Muppet fans love their Muppet stuff. I guess I already knew that, but now I have proof, in the form of a bunch of personal testimonials about beloved Muppet items. I asked for stories, and I sure did get them. Some people love their Muppet stuff so much they were unable to narrow it down to just one item, which is an indication either of how much our favorite bits of Muppet memorabilia mean to us, or of our rampant materialism.
As a result, I've split the responses into two articles. The first one is right here; the second can be found over here.
Now read on for a few of our favorite things:
My treasured Muppet possession would have to be the Palisades Muppet theatre backstage playset. I mean, how cool is it? It's a perfect small Muppet show set that I can transport back and forth between college and home. And all the Palisades action figures that go with it of course, especially Sweetums.
Amy:
My Fisher Price Sesame Street Little People playset.
I got it for Christmas when I was four or five years old. I remember being upset that David and Maria weren't included amongst the Little People, but being very happy to have Mr. Hooper and Susan. (Guess I didn't give a rat's ass about Gordon!)
Big Bird, Oscar, Ernie and Bert were cool to have, too, but Mr. Hooper and Susan really made me happy. Mr. Hooper reminded me of my grandfather, and Susan was my favorite female role model at the time. She was a nurse, she drove a VW Bug, she wasn't afraid to talk back to Oscar -- how cool was that?!
Possibly the thing that fascinated me the most about the playset was looking into Bert and Ernie's apartment and counting the bottlecaps on the wall. They had the most interesting domicile of the apartments. My brother and I also had the Fisher Price Castle. We used to have the Sesame Street people look around in the Castle for the Count. We also pretended that Snuffy lived in the dragon's dungeon in the FP Castle. Kind of dumb, but we had an awful lot of fun with that fantasy. I still have Susan and Big Bird someplace. I miss Mr. Hooper.
Jenny:
A plastic Snuffy wearing a scarf and beret. It was a toy at my grandma's until one day I never saw it again. Then, years and years later in high school, my theology teacher had the exact same toy on his desk, and I had a huge SIRE* moment. I tell him the story and he freaking GIVES it to me. Snuffy now resides on my Ledge O' Crap. (despite the name, it is where the most esteemed plushies and figurines live)
*[Editor's note: SIRE, for those not in the know, is a Tough Pigs-coined acronym for Sudden Instant Recall Effect]
Martha:
My oldest, most-loved Muppet posession has to be my Grover puppet, circa 1974. I absolutely love him. I remember taking him to kindergarten - when he was much prettier than he is now - for show and tell. I have a picture with me, age 4, with my brand-new Grover puppet, which arrived at about the same time as my brand-new baby brother. Guess which one I was more excited about...
It's not really a posession, but I'm also awfully proud of the INEBG* Bathroom, which has a brand-new Kermit display shelf.
*It's Not Easy Being GreenMelissa:
I have several, I don't have the Fisher Price puppet but I got the doll, I'd say out of TOYS, it would be that, my Rowlf puppet and my Fisher Price Ernie doll that looks like he was hiding out where they found Saddam Hussein. But I can't part with any of them.
As far as NON toys, my genuine Big Bird feather that they gave me as a Henson intern, my Muppet Treasure Island crew hat that Steve Whitmire gave me when I visited the set, and all my autographs and photos with Henson folks.
Peter:
My favorite... was probably a 3D stacking Big Bird puzzle. I can't find a picture of it anywhere on the Internet, though. My brother once mischievously hid the various pieces throughout the house and I don't know how long it was before I found the last piece in the cream cheese. I had once actually decided to give it to Danny or Scott for Christmas, but then I couldn't find it. And then I decided that even if I ever found it, I was too selfish to let it go.
Cathy:
My very favoritest Muppet thing is actually two things. When I was a wee little tot, my parents got me a Miss Piggy trinket box. It was a knockoff of a Sigma piece and it was obviously handmade, but you could tell it was made out of love.
Anyway, my parents spotted this thing at a garage sale and the person selling it said that his daughter had made it, but had "outgrown" her Muppet phase, so they sold it to my parents for a dime. I loved this little box so much. It always made me happy when I looked at it because it reminded me of how much my parents loved me and supported me and my love of Muppets.
Anyway, a few years ago when I got married, Danny (who didn't know about my knockoff Piggy box) gave me the real Sigma Piggy box as a wedding gift. And it was such a great gift, because I could tell it was really thoughtful and given from the heart. And now both boxes are displayed proudly on my shelf, and while one reminds me of the awesomeness of my parents, the other now reminds me of all the awesome people I've met through the years here. All because of a shared love of the Muppets. Who knew?
Yancey:
Well... I would have to say my Miss Piggy Fisher Price dress up doll. My younger brother gave her to me for Christmas (probably in 1982?). I sewed her a number of spectacular outfits. She is one of my Muppet things I've owned the longest. I'm also very fond of my Piggy Enesco Marie Antoinette and Cleopigtra dolls. They're just so awesome. I got those off of Ebay about 6 or 7 years ago.
Anthony:
As for my own most treasured Muppet possession . . . I've never been much of a collector of things that you can't watch, read or listen to, so it's not a toy or anything.
Actually, I've gotta say the first Fraggle Rock LP. The kindergarten teacher in my hometown found it in her classroom and gave it to me when I was about a freshman in high school. I had only seen a few episodes of the show at the time, and I used to spend hours lying on my bed listening to that record over and over and over.
Even now, when I've seen all of the first 72 episodes of the show and several of the last year, those are the Fraggle Rock songs that always come to mind - Follow Me, Wemblin' Fool, The Friendship Song, Muck and Goo, Do It On My Own, Doozer Knitting Song, Easy is the Only Way to Go, and The Beetle Song especially.
Kyle:
My most favorite Muppet possession would have to be a several because I can't just think of one. The first one would be my plush 80's Big Bird. My mom said I carried that sucker everywhere. It was mine and nobody could touch it unless it was my mom or my sister.
But my then for some reason my dad told my mom that he had to throw it away because i had ripped its head off, but my mom thinks he threw him away because I was getting too old for it. I've been looking for him everywhere but can't find him. Hope I find it on ebay one of these days.
The second one would have to be the Oscar the Grouch in a can where you blow into the hose and his head pops out of his trash can. Not mine but my cousins', and I played with it all the time.
Third one was a Fraggle Rock drum set, but then I busted out pretty much all the drums and that was it for that set of Fraggles. I feel really sorry that i destroyed lots of my toys as a kid so now if I find something I had as a kid I save it and keep it from bad little hands.
Fourth one would be still not be mine but still I played with it. It was the Kermit the Frog puppet just like the one on the front page. It was my cousins but a different one from the first one.
Fifth one would have to be a Baby Kermit that sat inside of a wheel that looked like a Ferris wheel and spun around. Don't know why I liked it but it I did.
Sixth one would be a Oscar the Grouch puppet that came out in the late 80's or early 90's. He's still in his can but you could move the mouth. It was one of the Fisher Price ones. I now have a Cookie Monster one too that I found at Goodwill. That about does it but that's pretty much my Muppet Treasured stuff I have.
Quinn:
This is impossible for me to narrow down. The Palisades action figures, taken altogether, are probably my favorite Muppet possession, but not necessarily the most "treasured." I love every single one of them, and there are some highlights like Adventure Kermit and the Jim Henson figure that stand out above the rest.
While they were all made with attention to detail and more care than most Muppet toys we had seen up until that point, there was something special about some of the figures. Purple Tux Gonzo is still my favorite version of one of my favorite Muppets, and even seeing the Master Replicas Gonzo--the eight dollar piece of plastic is a better likeness, and more fun, than the version I'd have to pay hundreds of dollars for. And because of that, I appreciate Palisades' work on the Muppets line.
As for the most treasured...this is probably a cop-out, because it's not technically a Muppet possession. My Rubber Duckie. Even though he's not a licensed Muppet(TM) product, I only have him because Ernie has a Rubber Duckie. My brother gave me Rubber Duckie for my 17th Birthday, which was 17 years ago. And even though now I'm on Rubber Duckie II, I still have that same unnatural attachment to, and affection for, my Rubber Duckie.
He goes on every trip with me, and Miles and Carter consider him almost as much a part of the family as they are. They know when it comes down to it, he's been in the family longer than they have, and if I have to make a choice, it'll get dicey. I have more expensive Muppet toys, I have rarer Muppet toys, I have a piece of Gonzo's fur on my fridge from Muppets in Space--but it's Rubber Duckie that I love. I feel a song coming on.
Great stuff, eh? And I'm only a little bit envious at all the cool merchandise other people have that I never had. Click here to jump to Friday for more sappy nostalgia!
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