really nice to see. In the "Saying Goodbye" song in Muppets Take Manhattan, Fozzie seems to be the saddest of the whole group when they part ways. His friendship with Kermit was also a strong bond that I always felt, even when Kermit was yelling at him for whatever mistake he was making. They really do feel like best friends.
Whether he sinks or swims, Fozzie always gives it his all and we have a blast watching him try!
3) Miss Piggy = The Diva of The Muppets. There is so much absurdity with this character that she's just hilarious. She's a Pig with an inflated ego & sense of self importance? How is that possible? Why do so many human men find her attractive? Why is she so slavishly devoted to her one true love, a frog? How does she have better hair than 90% of the women I've dated?
There are so many weird things about Piggy, but that only makes her over the top presence all the more likable. The Muppets would be worse off if they didn't have Piggy around with her over the top nature & wildly emotional outbursts. She can go from sweet to violent rage in half a second and pity all those that get in her way! She deals in extremes no matter her emotion, and there's something lovable about that.
What really makes Piggy work for me though is her feelings towards Kermit. She is probably the most flawed Muppet character. She's very selfish & will turn on her friends at the drop of a hat if it benefits her. But her relationship with The Frog grounds her goodness and it shows that she has a soul beneath the glamorous exterior. Also her over the top gushy outbursts towards her Kermie are always hilarious. And whenever Kermit reciprocates those feelings, it only confirms those truths about her. Though interestingly, I don't think I've ever heard Kermit say "I love you" to her. Oh well, Piggy is awesome. What more is there to say?
2) Kermit the Frog = He's the glue that holds the gang together. He's backbone of The Muppets. It has been said that Jim Henson inserted a lot of his own personality into Kermit, that's how I like to think of the little green leader. He seems to be the only semi-normal personality in a room full of weirdos, so in a sense, he's the only one that could lead the group as it would be chaos otherwise. Whether he's having fun with the gang, planning the show, or just being stressed out trying to hold everything together, Kermit is the man with the plan.
This is where Jim's personality comes into play, but I always felt that it was Kermit who had the vision of what he wanted The Muppets to be, and it was up to him to get the other characters to understand and follow him. He was the one with dream & the vision (as highlighted wonderfully in my all time favorite Muppet Song, "Rainbow Connection") and his magnetic personality & vision got others to come together & follow him, much like Jim Henson did in real life.
Kermit also found himself playing straight man to many of the other Muppets, which makes sense given how insane every one else is. Kermit was always at his funniest whenever he got frustrated and I always loved that. But it was Kermit's heart that always shined through best, whether it be through heart felt songs, his motivational speeches, and anything else he did to display his devotion to the collective dream that the other characters had.
1) Gonzo the Great = Let me start off by saying that I did not like Gonzo in his earliest incarnation. In season 1 of the Muppet Show, I found Gonzo to be unfunny & quite frankly unpleasant. To me, he was such a downer of a character. He failed at everything, but didn't have the upbeat mentality or funny reactions that Fozzie did and was very pessimistic. The puppet itself was an ugly piece of work too and going back and watching it, its amazing to see the kind of legs this character was able to have because if I had watched it back then, I wouldn't have been surprised to see Gonzo fade away with the likes of Wayne & Wanda.
But the character slowly developed into something so much more than what was originally presented. His first really good moment was at the tail end of Season 1 where he displayed feelings for Miss Piggy. That started his development. Instead of being a misunderstood & down on his luck artist, they turned him into an over the top thrill seeking daredevil that lived for crazy death defying acts. It also helped that they changed the puppet into a more expressive & silly looking one, which made him more cute & likable. That manic personality made him so much funnier and endearing. In addition to his crazy stuns, he developed other weird traits like a love for chickens, his bizarre hobbies, and various other things that make Gonzo weird even by Muppet standards. There are so many great Gonzo moments, I'm not even sure where to begin. I think my all time favorite crazy Gonzo act was him catching Cannonballs, which resulted in him having to get help from John Cleese for his over stretched arm, again, one of the best celebrity Muppet moments ever. Gonzo leaping in front of a Taxi Cab just because he wanted to in The Great Muppet Caper is another personal favorite.
