MTM Edits

I know that the first three Muppet movies have gone through some restoration and edits over the years (as do a lot of older movies), but it seems like MTM has had way more edits over the years than other Muppet movies, just to name a few off the top of my head:

- Night scenes have gotten extremely darker to the point you can barely see anything (also sort of makes Muppet tongues glow slightly)
- Kermit's panting as he leaves "Lenny"'s office has been dubbed out.
- A lot of Animal's "BAD MAN!" yells have also been dubbed out as he attacks Martin Price/Murray Plotski.
- Some of the notes of the celebration music after Kermit and Piggy are wedded have been changed.
- A small percentage of the picture seems to disappear and reappear in different prints in both widescreen and full screen formats (of course, some of the version I've seen may have actually been pan-and-scan).

I'm just curious as to why of all the Muppet movies MTM has been so heavily edited.

That edit appears on the 1999 VHS release, but it was restored for the DVD release. Oddly enough, that VHS release (but not the DVD) also edited out the Tri-Star Pictures music.

I know of edits that have been made to most of the movies, but I don't really know of any edits made to The Muppet Movie, not counting the UK release with more (and alternate) footage. But I don't think I've ever seen that movie edited on TV, with the exception of some broadcasts where the second half of the end credits (after Miss Piggy hugs Kermit and then they pose for a picture) is cut out. I know audio changes were made to The Great Muppet Caper as early as 1993, and of course "When Love is Gone" was added to The Muppet Christmas Carol when it was released on video. As a matter of fact I don't know of any edits made to any release of Muppet Treasure Island or Muppets from Space.

Imagine if they reedited in the FULL Tex Richman rap sequence back into the new movie? That would be GREAT!

Anyway...

There's something about Animal quietly chomping that makes that scene funnier, just not intentionally. It seems completely idiotic to have changed that... if it was intentional because the panting sounded "dirty," that's some ABC- Reboot messed up stuff right there.

I'm not so sure about that. I'd radther the reason why Tex Richman trying to get the Muppets Studio becuase there's oil and he could make a lot of money off it, but if the story went that he was getting revenge for badly entertaining them at his birthday party.... well that's just lame. (I'm glad they shortend that scene) Also the rap itself wasn't that great

They didn't badly entertain him; he just didn't know how to laugh and his friends laughed at him instead. They call back to this in the movie, but with no origin. I think it should go in, if only to give him some context.

If he couldn't laugh at all, I wonder if they laughed at him for anything else he didn't laugh at.

Really... that would have taken, what... 2... 3 minutes tops? They couldn't put that in? I hate when studios force a solid run time for a movie to fit more movie show times in. That would have made everything in the film make a little more sense, especially his inability to laugh maniacally right.