Welcome to the Muppet Central Forum!
Jim Henson Idea Man
Back to the Rock Season 2
Bear arrives on Disney+
Sam and Friends BookThis is my first post here, so be kind!
Anyways, we all know who the big Muppet stars are. Kermit, Piggy, Fozzie, & Gonzo, with various others like Rowlf, Scooter, Rizzo, The Electric Mayhem & more recently Pepe acting as the sidekicks to the main crew. And then you have characters like The Swedish Chef, Bunsen & Beaker, Sam the Eagle, Statler & Waldorf who are little more than running gags, but well remembered and fun popular characters.
And if you go into Sesame Street & Fraggle Rock, you know who the big players are there. And heck if you really think outside the box, one of the most popular characters in cinema history, Jedi Master Yoda, was infact a Muppet.
However, throughout the course of Jim Henson's Puppet magic, there have been many great characters created from The Muppet Show, to Sesame Street, to Fraggle Rock, and even to Henson's movies that aren't as well remembered, but still entertaining. Some of these background muppets only had a few shining moments, or in some cases are only used once, but they have become some of my favorites so I'd like to highlight some of those great and overlooked characters.
10) The Doozers (Fraggle Rock) - What were they building? Why do the Fraggles keep eating their work? Those that watched Fraggle Rock remember The Fraggles (obviously) The Trash Heap, and The Gorgs, but The Doozers tend to get overlooked, which is kind of a shame because they werea fairly regular part of the show. One episode explained that the Doozers want the Fraggles to eat their buildings so they can continue working nonstop. So the Fraggles eat so the Doozers can keep working, and the Doozers keep working so the Fraggles can eat? That is kind of a bizarre cycle. Makes you wonder if the Japanese Government as a similar relationship with Godzilla. Whatever the case, The Doozers were a fun race of characters. The idea of tiny little green men that spent their whole day working on building stuff just to have it eaten is pretty funny.
9) Annie Sue Pig - This character has became all but forgotten, but to me, the idea of Miss Piggy having a rival was nothing short of golden. She was a sweet young pig who was talented and well liked by the other Muppets. That makes her a perfect foil for Piggy! Since the Muppet Show, Annie Sue has been used as a background character, but I'll always remember her. And who knows? Maybe Piggy had something to do with her being pushed to the background
8) Polly Lobster (Muppet Treasure Island) - I love this little guy. A lobster who acts like a parrot, but also a very mean & short ball of anger. I don't know why, but I think my favorite line of the movie is "Let's torture da rat!" There were a few new Muppets designed for this film, most of them in Long John Silver's pirate crew, but not many of them stood out. Polly did. But unfortunately the Parrot-like Lobster only really works for the Pirate stories and there isn't much you can do with that, which explains why he hasn't been used since.
7) The Chamberlain (The Dark Crystal) - What an annoying character! The Garthim Master summed it up best: "I Hate your whimper!" Once you see the movie, I guarantee you'll be asking for THe Chamberlain to shut up. The Skeksis were a very scary brand of puppets. Probably the most frightening that Jim Henson ever designed. But The Chamberlain, rather than being over bearing, loud, and frightening like The Garthim Master, he was more of a slimey and devious character, which made him probably the most memorable of the bunch.
6) Uncle Deadly (The Muppet Show) - The Phantom of the Muppet Theatre had his one big episode. He is particularly memorable because he looks so vastly different from the other Muppets on the show. Simply put he was quite ugly, which in a strenge way made him cute. He had a few moments after that, but most people will remember him for haunting The Muppet Theatre early in the run of The Muppet Show, and his unique presentation & look make him a special one to remember.
5) Bobby Benson's Baby Band (The Muppet Show) - I never understood what the deal with this band was. Bobby Benson always had a cigarette in his mouth while these mean looking babies performed songs on toy instruments, hitting each other throughout the course of the song. Benson looked like a swindler, possibly somebody who swindled the babies into performing for him. That is kind of creepy. I don't know what was up with that, but I do know that "Pennsylvania 6-5000" is one of my favorite musical moments on The Muppet Show. Its hilarious to watch a bunch of babies perform and song and then smack each other with their instruments. It was a great musical act on the show, who I believe made their last appearance on Muppet Christmas Carol. When people think of Muppet Music, they think of Dr. Teeth & The Electric Mayhem and the Pianist Rowlf, but I always really liked the Baby Band.
4) The Garthim Master (The Dark Crystal) - I know I said that The Chamberlain would probably be the most memorable of the Skeksis, but Garthim Master was the scariest & the coolest! He had a great voice, and it was easy to see why he would take over as Emperor. Even the other Skeksis seemed to fear him to some degree. And anybody who controls the Garthim is one bad customer. Those were mean looking soilders. He didn't have much of a character outside of being ill tempered & just wanting to destroy anybody that opposed him. But he was definately a really cool villain.
3) Clueless Morgan (Muppet Treasure Island) - Another memorable new Muppet created for this film was Clueless Morgan. Living up to his name, Clueless ranks up there as one of the most idiotic muppet characters ever made. I'd love to see him debate with Beauregard. Its hard to imagine that he would be a pirate because he seems about as harmful as a rose pedal and as dumb as a bucket of rocks. Like Polly & his other partner in crime Mad Monty, he hasn't been used since this film, which is actually kind of a shame. Everybody I talked to thought he was really funny in this movie, and unlike Polly, he isn't really restricted to the Pirate genre due to his character. I would definately like for Clueless Morgan to make a comeback!
2) Skred (Saturday Night Live) - In the early episodes of SNL, there were several Muppet skits on the show titled "The Land of Gorch" which showed the daily activities of a race of Muppets that lived on a desolate alien world. King Ploobis ruled the land with his Queen Pueta and the race of characters worshipped a living stone statue known as The Mighty Favog. However, the character that stood out the most from these sketches was Skred. He was King Ploobis' right hand man, but more often than not was going against the King's wishes (most notably having an affair with Pueta) Pueta had a really weird Gonzo-like voice, so it surprised me that it was Jerry Nelson who played the character. The skits didn't lost long on SNL and were dropped after the 1st season, but one moment I will always remember was Skred wearing a bee costume and flirting with Gilda Radner before helping her introduce the musical guest. Skred is somewhat forgotten, as are these skits in general, but he was a very funny and odd character that stands out in my mind.
1) Crazy Harry (The Muppet Show) - Now most of my friends who like The Muppets do NOT remember Crazy Harry. Its amazing to me. Now I'm looking on the side of the forums with the Muppet Smilies and I see Harry, and he was also included in the toy line a few years back, so I know there must be some kind of fanbase for the guy. He was little more than a running gag. He would run around and blow things up. Simple yet always funny. One of the best jokes in the first Muppet Movie was when Dr. Teeth said to Harry "Ya know I hear this movie is dynamite" and of course Harry took that as a cue and set off an explosion. My favorite Harry moment was when he got to perform with Jean Stapleton. She sang "I'm Just Wild About Harry" while he blew up the set. He's a very manic character that I wish would be used more often than just as a background character. However, in the Post 9/11 World, I don't think a crazed bearded man running around blowing up things would be very PC. But Harry was phased out long before then. I don't know if they just got bored of the joke or if they just didn't like him that much, but Crazy Harry has always been a favorite of mine.
Anyways, we all know who the big Muppet stars are. Kermit, Piggy, Fozzie, & Gonzo, with various others like Rowlf, Scooter, Rizzo, The Electric Mayhem & more recently Pepe acting as the sidekicks to the main crew. And then you have characters like The Swedish Chef, Bunsen & Beaker, Sam the Eagle, Statler & Waldorf who are little more than running gags, but well remembered and fun popular characters.
And if you go into Sesame Street & Fraggle Rock, you know who the big players are there. And heck if you really think outside the box, one of the most popular characters in cinema history, Jedi Master Yoda, was infact a Muppet.
However, throughout the course of Jim Henson's Puppet magic, there have been many great characters created from The Muppet Show, to Sesame Street, to Fraggle Rock, and even to Henson's movies that aren't as well remembered, but still entertaining. Some of these background muppets only had a few shining moments, or in some cases are only used once, but they have become some of my favorites so I'd like to highlight some of those great and overlooked characters.
10) The Doozers (Fraggle Rock) - What were they building? Why do the Fraggles keep eating their work? Those that watched Fraggle Rock remember The Fraggles (obviously) The Trash Heap, and The Gorgs, but The Doozers tend to get overlooked, which is kind of a shame because they werea fairly regular part of the show. One episode explained that the Doozers want the Fraggles to eat their buildings so they can continue working nonstop. So the Fraggles eat so the Doozers can keep working, and the Doozers keep working so the Fraggles can eat? That is kind of a bizarre cycle. Makes you wonder if the Japanese Government as a similar relationship with Godzilla. Whatever the case, The Doozers were a fun race of characters. The idea of tiny little green men that spent their whole day working on building stuff just to have it eaten is pretty funny.
9) Annie Sue Pig - This character has became all but forgotten, but to me, the idea of Miss Piggy having a rival was nothing short of golden. She was a sweet young pig who was talented and well liked by the other Muppets. That makes her a perfect foil for Piggy! Since the Muppet Show, Annie Sue has been used as a background character, but I'll always remember her. And who knows? Maybe Piggy had something to do with her being pushed to the background
8) Polly Lobster (Muppet Treasure Island) - I love this little guy. A lobster who acts like a parrot, but also a very mean & short ball of anger. I don't know why, but I think my favorite line of the movie is "Let's torture da rat!" There were a few new Muppets designed for this film, most of them in Long John Silver's pirate crew, but not many of them stood out. Polly did. But unfortunately the Parrot-like Lobster only really works for the Pirate stories and there isn't much you can do with that, which explains why he hasn't been used since.