But beneath all the craziness, Gonzo probably has the biggest heart of all The Muppets. There is nothing more heartbreaking that sad Gonzo (I refer you to when he sang "My Way" on the Muppet Show), and deep down, he really does have a very heart felt & poetic soul. One of the most beautiful Muppet songs ever was "I'm Going to Go Back There Some Day" which is so closely tied to Gonzo, I've heard people refer to it as "Gonzo's Song". Like Piggy, Gonzo is a character that deals with emotion in extremes and he can have you laughing like crazy one minute and in tears the next. In a way, that embodies The Muppets more than most other characters as that is what they've always been about.
Its amazing that they took a character that was fairly unlikable at first and made him such an endearing favorite for many. Its nice to see that the creators didn't give up on him and he'll be one of the main Muppets forever and ever.
For my list, I am sticking only with Muppets that are generally associated with The Muppet Show and any spinoffs of that (movies, Muppets Tonight, TV specials, etc). Sesame Street & Fraggle Rock are excluded on my list, though you can list characters from that if you want.
20) Bobby Benson's Baby Band = The True Muppet Babies! In addition to the more well known Muppet Rock & Roll Sensation, The Electric Mayhem, and our favorite piano playing dog Rowlf, there were some weird musical acts on The Muppets. Marvin Suggs & The Muppaphones, The Ugga Wugga Monster, and too many others to name. But the Baby Band always tickled my funny bones. Just the way they sounded while singing & playing instruments was enough to make me giggle like an idiot. They only made a few appearances, which is probably for the best. The act didn't wear itself thing and we got a couple of neat musical numbers out of it, my favorite being their version of "Pennsylvania 6-5000".
What always confused me most though was what exactly was Bobby Benson to these babies? Was he their father? Or is there a more sinister aspect to this. Is he their abductor that forced them into show business? Was he a hustler that trained midgets that looked like babies to scam people with a seemingly amazing act? Well he was arrested in one episode, so it could make you wonder. What ever the case, The Baby Band was one of the best musical acts in the show.
19) Merdidops = I would love to visit the planet Koozebane. Wouldn't you? It seemed liek there were quite a few segments dedicated to alien lifeforms on this alien world, but these pink furry whack a moles were my favorites! Another group of characters that appeared very sporadically (only really having one major segment dedicated to them), these creatures are best known for only communicating by saying what we assume to be the name of their race: MERDIDOP!!! Their major shining moment came when Dom Deluise guest starred on the show. While playing a visitor to Koozebane, Deluise finds himself the unwitting victim of their playful torture. The skit itself is a personal favorite of mine. Between Deluise flipping out trying to stop them, their trickery to avoid him, and the constant repetition of Merdidop while shooting steam out of their heads was just golden.
18) Bad Polly Lobster = This little guy only made one appearance and that was in the movie he was designed for: Muppet Treasure Island. One of the highlights of this film was the creativity they put into creating Long John Silver's pirate crew. It really is a neat looking group of characters and some of them are quite fun. I also have to throw some love over to Blind Pew who managed to be both scary & hilarious at the same time. But there were various others too: Clueless Morgan, Mad Monty, Angel Marie, Old Tom, Real Old Tom, and, uh Dead Tom (one of the best gags in the movie) made for a nice fresh group of Muppets. They were mostly ugly & deformed looking which put them at a nice contrast to the cuter & more classic looking characters.
My favorite of the whole bunch though was Polly. I kind of saw him as an evil Rizzo. He was a smaller Muppet but with a sarcastic attitude, but being a Pirate, he was quite the ruthless little fellow. I also love the idea of making Long John's pet a lobster who acts like a parrot. That's typical Muppets lunacy at its best. But he was so mean for such a silly idea for a character that I couldn't help but love him. When capturing Gonzo & Rizzo, and torturing the former, Polly has probably my favorite line in the film: "This won't work! He likes it! Let's torture da rat!". The Pirate Muppets in this film, including Polly, haven't seen the light of day since this film, and that's probably because the characters fit into this story so specifically that its hard to fit them in anywhere else. But I hope one day I get to see Bad Polly in a Muppets project again.
17) Mahna Mahna = This shaggy haired little guy is to The Muppets what The Singing Frog was to The Looney Tunes. The Frog is recognized as a major character from Warner Studios, but really only had the one animated short to his credit. Well, its the same thing here. You ask anybody about The Muppets and they'll probably bring up the song "Mahna Mahna" somewhere in the discussion. Heck, just walk into a crowed area, shout Mahna Mahna, and see how many people join in. This musical segment was performed throughout Henson's career, done on Sesame Street, and various talk shows, most famously The Ed Sullivan Show. It is also well known for being featured on the very first episode of The Muppet Show. The song itself is unbelievably catchy, even though all the words are nonsense. The central character has been referred to as Mahna Mahna because of what he says during the song, and this little non-conformist has left a legacy with just one little phrase.
