1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:01,960 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of I 2 00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:12,520 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hello and welcome to This Day in History Class, 3 00:00:12,920 --> 00:00:15,760 Speaker 1: a show for those interested in the big and small 4 00:00:16,040 --> 00:00:20,160 Speaker 1: moments of history. My name is Gabe Luisier, and just 5 00:00:20,239 --> 00:00:22,840 Speaker 1: to put this on front street, I am a big 6 00:00:22,840 --> 00:00:27,400 Speaker 1: old nerd. I love cartoons and toys and variety shows 7 00:00:27,440 --> 00:00:31,360 Speaker 1: where puppets tell corny jokes. So be warned. I'm gonna 8 00:00:31,480 --> 00:00:34,239 Speaker 1: lean into that from time to time, and today is 9 00:00:34,280 --> 00:00:38,400 Speaker 1: one of those occasions. Yes, it's time to play the music, 10 00:00:38,920 --> 00:00:42,640 Speaker 1: it's time to light the lights, it's time to listen 11 00:00:42,680 --> 00:00:52,239 Speaker 1: to me geek out about the Muppet Show tonight. The 12 00:00:52,360 --> 00:00:58,880 Speaker 1: day was Sunday, September nineteen seventy six. The Muppet Show, 13 00:00:59,200 --> 00:01:03,200 Speaker 1: created by a American puppeteer and filmmaker Jim Henson, made 14 00:01:03,240 --> 00:01:06,440 Speaker 1: its world premiere on I t V stations throughout the 15 00:01:06,520 --> 00:01:11,160 Speaker 1: United Kingdom. Taking the form of a Vaudeville inspired variety 16 00:01:11,240 --> 00:01:15,800 Speaker 1: show complete with comedic sketches and musical performances, The show 17 00:01:15,880 --> 00:01:21,360 Speaker 1: introduced audiences to future pop culture icons like Kermit the Frog, Gonzo, 18 00:01:21,520 --> 00:01:26,160 Speaker 1: Miss Piggy, Fozzy Bear, and the Sweetish Chef. Prior to 19 00:01:26,200 --> 00:01:30,120 Speaker 1: the show's debut, Henson had made two TV specials featuring 20 00:01:30,120 --> 00:01:34,600 Speaker 1: the Muppets characters for the American Broadcasting Company where ABC. 21 00:01:35,560 --> 00:01:39,800 Speaker 1: The first special, titled The Muppets Valentine Show, aired in 22 00:01:39,920 --> 00:01:44,000 Speaker 1: nineteen seventy four and featured sketches riffing on romance and 23 00:01:44,040 --> 00:01:47,680 Speaker 1: the idea of true love. The second special was an 24 00:01:47,760 --> 00:01:50,440 Speaker 1: edgi or affair and was given the tongue in cheek 25 00:01:50,520 --> 00:01:54,920 Speaker 1: title The Muppet Show Sex and Violence. It aired in 26 00:01:55,040 --> 00:01:59,520 Speaker 1: nineteen and used sketches based on the Seven Deadly Sins 27 00:02:00,040 --> 00:02:04,640 Speaker 1: is a way to parody the vulgarity of contemporary TV. However, 28 00:02:05,240 --> 00:02:09,280 Speaker 1: neither special was well received, prompting ABC and the other 29 00:02:09,320 --> 00:02:12,799 Speaker 1: American networks to pass on producing The Muppet Show as 30 00:02:12,800 --> 00:02:17,679 Speaker 1: a regular series. Undeterred, Henson took the project abroad to 31 00:02:17,800 --> 00:02:21,840 Speaker 1: British television. The show's success during its initial two weeks 32 00:02:21,840 --> 00:02:25,160 Speaker 1: on the air led US networks to rethink their decision, 33 00:02:25,520 --> 00:02:29,280 Speaker 1: and on September twenty the show began airing in syndication 34 00:02:29,400 --> 00:02:33,440 Speaker 1: on CBS stations. The first episode to air in the 35 00:02:33,560 --> 00:02:37,840 Speaker 1: UK featured guest host Joel Gray, an actor and singer 36 00:02:37,960 --> 00:02:40,840 Speaker 1: best known for his role as the Master of Ceremonies 37 00:02:41,000 --> 00:02:45,239 Speaker 1: in both the Broadway and film productions of the musical Cabaret. 