MuppetWatch

115: Candice Bergen & Carnal Knowledge

Miss Piggy continues to take more of a central role as special guest Candice Bergen inspires her to fight for her rights as a woman and a performer. Then, we discuss her role in Carnal Knowledge, a dissection of the psyche of the male chauvinist pig. Topics of discussion include whether it’s weird to be able to tell who’s puppeteering Miss Piggy by voice, possibly the weirdest movie to get a sequel of all time and how it could have been salvaged, the time Pauline Kael feuded with the gay community, the secret unaired snuff episode of The Muppet Show, and the unfortunate fact that conservatives has always been kind of stupid. Bergen Bags [https://www.bergenbags.com] Knock Wood by Candice Bergen [https://search.worldcat.org/title/10298903] Murphy Brown vs. Vice President Dan Quayle [https://youtu.be/TnhhZ0LVNPU?si=eNi7lyK1BQMfBowf] Oliver’s Story (1978) movie review - Sneak Previews with Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel [https://youtu.be/i2lEgBcZDuQ?si=c6bQJtBxdcDwAXc4] Quayle Blames Riots in L.A. on Disintegrating Family Unit [https://www.deseret.com/1992/5/20/18984930/quayle-blames-riots-in-l-a-on-disintegrating-family-unit/] The queerness hiding in plain sight in the work of Hollywood Golden Age director George Cukor [https://www.queerty.com/the-queerness-hiding-in-plain-sight-in-the-work-of-hollywood-golden-age-director-george-cukor-20241230/]

114: Sandy Duncan & Star Spangled Girl

Today’s episode is very special - not just because our guest is three-time Tony nominee Sandy Duncan, and we have additional jokes by comedy legend Gags Beasley, but also because we’re joined by friend of the pod and fellow Beasley superfan Joe Blevins to discuss Duncan and the immortal banana sketch, followed by her second starring role on film in the baffling but never boring Star-Spangled Girl. Topics of discussion include gelatin molds on television walls, when a pie in the face can be painful, square views of the counterculture, just why Gags Beasley never made the jump to the silver screen himself, and how to tell if a movie was based on a stage play. Check out Joe’s work at d2rights.blogspot.com [http://d2rights.blogspot.com] and thesedaysareours.libsyn.com [http://thesedaysareours.libsyn.com]! Further Resources: * After a Brain Tumor and Two Failed Marriages, Sandy Duncan Is Flying High Again [https://web.archive.org/web/20160521025002/http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20074485,00.html] * Clay Aiken Says He Lost '50 Percent' of His Fans When He Came Out in 2008: 'It Was Very Different Time' [https://people.com/clay-aiken-reflects-coming-out-gay-2008-exclusive-8758428] * In ‘Second Glance,’ It’s Sandy Duncan [https://www.courant.com/2002/03/22/in-second-glance-its-sandy-duncan/] * Monty Python - The Funniest Joke in the World [https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Qklvh5Cp_Bs] * “Peter Pan” star Sandy Duncan still has a lot to “crow” about by Mo Rocca [https://www.cbsnews.com/news/peter-pan-star-sandy-duncan/]

2025 Oscars Best Original Song Special

After a month-long hiatus, MuppetWatch is back, sort of, with a special all about the movies and songs nominated at the 2025 Academy Awards, days after people stopped caring! We apologize for reminding you of Emilia Perez's existence, are befuddled by The Six Triple Eight, reminisce about the career of a future Muppet Show guest with Elton John: Never Too Late, and cry about Sing Sing.

113: Bruce Forsyth & Can Heironymus Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness?

Fozzie Bear vows to finally fight back against Statler and Waldorf, be it by heckling them back or by rubber chicken-based physical violence. Luckily for him, he has an ally in special guest Bruce Forsyth, jack of all trades equally at home on the stage and the television screen. Then we watch Can Heironymus Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness?, a movie that is as uncomfortable as its title is unwieldy. Topics of discussion include: Snurf evolution, Cordening, our continuing exasperation with At the Dance, Muppet trafficking, double standards of Muppet nudity, the degree to which talk segments are scripted, how self-awareness is not inherently a virtue, and Jojo Siwa. Further resources: * BBC Blogs - BBC Genome: Coming to You Live - The Origins of Outside Broadcast Television [https://www.bbc.co.uk/webarchive/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.co.uk%2Fblogs%2Fgenome%2Fentries%2F5874fb19-fb44-4d9e-8de4-8984c077b0d4] * Bruce Forsyth Obituary [https://www.digitalspy.com/showbiz/a835951/bruce-forsyth-dies-obituary/] * Bruce Forsyth on Magnum P.I. [https://youtu.be/2OiSZNVMrmM?si=1ttQ4yWJopT5GtFe] * Didn’t he do well… [https://www.theguardian.com/media/2007/dec/16/television.features] * Sir Bruce Forsyth breaks TV career world record [https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2012/9/sir-bruce-forsyth-breaks-tv-career-world-record]

112: Peter Ustinov & Grendel Grendel Grendel

Today’s special guest is renaissance man of the world Peter Ustinov, whose very presence puts the show in a tizzy and forces Kermit to confront his self-esteem issues! Then, we discuss another work about a green guy with problems - Grendel Grendel Grendel, the 1981 animated Australian adaptation of John Gardner’s existentialist novel! Topics of discussion include how scripted Muppet Labs is, the Newsflash Anchor’s skills as an actor, what you could get away with in movies for children in the 1980s, how to adapt existentialist angst in ways that are emotionally comprehensible to children, and new one-episode Muppets. Further resources: * British actor Peter Ustinov, who had an appointment with Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi… [https://www.upi.com/Archives/1984/11/01/British-actor-Peter-Ustinov-who-had-an-appointment-with/8473468133200/] * A genius who spent life dabbling [https://www.irishtimes.com/news/a-genius-who-spent-life-dabbling-1.1137500] * Logan’s Run: The Naming of Cats - Peter Ustinov - Closed Captioned [https://youtu.be/b7R4KZz2wbk?si=A2fp0hFTlNt0O0_4] * OMNI: the New Frontier [https://youtu.be/e3LAg1hcajM?si=zXfEO3WHjCmOeDRP] * Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf. Peter Ustinov, Herbert von Karajan, London Philharmonia Orchestra [https://youtu.be/HXrVQ9N8zAc?si=5wUpWCy0CcUyuX8J] * Sir Peter Ustinov (1921-2004) [https://federalunion.org.uk/sir-peter-ustinov-1921-2004/] * Sir Peter Ustinov - UNICEF [https://www.unicef.org/goodwill-ambassadors/peter-ustinov]