Together Again

In honor of St. Valentines Day, I'd like to celebrate the notion of Love amongst Muppets. And in honor of those of us who are single, I'd like to avoid anything actually having to do with Love by presenting a book about the oh-so-generic notion of Togetherness.

And with that arousing sentiment, the ToughPig Book Club presents: The Together Book! Please have a readaround and head on over to the ToughPigs forum to discuss ad nauseum (or, for the camera shy, you can e-mail your clever comments to joe.toughpigs@gmail.com). After the mockery dies down, I'll post the best comments here on ToughPigs.com. Now stop reading this paragraph and get to the Togetherness!

















Suggested Discussion Questions:

1.) What is it about the residents of Sesame Street that urges them to run, not walk, with whatever object is nearby toward a Muppet with a minor stumbling block?

2.) What's up with Bert's devilish grin? Does he know that he's carrying something that is utterly useless to the situation? Is this how he gets his jollies?

3.) Is Cookie Monster setting a bad example for the kids by eating a sand cake? Is he setting a bad example for Ernie? Is Ernie the victim or the instigator?

4.) Is Farley two-timing Betty Lou by holding hands with Roosevelt Franklin? That hussy!!

5.) Can I hire illustrator Roger Bradfield to draw the story of my life? Because I think I love him.
Click here to add your comments/concerns/conundrums on the ToughPigs forum! Or click here to e-mail them directly to Joe.

Mahna Mahna, Yes... But Why?

Every day I receive Google news alerts for the word "Muppet," informing me of when and where that delightful word has come up on the web. It seems like at least once a week a result comes up that's somebody posting a video clip of "Mahna Mahna" in their blog or on their website. I've been getting these alerts for over a year now, and "Mahna Mahna" still shows up on a regular basis. It seems like it’s been passed around the internet more than any other clip that doesn’t involve breath mints and cola or rock stars on exercise machines. Often it's accompanied by enthusiastic comments like "I love this one!" or "this is my favorite muppets song!!!!!!!11"

Why is this the single most beloved and best remembered musical number from the show? There were hundreds of musical moments over the 120 episodes of the series, and yet the representative one is a bit from the very first episode that stars none of the regular characters. Why? Is it because the arrangement of the song is infectiously catchy? Is it because the design of the puppets is pleasing to the eye? Is it the brilliant performance by Jim Henson as Mahna Mahna?

I believe it goes deeper than all of these. Clearly, when we watch "Mahna Mahna," we're seeing a reflection of ourselves that causes a spark of recognition to flare up inside us, and it’s this spark that draws us – internet users from all walks of life – to revisit this clip over and over again.

Perhaps there are those who, on some level, see themselves as the Snowths, the pink cow/pig creatures who sing the "doo-dooo doo doo-doo" part. These people crave order and reason; to them, the Snowths represent the Apollonian ideal of self-control. The Snowths have clearly spent copious amounts of time carefully rehearsing for this performance, and they are determined to get it right. You can see it in their reaction to Mahna Mahna: They are completely unamused when he starts ad-libbing, threatening to derail the whole number with his random shenanigans. Those who view the clip and respond positively to the Snowths have the same desire for things to go precisely as planned; additionally, they may have horns.

On the other hand, there are those in the audience who (consciously or not) identify with Mahna Mahna. Mahna Mahna is the shaggy humanoid character who sings the “mahna mahna” parts of the song, and he is a true free spirit. He has an insatiable urge to express his individualism, and he’s going to do it even if it the results are too chaotic for the Snowths to handle. He’s the nonconformist, the iconoclast, the scruffy, unwashed hippie, representing the Dionysian philosophy of following one’s natural instincts. It’s highly likely that he never even looked at the sheet music before showing up for the show that day, instead relying on improvised scatting to make his way through the song. He believes rehearsal would only serve to destroy the energy in his spontaneous performance, a belief echoed in the hearts and minds of those who view the clip in silent admiration of him.

