The Muppet Movie (1979)

Kermit and his newfound friends trek across America to find success in Hollywood, but a frog legs merchant is after Kermit.

Director:

James Frawley

Writers:

Jack Burns, Jerry Juhl

Stars:

Jim Henson, Frank Oz, Jerry Nelson

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 9 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jim Henson	...	Kermit the Frog / Rowlf / Dr. Teeth / Waldorf / Swedish Chef / Link Hogthrob / Doc Hopper's Men (voice)
Frank Oz	...	Miss Piggy / Fozzie Bear / Animal / Sam the Eagle / Doc Hopper's Men / Marvin Suggs / Swedish Chef (assistant) / Motorcycle Guy (voice)
Jerry Nelson	...	Floyd Pepper / Crazy Harry / Robin the Frog / Lew Zealand / Camilla / Blue Frackle (voice)
Richard Hunt	...	Scooter / Statler / Janice / Sweetums / Beaker / Fozzie Bear (assistant) (voice)
Dave Goelz	...	The Great Gonzo / Zoot / Dr. Bunsen Honeydew / Doglion / Iraqian in El Sleezo Cafe / Nigel / Pig (voice)
Charles Durning	...	Doc Hopper
Austin Pendleton	...	Max
Edgar Bergen	...	Himself / Charlie McCarthy
Milton Berle	...	Mad Man Mooney
Mel Brooks	...	Professor Max Krassman
James Coburn	...	El Sleezo Cafe Owner
Dom DeLuise	...	Bernie the Agent
Elliott Gould	...	Beauty Contest Compere
Bob Hope	...	Ice Cream Vendor
Madeline Kahn	...	El Sleezo Patron

Storyline

While living the quiet life in a swamp, Kermit the Frog is approached by a Hollywood agent to audition for the chance of a lifetime. So Kermit takes this chance for his big break as he makes the journey to Hollywood. Along the way, Kermit comes across several quirky new friends including comedic Fozzie Bear, beautiful but feisty Miss Piggy and the Great Gonzo. But Kermit must also watch out for ruthless Doc Hopper, who plans to use him as his spokesman for his Frog Legs food chain.

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Plot Keywords:

the muppets | hare krishna | national film registry | troubled production | frog leg | 

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Taglines:

More entertaining than humanly possible

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Family | Musical

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Certificate:

G

Details

Official Sites:

Henson.com

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 June 1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

As Aventuras dos Marretas

Filming Locations:

Santa Clarita, California, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$76,657,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Henson Associates (HA), ITC Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The closing reprise of "Rainbow Connection" featured a crowd of more than two hundred fifty Muppet characters, virtually every Muppet that had been created up to that point in time. According to Jim Henson Archivist Karen Falk: "One hundred thirty-seven puppeteers were enlisted from the Puppeteers of America (along with the regular Muppet performers) to perform every Muppet extant. Prior to the day-long filming of the shot, Henson gave the enthusiastic participants a lesson in the art of cinematic puppetry. Amazingly, it did take just one day." The Muppet Show Fan Club newsletter answered the question of "How did they do it?" They response was "There are two hundred fifty puppets in the last shot of the film, and they're all moving. How? One hundred fifty puppeteers in a six foot deep, seventeen foot wide pit, that's how. They were recruited through the Los Angeles Guild of The Puppeteers of America and almost every puppeteer west of the Rockies reported for pit duty."

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Goofs

The Ford Woody Wagon the Muppets all travel in alternates colors between blue and brown.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Statler: I'm Statler.
Waldorf: I'm Waldorf. We're here to heckle "The Muppet Movie".
Gate Guard: Gentlemen, that's straight ahead. Private screening room D.
Statler: Private screening?
Waldorf: Yeah, they're afraid to show it in public.
[they laugh as their car proceeds forward]

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Crazy Credits

Over first few credits, Sweetums bursts out of the screen, followed by many Muppet gags

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Alternate Versions

The longer 97 minute version, as originally released in theaters (in England at least) and released on video in England in the 80s, contains the following extended scenes:

• Extended shots of Kermit entering the bar where Fozzie is performing, after the James Coburn cameo.
• More of Fozzie being heckled in the bar. He honks a horn which falls apart. "This is not my night."
• Extra shots as Doc Hopper and Max watch Fozzie and Kermit dance in the bar. A little bit more dancing and more of the crowd manhandling Kermit and Fozzie.
• An extended commercial for Doc Hopper's Frog Legs. More of Doc Hopper asking Kermit to be his spokesman.
• Extra Fozzie in "Moving right along." "A bear in his natural habitat - a Studebaker."
• Even more Doc Hopper trying to convince Kermit. "Shut up, Max!"
• In the church, an extended recap of the entire movie by Dr. Teeth - we see shots from previous scenes. It's not clear if this was actually in the version which screened in theaters, or if it was added for the video version, as the laserdisc version seems to have been edited on video.
• Doc Hopper and Max chase Kermit and Fozzie. Max asks what his cut of a million is. A whole extra car chase scene of Max trying to catch up to Fozzie and Kermit, and failing.
• An alternate musical arrangement on Never Before, Never Again.
• Great extended version of Rowlf and Kermit dueting on "I Hope That Something Better Comes Along," with about two or three more verses. "A laddy needs a lassie." "Come father's day, the litterbug's gonna get ya."
• Extra shot of Giant Animal laughing at the bad guys (possibly deleted because Animal's fingers were thought to look unconvincing - just a guess from me).
• Extra reaction shots in Orson Welles scene.
• A lot more explosion and set destruction footage when Crazy Harry blows up the set at the end, before "Life's like a movie." Seems like padding really. It's set to circus-y music.
• Extended and alternate ending in the movie theater - Sweetums says "I just knew I'd catch up to you guys." All Muppets talk and say funny things over ending credits. Robin says Kermit is a great actor. Fozzie wants to hear that he was funny in the movie, but no one will tell him that except Kermit. Muppets are in character for the entire credits. Music is also different in this section.

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Connections

Referenced in Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006)

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Soundtracks

America The Beautiful
Written by Katharine Lee Bates (uncredited) and Samuel A. Ward (uncredited)
[Incorrectly credited as Traditional]
Arranged by Ian Freebairn-Smith
Performed by Frank Oz

User Reviews

A Witty and Clever Movie For "Kids" Of Any Age.

There's just something pleasantly memorable about a little green frog singing and playing a banjo in the middle of a swamp. The opening scene is a wonderful introduction for this truly excellent film.

My favorite of the Muppet movies, this has excellent songs, some truly funny running gags and one-liners (and some that are absolute "groaners", but they're still deserving of a chuckle.), and a fun group of Muppets and celebrity cameos. Jim Henson is, and always will be, the definitive voice of Kermit. The film itself is very gentle in tone without getting too syrupy, and truly entertains all the way through.

With all of the "quality" children's programming that comes out these days, I can't help but wonder why more "family" films aren't actually made for the entire family like this film was. This is a real keeper, although it seems a little hard to find at times in the stores.