Muppetology 101: The New, The Old, and The Rejects, Pt. 2

Nicholas Napoli - Welcome back, class! Today we pick up our lecture on new Muppets at Christmas 1996 and Muppets Tonight, where the Muppet family got that much larger instantly and Clifford became one of the most despised Muppets. As a kid and even to this day as an adult I just cannot understand why Kermit wasn't hosting the show. Who was this Clifford and where did he come from? I did my research and found out he was actually a Jim Henson Character used in The Jim Henson Hour and even in The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson.

Later on, when I was introduced to Clifford again in Muppets From Space, my grudge against him was settled and I realized Clifford is actually a great character and would have made a great addition to the Electric Mayhem. Maybe not as silent as Lips, but had he worked his way in slowly as a background character he would have done much better. Instead, to many fans, he forcedly introduced himself into our lives as we tried to watch what we believed was a Muppet Show all whilst trying to come off as the cool, in your face, let's try and make the Muppets hip for this generation, I'm taking over as host for Kermit to keep things cool character who just annoyed us.

It wasn't Clifford's fault though, it wasn't even Kevin Clash's fault. They are both great, but sadly Clifford was the Muppet they decided to use during the "let's try to make the Muppets hip" era and sadly that is why he is gone today. Luckily the Muppets learned their lesson, be who you always have been or that same fate will await you. Also this was around the time where singing on television was considered embarrassing and not cool at all, so trying to host a Muppet variety show in the 90s wouldn't have worked anyway no matter who was hosting... now today all that has changed. It wasn't all bad for Muppets Tonight. Big Mean Carl and Bobo the Bear, for instance, were and are excellent additions. I hope characters like Johnny Fiama and Sal, Polly Lobster, Clueless Morgan, and Clifford, who were all great fun, can return someday.

Then last but not least there was the duo of Seymour and Pepe, they were two of a kind, one of them was a little bit forward, the other had a big behind. From season one of Muppets Tonight onwards I really liked the two of them as a duo. Sadly for poor Seymour, Pepe would become the true Prawn Star he was always meant to be. Honestly, he deserves everything he's accomplished during his time with the Muppets. Out of all the characters to have ever been introduced after The Muppet Show, Pepe is hands down my favorite.

Muppets From Space was the last attempt at helping some of the Muppets Tonight characters survive. Clifford, Dr. Phil Van Neuter, Johnny and Sal, Bobo, and Pepe made notable appearances in the movie. The only real new character introduced to us in Muppet From Space were the new rats and none of them stuck around as characters except for Bubba Rat.

Finally we jump twelve years to November 2011, which broughtt us our first new batch of Muppets in over ten years, some we liked, some we didn't, and some who had so many scenes cut we hardly knew they were in the movie. The Muppets introduced us to Walter, who won me over as soon as he complained to Disney about wanting The Muppet Show Season 4 on DVD. I didn't think I'd like him at first, but the facts that he's a true Muppet fan and performed by Peter Linz are exactly why he’s a great addition to the Muppet family.

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, muppetmindset@gmail.com

Weekly Muppet Wednesdays: Clifford

Written by Ryan Dosier.

CLIFFORD

Performed by...
Kevin Clash

First appearance...
The Jim Henson Hour Episode 101 (1989)

Most recent appearance...
The Muppets' Wizard of Oz (2005)


Best known role...
Cool-cat, host of Muppets Tonight

WHO IS CLIFFORD?
Clifford is the coolest of the cool, the hippest of the hip in the Muppet family. His species is undetermined, but allusions have been made to him being a catfish. It is mostly agreed, however, that Clifford is a humanoid Muppet... even though he's purple--but Scooter is yellow and Bunsen is green, so who's to argue?

Clifford first appeared as the bass guitarist for Solid Foam, the funky, techno-style band featured on The Jim Henson Hour. The other members of the band consisted of Digit, Beard, Flash, and an unnamed female drummer. Clifford obviously became the most popular and widely-seen member of the band, appearing in the Muppet Central segments of The Jim Henson Hour with Kermit the Frog and the other main members of the cast.

