Big Bird Talks Debates (and De Fishes) on SNL

Late last night during the Daniel Craig-hosted episode of Saturday Night Live, rumors and rumblings were going around that a certain six-year old, eight foot two inch tall yellow bird was going to make an appearance on the show. We didn't know if it would be a parody of the birdy behemoth or what to expect... but what we got was this: the real, actual, Caroll Spinney Big Bird appearing on SNL's Weekend Update with Seth Myers. Check out the entire appearance below for Big Bird's reaction to being mentioned in the Presidentail debate:



So there you have it! Simple, honorable, and classy--the way Big Bird absolutely should have played it. Perfect for the character, incredibly smart move by Sesame Street/Sesame Workshop, totally nonpartisan, and just hysterical. Debates/De fishes? BRILLIANT! This is exactly how I wanted Big Bird to respond. Thank goodness SNL nabbed him to come on and say his piece. Now if you'll excuse me... I need to go watch it again.






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

Really!?! - The Muppets Crash SNL

Last night was a big night for Jason Segel, as the writer and star of The Muppets appeared on NBC for his first ever gig as host of Saturday Night Live. As Jason would explain in his monologue, two of his dreams came true this year: hosting SNL and making a movie with the Muppets. Well, one of those dreams almost got derailed completely as Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Gonzo, Rowlf the Dog, Scooter, Camilla, Statler, and Waldorf appeared to, seemingly innocently, help Jason with his opening song. But... when the Muppets found out that they weren't the ones hosting SNL, well... just see for yourself in the amazing video below!



Luckily, this wasn't the only time the Muppets appeared during last night's episode. Kermit stopped by "Weekend Update" with Seth Myers for a little bit of fun in a segment they like to call "Really!?! With Seth and Kermit" wherein Seth and Kermit yell at Congress for declaring cafeteria pizza a vegetable.



Yes. That Really!?! happened. What an incredibly awesome appearance!! The Muppets were in prime form, as they have been almost consistently recently, and one can only speculate how long it will be before they get to host themselves. Brilliant.

Now... if you'll excuse me, I have to go figure out how they had Piggy and Fozzie talking at the same time during the monologue on a live show.

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

News Update: November 18, 2011

NEWS UPDATE: November 18, 2011

MightyFine T-Shirts have announced the top five winners of their recent Muppet t-shirt design contest! Five wonderful t-shirts are being produced from artists and friends of The Muppet Mindset, Kenny Durkin and Dave Alvarez, along with three other talented artists! I honestly can't pick a shirt I like the best... they're all very, very well done. But I know for sure that I will be purchasing Kenny's and Dave's, and probably the Electric Mayhem Tiki shirt as well. The shirts are $25 dollars each and come in varying colors and levels of awesome. Be sure to get one for yourself and secretly hope it gets there before Wednesday!

As we mentioned a few weeks ago, the Muppets teamed up with UL Fire Safety Labs, which debuted with the UL Fire Safety PSA, and now continues with two new videos: Holiday Safety with Kermit, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, and Beaker, and Cooking Safety with Kermit and The Swedish Chef. You can check out the latter embedded below!

Earlier this week, The Muppets Studio debuted three Muppets parody posters just in time for the release of Twilight: Breaking Dawn - Part 1 (ugh). The posters feature Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, and Rowlf the Dog parodying characters from the popular Twilight series, Edward Cullen (the sparkly vampire), Bella Swan, and Jacob (the shirtless werewolf). Rowlf's poster is featured at right, and you can see the other two from the links above!

Muppet fans over seas have been mostly getting the shaft in all of this movie promotion, and especially in the much later release date. But they've finally got a win under their belts, with the amazing, epic United Kingdom movie theater exclusive commercial for the Orange cell phone company. The commercial features the Muppets selling out for Orange and completely revamping their show. Thankfully, we still get to see a countless troupe of Muppets singing and dancing and being awesome. Check it out below!



Our good friends over at StitchKingdom.com always seem to get the best Muppet scoops (probably because they're the best), and they recently acquired some awesome new content including tons of hi-res stills from the movie, magazine pictures, and specific Muppet pictures as well! Be sure to check out the great stills from the film, because they really are spectacular. Also, it's nice to have an official, hi-res picture of Scooter, Rowlf, Sam Eagle, and The Electric Mayhem!

A few weeks ago, we mentioned that DisneyStore.com would be releasing a Walter plush toy very soon. Well... he's here! Yes, Walter is finally available for purchase! Walter is 18 inches tall (that's how tall he actually is!), costs $16.50 plus shipping, but he looks like he's worth every penny. Trust me, once the movie is out people everywhere will be clamoring for a Walter plush, so pick yours up while you've got the chance! I ordered mine already (which is really the only reason this is included in the News Update).

And now for the Amazing Muppet Talk Show Appearances of The Week section... first up, Miss Piggy on Jimmy Kimmel Live from Monday, where she and Jimmy discuss the movie, her stardom, the rest of the Muppets, and so much more. The pig looked gorgeous, and you can see her entire interview for yourself below!





The very next day, Kermit, Miss Piggy, Walter, Gonzo, Fozzie, Animal, Scooter, Sam Eagle, Rowlf, Bunsen, Beaker, and The Swedish Chef all appeared on ABC's Dancing With the Stars to perform a massive song and dance number to "Life's a Happy Song" from The Muppets (and Statler and Waldorf appeared to heckle). This is probably my absolute favorite of all the Muppet appearances we've seen in this fervor of promotion for the movie--and you can see the whole thing below!!



As if that weren't enough, on Wednesday, Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy appeared on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon! As we Muppet fans are all aware, the Muppets are always at their best on Jimmy's show, and this appearance was absolutely not an exception. Below you'll find the interview segment with Kermit and Piggy, plus the frog and pig playing "Password," hosted by Jimmy and played alongside the always-wonderful Martin Short and R.E.M.'s leading man, Michael Stipe. Watch the greatness unfold below!





And closing off the week of Muppet appearances yesterday was the massive Muppet takeover of Good Morning America on ABC. Kermit, Piggy, Gonzo, Pepe, Fozzie, Animal, Rizzo, The Swedish Chef... the gang was all on hand to celebrate their movie and goof around with Robin Roberts, George Snuffleupagus (spelling?), and the rest of the GMA crew all morning long as they overtook Times Square! Lucky for you, our good friends at ToughPigs.com have every single clip from yesterday's show in one convenient place! But we've got something they don't... an exclusive, Muppeteer-filled, video from our friends at StitchKingdom.com. Watch the video below to see Bill Barretta (Mahna Mahna), Steve Whitmire (Kermit), Dave Goelz (Gonzo), Eric Jacobson (Miss Piggy), Matt Vogel (Snowth, Camilla), and Peter Linz (Snowth) in a rare on-camera appearance! It's amazing how unbelievably talented these performers are... and it's just so much fun to see stuff like this.



And as a reminder for the rest of the week... Animal will be drumming with The Roots on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon TONIGHT (November 18th) on NBC, so be sure to tune in. Also, an appearance that should not be missed... Jason Segel is hosting Saturday Night Live on SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 19th on NBC. No Muppet appearances are confirmed... but we know for a fact that all of the Muppeteers are in New York City anyway... so why not stop by SNL while they're there? It only makes sense. Tune in to find out if they make it!!

Remember way back when we were still talking about The Muppets filming? Remember way back when we didn't even know Amy Adams was in the film? Well, now you can find out how she got involved in the film: a specially-filmed video invitation from Jason Segel and Kermit the Frog, asking Amy to come play with the Muppets (and also possibly be in a movie). Here, watch it for yourself below!



Well, I think we've had just about enough with this (massive) News Update, so we'll close with two great videos from the World Premiere of The Muppets at the El Capitan Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard! Our very own Ryan Dosier was present at the premiere, the green carpet, and the after party! If you look closely, you can actually spot Ryan in the crowd in the first video, and in the second, Ryan gets interviewed by the gorgeous girls of newly launched online video series, Fan Am! Enjoy the fun!












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

Two Weeks of Major Muppet Appearances

As we gear up closer and closer to the release of The Muppets, the Muppets themselves are popping up just about everywhere--including all over television talk shows! Unfortunately, the shows have only released their guests up until November 19th, so we don't know any appearances happening the week the movie comes out... yet. But keep an eye on The Muppet Mindset often for updates! Be sure to check out our Upcoming Muppet Appearances section on the right side of every page.