16) Dr. Teeth = Who doesn't love The Electric Mayhem? The Muppets' very own Rock Band provided some of the greatest music to ever be associated with the franchise. I love all the characters in the band. Floyd, Janice & Zoot all have their great quirks & traits, but it is band leader Dr. Teeth that stands out to me. A large part of that is the rockin' voice that Jim Henson himself provided for the character. Dr. Teeth might even be my favorite Muppet to imitate for that very reason (and no I'm not good at it, lol). He's got a look and personality that really reminds me of the late great Wrestling Superstar "Macho Man" Randy Savage, but Dr. Teeth came first, so who knows? Maybe Teeth inspired Savage. Anyways, this green skinned snazzy rock star was a very charismatic presence for The Muppets and was apart of some of their greatest musical numbers. If it wasn't for "Rainbow Connection", I would probably tell you that "Can You Picture That?" is my all time favorite Muppet Song. I also have to mention that my favorite song on the John Denver/Muppets Christmas Album is The Electric Mayhem's version of "Little Saint Nick"
With the passing of Jim Henson, it also meant that many of the characters he played would be shelved, and that unfortunately included Dr. Teeth who was largely forced into the background. However, with the OK Go Mupper Music video and the new movie coming out, Dr. Teeth is making a comeback, and I couldn't be happier.
15) Uncle Deadly = Without a doubt the most underutilized Muppet character ever. What really got my attention with Deadly was how evil & sinister looking he was. Every other Muppet on the Muppet Show at the time, even the "rough around the edges" types like Animal & Sweetums, were at least a little cute. But not Deadly. He looked like an early design for the Skeksies in The Dark Crystal! I really liked the idea of a Muppet that was a villainous character and they could have gotten more out of it than they did. He first appeared along side Vincent Price, which is perfect, and I think they could have done more old school Horror type of skits with him. They also had him appear as a Snidley Whiplash style villain in a couple melodramas with Piggy as the victim and Wayne as the hero. Again, that's a very good way to use him, and I wish they had done more with that as well.
Deadly is most well known though for being "The Phantom of the Muppet Theater" who had an entire episode of the show dedicated to him haunting the theater and tormenting The Muppets in the process. It was really a memorable showing, and I'm surprised that wasn't enough to ensure his longevity. After Season 1, unremarkable characters like Hilda, George the Janitor, Wayne, & Wanda faded away, but somehow Deadly got pushed into the background with them which is really a shame.
One of the most exciting pieces of news for me about the new Muppet film was that Uncle Deadly would be making his return as a sidekick to the lead villain Tex Richman. Not only that, but it will be Deadly's first significant role in a Muppet film, and hopefully newer fans will get to see "The Phantom of the Muppet Theater" and see why he left such an impression.
14) Sam the Eagle = The self appointed censor of The Muppet Show is a laugh riot with his dry delivery & his anger driven rants about the low moral & cultural standards of the show he is a part of. One key trait that made Sam work so well (besides the brilliant voice of Frank Oz) was his face. Those ridiculously dark & bushy eyebrows combined with his hilarious shifty eyes made him one of the more expressive Muppets. He started off as the one that would introduce Wayne & Wanda, the only act he approved of, but fortunately the creators realized that they could spread Sam's wings (pun fully intended) and do more with him as a character.
For me, Sam was at his best whenever he was interacting with the guests on the show. In particular, his reaction to Rudolf Nureyev & Alice Cooper were priceless. I also loved watching Sam go up to the podium and deliver his holier than thou speeches about society only for something bad to happen to him as a result. But no Sam moment was funnier than when he shared a musical moment with Rowlf. You haven't seen comedy until you've heard Sam dryly sing "Titwillow".
The joy of Sam is that he is a character that completely goes against The Muppet mold of heart & insanity. It provided a great clashes & interactions with the others. He is one guy that doesn't get the appeal of what he's apart of ("Why am I Here?" "Why are they Clapping?"). I don't know why he's there either, but I think I speak for most Muppet fans when I say, I'm glad he is.
