First Video and Character News from "The Muppets... Again"

MINOR SPOILERS FOR THE MUPPETS... AGAIN LIE AHEAD

Ah, I love this time of year... with a new Muppet movie in production it seems one can't go a week without some major developments in the movie. The Muppets... Again is no different, as we've got three pretty big happenings this week straight from the director, producer, and star of the movie.

First off, we have some exciting Muppeteer casting news. In a brief interview in Empire Magazine, director James Bobin revealed that beloved Muppeteer Louise Gold would be performing in the film. Is that not enough? Well good, because Bobin also confirmed that Gold's most prominent character, Annie Sue Pig, will be back for the movie as well. This is huge news! I met Louise in New York at the tribute to Jerry Nelson last fall and she said how much she would love to be back performing with everyone, and now she is! I could not be happier for her. Plus, Annie Sue is coming back for the first time in... honestly, I have no idea. A quick Muppet Wiki check tells me that she was in the audience of Muppets Tonight, but that's it. Goodness knows she hasn't spoken since The Muppet Show. So yes... this is big and exciting! Thanks to our friends at ToughPigs.com for finding this info!

In other characters we weren't expecting to see again news, producer David Hoberman revealed to Crave Online that Miss Poogy and The Moopets could be appearing again as well, saying, "I think Miss Poogy might be [in it]. We love The Moopets." But that's not all! Hoberman also confirmed (again) that Jason Segel will not be making a cameo and that Bret McKenzie is writing all of the songs. Says Hoberman, "Bret wrote all these songs for this new movie and they are so different and cover such a wide range of genres. I think we've got a couple of spectacular musical numbers in this one and I think it runs the gamut of ballad and comedy songs. Probably one homage to contemporary rock. I think we have five songs in this and they're all original, so I'm hopeful. Music is so ingrained in the Muppet culture and history, and it's part of the fun of doing it, frankly." So Moopets, no Segel, and five new songs? That's a lot of info from one interview! The homage to contemporary rock sounds like a perfect opportunity for an Electric Mayhem song... please, please, please.

I think Miss Poogy might be [in it]. We love The Moopets. - See more at: http://www.craveonline.com/film/articles/450089-exclusive-muppets-again-plot-details#sthash.3qgT3TUs.dpuf

I think Miss Poogy might be [in it]. We love The Moopets. - See more at: http://www.craveonline.com/film/articles/450089-exclusive-muppets-again-plot-details#sthash.3qgT3TUs.dpuf

I think Miss Poogy might be [in it]. We love The Moopets. - See more at: http://www.craveonline.com/film/articles/450089-exclusive-muppets-again-plot-details#sthash.3qgT3TUs.dpuf

I think Miss Poogy might be [in it]. We love The Moopets. - See more at: http://www.craveonline.com/film/articles/450089-exclusive-muppets-again-plot-details#sthash.3qgT3TUs.dpuf

Finally, a few days ago via Twitter Ricky Gervais posted this video starring he and Pepe the King Prawn on the set of The Muppets... Again. It's hilarious and nothing I say will make it better so check it out below:



Love it so much. So glad Pepe is on set, which hints that he may have a bigger role in the movie. So excited about all of it! The Muppets... Again is in theaters March 21, 2014!





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

Weekly Muppet Wednesdays: Miss Poogy

Written by Ryan Dosier.

MISS POOGY

Performed by...
David Rudman

First appearance...
The Muppets (2011), first seen in "Green With Envy" teaser trailer

Most recent appearance...
The Muppets (2011), recently seen in an on-set interview

Best known role...
Leader of the Moopets; opposite of Miss Piggy; lover of omelet stations

WHO IS MISS POOGY?
Miss Poogy is the anti-Miss Piggy; a ruddy, rough looking pig. She dresses in a leather jacket with lots of fishnets and chains. Miss Poogy's only role of any sort is as a Moopet who performs with Fozzie Bear in Reno, Nevada in the 2011 film, The Muppets. There, she acts as the leader of the gang of tough, mean Moopets which include Koormit, Joonice, Roowlf, and Animool. Miss Poogy dresses in a blonde wig, a white dress, purple gloves, and a boa for the act, in order to impersonate Miss Piggy (but if you asked Poogy, she'd say she doesn't need to impersonate that hack-pig anyway).