And yet, in the Muppet Show musical number “Mahna Mahna,” neither of the two differing viewpoints is presented as superior to the other. Can you imagine what it would be like if the song consisted of the Snowths alone on the stage, singing “Doo-dooo doo doo-doo” without any kind of counterpoint? Unbelievably boring is what it would be like, despite their any attempts at arm-swinging choreography. But if it were a solo by Mahna Mahna, it wouldn’t be any better. It would just be some fellow repeatedly stating his name and mumbling nonsense syllables, and without the presence of the Snowths as “straight men” it simply would not be funny.

The message, then, is that both lifestyle choices are valid. Some people may be Mahna Mahnas and other people may be Snowths, but that doesn’t mean they can’t produce a heck of a catchy song when they get together. It’s quite obvious to me that this is the true reason for the enduring popularity of this Muppet Show segment, and any other simplistic interpretation (e.g. “It’s funny!”) is unquestionably wrong.

So keep circulating that clip, citizens of the internet! Blog it all over the world! Continue spreading the archetypal message of tolerance and cooperation! And perhaps one day we will finally divine the answer to the only question still remaining: Are those supposed to be sunglasses or his eyeballs?

Click here to discuss the Mahna Mahna phenomenon on the Tough Pigs forum!

ToughPigsRyan@yahoo.com

Who will be Jim?: UPDATE

Lots of folks got lots of ideas over on the ToughPigs forum about who's got the chops to play Jim Henson in a possible feature film. But as we all know, Jim's only part of the story. Who will play Frank Oz? Steve Whitmire? Jerry Juhl? Frank Biondo?

Yeah, all bets are off! Cast everyone in The Works! Get your tuchus over to the ToughPigs forum and add in your $0.02. Or, if you're camera shy, you can send an e-mail to yours truly at joe.toughpigs@gmail.com.

Image courtesy of ToughPigs' own Brad!

Who will be Jim?: A Contest

According to the internets, it's official (or would that make it "e-fficial"?): there is a Jim Henson biopic in the works. The movie will be about Jim's life, successes, tribulations, and maybe some puppets. That is, if the Jim Henson Company, Disney, and Sesame Workshop can all allow the puppets to be in the film. Or else we might be getting two hours of a tall guy with a beard with nothing on his hands.

But the question remains: who out there can fill the shoes of the man behind the frog? I mean, other than this guy. Head on over to the ToughPigs forum with an idea or two. Feel free to post pictures (double points for fancy Photoshopping), and we'll post the results here on ToughPigs.com next week.

Prizes for the best choices will include bragging rights and a walk-on role in the upcoming Frazzle documentary.

Rerun for Your Life

There's been a lot going on in the news over the last few weeks, and unfortunately our news writers are all on strike. So here's a brief catch-up on the highlights:

The Muppet Show: Season 3 has been announced for a May 20, 2008 release. All 24 episodes are there, and they'll hopefully be edit-free. Fozzie's extreme closeup made the cover, and the special features include the new documentary, "The Making of the Muppets" and the old documentary, "Muppets on Puppets."

Fraggle Rock: Season 4, also known as Seasons 4 and 5 (HBO split the final production season into two broadcast seasons) will be out on DVD this fall. Not much more information than that has been added, but we're all that much closer to owning all documented footage of Fraggle spelunking.

And most recently, the Jim Henson Company has announced that they will be making the entire series of Fraggle Rock and Farscape available on iTunes. Episodes will cost $1.99 each, and the first seasons of each are already online.

So there you have it, lots of old Muppety stuff to watch and to watch out for.

Take a peek at the ToughPigs forum to discuss the above newsbits!

Mr. McAllister's Wonder Disaster

Come, my darlings, and let me read you a story. It’s a story full of magic, suspense, clinical depression, sombreros, the bastardization of Christmas, and one Very Brief Cameo.

Once upon a time, as far back as you or I can remember, even as far back as November, 2007, a mediocre movie premiered called Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium. The movie starred a very old Willy Wonka and his magical Wal-Mart. He is joined by the weird girl from Garden State and Teen Wolf Jr. Oh, and that kid who wouldn’t take a shower in Wet Hot American Summer.

