News Update: May 6, 2011

NEWS UPDATE: May 6, 2011

Sesame Workshop recently debuted three new animated shorts starring Grover on their YouTube channel. These shorts are meant to provide basic safety information to children such as remembering to wear a helmet, buckling your seatbelt, and looking both ways before crossing the street. The videos feature Grover in various outfits and occupations, including astronaut, airplane pilot, and safari guide. According to Sesame Workshop's official information about these videos, "Sesame Workshop has appointed Grover as the Road Safety Ambassador as part of the United Nations Decade of Action on Road Safety. In these three Public Service Announcements, Grover promotes road safety behaviors addressing seatbelt, helmet and street crossing safety. The goal is to make road safety a family priority and a shared family experience." Based on the lack of dialogue and international appeal of Grover, these videos are set to go global as part of the United Nations' goal, which is great for everyone's favorite Road Safety Ambassador Monster.

In more Grover news, a third Sesame Street video game for Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS is coming in August. Ready, Set, Grover! stars Grover, Elmo, and Abby Cadabby as they play through an exciting obstacle course filled with active movements and adventure. According to the official website for the game (which includes some awesome screenshots) the game promotes healthy life habits including physical activity, nutrition, hygiene, and rest. As with the previous two Sesame games, Ready, Set, Grover! includes an exclusive Grover Wii-Remote cover or a jumbo Grover stylus for the Nintendo DS.

In even more Grover news, he, Elmo, and Cookie Monster made quite a few live appearances at various airports around the country to promote the brand new Sesame Street DVD Elmo's Travel Songs and Games, which was released this past Tuesday. The monsters traveled to numerous Delta terminals including ones in Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, LaGuardia Airport, and Atlanta Airport. According to Sesame Street's Twitter feed, Cookie Monster was in charge of getting guests to board the plane, which went predictably poorly. "The downside of having Elmo, Grover, and Cookie here? No one is boarding the plane! We hope the flight doesn't leave without the passengers!"No word yet on if all passengers made it to where they were going. I know I would have just stayed...

The Muppets Studio actually posted something on Facebook on Wednesday, which is usually very exciting, and this time was no different. In the post, seen here, they posted the picture of Jason Segel with the Muppets from Entertainment Weekly that we've all seen a million times already. But what is notable about this post is that they also linked to two Facebook fan pages. One for Kermit the Frog and one for Miss Piggy. We're still not positive if these are official fan pages, but the fact that Muppets linked to them and currently also have them listed under their "Likes" points to them being very official. So go "like" them yourselves, Muppet fans!

Another random cameo has been announced for this fall's The Muppets, but this time it isn't a person, it's a place! The Bonanza Casino in Reno, Nevada has been revealed as a location for the new movie, specifically where Fozzie Bear will be seen performing with "The Moopets," a Muppet tribute band that Fozzie joined up with after the Muppets split. KTVN News in Reno has a scoop on the filming, but it's not known whether shots of the casino were just used to establish location or if the Muppets actually filmed inside.

And, finally, thanks to our friends over at ToughPigs and their handy-dandy countdown clock to The Muppets at the top of their home page, we now know that it is exactly 200 days until The Muppets comes to U.S. theaters! That may seem like a lot... and that's because it is. But we're getting closer and closer all the time which is ridiculously exciting.  And... that's all I have to say about that.

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier

Sesame Street Saturdays: Trailer for New Sesame Video Game

Remember awhile ago when we posted about Double Fine productions creating a brand new Sesame Street video game for the XBox Kinect called "Once Upon a Monster"? Well, we did! And now there's a wonderful official trailer for the game on Yahoo which we have the pleasure of showing to you now--yes! Right now!

Now... if that doesn't make you want to rush out and buy an XBox 360 and an XBox Kinect (or steal your friend's), I don't know what will! Who ever thought having full control of Elmo would be so much fun?

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier

News Update: February 18, 2011

NEWS UPDATE: February 18, 2011

As we reported earlier this week, Elmo, Cookie Monster, and Telly appeared on Bravo's Top Chef on Wednesday night to judge a cookie making contest. (With no tongues? No way.) The whole episode has yet to surface online--which is fine, because the Sesame Street monsters only appeared in he first half of the show--but there is a great behind-the-scenes segment on Hulu, which you can see below!