13) Bobo The Bear = Pepe the King Prawn has been the one character from Muppets Tonight that has gone on to become one of the main Muppets. He seems to be polarizing among the fans, but to me he's OK. However, if I had to pick a favorite from The Muppets Tonight crew, its Bobo without a doubt. This droopy faced & silly looking bear has provided some of the funniest lines for The Muppets in the last decade and a half. Every time the lug is on screen, I just know something funny is going to be said. He was my favorite part of "Muppets From Space" and he by far had the best line in "Letters to Santa"
Nathan Lane: Those guys are rubbing me the wrong way (turns to Bobo who is massaging his arm), what are you doing?
Bobo: I'm rubbing ya the right way!
What I love about him is that he's typically pitted against The Muppets (and will be again in the upcoming film) but seems like a well meaning guy with a hear of gold. That usually makes him the subject of verbal abuse from his boss and presents him as a great comedic element to make lighten up the scenes with the bad guys. Pepe has his place & is here to stay, but I can never get enough of Bobo and I hope he plays a role in the Muppets for a long time.
12) Crazy Harry = Basically Harry is little more than a running gag. He runs around, somebody says something that could be interpreted as a reference to an explosion, and then Harry sees it as an invitation to set off an explosive ("You know I hear this movie is dynamite!" BOOM!). Its a simple gag, but it never stops being funny! Not only is a great opportunity for puns, but visual as well as there are no restrictions for him. I always loved the look of the puppet too, especially those big bug eyes. He's a very uninhibited & wild force of nature, probably surpassed only by Animal within The Muppets (could you imagine if those two worked together? Oh man, that'd be nuts). As is usually stated with Harry, his all time greatest moment came when he shared the stage with Jean Stapleton who sang "I'm Just Wild About Harry" while he played his instrument "The Explodiphone" which he used to blow up the set while she sang her song. It remains one of my favorite celebrity/Muppet moments ever and it was great to see him get big time spotlight at least once.
What amazes me is how un-politically correct Crazy Harry is, especially in a post 9/11 World. I mean think about it. He's a dark skinned, bearded man, that runs around indiscriminately blowing things up. Harry had already faded away before 9/11, and I never dreamed he'd ever be back. But here we are in 2011 and we're starting to see him more and more, and yes, he is going to be in the new Muppet movie! I guess I really over thought the whole Un-PC aspect with him, and it'll be great to have my favorite bomb crazy wild man-puppet back!
11) Rowlf the Dog = The history of Rowlf the dog has ties to very early in Jim Henson's career, and in many ways, he embodies everything that is great about The Muppets. As I've said before, I love The Muppets for their music, and Rowlf was their best musical act. His piano playing acts rank up there as some of the classiest moments in the show and some of them are the funniest. It seems like whenever he's performing by himself, you are guaranteed a classy musical number, and whenever he interacts with somebody like Fozzie Bear or Sam the Eagle, you get something insanely silly.
Going back to The Muppet Movie, I think Rowlf's finest musical moment is "I Hope That Something Better Comes Along" when he sings with Kermit about their mutual lady problems. Its a nice little song and perfectly captured Rowlf's character: A fun loving piano player that lends & ear and turns smiles upside down with his music.
But Rowlf wasn't just a piano player. Like I said, his history goes back to before The Muppet Show, and was usually a great source of comedy. I've only seen a few of his appearances on The Jimmy Dean Show and I can honestly say they are some of the finest examples of Henson's brilliant performing skills & comedy. And that comedic side to Rowlf was put to good use in The Muppet Show, most notably in The Veterinarian's Hospital skits where we get to see Rowlf roll out bad puns by the 2nd.
Unfortunately, Rowlf was the biggest character to be semi-retired after the passing of Jim Henson, and was definitely the biggest character we lost. Rowlf's lovable nature and piano playing magic was definitely missed and I am very happy to see my favorite musical dog making a comeback in recent years.
10-9) Dr. Bunsen Honeydew & Beaker = It is impossible to really have one without the other, so I grouped them together. Personally, I just love The Muppet Labs skits. The insane inventions of Honeydew provided some of the greatest humor that the show ever had. Not only were the inventions themselves outlandish, but what really made the skits work was the fact that they were tested on his lab assisstant poor old Beaker. Beaker looks like a guy that is permanently in a state of shock, and working with Honeydew as his permanent guinea pig, its easy to see why. The first Season of the Muppet Show featured Muppet Labs with just Honeydew, and they were fine, but Beaker added so much to the segments that its hard to picture the two not being together. Oddly enough, part of what gave Beaker such great legs as a character was his bizarre speech pattern which allowed for some comedy in music in addition to being part of The Muppet Labs.