Clifford would later appear in the 1990 television special The Muppets at Walt Disney World where, for the first and only time, he acted as another member of Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, playing various percussion instruments and even getting to sing a line of "Rock and Rollin' Around the World." That same year, Clifford had a semi-prominent role as one of the gang in The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson, helping Fozzie Bear and the rest of the Muppets to try and figure out who Jim Henson is. In this special, he inadvertently called Bean Bunny a yo-yo (you have to see it to understand it).

Clifford didn't appear again for six more years, when, in 1996, Muppets Tonight went on the air. Thanks to a cell phone miscommunication, Clifford was named the host of the new show by Kermit. For the two seasons that the show was on the air, Clifford played emcee as a horde of guest stars visited the show. He notably tried to get a kiss from Paula Abdul, helped Sandra Bullock prevent a bomb threat, and exuded jealousy towards Dennis Quaid. Clifford acted as host for every episode and even acted in the recurring sketch "Fairland P.D." alongside Bobo the Bear.

On Muppets Tonight, Clifford lost his sunglasses and his bare eyes were revealed for the first time. Initially, the puppet was built with only sunglasses and no eyes, but for Muppets Tonight eyes were added and Clifford was much more uptight and less cool. This can of course be attributed to the pressures of hosting duties, but the sunglasses are crucial to Clifford's character, and losing them caused him to become less enjoyable than he once was. Even Kevin Clash was against the sunglasses-free Clifford.

Thankfully, when Clifford joined the Muppet cast in a supporting role in Muppets From Space, the sunglasses returned, and so did the cool Clifford character. Clifford's most notable scene in the film was when he got the mail, excited to have a new letter from someone named Shanaynay. It was here that he also asked Gonzo if he wanted his new issue of Insanity Fair (a publication that, regrettably, does not really exist). In the movie, Clifford hung out around the Muppet Boarding House and went down to Cape Doom to see the aliens arrive, where he also met up with Katie Holmes and offered her a spin in the Muppets' new hot tub.

Clifford was most recently seen in 2005 in the made-for-TV movie, The Muppets' Wizard of Oz. In the movie, Clifford had a small role acting as the bouncer for the Poppyfields nightclub. Once again, Clifford retained his sunglasses look and his coolness. He had a few lines here, as he allowed Dorothy (Ashanti), the Scarecrow (Kermit), the Tin-Thing (Gonzo), the Lion (Fozzie), and Toto (Pepe) entrance into the exhausting club.

Clifford has not appeared since his brief role here, but in interviews Kevin Clash has expressed interest in bringing Clifford back to the Muppet world in a different role. Nothing has come of this yet, but perhaps we'll see Clifford return once again sometime soon.

WHY DO THE MUPPETS NEED CLIFFORD?
Clifford is the sort-of black sheep of the Muppet clan. He's not widely beloved by fans, he's no longer often seen, and his character niche is hard to determine. So why do the Muppets need Clifford? Well, for one, he adds a level of "cool" to the gang that only the Electric Mayhem can match. Clifford is naturally hip in a group that is naturally un-hip. It works.

Clifford is also one who believes in "the dream" as much as any other Muppet. He too feels that singing, and dancing, and making people happy are important. Why else would he have willingly taken the job of hosting Muppets Tonight when he never even applied for it? Because he's a Muppet, that's why, and Muppets always put on a show no matter what it does to them (see: taking a cannonball to the face, being electrocuted, controlling wacky guest stars, etc.). Clifford is as dedicated as any other Muppet and even after Muppets Tonight when he was just part of the group, he was there as just another one of the gang trying to make it in the world.

Besides all that, Clifford is a great character performed by one of the world's most talented puppeteers: Kevin Clash. Clifford gives Kevin a great character to interact with the rest of the Muppet gang, and bringing him back would only mean that Kevin's talent gets to shine again in the Muppet universe outside of Sesame Street. I for one really enjoy Clifford and hope that he returns someday with his sunglasses, his cool attitude, and Kevin Clash performing him. That's the Clifford I love, and that's the Clifford I'd love to see again.

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, ryguy102390@gmail.com