Miss Poogy joins up with Kermit the Frog and the rest of the Muppets for a brief stint in the movie after Miss Piggy refuses to return to help save the Muppet Theater and Studio. The Muppets soon regret their decision of hiring the tough pig when she brings out and starts sharpening a knife, asks for kerosene to burn some of Miss Piggy's old dresses, and gives off a generally threatening persona. That is, until Miss Piggy shows up to reclaim her spot among the Muppets. She and Miss Poogy have a showdown, but Miss Poogy's affinity for omelet station leads to her downfall at the karate chopping fist of Miss Piggy, proving that no one can replace Miss Piggy.

Miss Poogy returns later to join Tex Richman in his quest to destroy the Muppet Theater and Studio and brings the rest of the Moopets with her from Reno, including Foozie Bear. The Moopets join up with Tex Richman, Uncle Deadly, and Bobo the Bear and move to thwart the Muppet Telethon efforts in various ways during the show. Will they succeed? Will the Moopets replace the Muppets? See The Muppets in theaters one week from today to find out for yourself!

WHY DO THE MUPPETS NEED MISS POOGY?
Great question. They really don't need Miss Poogy, as it turns out. But it did take Miss Poogy and the rest of the Moopets to show Kermit and the Muppets just what it is that makes them so wonderful. Miss Poogy can't even hold a candle to the divine Miss Piggy, and her triumphant return proves that. The same can be said for the rest of the Moopets. Fozzie realizes this very quickly and escapes Reno and the Moopets to go back with Kermit and the actual Muppets--an act that truly means something. The Moopets, and Miss Poogy, prove the world and the Muppets that singing and dancing and making people happy is the most noble goal, and laughter is the greatest gift you can give the world.

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

93 Days to The Muppets

Dear Subscribers and Casual Readers, this is a note from the 'Muppets Only' Online Petition for Ending Takeovers (MOOPET). We were devastated to see a site so utterly tustworthy under normal supervision being so casually handed over to clearly unfit ownership (The British Correspondent) who then turned our online Muppet Update experiences into something weird and unprofitable for all involved. We have subsequently blocked said British Blogger from accessing Ryan's Readership and normal service will now be readily reinstated. We'll begin with a regularly schedualed posting from Lucas Ervin. -- Kind regards, The 'Muppets Only' Online Petition for Ending Takeovers.

--

Lucas Ervin - Alright, I’m back, and I hope you guys enjoyed the first week. If not and you’re still reading this, then you’re obviously gluttons for punishment, sitting uncomfortably up in the theater box. Either way, this week, we have a list of sketches that center around some of the absolute funniest hosts that have ever worked with the Muppets. While I couldn’t fit all of the hilarious hosts into one week, I want to say that I’m sorry I can’t cover Gilda Radner, Dom DeLouise, Loretta Swit, George Burns, Jean Stapleton, James Coco, and several others. Having said that, let’s get on with Week Two of The Muppet Show clips…

93 - Madeline Kahn’s Beautiful Day- This sketch was originally done on The Ed Sullivan Show, but instead of Madeline Kahn they had a female Muppet character trying to find the positive aspects of her day, despite the rude interruptions of a nasty blue monster named Beautiful Day, hence the title of the sketch. Here Madeline tries enjoying a nice day in the park, even though the monster Doglion- performed by Jerry Nelson- is doing his best to ruin everything, like knocking over statues and shooting a bird. When Jim started making The Muppet Movie, he asked Madeline Kahn to make a cameo in the film, where she played a sketchy woman at a bar who tried picking up Kermit, and when he rejected her, she nearly got him beaten up by a sailor.

92 - Milton Berle vs. Statler & Waldorf- Speaking of handling problems, here’s Uncle Miltie on stage trying to do a comedy monologue but ends up being repeatedly heckled by Statler and Waldorf. At this time in his life, Berle had been doing stand-up for quite some time, having done vaudeville before television, so he’s prepared to deal with hecklers just in case. But Statler and Waldorf have had enough practice with making fun of Fozzie and the others, so it appears as if they may have their work cut out for them. Like several guest stars during the second season, Mr. Berle appeared in The Muppet Movie as a fast-talking car dealer who inadvertently sells Kermit, Fozzie and Gonzo a car for $11.95, thanks to Sweetums.

91 - Steve Martin: Dueling Banjos- Probably still one of the most well-known actors and comedians of our time, Kermit actually had to cancel the show for the evening Martin was there due to some new acts he was opening auditions for. So with an empty house and a ticked-off guest star, the usual performers became the audience for Steve’s jokes and music in between Kermit holding the auditions. Steve Martin had such a wonderful time on The Muppet Show that Jim Henson asked him if he’d be up for making a cameo in The Muppet Movie where he played an irritated waiter during the scene where Kermit and Miss Piggy go on their first date while heading to Hollywood.

