ABC to launch reality search for new muppet
Last Updated: Wednesday, October 26, 2005 | 11:36 AM ET
CBC Arts
U.S. network ABC announced Tuesday a project entitled America's Next Muppet, in which a new member will be selected to join such beloved characters as Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy. ABC has ordered a script and five episode outlines, according to a network spokesperson.
The premise riffs off such hit reality show fare as American Idol and America's Next Top Model, where audience members or a judging panel preside over a competition and select a winner.
ABC's parent company, the Walt Disney Co., purchased the rights to the famous puppet characters in February 2004, 14 years after its initial bid fizzled following the 1990 death of Muppets creator Jim Henson at the age of 53.
Jim Henson's Muppets, seen here on new 2005 U.S. postal stamps, may be getting a new friend through a proposed ABC reality show. (CP file photo)
The sale included the right to use Muppet characters in Disney theme parks, movies, TV shows and retail products, like video games. At the time, Disney also mentioned a plan to develop new characters.
- FROM FEB. 17, 2004: Walt Disney to buy Muppets
While still in high school, Henson began creating puppets for local TV programming. His characters would eventually appear on popular programs and he worked to develop new techniques for how to shoot puppetry on TV.
Henson's greatest exposure came in the late 1960s, with the introduction of the ground-breaking PBS children's series Sesame Street, which introduced the now-iconic puppet characters Big Bird, Bert and Ernie, Oscar the Grouch and Cookie Monster.
The Muppet Show, a vaudeville-style TV variety program starring Kermit, Miss Piggy and friends like Gonzo and Fozzie Bear, aired from 1976 through 1981 and was syndicated for broadcast in more than 100 countries worldwide. During that period, Henson's characters also began expanding into film, including 1979's The Muppet Movie, 1981's The Great Muppet Caper and 1984's The Muppets Take Manhattan.
Earlier this month, Kermit – Henson's most well-known character – celebrated his 50th birthday and was celebrated in locations like Kermit, Texas, where he received a key to the city and was crowned homecoming king. In September, the U.S. Post office also issued a new series of stamps celebrating Henson, Kermit and other members of the Muppet gang.
