The Muppet Show: Difference between revisions

Ostensibly a family show, ''The Muppet Show'' in practice played freely with the dark side of Henson's vision, more familiar from his later work. Notable guest stars included [[Alice Cooper (Music)|Alice Cooper]], [[Vincent Price]], Jonathan Winters, [[The Pink Panther|Peter Sellers]], [[Superman (Film)|Christopher Reeve]] and [[Steve Martin]]. Songs from adult shows like ''[[Chicago]]'' and ''[[Cabaret]]'' were worked into the mix (to say nothing of [[Elton John]] singing "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road", or Cooper's "Welcome to My Nightmare"...) Casual violence abounded, seemingly gentle skits often took a weirdly surreal turn. Typically, in the [[Robin Hood]] episode, lovely Lynn "Maid Marian" Redgrave tricks Gonzo as the Sheriff into stretching out on his own torture rack -- and he appears to enjoy the experience.

 

 

{{quote| ''Our show tonight will feature<br />

** Pretty much everything [[Danny Kaye]] says to Miss Piggy in his episode, including another go-round of "I've admired you for years and years".

* [[Couch Gag]]: Many, the most famous being Gonzo's gong (Season 1) or trumpet note (Seasons 2-5) at the end of the theme song. Others are: Statler and Waldorf's opening (Season 2) and closing (entire run) comments, Fozzie telling a joke during the title sequence (Season 1), the "15 seconds to curtain" reveal of the guest star (Seasons 2-4), Pops the doorman greeting the host (Season 5).

* [[Crossover]]: ''[[Sesame Street]]'''s Big Bird appears in one episode; Bert and Ernie make a guest appearance in an early Season 1 episode. At the climax of the [[Arabian Nights]]-themed Marty Feldman episode, most of the ''Sesame Street'' cast turns up for the finale as a pun on "[[Open Sesame]]!"

* [[Cutlass Between the Teeth]]: Fozzie at one point in his battle with the samurai in the Spike Milligan episode.

* [[Eenie Meenie Miny Moai]]: A moai head occasionally appears as a backing singer, for instance in the opening number of the [[Sylvester Stallone]] episode.

* [[Endangered Souffle]]: In a brief bit in the [[Spike Milligan]] episode, a tap-dancer's conversation with Kermit comes to an abrupt end when the Swedish Chef rushes up and attacks him because his tapping has collapsed the Chef's soufflé.

* [[Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep"]]: The Swedish Chef, the Newsman.

* [[Everything's Better With Penguins]]... and chickens... and rats... and fish... and the occasional Argyle Gargoyle. One of the show's [[Catch Phrase|catchphrases]] is "frogs and dogs and pigs and chickens [and things]"

* [[Half-Hour Comedy]]

* [[Handcar Pursuit]]: In the Loretta Lynn episode, a mix-up leaves Kermit and Gonzo stranded miles from the train station where the show is temporarily set, and they travel back by handcar. At one point they get chased by a locomotive.

* [[He Who Must Not Be Seen]]: Scooter's uncle, the owner of the theater. The gag of Scooter mentioning him to get what he wants was gradually phased out. He did actually appear a couple of times during the second season, but on the whole the writers felt that he worked better as an off-screen presence.

* [[High Dive Hijinks]]: In the Danny Kaye episode, the Flying Zucchini Brothers attempt a daredevil high dive into a bucket of water. While they're on their way down, the theatre's janitor notices somebody's left a bucket of water on stage and helpfully tidies it away.

* [[Kayfabe]]: The Muppets have a long-standing tradition in appearances outside the show and in public events. The Muppeteers performing them are never seen and the humans interact with the puppets like regular people. The Muppeteers need to have perfect improv skills in order to say unscripted lines that would be appropriate for the characters!

* [[Kent Brockman News]]: The "Muppet News Flash" sketch.

* [[Know-Nothing Know-It-All]]: Sam the Eagle, on the subject of Culture. In the episode guest-starring Rudolf Nureyev, Sam gushes that Nureyev is one of his favourite opera singers. In the episode guest-starring Lynne Redgrave, Sam pronounces himself a great fan of [[William Shakespeare]] -- why, he's seen ''[[The Sound of Music]]'' at least a dozen times! -- and is greatly saddened to hear that Shakespeare is dead.

* [[The Lady's Favour]]: In the Pearl Bailey episode, the finale is a jousting scene with Floyd and Gonzo as the knights. Floyd gets a favour from Janice; Gonzo gets a favour from Camilla.