90 - Wally Boag’s Balloons- On July 17th, 1955, Mr. Wally Boag opened up the Golden Horseshoe Revue in Disneyland, California. He had done five shows a day ever since until 1986, and holds the Guinness Book of World Records for having done over 32,000 shows, the greatest number of theatrical performances, ever. He was an amazing balloon animal artist as well as quick on his feet with quick one-liners and slapstick humor. On top of that, he was also Steve Martin’s biggest influence in comedy, and had worked with Boag at Disneyland. So naturally, Jim Henson knew that he fit right in with the Muppets:

89 - Peter Sellers Talk Spot- Within 30 minutes- nay, 25- this guest star proved his amazing ability to slip in and out of several diverse and unique characters like the chameleon that he is; from Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther series to Dr. Strangelove, who is now a deeply disturbed massage therapist that ends up tying Link Hogthrob in knots, and every kind of character in between. Here, however, when Kermit tells him he can just be himself when they’re one-on-one, Sellers admits that it’s impossible for him to be himself, and starts tuning his chickens. He also once told Muppeteer Dave Goelz that Gonzo was his favorite, and he sees similarities between him and Clouseau.

88 - Spike Milligan on the Muppet News- A comedic actor who hails from England, this guy could easily pass as Robin Williams’ father. Even as an adult I still enjoy this episode quite a bit, and this also marked the time when The Muppet Show was being seen in 108 countries. Milligan is every bit as weird, audacious and hilarious as any of his Muppet counterparts in this episode, which made it difficult to choose which of his three bits to show for the countdown. I went with the International News, and Jim Henson does a terrific job of keeping up with Milligan’s antics. This is also the only time- save for during season one- where we actually see the Newsman interact with the host, which the Newsman later regrets.

87 - Carol Burnett’s Dancing Partner- During the final season of the show, one of the greatest comediennes ever came on to host, and she didn’t exactly receive the same kind of show Julie Andrews did. Gonzo is holding a dance marathon which irritates her, and later worries about Kermit’s lack of professionalism towards the guest star when he does nothing about it. But she pulls through and even manages to dance with Animal, but just when she’s about to finally do her Lonely Asparagus sketch, the show ends. Years later after Jim Henson passed away, Carol helped out with a Muppet special entitled The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson and talked about how the Muppets were like a family; “They played, they argued, they sang, they bickered, but through it all, they faced the world together.”

This is a Moopet News Flash

And now it is time for a Moopet News Update with me, The British Corespoondent.

Today it seems as though the whole world has gone Moopet crazy as Disney celebrated some guy called Jim Henson with a touching piece of Moopet Music performed by a less rugged than usual looking Kermoot and an eyebrow-less Roowlf the Doog. Or, at least, I think that is who it is...You can see them in the videoo below. (I am almost certain that I have heard that song before somewhere though...cannot for the life of me figure out where.)

Elsewhere, people have been gooing crazy for the latest and greatest piece of Moopet Merchandise, the Koormit Crown Hat. Seen below being worn by a particularly weird looking Moopet fan from the D23 convention.

In other head-related Moopet Merchandising, do not forget that you can buy your Moopet Spirit Hoooods from here, then you can looook as warm and green as this cute little Moopet Loving Kid!

Furthermore, the Twittersphere (?) has been gooing goo-goo ga-ga over a new Twitter Feed (Is that similar to Bird Seed?) created by the Toughpoogs gang. This twitter feed (know as @Moopetquotes) contains such pearls of wisdom as:

Which is brilliant! Because everyone remembers the time that Goonzo said, "What's wroong with Bus toorminals" in the Great Moopet Cooper. (You know when you start a Takeover week with a great idea and it just becomes more and more trouble as the week goes on? - TBC)

Stay tuned (tooned?) for more (moore?) Moopet Schnanigens as the week goes on until Ryan gets back. Assuming that being surrounded by live-Moopets and enough Moopet merchandise to sink a small ship will not convert your original blog-host to my new fandoom.

Wait...those articles were all about the Moopets, right? I keep getting them mixed up with something else...

- The British C.