There are so many great Muppet Labs bits that its hard to pick a favorite, but I am going to go with the one where Gilda Radner got involved. It was rare when one of the guest stars would get in on The Muppet Labs bits, so that was an instant stand out and her being used as the test subject instead of Beaker gave us some nice funny reactions from him. Of course the test with glue ended up with Gilda's tap dancing number later in the show involving her swinging poor Beaker around the stage because they were glued together. It was great stuff.
I would say that this lovable duo made learning fun, but nah. All they did was reinforce the idea that mayhem & insanity made for great comedy!
8-7) Statler & Waldorf = They are even more closely tied together than Bunsen & Beaker are, so no way I was going to separate them either. The two old hecklers provided some of the greatest insults you'll ever here in The Muppet Show and their constant presence throughout the show was always a delight. If they hate the show so much, why do they keep going? They don't even seem to know. But their involvement reinforces the idea that in a live stage show, the audience can be a part of the show too, and The Muppet Show wouldn't have been the same without them.
Statler & Waldorf's presence throughout the show was so constant & heavy that its hard to pick out favorite moments, but my all time favorite is their go around with Milton Berle. I can honestly say that them heckling him is one of the funniest things I have ever seen anywhere, and its one of the great classic Muppet/Celebrity interactions. Their role in The Muppet Show almost makes me feel like they inspired Mystery Science Theater 3000/Rifftrax style of comedy. They are cynical. They are mean to the other characters we love, but in a way, they just found another way to enjoy the show, so we can laugh right along with them.
6) Animal = He is to The Muppets what The Tasmanian Devil is to the Looney Tunes. With Animal's popularity, its hard to imagine that he was never really a main character. But this Wild Drummer for The Electric Mayhem is such a wild force of nature with a purely uninhibited spirit, that you'll never forget him once you've seen him. Whether he's chasing women, going nuts on his drums, eating everything in sight, or just shouting at the top of his lungs while doing all those things, Animal remains one of the most memorable Muppet characters.
5) The Swedish Chef = BORK! BORK! BORK! I'll just say it right now. My favorite regular sketch on The Muppet Show was The Swedish Chef. I could watch all of those segments in a row and on an endless loop for hours on end and never stop laughing. Frank Oz & Jim Henson both handled this character (Oz the hands & Henson the voice & head) and this collaboration was pure magic. Sometimes it was even obvious that it was it was two different people working the Chef because the hands would do something wacky and the head would react with surprise. And who doesn't love that voice spoken with Mock Swedish? From the zany methods to cooking & preparing his foods to the weird foods themselves, The Swedish Chef segments provided nonstop laughs. It is impossible for me to pick a favorite Chef sketch on The Muppet Show because they were all great, but I think my all time favorite Chef moment was in Muppet Family Christmas where planned to cook Big Bird for Christmas Dinner! Now that's comedy! Like The Muppet Labs never teaching me a thing about science, I never learned a thing about cooking from The Swedish Chef, but I laugh every time I think about his bits.
OK, there are no surprises in who the Top 4 are. If you are even vaguely familiar with The Muppets, you can probably guess who they are:
4) Fozzie Bear = The (bad) comedian of The Muppet Show has become one of its greatest recurring characters. The fact that Fozzie is a bad comedian has only made him even more lovable in a way as its hilarious to watch him fail miserably. Bits like "The Rhyming Song", the "Good Grief, The Comedian's a Bear" bit and various others all provide great humor for the show, though not in the way poor Fozzie intends (lol). His rivalry with Statler & Waldorf the hecklers was also a great joy to watch.
But in addition to being a comedian, there is also a genuine heart to the character that makes him so endearing. He's almost childlike in a way and he seems to love what he does. Seeing him interact with the celebrities was always a treat, particularly his interactions with Raquel Welch & Milton Berle. He has fully embraced being a Muppet and can't see himself doing anything else with his friends, and that kind of devotion & loyalty is really nice to see. In the "Saying Goodbye" song in Muppets Take Manhattan, Fozzie seems to be the saddest of the whole group when they part ways. His friendship with Kermit was also a strong bond that I always felt, even when Kermit was yelling at him for whatever mistake he was making. They really do feel like best friends.
Whether he sinks or swims, Fozzie always gives it his all and we have a blast watching him try!
