Newsbits - May 30, 2009

Who's up for a newsbit or twosbit? Yes, this is the caliber of jokes I will be telling in this article. Feel free to just look at the pretty pictures.
Every year, Sesame Workshop holds a gala, and every year they neglect to invite me (I'm sure it just got lost in the mail, right Joan Ganz Cooney??). This year, to celebrate the big four-oh, Brian Williams hosted the event, which included famous folks like Sheryl Crow, Al Roker, and Joel Schumacher. New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg was also on hand to accept a special honor for appearing in Letters to Santa last year. The surprise of the night was a special video recorded by former Presidential nominee Barack Obama. I'm sure glad I voted for a guy who loves Sesame Street.
Now that you've read a few issues of The Muppet Show Comic Book, and you're all primed for Muppet Robin Hood, check out the first details from Muppet Peter Pan! In the comic, Kermit will play the part of Mary Martin, Piggy will lose a lot of weight to portray Tinkerbell, Gonzo will embrace the obvious jokes about his nose as Captain Hook, and Robin, Janice, Scooter, and Bean Bunny will trade duties as the kids who run away from home without a clean set of underwear. There's no release date set yet, but the comic will most likely come out immediately following the end of Muppet Robin Hood.
Elmo, Big Bird, Cookie Monster, Oscar the Grouch, and other characters (I'm gonna guess at least one performed by Joey Mazzarino) will appear on A Capitol Fourth, a PBS special filmed in front of the Capitol Building in Washington DC on July 4th. I'm not sure when it will air in countries that don't have a Fourth of July.
A little birdie told another little birdie, who then told an albatross, who told Kevin Bacon, who told me that Archaia Comics will soon be publishing Fraggle Rock comic books. With the success BOOM! Studios is having with the Muppet comics, this seems like a no-brainer. But if it turns out to be a false rumor, then maybe they can just reprint the old Fraggle Rock comics from the 80s. And here's a better idea: They shouldn't do that, because those comics were terrible.
Kermit Culture, an academic anthology peering deep into the cellular structure of the Muppets, just became available from McFarland Publishing. The book features one article written by ToughPigs' own Andrew Leal, so kudos to him! Unfortunately, because it's an academic text, you probably won't see this book on shelves, so if you're interested, you'll have to buy it online. The nice thing about that is that you feel a certain air of superiority when you order academic texts while in just your underwear.
Oscar (the grouch) appeared on an ABC special earlier this week called "Un-Broke: What You Need to Know About Money." Unfortunately, I'm a big stupidhead and I forgot to watch, so I have no idea what it was all about. Un-unfortunately, ToughPigs' own Ryan Mead is much less of a stupidhead and watched the program. Says Ryan, "Oscar's sketch was about the importance of having stocks in your retirement account, and there were a few amusing bits here and there, such as Oscar explaining he hopes to move out of his trash can and retire to a Dumpster someday, and the revelation that his poor portfolio (Enron, etc.) is due to the fact that, not surprisingly, his only 'investing' is stock certificates that other people threw out in his can." I couldn't have said it better myself. Seriously.
Former Jim Henson Company President and CEO Charlie Rivkin was tapped by President Obama (did I mention how awesome that guy is?) to be the next US ambassador to France. That means he can park wherever he wants! What a great gig! Rivkin might seem like an odd choice to you , but his father was Kennedy's ambassador to Luxembourg and Johnson's ambassador to Senegal and Gambia, so ambassadoring must run in the family. I've got suspicions that he's only taking the job so he can secretly complete Kermit's World Tour. Quelle difference!
I have been waiting my entire life for someone to make a Super Grover shirt with just the logo, and MyPartyShirt.com made my dreams come true. I'm sure they made some mad money from just the folks who ordered it on the ToughPigs forum. I bought one, and it gave me the power to fly around the neighborhood. It did not, however, help me to land, so now I'm in traction. Maybe the shirt should come with a helmet.
Click here to park anywhere on the ToughPigs forum!

joe.toughpigs@gmail.com

Elmo's Green Period: My "Being Green" Review

So what’s all this I keep hearing about “going green?” People are going on and on about how recycling is good and carbon footprints are bad… or is it the other way around? Are my feet made of carbon? I don’t understand. You know what I need? I need somebody to explain the “green” movement to me as if I were three years old.