But for now, we're showing off all the appearances for this week and next! Set your TiVo's or viewing habits accordingly!

• Tuesday, November 8th (TONIGHT) - Jason Segel on The Tonight Show on NBC, 11:35pm/10:35pm central
• Wednesday, November 9th - Kermit the Frog on The Ellen Degeneres Show, check local listings
• Wednesday, November 9th - Miss Piggy presents an award on the Country Music Awards on ABC, 8:00pm/7:00pm central
• Friday, November 11th - Kermit the Frog on The Tonight Show on NBC, 11:35pm/10:35pm central
• Monday, November 14th - Amy Adams on The Tonight Show on NBC, 11:35pm/10:35pm central
• Monday, November 14th - Miss Piggy on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on ABC, 12:00am/11:00pm central
• Wednesday, November 16th - Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on NBC, 12:35am/11:35pm central
• Saturday, November 19th - Jason Segel hosts Saturday Night Live! on NBC, 11:30pm/10:30pm central

Also, while we're on the subject of Muppet appearances, you can check out Miss Piggy's wonderful appearance on The Tonight Show from last week. Check out the videos below!







Thanks to the fine folks at The Tonight Show or Disney publicity (we're not really sure which one) for actually emailing us the links to Miss Piggy's appearance! It's great to be in the loop!







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

News Update: October 21, 2011

NEWS UPDATE: October 21, 2011

Since Disney and the Muppets Studio started "The Muppets Fan-A-Thon" awhile back, we've been treated to three brand new videos featuring Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, and Fozzie Bear as they shill on the open web for a bazillion "likes" on Facebook. Well, chalk up two more Fan-A-Thon videos for the Muppets as Gonzo (with Pepe) and Animal debuted their videos over the past two weeks. Check them both out below! And, really, won't you "like" them already? Gonzo's going to suffocate and goodness knows Animal doesn't need any more head injuries.




The domination of the Muppets has obviously begun, and you know what that means... Miss Piggy storming the world with her undying celebrity status. The most recent outlet for this is InStyle magazine who, in their most recent issue (November 2011) have a spectacular four page feature on Miss Piggy complete with brand new, gorgeous pictures of the pig posing in designer clothes from Opening Ceremony, Suno, Brian Atwood, Jason Wu, Prabal Gurung, and Giles & Brothers. Lucky for male Muppet fans who don't think they could consciously buy InStyle magazine, our friends over at StitchKingdom.com have hi-resolution scans of every page provided to them by Disney. Now go and ogle that pig!

Disney has launched a new website for The Muppets, mostly intended for the UK audience, entitled MeettheMuppets.com. Lucky for everyone else, however, anyone, in the UK or not, can access this new site and get in-depth details, pictures, audio clips, and video of most of the main Muppet characters. This of course includes characters like Kermit and Gonzo (see Gonzo-on-a-stool picture at right), but you can also take a peek at Zoot, Walter, Dr. Teeth, and more! Check it out and time yourself to see how long it takes you to have a new desktop background.

In super exciting news that may or may not be super exciting once it happens, Jason Segel is hosting NBC's Saturday Night Live on November 19th. Although it cannot be officially confirmed by any means, there is a very good chance that we'll be seeing a Muppet or two (or ten) appearing alongside Jason and the rest of the SNL cast on the 19th. Since the appearance occurs only four days before the release of The Muppets, it seems only logical--if not required. With Jason Segel involved it's sure to be a great night of comedy either way... but Muppet involvement would put it completely over the top.

The Muppets are back to their old act of making commercials for people to further their own gains. The victim this time (other than Beaker) is UL Laboratories, who promote fire safety in the home. And what better Muppet to promote safety regulations than Dr. Bunsen Honeydew? In the video below, featuring Kermit, Dr. Honeydew, and Beaker, we see just how flammable Beaker really is.



Last week Yamaha Entertainment Group (which is currently offering the chance to win a trip to The Muppets premiere and a Yamaha piano) posted a link to a new article in Yamaha All Access Magazine: an interview with Rowlf the Dog. The interview, while also being extraordinary for being an interview with Rowlf for the first time in who knows how long, is incredibly funny, heart-warming, and Rowlf-y. It's a howling good time. Don't bother barking at this one, just read it!