* [[Large Ham]]: The cast in general qualify; but Miss Piggy qualifies in [[Incredibly Lame Pun|more ways than one]].

** Gonzo also cranks it up a notch or two.

'''C-3PO''' ''[to Kermit]'': What shall I cover it in? }}

* [[Loads and Loads of Characters]]

* [[Mad Bomber]]: Crazy Harry.

* [[Mad Scientist]]: Dr. Bunsen Honeydew is a mild example of this.

* [[No Sense of Humor]]: Sam the Eagle.

* [[Oh Crap]]: Plenty. Beaker's face was even MADE to always be in shock.

* [[Old New Borrowed and Blue]]: In the Marisa Berenson episode, Miss Piggy plots marriage to Kermit and tells Marisa that her wedding will feature "something old, something new, something borrowed, and something ''green''".

* [[Ominous Pipe Organ]]: During the "Veternarian's Hospital" segments.

** The ''Sex and Violence'' pilot has Statler telling Waldorf one of these. "...And so the waiter says, 'Excuse me, but you're dancing with my umbrella!'"

* [[Painful Rhyme]]: [[In Universe]] in the "Robin Hood" episode; Scooter, doing exposition in the role of Alan a Dale, rhymes "in sooth" with "living fast and looth", prompting a complaint from Fozzie.

* [[Paper-Thin Disguise]]: In the "Robin Hood" episode, Robin Hood's disguise for the archery contest is a pair of [[Nerd Glasses]] and a bright red false beard. Apart from that, he's wearing the same outfit he wears in every other scene.

* [[Parachute Petticoat]]

* [[Plot Based Voice Cancellation]]: The one time Fozzie tells a guaranteed hilarious joke, it's the episode at the railway station, and the joke is drowned out by a passing train.

* [[Poor Communication Kills]]: During the Swedish Chef skit for the Dyan Cannon show, Miss Piggy loses her pet Foo Foo. She asks the Chef where her dog went, and the Chef -- who has ''just'' finished plopping hot dogs into a pot of boiling water -- responds, "De doggies en de pottie!" (In 30-odd years since, who else has put one over on Miss Piggy without getting knocked into next week?)

* [[Quintessential British Gentleman]]: In the "Salute to All Nations" episode, Sam the Eagle's contribution is to hold a conversation on Anglo-American relations with a "proper English gentleman", who appears dressed in a [[Dashingly Dapper Derby]] and pinstripe suit and carrying a brolly. The illusion that [[Spike Milligan]] is actually a proper English gentleman disappears as soon as he opens his mouth (if not before that when he started pulling faces behind Sam's back).

* [[Reading the Stage Directions Out Loud]]: In the "Robin Hood" episode, Fozzie's idea of cavorting involves literally saying "Cavort, cavort, cavort, cavort, ..."

* [[Shirtless Scene]]: Played entirely straight in a long scene featuring Rudolf Nureyev wearing nothing but a towel.

* [[Shoo Out the New Guy]]: Fleet Scribbler, an aggressive gossip reporter introduced in season 2. While the British press loved the character, the writers quickly tired of him and he was dropped after just a handful of appearances.

** Occasional mentions of ''[[Sesame Street]]'', ''aka'' "that cute little children's show with the ''puppets''".

** The [[John Cleese (Creator)|John Cleese]] episode, perhaps inevitably, includes a bit where he winds up shouting about an ex-parrot.

** Floyd Pepper is patterned after [[The Beatles|Sergeant Pepper]].

*** He also has pink hair, making him a [[Pink Floyd]].

** Miss Piggy originally had the last name "Lee".

* [[Show Within a Show]]: The stage show itself, and within that the recurring sketches.

* [[Sour Supporter]]: [[Statler and Waldorf]]. There every single show.

* [[Space Pirate]]: Attacks the ''Swinetrek'' during the "Pigs in Space" sketch in the [[John Cleese (Creator)|John Cleese]] episode. Technically just a normal pirate (complete with [[Hook Hand]] and [[Pirate Parrot]]) who's very, very lost.

* [[Speak Now or Forever Hold Your Peace]]: In the Marisa Berenson episode, Miss Piggy nearly manages to trap Kermit into marrying her. During the ceremony, the priest does the "speak now or forever hold your peace" bit and there is a long, long pause while Kermit looks around hopefully, but nobody says anything.

* [[Special Edition Title]]: