Where is Steve Whitmire Petition

[Aaron]

There has been major flooding in Atlanta recently, could that per haps be a factor in Steve's absence?

 

[Drtooth]

I don't think this is going to be a permanent thing that Disney will go through with. In the interview that Steve gave on Toughpigs.com, he stated that Disney realizes how important it is to keep the Muppets individual rather than just handing them off to different people on a continuing basis. The idea for recasting was just an idea they had in order to try to figure out how to revive those characters. Steve is very conservative about the way the Muppets are portrayed these days and I personally feel that he as well as everyone else will make sure that everything is handled correctly in order to keep Jim's legacy alive and vital.

As far as I am concerned about the recent tv and D23 appearances that have occured in the last few weeks, Steve may have been unavailable to do Kermit for that stuff. He has his own life, and he certainly doesn't base it entirely on the Muppets. I myself, being the Henson enthusiest that I am, focus on other things in life, including other hobbies and interests, my family, and my friends.

But wherever Steve is right now, I have no doubt that he will come back and bring the frog back on his feet (or flippers in this case). And knowing that he is as big a Muppet fan as everyone else here on the forum, I am sure he may be reading this discussion right now as we speak. So if you are out there Steve Whitmire, we hope that you are doing well and that Kermit will continue to carry on in your hands for as long as possible. God bless you and everyone else who keep the magic of Jim Henson alive.

Zachary Snyder (zns)

That's what I feel. Disney paying all this much for the Muppets, putting all these plans and grand projects and alienating the people who would stand to benefit from their handiwork, and then support them by purchasing all the merchandise... that doesn't make sense at all. And, again, if they wanted to replace Steve with a cheaper "sound-a-like," they would have replaced EVERYONE with cheaper sound-a-likes. And with the exception of movie DTV sequels and cartoon shows (replacing the bigger actors, too pricey to get for a Saturday Morning TV show), they have never replaced anyone for Pooh, Mickey, or anyone like that... provided the voice actor is still alive and working. Jim Cummings has performed Tigger and Pooh for years... and Wayne was performing Mickey up until his passing. And I don't think they work all that cheap.

Whatever conspiracy theory we can concoct about Steve, the truth of the matter is we don't know what the heck's going on. It could be something as simple as zns has stated. He has a personal life, and things can come up. this has been, what? a Three week "disappearance?" And basically he misses, what, a convention performance, and 2 Tv show performances? Unless I get official word on Steve's status, I'm not letting it taint anything we're getting.. the stuff we were waiting for since 2005.

 

[Blinky_Fish]

Doin' My part...

Goin' to the Rats place next month... I just made up some new shirts.

Has Kermit and Steve on the back and says "Save Kermit"

I made 'em for my kids too.

 

[dwmckim]

I don't know if this has been posted yet, but to make a long story short- Whitmire has already been fired from Sesame Street and is on the verge of being fired from muppets for being a diva, asking for too much money for every Kermit appearence he does and the just simply NOT SHOWING UP. Disney is over him and will probably have Artie take over.

One thing i think a lot of us know by now is when you hear something really strange or out there, consider the source.

I really don't take this whole idea seriously for a lot of reasons that's already been mentioned - it totally contradicts just about everything that's basically known about Steve. This isn't just my "wanting to believe the best about a hero and refusing to even consider any possible character flaws that each human being has" but of all the things that we know about Steve after decades, the whole "Diva" thing is just way too opposite.

So with that in mind, my first thought when i read this is "hoo boy - someone's trying to stir up trouble". So before i posted anything, i checked out the author's other posts to see if this kind of thing is a pattern.

It wasn't.

StarrFilter's been a very valuable contributer to the forum so far and his big strength has been as a resident expert on behind-the-scenes at Sesame Street Live (as someone who used to work there and has other friends still involved). He's provided a lot of really great and helpful information.

But i still think this whole story is total bunk.

Starr, assuming your intents with your post were indeed genuine, i have a feeling you may have been given some bad information yourself. I'd be interested in hearing what your sources are on this information. I really don't believe any of it is remotely accurate but i feel you've at least earned some respectability to be listened to and not automatically dismissed as a flamer. I'm still taking everything said about this with a grain of salt and it's all ringing false. But i'm giving you the benefit of the doubt to at least say what your own sources on this are (and then we can all make our own decisions on how valid or reliable they are).