3) Miss Piggy = The Diva of The Muppets. There is so much absurdity with this character that she's just hilarious. She's a Pig with an inflated ego & sense of self importance? How is that possible? Why do so many human men find her attractive? Why is she so slavishly devoted to her one true love, a frog? How does she have better hair than 90% of the women I've dated?
There are so many weird things about Piggy, but that only makes her over the top presence all the more likable. The Muppets would be worse off if they didn't have Piggy around with her over the top nature & wildly emotional outbursts. She can go from sweet to violent rage in half a second and pity all those that get in her way! She deals in extremes no matter her emotion, and there's something lovable about that.
What really makes Piggy work for me though is her feelings towards Kermit. She is probably the most flawed Muppet character. She's very selfish & will turn on her friends at the drop of a hat if it benefits her. But her relationship with The Frog grounds her goodness and it shows that she has a soul beneath the glamorous exterior. Also her over the top gushy outbursts towards her Kermie are always hilarious. And whenever Kermit reciprocates those feelings, it only confirms those truths about her. Though interestingly, I don't think I've ever heard Kermit say "I love you" to her. Oh well, Piggy is awesome. What more is there to say?
2) Kermit the Frog = He's the glue that holds the gang together. He's backbone of The Muppets. It has been said that Jim Henson inserted a lot of his own personality into Kermit, that's how I like to think of the little green leader. He seems to be the only semi-normal personality in a room full of weirdos, so in a sense, he's the only one that could lead the group as it would be chaos otherwise. Whether he's having fun with the gang, planning the show, or just being stressed out trying to hold everything together, Kermit is the man with the plan.
This is where Jim's personality comes into play, but I always felt that it was Kermit who had the vision of what he wanted The Muppets to be, and it was up to him to get the other characters to understand and follow him. He was the one with dream & the vision (as highlighted wonderfully in my all time favorite Muppet Song, "Rainbow Connection") and his magnetic personality & vision got others to come together & follow him, much like Jim Henson did in real life.
Kermit also found himself playing straight man to many of the other Muppets, which makes sense given how insane every one else is. Kermit was always at his funniest whenever he got frustrated and I always loved that. But it was Kermit's heart that always shined through best, whether it be through heart felt songs, his motivational speeches, and anything else he did to display his devotion to the collective dream that the other characters had.
1) Gonzo the Great = Let me start off by saying that I did not like Gonzo in his earliest incarnation. In season 1 of the Muppet Show, I found Gonzo to be unfunny & quite frankly unpleasant. To me, he was such a downer of a character. He failed at everything, but didn't have the upbeat mentality or funny reactions that Fozzie did and was very pessimistic. The puppet itself was an ugly piece of work too and going back and watching it, its amazing to see the kind of legs this character was able to have because if I had watched it back then, I wouldn't have been surprised to see Gonzo fade away with the likes of Wayne & Wanda.
But the character slowly developed into something so much more than what was originally presented. His first really good moment was at the tail end of Season 1 where he displayed feelings for Miss Piggy. That started his development. Instead of being a misunderstood & down on his luck artist, they turned him into an over the top thrill seeking daredevil that lived for crazy death defying acts. It also helped that they changed the puppet into a more expressive & silly looking one, which made him more cute & likable. That manic personality made him so much funnier and endearing. In addition to his crazy stuns, he developed other weird traits like a love for chickens, his bizarre hobbies, and various other things that make Gonzo weird even by Muppet standards. There are so many great Gonzo moments, I'm not even sure where to begin. I think my all time favorite crazy Gonzo act was him catching Cannonballs, which resulted in him having to get help from John Cleese for his over stretched arm, again, one of the best celebrity Muppet moments ever. Gonzo leaping in front of a Taxi Cab just because he wanted to in The Great Muppet Caper is another personal favorite.
But beneath all the craziness, Gonzo probably has the biggest heart of all The Muppets. There is nothing more heartbreaking that sad Gonzo (I refer you to when he sang "My Way" on the Muppet Show), and deep down, he really does have a very heart felt & poetic soul. One of the most beautiful Muppet songs ever was "I'm Going to Go Back There Some Day" which is so closely tied to Gonzo, I've heard people refer to it as "Gonzo's Song". Like Piggy, Gonzo is a character that deals with emotion in extremes and he can have you laughing like crazy one minute and in tears the next. In a way, that embodies The Muppets more than most other characters as that is what they've always been about.
Its amazing that they took a character that was fairly unlikable at first and made him such an endearing favorite for many. Its nice to see that the creators didn't give up on him and he'll be one of the main Muppets forever and ever.