You may ask yourself, “What sort of craziness will come of the unification of such minds?” Well yourself, nothing short of the finest art imaginable! That is, assuming “finest” means “below par, and slightly painful.” If that’s what you meant, then you were right on target. Sorry if you thought.. y’know, skip it. Just try not and get your hopes up.

In the should-have-been-straight-to-DVD Blockbuster hit, Mr. MacGonacle’s Wonderful Monacle, a crazy old man hangs out with kids, prophesizes his own death, watches his store (read: not a euphemism for his libido, we swear.. no, really) crumble to pieces, and (SPOILER ALERT) dies, passing all of his responsibilities (read: debt) along to his daughter-like protégé. I assure you, none of the story has anything to do with why you’re reading about this on a Muppet fan site.

About 14 minutes into the film, in the middle of a montage of what it would be like to hang out in a store like this without parental supervision, money, school, or brand names, our very own Kermit the Frog makes a cameo as himself.

I now present to you the full scene of Kermit’s appearance.

INTERIOR, DAY

KERMIT THE FROG ENTERS AISLE CARRYING A SHOPPING BASKET

KERMIT (BROWSING): Ooh. Aha.

KERMIT NOTICES KIDS

KIDS (STARING LIKE THEY’VE NEVER SEEN A TALKING FROG BEFORE): Tee hee.

KERMIT: Heya. Just, uh, (NODS) uh, shopping. (MORE NODS) Shopping. (EVEN MORE NODS) Just, um, shopping.

KERMIT EXITS

And 13 glorious seconds after it began, it is all over. The movie, in case you were wondering, has another hour and 15 minutes to go, which is sufficient time to think of about 11,000 better ways to have spent your $10.75.

So, would I recommend Mr. Willowby’s Wonder Tree? Ye gods, yes! 13 seconds of Muppets in a feature film is the most screentime they’ve gotten since 1999! Totally worth sitting through Dustin Hoffman’s Bugs Bunny impression.

By which I mean, please don’t go see this movie. Kermit will be just fine without the proceeds of this film. If he can survive that cameo in Glitter, he can survive anything.

Click here to come up with more funny words that sounds like "Magorium" on the ToughPigs forum!

The Easiest Muppet Trivia Quiz Ever!

Have you ever wished you were a Muppet expert, but you don’t have time to memorize Jim Henson: The Works, pore over DVD extras, or read every page of Muppet Wiki, because you’re too busy doing things like working, cooking, and using the restroom? Of course you have! It feels great to be an expert at something!

Tough Pigs is here to help, with yet another valuable public service! It’s the Easiest Muppet Trivia Quiz Ever, and by the time you’re finished, you will feel like a true Muppet geek, guaranteed, or we’ll give you your money back. Heck, we’ll give you twice your money back! Now break out your No. 2 pencils and your thinking caps, and away we go!

1. As the story goes, Jim Henson made the first Kermit the Frog puppet out of…
a) His mother’s green spring coat
b) a bowling ball
c) the skins of 11 ½ real frogs
d) a Sababa Kermit doll


2. The first TV show starring the Muppets was a local Washington, D.C. program that debuted in 1955. What was it called?
a) Sam & Friends
b) Sam & Casual Acquaintances
c) Sam & People Who Hate His Guts
d) Shasta McNasty


3. The Muppet characters Jim Henson created for a series of Wilkins Coffee commercials were called…
a) Wilkins and Wontkins
b) A Drunk Old Man and Another Drunk Old Man
c) Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin
d) Dwight D. Eisenhower and Richard Milhous Nixon


4. Where did Jim Henson meet Frank Oz?
a) At a puppetry festival
b) At a cocktail party – they both showed up wearing the same dress, had a good laugh about it and became fast friends
c) At karate lessons
d) In prison


5. Rowlf the Dog first rose to national television fame on what 1960s variety show?
a) The Jimmy Dean Show, in regular appearances alongside Jimmy Dean
b) The Fugitive, as the one-armed man who killed Richard Kimble's wife
c) Laugh-In, as a miniskirt-clad background go-go dancer
d) CBS Evening News, as the anchor