According to our pals over at ToughPigs.com, the wildly popular (and wildly bipolar) television show Glee will soon feature a cover of Kermit's ballad "Bein' Green." The song will be performed by new Glee character, Rory, portrayed by co-winner of The Glee Project reality show, Irish-singer Damian McGinty. "Bein' Green" will be featured in the November 1st episode of the show on FOX, which is also McGinty's debut episode on the show. It probably isn't too much of a stretch to guess that "Bein' Green" is McGinty's first song he'll sing... which is pretty cool for Muppet fans.

And now, to close, please enjoy this video from TheMuppets.com which our friends over at Muppet Musings posted to YouTube featuring... Muppets dancing. It'll be the greatest 14 seconds of your day, guaranteed.










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

Live, From New York, it's COOKIE MONSTER!

Greetings, Muppet fans! What did you do last night? Me? I had a Christmas party... which turned out to be a bad thing, because Cookie Monster spent his Saturday night caroling with Jeff Bridges! Yes, that's right, Jeff Bridges, who hosted Saturday Night Live last night, brought out Cookie Monster during his monologue to sing "Silver Bells" with him. It was a wonderful, amazing clip which you can now see below!



Hey, if that ain't enough to get Cookie back to host the show, I don't know what is! As Jeff Bridges would likely say, man, those silver bells ring-aling so good!

Speaking of bells... remember last year when we posted about all Muppet fans ringing bells on December the 21st? If not, read more in last year's post here. But, we'll be ringing those bells once again this year, Muppet fans! Yes, on Tuesday, December 21st at 9:00pm, yours truly, Lisa the Intern, the British Correspondent, and, believe it or not, Jerry Nelson will all be ringing a bell for this magical time of year. Please join us in creating the Muppety spirit by ringing your own bell at 9:00pm on Tuesday. I promise you it'll be the feel-good moment of your year!

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier

News Update: December 2, 2010

NEWS UPDATE: December 2, 2010

The latest news from the set of The Muppets with Jason Segel is that there are, well, Muppets on the set! Yes, a few days ago, On Location Vacations posted quite a few new pictures from the set featuring Jason Segel, Walter (who is looking wonderful), Miss Piggy, Kermit, Gozno, Janice, Zoot, Beaker, Bunsen, part of Scooter, and more! This is hugely exciting and the Muppets look AMAZING. More please!

There have also been three more celebrity cameo announcements for The Muppets: Mickey Rooney, Ricky Gervais, and Emily Blunt. Mickey Rooney was pretty much confirmed when a close friend of Rooney's posted a picture of two directors chairs; one that said, simply, "The Muppets" and another that said "Mickey Rooney." One would have to assume that means he's in the movie. Gervais and Blunt have been reported as being in the film by The Hollywood Reporter... but who knows what that means. What are your thoughts on these possible cameos?

Unless you live under a rock, then you've surely seen Cookie Monster's brilliant audition tape to be a host of Saturday Night Live. If you haven't (or if you have and just want to watch it again), check it out now...



The video has over one million views and the Facebook campaign page has over 100,000 members. With numbers like that, it seems highly likely that we'll be seeing Cookie Monster on SNL sometime in the near future. I for one am thrilled by this prospect and think that it would be an awesome, awesome outlet for the Sesame Street characters. Let's make it happen!!

Have a wall? Like the Muppets? Well then, you should consider ordering some Muppet FatHeads! What are FatHeads, you ask? Good question. FatHeads are basically a cross between stickers and posters. They're high-quality materials and are shaped like sports players, movie stars, and more. And now, there are Muppets! Check out the picture and see for yourself! As you can see, there are plenty of Muppets included: Kermit, Piggy, Fozzie, Gonzo, Animal, Swedish Chef, Bunsen, Beaker, Rizzo, and Pepe. The cost is over $100... but if you have the wall space, it's definitely worth it!

There is some sad news for BOOM! Studios and The Muppet Show Comic Book as Roger Langridge announced that he is leaving the comic after the upcoming next arc ("The Four Seasons"). Langridge cited his reason for leaving as just wanting a change and a readjustment in his life which is entirely understandable. While we'll miss Roger an extreme amount, we at The Muppet Mindset would like to wish him a smooth transition and we sincerely hope he continues to make people happy with his incredible talent.

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier