It’s Quite Easy Being Green

So, I broke down and went and saw The Muppets today. I was VERY skeptical with my love of Muppets. I was worried that Frank Oz was not involved. I was worried that Jason Segel was one of the writers. The early talk about the movie made it seem like it was going to be more about the people stars than the Muppets. I have to admit, my misgivings were misplaced. It was a pretty good movie. Of course, I noticed the slightest variations in the voices, but then again, when I do the voices they aren’t perfect either. I actually got a little misty at the end when they were singing The Rainbow connection.I would give a better more complete review but I don’t want to spoil it for anyone.

I think that before I die, I will have to take the same pilgrimage that Walter took. I will have to be a Muppet before I die. If anyone out there knows Frank Oz, I would do anything to meet him. That would be cool. If anyone out there has any ins with the Muppet folks, that would be cool. I think I still have a chance of being a Muppet. I don’t think the voices do as much puppetry as they old time crew did. I could be wrong, the credits just made it look different.

Anyway, it was a busy day and we have a busier day tomorrow so, have a great night all. And until next time, remember … “Keep believing, keep pretending; we’ve done just what we’ve set out to do, thanks to the lovers, the dreamers, and you!”

 

Advertisement

I Am Taking Up A Collection

Over the years, I have started to have a tough time thinking of things that I need, or even want for that matter, for Christmas. I like to feel that I am now grown up, and I feel odd asking for clothes or or things that I don’t need or want, just to ask for something. This year, I actually know what I want for Christmas. There are only a few things but unfortunately, they are larger ticket items. When this kind of list comes along in my mind, I feel a little guilty. Not too guilty of course.

This year, I have my list. It is a simple list. It was a longer list but, I took one thing off my list because now I can just use my phone for a GPS. What is left? Basically 2 things. A Banjo and a Muppet Whatnot. Strangely enough, both items are sort of related.

I want a banjo so I can learn how to play and sing “The Rainbow Connection” to Tori and her future little … (we know what we’re having but Jackie won’t let me say until she says on her Facebook page because of course nothing is official until it is on Facebook). I don’t know how to play one note on a banjo, but I think it would be fun to learn. I also want to play dueling banjos so I can go into the back of the room when Tori’s godfather is playing a show with his brother and just start playing it. It would be funny. Especially if I don’t play it that well.

The second thing, the Whatnot, is obviously Muppet related. They are semi-custom made Muppets that you can order. YES! A Muppet of my very own! They are from FAO/Toys R Us so on the website where you order them they are $100. Bummer. I really can’t see spending that much right now. I found out however, that they have not so custom ones in the FAO isle at Toys R Us for only $60!! Jackie still doesn’t think that is a wise investment. She can’t understand why I would need my own Muppet. Of course, this would all be a moot point if I already knew how to puppeteer and could just get a job as a REAL Muppet.

That brings me to the title of today’s post. I need to start to take up a collection for my banjo and my Muppet since Jackie thinks it is folly. My other option is to get a second job at lunch so that Jackie doesn’t find out I am making money to buy a Muppet. Of course, if anyone wants to contribute to my Muppetdom, I would not be opposed to that. Until then, I will have to start thinking of a new Christmas list. Maybe this is the year for underwear and socks?

Happy Birthday Jim Henson

A simple title and a simple wish to a man who touched the lives of millions and still does today. He helped put the voices in my brain. In respect to the Muppet master, I will not embed the video of me singing the Rainbow Connection yet again. (you didn’t think I wasn’t going to put it in here at all did you?)

Happy Birthday Jim Henson. We miss you.

Fame Is Tiring

Trying to be famous is pretty exhausting. This whole trying to go viral thing is a lot more work than I thought. It seems to be working though, at least a little. I got posted on Tosh.0 and there were a number of hits so …

Jackie also is now home. Tori is happy, and I will be going to sleep as soon as I hit post on this.

Until next time, sweet dreams all and keep my virus growing!

Get Me Some Salve, I Might Be Viral

Ok, so I even kinda grossed myself out with that title but it made ya wonder and read some more didn’t it? As most of you know, through my shameless plugging as self promotion, that I did a video of me singing the Rainbow Connection from the Muppet Movie. I sang it with like 10 or 12 different Muppet voices. If you haven’t see the video, you can view it HERE. Well, some people at work decided they wanted to have fun with it.

I work at an interactive advertising agency, which means we do things for the web. My video has been up on YouTube for about a year, but all of a sudden a few of them decided they wanted to do a social media experiment and use my video. They want to see what they can do to make older content go viral in a short time. They are sending it out, sharing links, will be updating tagging, yada, yada, yackity schmackity. They want to make me famous. Which in turn might get me voice over work. Which in turn would be good PR for the company. Which in turn MIGHT get everyone who made me go viral a nice raise. Maybe not that last part.

I am interested to see what happens. I have to admit it would be REALLY cool to get in the million views range. It would be even cooler to get a job as a cartoon voice, or just to do some voice over work in general. I don’t have a golden voice but I am also not living on a street corner and don’t need rehab.

So, if you want to be part of making me the next viral sensation and making me famous for all of 30 seconds per video clip show, link to the above video from anywhere you can. Post it on Facebook, Tweet the link, Digg it, StumbleUpon it, share it on whatever other sites. Share it from the bottom of this post. You even have full permission to repost this blog entry. Do whatever you have to do to make me a viral sensation. I am confident it can be done. Granted, I am not the most talented person out there, but there are a WHOLE lot of people with FAR less talent getting famous and rich for no reason. And no … I am NOT going to make a sex tape to be famous.

Stay tuned over the next few days and weeks to se how we are doing. Actually, if we succeed, you shouldn’t have to look for updates here.

Until next time, remember … “we don’t want to be happy, we want to be famous!”

That is one middle aged frog

Happy Birthday Sesame Street! Today you are officially 40. As turning the big 4-0 myself recently, I can happily celebrate the fact that you and I grew up together…literally.

That is my birthday wish to that venerable institution that introduced a nation to the lovable Muppets. It is a show that I lived by in my youth, and later the Muppet Show in my teen years … and adult years. Anyone that knows me well can tell that the Muppets had an incredible, if not somewhat disturbing effect on me. One doesn’t have to go much further than my YouTube video of me singing the Rainbow Connection to see what an impact Mr. Henson had on me. (yeah, a shameless plug to get my video more hits)

Not the long ago I happened to be home during the day for some reason and I happened across an episode of Sesame Street. Much had changed on the good old street since I had last visited. It was the same, but somehow had changed. It looked smaller for one. I am sure it was the same effect you experience when you go back to visit your old grade school. Of course everything is smaller … you are bigger! There were also a lot of new characters that I didn’t recognize or knew of slightly because of my love of Muppets.

Since I was a Sesame Street watcher in the early days, I was one of the children that grew up watching kid’s shows before the era of “political correctness”. I remember when 2 male Muppets living together didn’t mean anything other than they shared the apartment to save on rent. (Although the family guy episode with Bert and Ernie was HILARIOUS) I remember when Cookie Monster ate only cookies and smoked a pipe … which he also ate. Cookies were not a “sometimes food”. I remember when Aloysius Snuffleupagus was still only able to be seen by Big Bird. I also stopped watching long before the beloved Mr. Looper … Scooper … Hooper died.

I was surprised to see some of the original people that I grew up watching were still on the show. Gordon, Maria, Luis. It was nice. Of course in 40 years you expect to see some changes in the old hood. Children today need to be coddled much more than they did when I grew up. For some reason kids today are more fragile. They aren’t allowed to have toys that fire real missiles (loved my Battlestar Galactica Cylon ship) and have to wear 100 pounds of protective gear to climb on a jungle gym … if they can find a park that has one anymore. Once again I digress. (I shall save that rant for another blog)

Where was I? Oh yeah. Some things, of course, have changed, but one thing pretty much remains the same … Sesame Street is still around. The whole anniversary got me to thinking this last week of other shows I used to watch that were meant to educate and entertain. All of the shows are gone now. I think my favorite as I moved a little past Sesame Street was The Electric Company. HEY YOU GUYYYYYYYYYYYS! A show that had big name stars such as Rita Moreno, Bill Cosby, Morgan Freeman, Mel Brooks, Joan Rivers, Zero Mostel … and these were just a handful of RECURRING characters.

Big Blue Marble and Zoom were some others. I also watched Zoom recently and it was NOTHING like I remembered. Some things are just better to keep the memories.

None of those shows had as big an impact though. I do not go around singing the Easy Reader theme … very often … I do appreciate the references to those classics on other shows parodying them. (Mostly Family Guy). What I do however is I talk with a LOT of  cartoon type voices. My best and most requested at birthdays and Bar Mitzvahs, are the Muppet voices. I can remember, whether it is accurate or not, starting doing Muppet voices by singing “Rubber Ducky”. It wasn’t a stretch to go from that to Kermit (basically the same voice with subtle differences) and then learned to do many of the other voices. Once I got Muppets down I started moving to other cartoon voices. What did all this get me? It got me a video on YouTube but that is it so far. I think, no, I know my dream job would to be a cartoon voice. Better yet, to be a Muppeteer. I believe it is never too late in life to follow your dreams, so one day, when the economy stabilizes, and I can build myself a Muppet to practice with and learn, I may make that video of me and my Muppet and send it to Henson Studios and hope for the best.

Sesame Street shaped me into the person I am today … tall, round, and furry with many voices in my head. I know that when I have kids, I will be buying the DVDs of Sesame Street that are “for adults only” so that they can hopefully turn out as well as I did. Until next time …

 

Look! Up in the sky … It’s an egg plant …

It’s a meatball …

IT’S SUPER GROVER!!!