6. Who has been Big Bird’s primary performer since Sesame Street premiered in 1969?
a) Caroll Spinney
b) Carol Channing
c) Cookie Monster
d) Nobody; he’s a real, live 8’ bird


7. What was unusual about the Gorch Muppets featured on the first season of Saturday Night Live in 1975?
a) They had lifelike taxidermist’s eyes
b) They had outie belly buttons
c) They were all gay
d) They were performed not by Muppeteers, but by dentists


8. Who financed the production of The Muppet Show?
a) Lord Lew Grade, a British television entrepeneur
b) Lord Lew Zealand, Boomerang Fish Thrower of the British Empire
c) The Lord of the Dance
d) Your mom!


9. The Great Muppet Caper’s “Couldn’t We Ride” musical number, a tour de force of puppet wizardry, features the Muppets doing what?
a) Riding bicycles while singing
b) Sleeping
c) Silently staring at the camera
d) Wearing socks with sandals


10. The 1984 film The Muppets Take Manhattan includes the debut of what group of characters, who would later star in their own Saturday morning cartoon?
a) the Muppet Babies
b) the Golden Girls
c) the Opera-Singing Zookeepers
d) the Horrible, Foul-Smelling, Foul-Mouthed Cannibals


11. What was Jim Henson’s pitch to his creative team for Fraggle Rock?
a) “I want to create a show that will bring about world peace”
b) “I want to create a romantic comedy for arsonists”
c) “I want a do a hard-boiled crime drama set in a castle made of pink cotton candy”
d) “MTV cops”


12. What happened to Mr. Snuffleupagus on Sesame Street in 1986?
a) The grown-ups on the street saw him for the first time
b) He married Maria
c) He made the Statue of Liberty disappear
d) He shot Larry Hagman


13. Jim Henson’s hour-long 1989 variety/anthology show was called…
a) The Jim Henson Hour
b) The Vicki and Leon Show
c) Lots and Lots of Really Scary Buckets of Blood
d) Howie Hayseed & Yancy Yokel's Country & Western Jamboree






14. Who took over Kermit the Frog after Jim Henson’s passing in 1990?
a) Muppet performer Steve Whitmire
b) Lawyer Alan Dershowitz
c) Cosby Show star Lisa Bonet
d) Vice president Dan Quayle


15. The 1992 Muppet film The Muppet Christmas Carol, set in Dickensian England, was based on what book?
a) A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
b) Babysitters Club Mysteries #7: The Case of the Vanishing Training Bra
c) Latawnya, the Naughty Horse, Learns to Say "No" to Drugs
d) A Muppet Christmas Carol: The Storybook of the Movie Based on the Book A Christmas Carol Which Was Written by Charles Dickens


16. Complete this lyric from the theme song of the 1996 Muppet series Muppets Tonight: “Here come the Muppets, here come the Muppets, here come…”
a) “…the Muppets tonight!”
b) “…the cops! Everyone hide!”
c) “…the Chickens of Death! Run for your life!”
d) Avril Lavigne


17. Where did MuppetFest, 2001’s official Muppet fan convention, take place?
a) Santa Monica, California
b) Ganymede, the seventh moon of Jupiter
c) A castle made of pink cotton candy
d) In the forest, but no one was around, so it didn’t make a noise


18. What was the biggest Muppet news story of 2004?
a) Disney bought the Muppets
b) Zoot was elected president, narrowly beating the incumbent Hush Puppy
c) The Swedish Chef was named Super Bowl MVP after taking the Green Bay Packers to a 343-7 victory over the Harlem Globetrotters
d) Elvis Presley came back from the dead to perform one of the Muppet Elvises for a charity concert, then died again

Well? You got every single question right, didn’t you? See, I told you you’d feel like an expert. Just to make sure, here’s…

How to calculate your score: Give yourself 10,000 points for each time you chose answer “a” on a question. For each time you chose any other letter, smack yourself in the face as forcefully as possible.

Click here to discuss this article and compare scores on the Tough Pigs forum!