 

[Drtooth]

I really don't take this whole idea seriously for a lot of reasons that's already been mentioned - it totally contradicts just about everything that's basically known about Steve. This isn't just my "wanting to believe the best about a hero and refusing to even consider any possible character flaws that each human being has" but of all the things that we know about Steve after decades, the whole "Diva" thing is just way too opposite.

Plus, Did Sesame Street ever really fire a puppeteer? Other than that one time, when that performer went behind someone's back and snuck looks at a show treatment, like whoever said that...

I know that they had to lay off a lot of their work force (and there's an instance of a massive pay cut I don't wanna get into), but none of them were puppeteers, especially star ones. And Ernie is one of the show's big "meal Ticket" characters. Assuming that Star is correct here, and he was uncharacteristically diva-ish for some reason (something happened that made him get moody- speaking purely as a hypothetical), I'm sure they'd give him a second chance or something. And if he was fired anyway, there would have really been big news here about it.

Then of course, we're talking Sesame Street. Even if he was fired from it, I don't believe it would effect the Disney owned Muppet performances.

I agree... I just wanna know the source, because... well, I'm guessing Star means well, and it was just a case of bad second hand information or something.

 

[zns]

I just don't buy any of this. Me personally, I want to hear the whole truth from Steve Whitmire himself. If anyone knows how to contact him, please do so in order for us to get the real scoop. Sorry Starfilter, but I just don't know if I fully believe what you said. But I do know that you really don't mean any harm to any of us devoted Muppet fans.

 

[Kynan Barker]

Sorry Starfilter, but I just don't know if I fully believe what you said. But I do know that you really don't mean any harm to any of us devoted Muppet fans.

Oh, so as long as you "know" this malicious gossip isn't intended to harm any of US, the devoted fans, you think it's just fine for a cowardly lurker to accuse a Muppet performer of being an unprofessional, demanding "diva"?

Garbage. This is nasty, unsubstantiated slander, plain and simple.

StarrFilter is a malicious, semi-literate troublemaker -- and I heard that from an anonymous inside source, so it must be OK to repeat here on the forum. Right?

 

[zns]

Here's another thing. Steve is still credited on the list of performers page for the season 40 press kit of Sesame Street. So that should probably mean something for the Muppets and for the rest of us.

 

[SSLFan]

Oh, so as long as you "know" this malicious gossip isn't intended to harm any of US, the devoted fans, you think it's just fine for a cowardly lurker to accuse a Muppet performer of being an unprofessional, demanding "diva"?

Garbage. This is nasty, unsubstantiated slander, plain and simple.

StarrFilter is a malicious, semi-literate troublemaker -- and I heard that from an anonymous inside source, so it must be OK to repeat here on the forum. Right?

Um...excuse me?

Cowardly?

Semi - literate?

Troublemaker?

Okay, I had refused to get involved in this whole thing, but this comment just did it. How in the heck are you going to call someone a troublemaker? Have you even looked at the guy's other posts? He only posts when there's actually SOMETHING to be said. It's not like he's trolling around here like certain members .

And most of you sound childish. How can you all of a sudden gang up on Starr when you've all made assumptions yourself? ("Steve is sick", "Steve is busy working on whatever project"). Yet when something like this comes up you all want to jump the gun. And even if you don't agree with the post, there was a MUCH more MATURE way of posting a response, instead of firing bullets at the guy & calling him out of his name.

Personally, I am sick of this whole situation. And I'm willing to believe Starrfilter since he's never lied before.

 

[Kynan Barker]

Here's another thing. Steve is still credited on the list of performers page for the season 40 press kit of Sesame Street. So that should probably mean something for the Muppets and for the rest of us.

So is Frank Oz, but that doesn't mean he filmed anything this season.

Guys, this kind of scrabbling around for information isn't going to help anyone put the pieces of the puzzle together. I don't think it's helpful to be passing on rumors that are blatantly disrespectful, but neither is it helpful to sit around fretting about Steve's whereabouts. These are things over which we have no control and which are also none of our business.

Sesame Street has nothing to do with this. And with the greatest respect in the world for Steve, it's not about him either. I can't speak for Ryan, who started this thread. But the "where is Steve" question only came up because of what Disney chose to do in Steve's absence.

I like Steve, I wish him well, and if I saw him I'd give him a cookie. But my concern as a Muppet fan is what happens to Kermit.