Well, I’m in luck, because there’s a new Sesame Street DVD out now called Being Green, which is all about saving our planet and crap like that. I couldn’t wait to find out about environmentalism, so I drove my Hummer to the video store, left it idling while I ran in to buy the DVD, then drove home and turned on all the lights in the house while I watched it.



With so few episodes of Sesame Street produced these days, these direct-to-video specials are like extra bonus episodes, and this one isn’t about to waste any of its running time... There are no opening credits, just the title, and then boom!, we’re on Sesame Street, where Elmo and Abby Cadabby are playing Hide and Seek.


Hey, remember when Zoe was Elmo’s best friend? Lately it sure looks like he’s ditched her for Abby. Man, Elmo’s so fickle. Or maybe Zoe was playing Hide and Seek with them, and she was so good at hiding that they never found her.

Anyway, the game is soon interrupted by a guy wearing a big, puffy globe. Why, it’s comic actor Paul Rudd, in the role of Mr. Earth! And he’s hosting the Earth-a-thon, a TV show that’s happening right here on Sesame Street!


So here are two things I like about this special: 1) They never try to pass Rudd off as being the actual planet Earth, or even the Spirit of the Earth or something silly like that. He comes right out and admits he’s “an actor in a ridiculously awkward Earth costume,” and it allows him some room to be loose and irreverent. 2) Every time anyone mentions the Earth-a-thon, they have to sing it, like this: “THE Earth-a-THOOOOON!” I highly recommend you do the same while reading this.

Elmo’s all like, “What the heck is an Earth-a-thon?” and Rudd explains that they’re taking calls from all over from people who want to help the Earth. Then he has to explain to Elmo and Abby what the Earth is. Man, those kids are stupid.

Of course, a telethon needs volunteers to answer the phone, and fortunately for us, three familiar monsters are standing by: Telly, Rosita, and Cookie Monster. One has to wonder: Who thought it would be a good idea to trust Cookie Monster with this job? I don’t think it’s an enormous spoiler to say that before the end of this DVD, the telephone will find its way inside Cookie’s mouth. (One of my favorite parts has Cookie struggling to focus on pledges rather than cookies while Rosita yells at him: “You’ve got to pull yourself together, Cookie!”)


The special goes back and forth between Paul Rudd and the Muppets on the street doing the Earth-a-thon – sorry, I mean “THE Earth-a-THOOOOON!” – and various films and cartoons with an environmental theme. So it’s a lot like an episode of the show. Some of the segments I had definitely seen before. Yep, they’re recycled, which is perfect for this video.

There’s a clip about kids planting trees in Turkey… one about some other kids making paper out of old clothes… and one about kids in New York City working on a garden. That one looks to be from the early-to-mid-90s, and I swear one of the kids is a young Rosario Dawson, who shows up onscreen for about one second.


And then there are some segments that look like they might be new, including a cartoon about people of all the colors of the rainbow joining together to help the Earth… At this point in my notes, I wrote “Sign me up for WORLD PEACE!” Oh, and one with an all-kid band doing a surprisingly rockin’ song about… well, I don’t remember what it was about. Compost heaps, maybe?

But hey, what’s going on here? We’re 17 minutes in and Elmo is still red! I thought the whole point of this video was that Abby accidentally turns Elmo green! Where’s Elmo screaming frantically, as seen in this amazing “Being Green mashup” video on YouTube?



(Speaking of that YouTube clip: I love that Sesame Workshop made this official promo for the DVD that looks exactly like something a fan would come up with just for kicks. It’s really smart to use internet video tricks to sell projects to fans on the internet… Muppet Studios did something similar with that “Glad All Over” lip-synching video to promote Letters to Santa, and I have a feeling we’ll be seeing more stuff like it in the future. Too bad none of the clips seen in the Being Green mashup are actually present on the DVD.)

A-ha, here we go. Elmo is inspired by the words of Mr. Earth, and says he wants to be green, so Abby obliges with a wave of her wand: “Make Elmo more green than we’ve ever seen!” At first, Elmo thinks it’s fun being the color of green paint and green beans, but when it becomes clear that Abby doesn’t know how to change him back (“Um, well, here’s the thing,” she says, “and you’re gonna laugh… I don’t know how to do that.”) he FREAKS THE HELL OUT. As seen above.


Will Elmo ever return to his normal color? Well, I’m not going to tell you, because that would COMPLETELY SPOIL THE ENDING, and I would never want to do that.

