News Update: August 16, 2012

NEWS UPDATE: August 16, 2012

One of our favorite actors, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, (of 500 Days of Summer and The Dark Knight Rises) fame appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live Tuesday night to discuss things that shouldn't really connect to Muppets... but somehow they did, and JGL's love for our fuzzy friends was revealed! Check out the fantastic clip from the show below to hear Joseph Gordon Levitt and Jimmy Kimmel discussing Murray Monster, The Muppets, and amazing footage from Emily Blunt!



The fine folks responsible for the amazing documentary Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey have alerted us to the fact that the film is up for a PBS Independent Lens Audience Award! Up against many other PBS documentaries, Being Elmo has some stiff competition, but as Muppet fans, I think we've proven time and again that we're capable of rocking the vote in our favor! All you have to do is click the link above, scroll down to Being Elmo, and vote it 5 Stars and your vote is in! It's that simple! So get out there and help our this fantastic, moving film!

Muppet fan Davide Maugeri contacted me recently with information on a non-profit project he and a team are working on as a tribute to the classic Jim Henson/Disney television sitcom Dinosaurs. Check out the work Davide has already done with a little snippet of information about the project: "Recently I've teamed up with some workmates to make a CG tribute to Jim Henson. A one and a half minute animated short featuring two characters from one of our favorite Jim Henson shows, Baby and Earl Sinclair from Dinosaurs. We'd like to stress that it is only meant as a homage and tribute to the genius of Jim Henson which made the series possible. Since this was a big hit in the early 90's and it ended up forgotten, our main goal is to bring these characters back to life and remind people they still exist, and they still can make us laugh like they used to. Here is a sneak-peek picture that shows both the characters as they appear in their new CG look. The short should be complete by the holiday season (December)."

Last week marked the end of the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, but I was in Walt Disney World so I missed some exciting news from the games: Grover, Elmo, and Abby Cadabby were present in London for a few days mingling with Olympic athletes and just having fun! Our friends at ToughPigs.com have a fantastic round-up of the video appearances the trio made across the pond, and be sure to check out the official Sesame Street Olympic Photo Album on Facebook!

Speaking of Sesame Street... they are currently in the process of an open casting call for a new human cast member on the show! Live in the New York area? Free on August 20th? Are you an actor fluent in Spanish and English? Then this audition is for you! Check out all the official information from Sesame Workshop below...
Male or female actor, 18-25, fluent in Spanish and English, comfortable with multiple Spanish dialects and accents. Good sense of humor. Must sing well. Actor should be comfortable with both physical and improvisational comedy. Actor should be warm, likable and engaging. Must be prepared to sing a cappella in Spanish and English.
DATE: Monday, August 20th
TIME: 10am – 2pm
LOCATION: Roseland Ballroom, 239 West 52nd Street, New York
Please bring a headshot and resume if you have one.
If you have any further questions, please contact Joe Lopick of McCorkle Casting at joe@mccorklecasting.com.

In "no one could have seen this coming" news, Legendary Entertainment Alliance announced early last week that they would be releasing the hilariously weird television special A Special Sesame Street Christmas on DVD on November 6 of this year. You can pre-order the DVD for only $12.98 right now on the L.E.A. website. Never heard of this infamous special? Check out the trailer for the special/DVD below (or just look at the awful DVD cover art at right) and you'll see what makes this piece so fantastically strange. I know I'll be owning it!









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

Elmo, Grover, Abby Cadabby: Olympians

Awhile back, Elmo expressed his desire to go to the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Well, his wish came true (go figure), and Elmo is bringing along his friends! That's right, Elmo, Abby Cadabby, and Grover will be hopping the pond to visit the Olympics! Check out this video for confirmation:



So we still have no idea what Elmo and friends will be doing over there (although my mind is racing with hysterical thoughts of how Grover could participate), but we can get excited to see our fuzzy friends participate in some fashion! For instance, watch this video of Elmo and a Team USA Gold Medalist discussing persistence!



I would love to see more videos like these come out of this... but mostly, I'd love to see Grover try to luge. Can someone make that happen please? Can we get Grover on a luge?