38 00:02:46,240 --> 00:02:49,640 Speaker 1: For the US premiere episode, the guest host was fellow 39 00:02:49,760 --> 00:02:52,919 Speaker 1: musical star Rita Moreno, who would go on to win 40 00:02:53,000 --> 00:02:56,160 Speaker 1: an Emmy for her appearance on the show. Each of 41 00:02:56,200 --> 00:02:59,440 Speaker 1: the one hundred and twenty episodes of The Muppet Shows 42 00:02:59,520 --> 00:03:04,160 Speaker 1: five season run featured a different celebrity host. To make 43 00:03:04,240 --> 00:03:07,080 Speaker 1: the most of their one and only appearance on the show, 44 00:03:07,520 --> 00:03:10,639 Speaker 1: guests would frequently request to appear in scenes with their 45 00:03:10,680 --> 00:03:14,520 Speaker 1: favorite Muppet ms Piggy was said to be the most requested, 46 00:03:14,800 --> 00:03:17,680 Speaker 1: but Animal, the drummer for the Muppets house Band, was 47 00:03:17,720 --> 00:03:21,400 Speaker 1: a close runner up. Some of the most memorable hosts 48 00:03:21,400 --> 00:03:25,519 Speaker 1: to grace the Muppet Theater include Julie Andrews, Johnny Cash, 49 00:03:25,919 --> 00:03:31,120 Speaker 1: Vincent Price, Bernadette Peters, Monty Python Star John Clice, and 50 00:03:31,320 --> 00:03:35,839 Speaker 1: Sir Elton john. Although the show's live act premise made 51 00:03:35,880 --> 00:03:39,120 Speaker 1: it seem like it was filmed before a full studio audience, 52 00:03:39,560 --> 00:03:43,160 Speaker 1: the lengthy production time for each sequence made that impossible 53 00:03:43,760 --> 00:03:46,800 Speaker 1: to preserve the illusion, though a laugh track was added. 54 00:03:47,400 --> 00:03:50,520 Speaker 1: Henson was not a fan of the convention, but conceded 55 00:03:50,560 --> 00:03:53,240 Speaker 1: that it did help the flow of the show. His 56 00:03:53,400 --> 00:03:56,880 Speaker 1: compromise was to occasionally poke fun at the laugh track, 57 00:03:57,280 --> 00:04:00,160 Speaker 1: like in season one when Kermit says that it's up 58 00:04:00,240 --> 00:04:02,800 Speaker 1: to the laugh track whether the show is funny or not. 59 00:04:03,840 --> 00:04:07,160 Speaker 1: The Muppet Show provided breakout roles for its zany cast 60 00:04:07,240 --> 00:04:10,320 Speaker 1: of characters, but for some of them, it wasn't their 61 00:04:10,320 --> 00:04:15,040 Speaker 1: first appearance. Two decades earlier, in nineteen fifty five, Jim 62 00:04:15,080 --> 00:04:17,919 Speaker 1: Henson created the Muppets for a five minute TV show 63 00:04:17,960 --> 00:04:21,320 Speaker 1: called Sam and Friends. It was aired twice a day 64 00:04:21,480 --> 00:04:24,760 Speaker 1: for six years on an NBC station in Washington, d C. 65 00:04:25,760 --> 00:04:29,599 Speaker 1: The show's star, Sam was a humanoid puppet who never 66 00:04:29,640 --> 00:04:33,760 Speaker 1: achieved lasting fame. But Kermit, a friend of Sam, was 67 00:04:33,800 --> 00:04:37,080 Speaker 1: a different story. Made from ping pong balls and an 68 00:04:37,120 --> 00:04:41,080 Speaker 1: old coat donated by Henson's mother, Kermit was not yet 69 00:04:41,080 --> 00:04:45,160 Speaker 1: a frog, but an abstract lizard like creature who lacked 70 00:04:45,200 --> 