The Many Faces of Non-Muppets

Good Moorning to you my friends and fellow Moopet fans. It is I, the British Corespoondent, once again reporting to you live (mostly) from an undisclosed location that looks a little like the inside of a suitcase tagged and sent on a plane from Reno to the Paris Backlot to catch my new favorite touring tribute band playing live on the next leg of their world tour. If oonly I could figure out what act they are suppoosed to be a tribute to... I noticed that the Janooce one looks a little like a female Mike Jagger, but other than that it is hard to tell who they are supposed to be. I am sure I have seen something similar somewhere in the past...but cannot for the life of me pin it doown.

Speaking of tributes, I see that your regular host, Ryan, is attending a tribute to the great Jim Henson at D23 this weekend at the Disney Legends event. He poosted on twitter that Brian and Lisa Henson are supposed to be appearing, and that everyone is wearing Kermit Crown hats (whatever those may be?). Luckily while he is away updating us via his twitter account (loocated here) I am free to poost whatever I should so fancy on here!

So, I see that soome of you are a little skeptical of my big fandoom leap from Muppets to Moopets (how funny that they have similar names...weird) perhaps because you woonder how I can be a fan of a tribute band when I could have the real thing (if only I could figure oout what the real thing is...), so I wanted to show you that oover the years there have been plenty of amazing (and semi-amazing, and doown-right-terrible) tributes, even to the fuzzy, furry guys that this site was originally created for (The Muppets, I mean, not the fans or Ryan's cat).

One example of a Muppet Tribute is the effortlessly superb rendition of Mahna Mahna by the band known mostly for its baking inspired name. I heard that even Marie Antoinette was something of a fan of this band as she is famously recorded in history as saying, "Let them listen to Cake."

A similarly epic tribute can be attributed to the KC Girls who performed Mahna Mahna for the Youtube Millions to much aplomb. (It can be seen here). I feel they really have it down to a fine art and my favorite thing about this video (if I can pick a favorite!) must be the girl in green waiting throughout the entire skit, just to pick up the phone. We should pay tribute to such a tribute!

Another tribute was performed by Jason Mraz (America's answer to James Blunt) with this sweet meloodious version of the Rainbow Connection. (He also sang it with Paul Williams, which can be seen here.)

This actually awesome indie rock band provide a unique twist to the oopening music of Muppet Treasure Island. I had this as my ring tone at one stage, but once scared a bus load of oold people when it went off whilst I was doing independent research into the DNA left in chewing gum under bus seats.

Of course who can forget when The Commodores released a tribute track to that morning scene in Muppets From Space (some 22 years previous to the moovie's release).

Below is a true tribute from a true Muppet Fan (the kind of fan who not oonly writes fan-fiction in his spare time, he also pleads with Disney, negotiates a contract, persuades his friends to produce and direct, pulls in all his celebrity friends as cameos and then releases a movie on the big screen starring our beloved Muppets! Just 95 days to go for you lucky Americans, while we Internatioonals have to wait for AGES.)

And finally, it brings us to a track off of The Green Album, an album entirely devoted to Tributing the Muppets (and the occasional Otter). Its Andrew Bird with Being Green!

So you see...my leap from Muppets to Moopets is not so drastic as it may seem. After all, it follows a strong tradition of tributes to great musical moments!

If only I could figure out which musical moments the Moopets are actually referencing...

Is the name "Miss Poogy" some kind of hint?

(Images pinched from Moopet Wiki)

The Moopet Mindset

Peoople of the woorld, it is I the British Corespoondent. I have had a very important revelation that I need to share with all yoou wonderful readers of Ryan-blog, and it is this: I have moved on.

Yes, I know what you are thinking, you have moved on from being a blog-hacking investigative reporter that regularly hijacks Muppet people's blogs on the weekends? You have moved on to maturity and serious journalism?

No no no. Obviously not.

I have moved on from THE MUPPETS.

My new fandom of fandoms is: THE MOOPETS.

You know that amazing live band? I got a chance to see them in Reno and immediately fell in love with them. There was something so familiar about their lead singer Miss Poogy, their band manager Kermoot and the piano playing dog Roowlf. So familiar, and yet so new, so edgy and so exciting.

And so, let it commence. A week of the Inspirational, the Celebrational and the Moopetational! This is what we call The Moopet Mindset!  Stay tuned as we explore the Woorld of the Moopets and investigate oother non-Muppet artists such as that "OOK, Goo" band, those girls on youtube who 'Doo doo, do, do, do' and the Green Album, and as I do my best to protect yoou from seeing any fascinating, interesting or exciting Twitter posts from that Ryan Doosier chap who used to run this blog, but is now cavorting around Disney Woorld!