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

Elmo Wants to Go to the Olympics

Elmo is a monster of many accomplishments. He's a television and movie star, he's hobnobbed with Presidents and celebrities and everyone in between, and now he wants to go to the London Summer Olympics. In a new effort by Sesame Street called "ElmOlympian," everyone's favorite furry red monster voices his desire to run with the torch at the 2012 Olympic games. NBC's TODAY has a nice article about the effort, and you can watch this hysterical video of Elmo training for the Olympics below...



Be sure to "Like" the Elmo Should Go To The Olympics Facebook page to help our furry pal get there!

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

The 2010 Mupp-Olympics!

Ryan Dosier - Yes, it's that time of every four years again. Time for the Winter Olympics, everyone's favorite time when people watch NBC for something other than Conan O'Brien's last stand! This year, the Winter Olympics are being held in some far off foreign land of Cañadá. Though I've never heard of such an outlandish place, I'm still showing my support for the American athletes by living in America (I know, I know... I do far too much).

By now, you've probably grown tired of seeing folks with funny names slide down mountains on pieces of wood and jettisoning themselves down sheets of ice that are miles long on sleds from their garage (Author's Note: I really do respect each and every Olympic athlete--I'm insulting their craft for the sake of humor, people!). So, I've offered a few alternative sport ideas that I think the Olympic committee should seriously consider for the next Winter Olympics.

Barefoot Skiing 
Top Competitor: Gonzo the Great
Forget the logistics of how this event would work... just imagine watching Gonzo's feathery blue feet as they slosh through ice and snow down a towering hill. Talk about getting cold feet.

Trash Can Luge
Top Competitor: Oscar the Grouch
Yes, the luge can be a dangerous event, but with this new event we've countered that. If riding in a trash can, you get surrounded protection and a lid to cover your head just in case. Coating your can in cooking oil prior to the race is not legal.

Car De-Icing
Top Competitor: The La Choy Dragon
Slow cooking the cars in dragon fire are sure to be a treat and send our boy from La Choy straight to the Gold!

Teeth Chattering
Top Competitor: Dr. Teeth
This even works on two levels. It's enjoyable for the viewers because they can relate, and it's enjoyable for dentists anticipating a big pay off. Dr. Teeth would sweep this event by "accidentally" blinding the rest of the competitors with the glare of his golden tooth.

Penguin Shotput
Top Competitor: Sweetums
Need I say more? Why isn't this an event already?

Curling
Top Team: Bobo, Beauregard, and George the Janitor
Yes, I know it's already a sport (I can't believe it though), but consider how epic this team would be on the ice. Bobo curls, Beauregard and George sweep the ice... could there be a more perfect team? I think not! I wonder if we could get George to come out of retirement for a shot at the Gold.

Tarpaulin Knitting
Top Team: Mokey Fraggle and Hilda the Wardrobe Lady
Teams from all countries compete to knit the finest tarpaulin (whatever that is) for Madame Trash Heap. With a distinguished panel of judges including Philo, Gunge, and Marjory herself, this event is best enjoyed with a heap of your friends.

Hibernating
Top Competitor: Baby Bear (Fozzie and Bobo at a close second and third)
Finally, a sport that acknowledges our lazy brethren. Imagine the thrill and excitement of watching your country's favorite as they sleep for hours--months, even--all in real-time right on your television. Maybe if you're lucky you'll get to witness one of them rolling over!

Snuffleupagus Shaving
Top Competitor: New Event, no competitors yet
This sport combines all the fun of shaving a shaggy elephant with chasing said shaggy elephant! Contestants barrel after the creatures as he himself barrels away from their razor blades and shaving cream. Obstacles in the course include having to locate the Snuffleupagus after he goes off to brush his teeth before your adult friends arrive!

Fireplace Snuggling
Top Team: Miss Piggy and Kermit the Frog
Reluctant lovers, beware! This steamy event will have all of the romantics in the audience cooing for more as they watch their favorite couples getting snuggly-wuggly in front of a crackling fire. Points determined on snuggness of the snuggling, crackliness of the fire, and squirminess of the frog.

Well... those are all of the events on my list of proposed additions to the games. What games would you like to see added to the Olympics in four years?

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier