Ideas for Muppet books thread

[erniebert1234ss]

Various eps for comp. guide to TMS idea...

Anne Murray--Janice
Gilda Radner-7-foot tall talking carrot
Diana Ross- Bossmen
Carol Burnett-Dancing robots by Dr. Honeydew
Rudolf Nureyev-Ballet pig
Madeline Kahn-Gonzo (love interest ep)

BJ

 

[minor muppetz]

Season 3

here are season 3 episodes along with what Muppet characters I would give profiles to.

Kris Kristofferson & Rita Kooledge: Gladys The canteen Lady
Leo sayer: Annie Sue Pig (or Fletcherbird, or Animal)
Pearl Bailey: The Avocado
Roy Clark: The Singing Firemen (or Lobbock Lou And His Jughuggers)
Gilda radner: Marvin Suggs and The Muppaphone (or Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, or Beaker, or Uncle Deadley)
Alice Cooper: Alice Cooper Band (or Big Mama)
Leslie Ann Warren: Doglion (or Link Hogthrob, or Leslie and Warren)
Harry Belefente: The African masks
Merrissa Berensen: Lew Zeland
Lorretta Lynn: Winky Pinkerton
Helen Reddy: Sopwith The camel
Raquel Welch: The Spider
Danny Kaye: Statler and Waldorf
Roger Miller: The Chickens
Liberache: Fletcherbird (or The Gawky Birds)
Cheryl Ladd: Bust of Beethoven (or The Clodhoppers)
Elke Sommers: Beauregard (or Beaker, or Bobby Benson and his Baby Band)
Roy Rogers & Dale Evans: The Cows
Lynn Redgrave: Louis Kazagger (or the merry men)

 

[minor muppetz]

season 4 and more of three

It seems like I keep forgetting certain episodes from certain seasons. Well, here are characters I would give profiles to for the season 3 episodes I forgot to include:

Sylvestor Stallone: The Lion
James Coco: The Gills brothers
Jean Stapleton: Crazy Harry
Leslie Uggums: Camillia
Spike Milligan: Arabs

And now here's season 4

John Denver: The Tree
Alan Arkin: Dr. Bunsen Honeydew (or The Bun Bun brothers)
Crystal Gayle: The Prarie Dogs
Lola Falona: Trevor The Gross (or Fletcherbird)
Dyan Cannon: Foo Foo (or Geri and The Atrics)
Jonathan Winters: The Gypsy Lady
Dudley Moore: Mama
Ann Murray: Floyd (or Zoot or Beauregard)
Liza Minelli: Dr. Strangepork
Linda Lavin: Wayne and Wanda
Phyllys George: Rowlf
Star Wars Cast: Angus McGonacle
Shields and Yarnell: The Snerfs
Dizzy Gillipsie: Astoria (or Floyd, or Zoot, or Inspector Labrea)
Christopher Reeve: The Rats (or The Frogs)
Lynda Carter: Super Sheep (or Rizzo, or Gaffer)
Andy Williams: Cheese
Carol Channing: Timmy Monster
Victor Borge: Bobby Benson and his Baby Band
Kenny Rogers: The Doctor
Arlo Gutherie: Winny
Dian Ross: The Gawky birds (or Fletcherbird, or beaker)
Beverly Sills: The Chorus Girls
Doug Henning: The Rabbits

 

[minor muppetz]

Season 5

And now here are the characters for season 5:

Gene kelley: Lobbock lou and his jughuggers (or beauregard, or the announcer, or the penguins)
Lorretta Switt: Thog (or The Chickens, or link hogthrob)
Joan baez: Rizzo The rat (or beauregard, or he rats)
Shirley bassey: Lips (or bruno, or trumpet Girl)
James Coburn: The octopus (or Banana Nose Moldenado)
Brooke Shields: The White rabbit
mac Davis: Beaker
Senor Wenchs: Pinnocchio (or Pops)
Paul Simon: Pops (or Floyd, or janice, or The Asparagus)
Mellissa manchester: Chopped-Liver Mosnter (or Floyd, or Lips, or The Mutations, or The Swedish Chef)
Tony randall: The female singers (or The Dinosaur)
Gladys knight: The grapes (or Pops)
Glenda jackson: Shakey shanchez
Wally Boag: Lonnie lemon and her Singing Wig (or The Zuccinni brothers)
Marty Feldman: Ali Baba (or The frogs)
Debbie harry: Mulch
Jean Pierre-Rampa: Janice
Hal Lindon: Geri and The Attrics (or Lips, or Statler and Waldorf, or Robin)
Johnny Cash: Big Tiny Tall saddle (or Lobbock Lou and His Jughuggers, or Rowlf, or The Chickens)
Linda Ronstadt: Gaffer
Roger Moore: The Spies

 

[minor muppetz]

The muppet show book II

Here is what i would include in a sequel to The Muppet Show Book:

Audition Night (Steve Martin episode plot)
Pigs In Space: Weight problems
Muppet Labs: Nuclear Shaver
Kermit & The Reporter (george Burns episode plot)
The Swedish Chef: Chicken In The basket
trudge Trudge Steaka steaka
Happy Feet
Down In The canteen (Kris kristofferson/ Rita Cooledge episode plot)
Veterinarians Hospital: Chicken
We've Got each other
Rockin' Robin
Muppet News: maceral
The Swedish Chef: Living Dough
Fozzie becomes more assertive (Raquel welch episode plot)
Crime: An Editorial by Sam The eagle
Bear On Patrol: Impersonating An Officer
Bo & The rats (Joan Baez episode plot)
Gonzo and his arm (John Cleese episode plot)
Rowlf and Lew Zeland perform Tea For Two backwards
Cloning machine (Mac davis episode plot)
Somebody Stole My Gal
Muppet Sports: Wig Racing
The Cat Came Back
Kermit fires Piggy (Lorretta switt episode plot)

I'll post what skits that are essential to various plots I would include later. I would include John Cleese and Lorretta Switt in this book.

 

[minor muppetz]

For The Muppet Show Book II, in the illustrations for the Steve martin episode, I would include The Latrec Sisters, baskervilles audition, lenny The Lizards audition, The Four Fazoobs, The varsity Drag, and The Zuccinni brothers audition (and maybe also all of Mary Louise and friends auditions). For the John Cleese episode, I'd include Gonzo's cannon ball catching act, all backstage scenes with Fozzie and Floyd making jokes about Gonzo's arm, and John Cleese stretching his arm. For the Lorretta Switt episode, I'd include the veterinarians Hospital and Pigs In Space skits. For the Joan Baez episode, I'd include the Pigs In Space skit from that episode. And for the Mac Davis episode, I'd include Muppet Labs, The Swedish Chef, and Bear On Patrol. I wouldn't include any of Mac Davis' scenes.

 

[Chilly Down]

Those are great ideas, MinorMuppetz. I'd definitely buy the episode guide, Muppet Show Book 2 (however unlikely it is at this point), and The Visual Guide.

I'd like to see a book about the post-Jim years. Of Muppets and Men covers the TMS years pretty well; Jim Henson: The Works covers up till his death. In the crazy time since then, a lot of stuff has happened, and what parts are truth and what parts are rumor are very much up in the air.

I don't want a sleazy expose, mind you. It would be a well-balanced book with interviews with all the parties involved. It's just that so much fascinating behind-the-scenes stuff has happened, and I'd like a new, cohesive perspective on it.

 

[minor muppetz]

I'd like to see a book about the post-Jim years. Of Muppets and Men covers the TMS years pretty well; Jim Henson: The Works covers up till his death. In the crazy time since then, a lot of stuff has happened, and what parts are truth and what parts are rumor are very much up in the air.

Ever since I first read Jim henson: The Works I thought that a somewhat updated version should be made. i first read that book in 2002, so at the time Henson no longer owned Sesame Street but still owned The Muppets and Bear. Hopefully if such a book were made a good deal could be arranged by Henson, Disney, and Sesame Workshop (would permission from all three companies be needed if it is a text-only book with no pictures?).

This book would focus more on stuff after Jim hensons death but still have a lot of good information on productions that were covered in The Works, though chapters/ sections on those productions would talk more about things not mentioend in The Works (for example, the Works did not give any special information about Follow That Bird or any of the Sesame Street specials or videos, nor did it talk about any made-for-video productions). There could be a chapter on Muppets Tongith!, farscape, Bear In The Big Blue House, a chapter about EM.Tv owning the company and the Disney buyout (perhaps with mention that henson once owned The Oddessey Channel), and a lot more. It would also be cool to see an authorised informative Muppet book that features pictures of the Muppet action figures.

With a book like this, maybe more information on various specials could be included, as well as some information about John Lovelady and Eren Ozker, more info on Steve Whitmire's TMS work (the book didn't include any mention or pictures of Lips at all), and perhaps information about the Sesame Street human cast (especially former cast memebrs, as hardly any former cast member besides Mr. Hooper were mentioned) and information about the popularity of Elmo, Elmo's World, the current Sesame Street structures, and information about Sesame Street Muppets who are no longer on the show. In Jim henson: The Works, a lot of the Sesame Street info was about current sesame Street. Most muppets who were no longer in new material that were mentioend or pictured were ones that were still being used in older skits at the time. One of the few characters pictured who was no longer on the show at the time wa Rosevelt Franklin, who was on a christmas card. there should have been info on him, as well as Bruno, Herbert Birdsfoot, Sam The Robot, and Farley.

If all legal clearances can be made, then bring on another book!

 

[Chilly Down]

I would like an unathorized book. The authorized books are neat because of all the photos that could be included. The Works is like that. But Henson had complete control over the material, and could say, "Don't print that if you want our stuff." An unathorized book -- even including the Jim years -- wouldn't need permission from any company, and could the full, true story.

Again, I'm not talking about a sleazy expose. I'm talking about anything that a typical newspaper writer would write. I just want an objective look at the events.

I'm not sure how many of the lesser-known projects could be mentioned without overreaching the scope of the book. But hey, I'd still be happy to see what someone could come up with!

 

[minor muppetz]

I wonder if someone could legally get away with publishing an unauthorized book about the history of The Jim Henson Company (and Muppets, Bear In The Big Blue House, and Sesame Street). If somebody wanted to write a book about Jim henson, would any extra permission be needed from Disney or Sesame Workshop to include things no longer owned by Henson as long as there aren't any pictures of the things not owned by henson (and as long as Muppets or Sesame Street are not used as a selling point on the cover)?

There was so much stuff made before Jim henson died that wasn't talked about much in Jim henson: The Works. The book did also talk about some things made after Jim henson died (The Muppet Christmas Carol, Dog City, City Kids, and Dinosaurs). Of course, that book was only made a few years after Jim Henson died.

if I was to make a book like this, I'd want to learn some information to put in the book, like the reasons for various Sesame Street cast members (especially the first two Gordon's) leaving, the reason for John Lovelady leaving the company, and info on Follow That Bird, all Sesame Street specials, and all Sesame Street videos.