But I will answer the obvious question: When does the song “Bein’ Green” show up? And the answer is… never! Well, that’s not exactly true. When Elmo thinks he’s going to be green forever, he starts to sing the song, but Paul Rudd interrupts him after about a line and a half to sing a song about how it is, in fact, easy being green. I don’t mind that Kermit doesn’t show up. I wouldn’t expect him to, these days. But the title of this DVD is clearly meant to evoke the song, so would it have killed them to at least let Elmo finish a verse?


Misleading title aside, this is an entertaining special. Paul Rudd is clearly having a blast in that uncomfortable Earth suit, and I’m guessing a few of his funnier lines were ad-libbed. All the Muppets get to do what they do best – Oscar even shows up for one scene, in which he’s mean to Telly. Oscar being mean to Telly was a staple of Sesame Street during my childhood, so that moment was particularly enjoyable for me. Much more enjoyable than for Telly, anyway. They even manage to squeeze in a closing musical number... It’s pretty low-budget, but the performers really sell it, so you almost don’t notice.


But what about the “green” agenda? Will it inspire kids to save the planet? I don’t know… A four-year-old who hears Elmo saying it’s cool to pick up trash is probably not going to run out and adopt a highway. But it couldn’t hurt to plant the seed, much like those Turkish kids planted those trees. And maybe in time, as that seed matures, the kids who watch this video over and over will grow into responsible adult trees who try to reduce their carbon emissions instead of douchebag trees who throw empty bottles out the windows of their tree cars.

And you know what? Since I watched this special, I’ve been thinking a little more about turning off lights and not wasting water. I’m green! Thanks, Elmo and Paul Rudd!

Click here to freak the hell out about Elmo turning green on the Tough Pigs forum!

ToughPigsRyan@yahoo.com

Review: Muppet Robin Hood #1

As the only company putting out any Muppet content, BOOM! Studios is publishing a sister comic to The Muppet Show Comic Book. This Wednesday, they’re making Disney look bad by releasing Muppet Robin Hood, the first in a 4-issue miniseries (written by Tim Beedle and illustrated by Armand Villavert, Jr.) retelling the story of Kevin Costner fighting against Severus Snape. Of course, it’s hard to put anything up against the terrific quality of Roger Langridge’s Muppet Show comic, but would Robin Hood back down against that challenge? Heck no! I mean, I assume not. Maybe he turns out to be a sniveling coward by the fourth issue.

Your first thought when seeing this comic on the shelf might be one of déjà vu-ity. That’s probably because this is far from the first time Kermit has donned the be-feathered cap of Mr. Hood. He cavorted with the Merry Men in the Lynn Redgrave episode of The Muppet Show, and in 1980 he was illustrated in those famous tights in a book simply titled “Robin Hood.” And in the “it hardly counts” category, Baby Kermit appeared as a wee version of Robin Hood in Muppet Babies’ Classic Children’s Tales. Did the public really demand another iteration of the Muppets as the Robin Hood characters? Was BOOM! Studios even aware of these other variations? Should we even bother buying new comics that tell the same story we’ve heard so many times before? Well, yeah. It’s got Muppets in it.

The most refreshing part of the comic was the characterization of Kermit the Frog. He’s got a tough job, being responsible for moving the story along without becoming too much of a boring narrator. Tim Beedle does a great job at making Kermit funny, while keeping his characterization in a comfortable middle place between Jim Henson and Carey Elwes. And that's not an unpleasant place to be, folks.

You’ll notice that I’m calling the green dude “Kermit,” and not “Robin.” That’s a pretty sensitive subject, considering the multiple meanings of that name for the Muppets. Thankfully, Beedle nipped that one in the bud by turning it into a running gag for us fans to enjoy, rather than confuse or ignore. It kinda makes you happy that there’s not a Muppet named David of Doncaster, doesn’t it?

The bulk of the story covers Kermit’s initial meeting with the Sheriff of Nottingham, followed by the introduction of Little John and the Merry Men. Sam the Eagle and Sweetums are typecast as the Sheriff and Little, respectively, which is a nice break from the obvious choices of Gonzo and Fozzie, respectively. The Merry Men are a fun mix of fan favorites, including Lew Zealand, Janice, and Scooter, all of whom will be fun to see run amok in the next few issues. Respectively.

Another nice surprise is the background references and character cameos thrown in for Fans Like Us. One character in particular hasn’t been seen since season 1 of The Muppet Show. How’s that for a tease?