7) The Chamberlain (The Dark Crystal) - What an annoying character! The Garthim Master summed it up best: "I Hate your whimper!" Once you see the movie, I guarantee you'll be asking for THe Chamberlain to shut up. The Skeksis were a very scary brand of puppets. Probably the most frightening that Jim Henson ever designed. But The Chamberlain, rather than being over bearing, loud, and frightening like The Garthim Master, he was more of a slimey and devious character, which made him probably the most memorable of the bunch.
6) Uncle Deadly (The Muppet Show) - The Phantom of the Muppet Theatre had his one big episode. He is particularly memorable because he looks so vastly different from the other Muppets on the show. Simply put he was quite ugly, which in a strenge way made him cute. He had a few moments after that, but most people will remember him for haunting The Muppet Theatre early in the run of The Muppet Show, and his unique presentation & look make him a special one to remember.
5) Bobby Benson's Baby Band (The Muppet Show) - I never understood what the deal with this band was. Bobby Benson always had a cigarette in his mouth while these mean looking babies performed songs on toy instruments, hitting each other throughout the course of the song. Benson looked like a swindler, possibly somebody who swindled the babies into performing for him. That is kind of creepy. I don't know what was up with that, but I do know that "Pennsylvania 6-5000" is one of my favorite musical moments on The Muppet Show. Its hilarious to watch a bunch of babies perform and song and then smack each other with their instruments. It was a great musical act on the show, who I believe made their last appearance on Muppet Christmas Carol. When people think of Muppet Music, they think of Dr. Teeth & The Electric Mayhem and the Pianist Rowlf, but I always really liked the Baby Band.
4) The Garthim Master (The Dark Crystal) - I know I said that The Chamberlain would probably be the most memorable of the Skeksis, but Garthim Master was the scariest & the coolest! He had a great voice, and it was easy to see why he would take over as Emperor. Even the other Skeksis seemed to fear him to some degree. And anybody who controls the Garthim is one bad customer. Those were mean looking soilders. He didn't have much of a character outside of being ill tempered & just wanting to destroy anybody that opposed him. But he was definately a really cool villain.
3) Clueless Morgan (Muppet Treasure Island) - Another memorable new Muppet created for this film was Clueless Morgan. Living up to his name, Clueless ranks up there as one of the most idiotic muppet characters ever made. I'd love to see him debate with Beauregard. Its hard to imagine that he would be a pirate because he seems about as harmful as a rose pedal and as dumb as a bucket of rocks. Like Polly & his other partner in crime Mad Monty, he hasn't been used since this film, which is actually kind of a shame. Everybody I talked to thought he was really funny in this movie, and unlike Polly, he isn't really restricted to the Pirate genre due to his character. I would definately like for Clueless Morgan to make a comeback!
2) Skred (Saturday Night Live) - In the early episodes of SNL, there were several Muppet skits on the show titled "The Land of Gorch" which showed the daily activities of a race of Muppets that lived on a desolate alien world. King Ploobis ruled the land with his Queen Pueta and the race of characters worshipped a living stone statue known as The Mighty Favog. However, the character that stood out the most from these sketches was Skred. He was King Ploobis' right hand man, but more often than not was going against the King's wishes (most notably having an affair with Pueta) Pueta had a really weird Gonzo-like voice, so it surprised me that it was Jerry Nelson who played the character. The skits didn't lost long on SNL and were dropped after the 1st season, but one moment I will always remember was Skred wearing a bee costume and flirting with Gilda Radner before helping her introduce the musical guest. Skred is somewhat forgotten, as are these skits in general, but he was a very funny and odd character that stands out in my mind.
1) Crazy Harry (The Muppet Show) - Now most of my friends who like The Muppets do NOT remember Crazy Harry. Its amazing to me. Now I'm looking on the side of the forums with the Muppet Smilies and I see Harry, and he was also included in the toy line a few years back, so I know there must be some kind of fanbase for the guy. He was little more than a running gag. He would run around and blow things up. Simple yet always funny. One of the best jokes in the first Muppet Movie was when Dr. Teeth said to Harry "Ya know I hear this movie is dynamite" and of course Harry took that as a cue and set off an explosion. My favorite Harry moment was when he got to perform with Jean Stapleton. She sang "I'm Just Wild About Harry" while he blew up the set. He's a very manic character that I wish would be used more often than just as a background character. However, in the Post 9/11 World, I don't think a crazed bearded man running around blowing up things would be very PC. But Harry was phased out long before then. I don't know if they just got bored of the joke or if they just didn't like him that much, but Crazy Harry has always been a favorite of mine.
