Weekly Muppet Wednesdays: Vicki

Written by Abigail Maughan.

VICKI

Performed by...
Fran Brill

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

Most recent appearance...
The Jim Henson Hour Episode 112: Food (1990)

Best known role...
Stage manager at Muppet Central

WHO IS VICKI?
Vicki is a resourceful young film school student who works as the director’s assistant at Muppet Central on the 1989 TV series The Jim Henson Hour. She gives Kermit the Frog much-needed help in running the show, as well as engaging in a number of backstage shenanigans.

Throughout the course of The Jim Henson Hour, Vicki figured out how to fix the defective Digit, made Kermit feel old, monitored the show’s ratings, sang a few lines of “La Bamba,” got annoyed by Bean Bunny, found the missing Dog City film reel, threw a book at Link Hogthrob, sang and danced with guest star Smokey Robinson, and attempted to do Kermit’s job when he went on vacation, among other things.

Sadly, Vicki disappeared forever after the show and is no longer used in current productions, along with the majority of her Jim Henson Hour costars. However, the puppet for Vicki was recycled in two "Muppet Time" segments in 1994, as a character named Scary Mary.

WHY DO THE MUPPETS NEED VICKI?
It’s always exciting when new female Muppet characters emerge, and Vicki had the potential to really shine, had the show been more successful. She fills an important Scooter-esque role without being a female carbon copy of Scooter. The two would actually make a very efficient team. Vicki is reliable, intelligent, pleasant, and most importantly, funny. Given all those factors, Vicki could very well fit in with the Muppets today.

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