My only complaint is about the art. Armand Villavert’s work is competent for the most part, but some of his character illustrations might not sit well with fans. I thought his Kermit was top-notch, but Gonzo and Sweetums (both of whom are understandably difficult to draw) look a bit odd, and not odd in the ways they'd probably prefer to appear. On the other hand, his Rowlf and Janice come out perfectly, making me wish (as I always have) that they had more screentime (pagetime?). Of course, we were spoiled by the three cover art images by David Petersen, Shelli Paroline, and David Alvarez. If BOOM! is smart (and it sure seems like they are), they’ll get those cats to draw some interior art for future Muppet comics.

All in all, I enjoyed the first issue of Muppet Robin Hood. It’s a good addition to the long list of Muppet literary parodies that BOOM! seems to want to continue publishing (coming up next: Muppet Peter Pan). Normally I’d complain about the Muppets not being allowed to be themselves, but we’ve still got The Muppet Show Comic Book coming out every month, and Tim Beedle gets my seal of approval for letting everyone speak with their own voice, so I’d welcome this comic to my bookshelf or longbox.

Plus, it’s got Muppets in it. Go buy it.

Muppet Robin Hood #1 is solicited for May 27, 2009, but because of Memorial Day weekend, some stores may not have it in stock until May 28. Contact your local comic book store for more information.

Click here to steal from the rich on the ToughPigs forum!

joe.toughpigs@gmail.com

ToughPigs Art: Ali Spagnola

This is a True Story:

In June 2008, I caught wind of an artist who was doing something unusual on her website: Ali Spagnola was offering to create paintings and ship them to people for exactly free. That's zero dollars free. I poked around and saw it was no hoax (she subsidizes the work with PayPal donations), so I dropped her an e-mail asking for a painting. I asked for something Muppet-related, and Ali could be creative with whatever she'd like to paint for me. About three seconds later, I completely forgot about sending the e-mail.

Eight months later (to the day!) I received an e-mail from Ali saying that my painting was finished and ready to ship. It seemed that 750 people were in line ahead of me, and free paintings are first-come first-served. A few days later, the painting below was delivered by the US Postal Service.
The day after getting the e-mail from Ali (but before receiving the painting in the mail), I got an e-mail from friend-of-ToughPigs, Thomas, who runs the Superman blog Say It Backwards. Thomas thought I'd enjoy hearing that he also received a painting from Ali. He requested a picture of his favorite Muppet, Beautiful Day Monster. Was it coincidence that put both of those e-mails in my inbox within a day of each other? Yeah, probably.
Jealous??? Click here to request a painting from Ali Spagnola (but keep in mind that she has a 400-person waiting list), and don't be stingy by ignoring her PayPal icon!

Special thanks to Ali and Thomas for their hard work!

Click here to discuss Doozers, Monsters, and watercolors on the ToughPigs forum!

joe.toughpigs@gmail.com

Season 40: Guest Star Poll

Season 40 (FORTY!) of Sesame Street is scheduled to begin airing in November, which is, like, forever from now. But the Sesame folks have already gotten us excited by announcing all the guest stars who will be appearing this year. For the past few seasons, it seems like they've tried to cram a celebrity guest into every episode, which is lots of fun for parents and grown-up fans, and probably less fun for the children in the audience who have no idea who these people are.

Last year we held a poll to determine which upcoming guest star was generating the most excitement, and Neil Patrick Harris won in a landslide, taking 56% of the vote. And of course, he did a fantastic job in his role as the Shoe Fairy.

This year I want to know once again: Which upcoming celebrity appearance on Sesame Street is gonna be the awesomest?

Is it comic actor Ricky Gervais, whose interactions with Elmo promise to be a hoot? Is it everyone's favorite mutant awards show host, Hugh Jackman? Or basketball-playing guy Kobe Bryant? Maybe you're more a fan of Late Night host Jimmy Fallon, though I can't imagine why.

Perhaps you're looking forward to actress Sarah Jessica Parker, who will probably be talking about something other than sex for a change. Or comedian Adam Sandler -- based on that photo, I'm guessing he'll be playing an acoustic set with a Muppet dragon singing backup. Then there's singer Jason Mraz, who has a funny last name; and Cameron Diaz, who used to be a movie star; and racecar driver Jeff Gordon, who could teach kids how fun it is to drive at unsafe speeds.

Or... well dang, I'm just about out of slots in the poll and there are still more guest stars left. There's a list on Muppet Wiki's season 40 page, so check it out and then click here to vote in the poll and tell me which season 40 guest star you're most looking forward to!

Here's yet another link to the poll: Click here to vote in the poll and explain your choice!

ToughPigsRyan@yahoo.com

Muppet Rawk 2009, Part 2

Continuing our saga of rock-inspired Muppet parodies, we now bring you the second half of this year's Muppet Rawk series. If you missed the first part, then give this link a click or two to enjoy the pictorial goodness.

And once again, if you're in the Seattle area, stop by the Ouch My Eye gallery to see these works in person. The Muppet Rawk exhibit will be on display until May 31.

Don't forget, click the pics to see them in Large Vision (tm)!

Artist - Anton Bogaty / The Doors - The Best of the Doors

Using Beaker in this picture really captured the gauntness of Jim Morrison. It also raises the question: Was Beaker born without nipples, or were they burnt off in a horrible Muppet Labs experiment?

Artist - Marc Palm / Big Brother and the Holding Company - Cheap Thrills

This picture is already really impressive, but it's doubly so when you can compare every frame to its counterpart on the original album. Of course, we all know that Sesame Street already called dibs on that parody.

Artist - Jordan Kotzebue / The Clash - London Calling

This picture makes a lot more sense when you know that Gonzo is smashing that guitar as a part of his act. He just got finished reciting the lyrics to the M*A*S*H theme song with a mouth-full of M&Ms.

Artist - Bill McEvoy / Kiss - solo albums

These three pictures were the only ones of the bunch that stumped me. The best I could figure is that they're parodying the KISS solo albums from 1978. Fozzie in particular has got to be a parody of Gene Simmons, but the other two I'm not so sure. If anyone has any insight, please let me know. Especially if you're Bill McEvoy.

Artist - Christine Bian / Madonna - Like a Virgin

Once again, Piggy is parodying Madonna's Like a Virgin album. I should just cut-and-paste my comments from the last Muppet Rawk article. And I'm lazy enough to do it too!

Artist - Maxx Marshall / Funkadelic - Maggot Brain

I feel bad for the model on the Funkadelic album cover. First she's buried up to her neck just for a photo shoot, and then she's parodied by a pig with an afro.

Artists - Aaron Jasinski (Kermit) & Noah Maas (Bunsen) / Nirvana - Nevermind

Double points go to the Bunsen image for being anatomically correct. And they say size don't matter!

Artist - Tim Gillette / Ol' Dirty Bastard - The Definitive Ol' Dirty Bastard Story

Old? Check. Dirty? Check. A bastard? Check. Looks like Oscar fits that role pretty well!

Artist - Rafael Calonzo / Janet Jackson - janet.

I am equal parts disturbed and turned on right now.

Artist - Adriana Ferguson / Radiohead - Pablo Honey

That's a pretty good look for Big Bird. I think he'd make a good coaster.

Artist - Jodie Niss / Robert Wotherspoon - Music to Massage Your Mate By

This image is interesting because I could only find the original album on the "bizarre records" blogs. But is the parody more or less bizarre than the original? You decide.

Artist - Memo Diaz / Mötley Crüe - Theatre of Pain

If you asked me, both Statler and Waldorf are comedy. If you asked them, they'd both be tragedy.

Artist - Marsh Rollinger / Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard of Ozz

This is the second best Gaffer fan art I've ever seen.

Artist - Ben Walker / Ramones logo

When I run for President, I will make this my official seal. Also, watching Studio DC will be considered treason.

Artist - Lawrence Ruelos / Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here

"This show is so terrible, I had to set myself on fire! Doh ho ho ho! OK, now seriously, put me out. It burns." (Note: This is why I'm not a writer for the Muppets.)

Special thanks to Lawrence Ruelos for being my supercool Muppet Rawk liason!

Click here to rock it with Sprocket on the ToughPigs forum!

joe.toughpigs@gmail.com

ToughPigs Art: Muppet Tears

Nineteen years ago today, the world lost one of its greatest talents: Jim Henson. ToughPigs' own Peter Savieri decided to commemorate this date by creating a new series of works depicting some of our favorite Muppet Show characters showing their grief at the loss of their creator.

Please take some time today to remember Jim in your own way.

Click here to help us remember Jim Henson on the ToughPigs forum.

joe.toughpigs@gmail.com