00:04:49,520 Speaker 1: his trademark flippers and pointy collar. When Sam and Friends 71 00:04:49,560 --> 00:04:53,919 Speaker 1: ceased production, Henson's Muppets began making regular appearances on The 72 00:04:53,960 --> 00:04:56,760 Speaker 1: Today Show and on late night talk shows like The 73 00:04:56,880 --> 00:05:01,120 Speaker 1: Ed Sullivan Show. In nineteen sixty nine, Kermit and a 74 00:05:01,160 --> 00:05:04,640 Speaker 1: group of new Muppets characters joined the first season cast 75 00:05:04,880 --> 00:05:09,200 Speaker 1: of a children's show called Sesame Street as a career move. 76 00:05:09,520 --> 00:05:12,599 Speaker 1: Working on the project seemed like a no brainer, yet 77 00:05:12,640 --> 00:05:16,039 Speaker 1: Henson was reluctant to take the job. Speaking to a 78 00:05:16,120 --> 00:05:20,520 Speaker 1: reporter that year, he explained his hesitation, saying, what I'm 79 00:05:20,560 --> 00:05:24,760 Speaker 1: against is people thinking that puppets are exclusively for children. 80 00:05:25,200 --> 00:05:29,840 Speaker 1: We've directed our work mostly towards adults, and historically puppets 81 00:05:29,839 --> 00:05:33,839 Speaker 1: have often been for adults. It's only fairly recently that 82 00:05:33,920 --> 00:05:37,919 Speaker 1: puppets have been pushed into strictly children's areas. As a 83 00:05:38,000 --> 00:05:43,400 Speaker 1: theater form, puppetry can do virtually anything. Thankfully, for fans 84 00:05:43,440 --> 00:05:46,520 Speaker 1: of Big Bird and Friends, the show's co creator Joan 85 00:05:46,600 --> 00:05:50,240 Speaker 1: Ganz Cooney was able to win over Jim Henson. She 86 00:05:50,400 --> 00:05:53,479 Speaker 1: pointed out that if Sesame Street did well, he'd be 87 00:05:53,560 --> 00:05:56,919 Speaker 1: able to leverage that success and secure funding for his 88 00:05:56,960 --> 00:06:01,320 Speaker 1: own projects. She told him, trust me, Jim, it's just 89 00:06:01,480 --> 00:06:04,560 Speaker 1: around the corner. You're not going to be stuck in 90 00:06:04,720 --> 00:06:10,280 Speaker 1: Little Kitty Entertainment. In time, Cooney was proven right. Less 91 00:06:10,279 --> 00:06:14,000 Speaker 1: than a decade after Sesame Street premiered, Henson was able 92 00:06:14,040 --> 00:06:17,919 Speaker 1: to launch his own, more subversive project, something we know 93 00:06:18,040 --> 00:06:23,159 Speaker 1: today as The Muppet Show. I'm Gabelusier and hopefully you 94 00:06:23,240 --> 00:06:26,680 Speaker 1: now know a little more about history today than you 95 00:06:26,720 --> 00:06:31,360 Speaker 1: did yesterday. If you'd like, you can follow us on Twitter, Facebook, 96 00:06:31,400 --> 00:06:35,600 Speaker 1: and Instagram at t d I HC podcast and if 97 00:06:35,640 --> 00:06:38,440 Speaker 1: you have any comments or suggestions, or you want to 98 00:06:38,440 --> 00:06:41,400 Speaker 1: tell me your favorite muppet, let me know at this 99 00:06:41,520 --> 00:06:45,520 Speaker 1: Day at i heart media dot com. Thanks to Chandler 100 00:06:45,600 --> 00:06:48,279 Speaker 1: May's for producing the show, and thank you for listening. 101 00:06:48,720 --> 00:06:51,400 Speaker 1: I'll see you back here again tomorrow for another Day 102 00:06:51,640 --> 00:07:00,000 Speaker 1: in History class. For more podcasts from my Heart Radio, 103 00:07:00,160 --> 00:07:02,800 Speaker 1: visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you 104 00:07:02,839 --> 00:07:03,960 Speaker 1: listen to your favorite shows.