Welcome to the first episode of The MuppetCast for 2009! We’re starting off the new year with a bang…or maybe a thud…possibly a whirring noise. Whatever it is, it’ll still be a great show!
My fist guest is Kevin Knight, who recently had the opportunity to see Mr. Caroll Spinney speak at a convention and later had an extensive and very interesting conversation with him. Spinney has performed Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch on Sesame Street since the first show in 1969, and also recently served as the narrator for the audiobook version of “Street Gang: The Complete History of Sesame Street”. He turned 75 on December 26.
My second guest is Van, host of the Netcot podcast. Van has been podcasting for years, and even before his first episode he was very active in the Disney online community. If you’ve never heard Van’s work, this is the week to start subscribing to this Podcast Award-nominated show!
The MuppetCast is sponsored by Bell, Book & Comic. Life should be more fun!
On January 30, William Paterson University will be hosting “Sesame Street at 40: A Night of Celebration and Discovery with the Legendary Cast“. This special evening’s panel discussion will feature Frank Oz, Kevin Clash, Caroll Spinney, Marty Robinson, Fran Brill, and David Rudman. Also on the panel are Sonia Manzano, Bob McGrath, and writer Tony Geiss. Author Michael Davis will be the evening’s moderator. Tickets are still on sale, call 973-720-2371 or email boxoffice@wpunj.edu to reserve your seats.
If you live in or near Ohio and want to attend the first of (hopefully) many MuppetCast regional fan meets, email me and let me know you’re interested! Details on the meet are forthcoming.
NPR featured an excellent interview recently with Sesame Street creator Joan Ganz Cooney. Part of it is included in the show, but you should listen to the whole thing (about 8 minutes).
Paul Benedict passed away in early December at 70 years of age. Benedict is widely remembered as the eccentric British neighbor Harry Bentley on The Jeffersons. He also made several appearances on Sesame Street in its third season as The Mad Painter (video clips).
Fans of the TV show “Scrubs” will be happy to know that, when the show returns for its eighth season on its new home, ABC, the Sesame Street Muppets will join them for one episode. The episode titled “My ABCs” finds J.D. learning the hard way that not even Elmo and his friends from the Street can teach the gift of compassion to those who don’t care to learn. The episode also features Grover, Oscar the Grouch, and others.
I’ve literally had hundreds of book reviews for “Street Gang: The Complete History of Sesame Street” come through my inbox, nearly all of them favorable. Two that stand out to me come from the NY Times (in which the writer of the article comes “this close” to bringing his nose down a few inches out of the air) and the Muppet News Flash.
The ToughPigs crew has been busy posting a new addition to their Muppet Book Club series, as well as finding some pre-Sesame video footage of singer/actor Bob McGrath.
Muppets.com has been nominated for a Global Media Award by the National Academy of Arts & Sciences for their phenomenal work on re-designing the website to include over two hours in totally new Muppet content! Congratulations to our friends at the Muppets Studio on the nomination, and good luck! The winner of the award will be announced on January 8.
Farscape fans were no doubt busy reading the first issue of the new Farscape miniseries from BOOM! Studios. More to come, and remember to look for the Muppet comics in Spring 2009!
CSMonitor.com has a very nice article on the puppeteers of Emmet Otter’s Jugband Christmas, the stage musical which gave its last performance of the season today, January 4.
Henrik from Denmark found a useful tool for listeners outside the US who want to be able to visit websites like Muppets.com.
Listener Devin sent links to out-of-print comic book adaptation of Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal.
Ali from the UK sent a link to a very insightful strip from the web comic PVP.
Clay sent a link to Paul & Storm, two gifted songwriters who decided that Randy Newman needed to do a song about The Muppet Movie (PG-13).
Canadian listener Don sent a link to this story from Canada’s TheStar.com, talking about Canadian choreographer Paul Becker and his work on Letters to Santa.
Stay tuned for next week’s episode, where I’ll continue the much-requested Jim Henson Hour series! Our focus will be episode 5, titled “The Ratings Game“. This series has never seen a formal video release, so hearing the songs and skits on The MuppetCast is a wonderful way to relive some of those moments.
Questions/Comments about The MuppetCast can be emailed to me@muppetcast.com, or called in to the voice line at 614-364-4270. Even better, stop by the Muppet Central Forums and discuss this and many other episodes with Muppet fans worldwide.
Have a great week!
-Steve
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