Speaking of Elmo, our good friends on the team of Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey and Muppet Mindset correspondent Chase Beecher have informed us that the film will be screening at another film festival! This time at the SXSW (South By Southwest) Festival in Austin, Texas. No word yet on if Elmo or Kevin Clash will be in attendance, but you can find all the information about screening times and locations at SXSW's website and BeingElmo.com.

More exciting news from the world of Sesame comes in the form of a brand new Sesame Street video game, via our friends at ToughPigs.com, being produced for XBox 360 and compatible with its Kinect accessory. The game is tentatively titled "Once Upon a Monster" and features Elmo and Cookie Monster in a Where the Wild Things Are like world. The Kinect allows you to play games using your whole body, so the game is designed to improve youngster's motor skills and reaction times. The game will be available this fall and we'll keep you posted as new information surfaces!

Last Sunday, a group of fantastic Jim Henson Company puppets appeared on the Grammys with Cee Lo Green and Gwyneth Paltrow performing Cee Lo's hit "(Forget) You." In case you missed our coverage of it on Valentine's Day, here's another look at the wonderful appearance!



While we're on the subject of The Jim Henson Company, exciting news has surfaced about their partnering with Guillermo Del Toro in producing a new film based on the Pinocchio story. Apparently the Henson Company is designing puppets for the film. Once again, our good friends at ToughPigs have the scoop and some exclusive, awesome looking images for us to ogle.

You didn't think we'd be done with The Jim Henson Company that quickly, did you? Good. Because Jim Henson's Fantastic World opened this past Saturday in Peoria, Illinois and will run through May 21st. And, apparently, Jane Henson will be appearing in person on February 24th! Check out all the information about the exhibit at this local newspaper's website. Also... let us know if you'll be going to see Jane Henson on the 24th, because we think our own Ryan Dosier will be there!

In our grand tradition in mentioning ToughPigs far too many times in our News Updates, we've got another ToughPigs link in the form of their fantastic coverage of ToyFair 2011. They've got tons of pictures of upcoming Sesame Street and Fraggle Rock merchandise and a video of Elmo and Cookie Monster in person at ToyFair! How cool is that? Also... before you freak out, there isn't any new Muppet merchandise presented, and we're fairly certain that this is because Disney is holding off on a big marketing push for the Muppets until ComicCon in the summer where they can showcase merchandise closer to the film's release date. But we don't really know anything for sure, so please don't quote us on that, because, really, we know nothing and we just like to talk.

But, hands down the most exciting news of the week, in my humble opinion, is the thrilling announcement that The Muppets will be preceded in theaters by a brand new Toy Story short film! The Muppets and Pixar have always had a great respect and homage paying thing with each other--in fact, Disney even put The Muppets script through the Pixar brain trust--so this is pretty much the perfect partnership. I've hardly met any Muppet fans that aren't also Toy Story fans... so this is basically the best possible situation! I for one am extremely excited for this hugely awesome pairing. Kudos, Mouse House! Gotta love that synergy.

And, finally, I have to be unprofessional for a minute and make a shout out to Sean, my best friend in the world, who said he'd actually get around to checking out my website if I made a shout out to him in a post (I know how it sounds, but he really is a good friend). So... there it is and I've probably completely lost my credibility as a professional blogger (what professional--I don't get paid) by doing this... but hey, I've got to get him to see it somehow. Oh, and so I don't get in trouble... I'll also shout out to Peter, Hannjoo, Tiffany, Sam, and Mickey too.

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier

Product Idea: Muppet Rock Band

-Muppet Rock Band: And Why Not?-

Justin Piatt - Rock Band: a great game, or the greatest game? This is the question that has plagued the inquisitive gamer since gamers first became inquisitive. (Since the question relates to a relatively new game, we can assume that this has not been long.) As I sit here playing Beatles Rock Band – or rather imagining myself playing it elsewhere since the newest game system I own is PS2 (Oh, how ancient!) – I cannot help but wonder why we have yet to see the rather obvious – nay, inspired – creation of a Rock Band entirely devoted to Muppet music. After all, the catalogue is endless (more-or-less), and could include several songs performed by, yet not originating, with the Muppets.

So why not? Why not Muppet Rock Band? Green Day has their own Rock Band; surely the Muppets deserve their turn. To the fine folks at Disney Interactive, I tell you that Muppet Rock Band could be as epic as Epic Mickey! As big as Epcot! It could surpass the popularity of apple pie and motherhood! Just imagine thousands of Muppet/Rock Band fans rocking out to “Can You Picture That?” Merrily belting out the joyous “Movin’ Right Along!” Taking on the daunting task of beating Animal in a drum battle extra feature ala Harry Belafonte and Buddy Rich! Why, no man alive could take no for an answer when playing as their favorite Muppet character through their favorite Muppet movies and favorite Muppet television shows, playing their favorite Muppet songs. It could even tie in with the new movie, giving fans a special sneak peak of the musical numbers that await them in theaters November 23, 2011.

Here are just some of the awesome songs that could be a part of Muppet Rock Band:

• "Bohemian Rhapsody"
• "Can You Picture That?" (The Muppet Movie)
• "Movin' Right Along" (The Muppet Movie)
• "The Magic Store" (The Muppet Movie)
• "You Can't Take No For an Answer" (The Muppets Take Manhattan)
• "Night Life" (The Great Muppet Caper)
• "Happiness Hotel" (The Great Muppet Caper)
• "Hey! A Movie!" (The Great Muppet Caper)
• "I'm Going to Go Back There Someday" (Muppets From Space version)
• "She Drives Me Crazy" (Kermit Unpigged)
• "Wild Thing" (Kermit Unpigged)
• "Surfin' USA" (Muppet Beach Party)
• "Fun Fun Fun" (Muppet Beach Party)
• "Six String Orchestra" (The Muppet Show)
• "Rockin' Robin" (The Muppet Show)
• "To Morrow" (The Muppet Show)
• "Blackbird" (The Muppet Show)
• "Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover" (The Muppet Show)

So, dear readers, I’ll leave you with this question...

Muppet Rock Band: a great idea, or the greatest idea?

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier

Upcoming and Now-Available Muppet Merchandise

Today on The Muppet Mindset, we take a look at some of the Muppet merchandise that has been recently released by The Muppets Studio and some great items coming in the very near future.

We begin our tour at Wal-Mart, where there is a brand new t-shirt featuring Kermit wearing brightly colored headphones. Retail cost is just $7.50 and t-shirt quality is fantastic...

Next up, Target! Where they have a fantastic men's t-shirt featuring, once again, Kermit. The shirt has an "Awesome Meter" that ranks the wearer as "Awesome" no matter who it is (which is definitely not true... but we have yet to invent a working Awesome Meter t-shirt).

Coming up after that, we head to Kohl's department store where they have Animal lounge pants (aka pants you lounge around in) (I didn't know people wore pants whilst lounging). Currently on sale for $12.00 in-store and online!

While we're at Kohl's, take a look at their great Animal face t-shirt as well, which is on sale for $10.80 in-store and online...

Coming this fall for the PS3 video game system is Little Big Planet 2, the sequel to the extremely popular Little Big Planet game. Earlier this week it was announced that there would be a retail-exclusive Gonzo costume for the main character, Sackboy. According to some articles, even more Muppet costumes will be available to download after the game is released. Here's the first look at the Gonzo costume...

Silly Bandz are an extremely popular series of shaped plastic wristbands that kids can wrap around their wrists without losing the distinctive shape after they take them off. There are numerous Disney-themed Silly Bandz series, such as Cars, Toy Story, and Disney Princesses. The latest addition is The Muppets! Starting with Series 1, which consists of Fozzie Bear, Pepe, Animal, Statler, and Waldorf, Series 2, including Gonzo, Miss Piggy, Rizzo, Swedish Chef, and Rowlf, and Series 3, including Kermit, Bunsen, Beaker, Sam Eagle, and Sweetums, all of which are set to be released in August...

DisneyStore.com is selling some Disney Parks exclusive Muppet products including the first series of Muppet-themed Kooky Pens, extremely popular collectible writing pens sold at the Disney Parks. The first series includes Kermit, Miss Piggy, and Beaker and retail for $21.95 online...

Hallmark stores are exclusively selling a talking Animal Christmas ornament for the 2010 holiday season, available now (they put these things out so soon these days). The ornament features Animal playing his drum set and, when the button is pressed, plays about a minute worth of Animal grunting and wailing on the drums (click here to hear the sound). Retail cost is $18.99 available only at Hallmark.

Keep your eyes peeled for even more Muppet stuff trickling into stores from The Muppets Studio! If you find any new Muppet merchandise in stores, be sure to let us know!












The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier

News Update: July 2, 2010

NEWS UPDATE: July 2, 2010

Warner Bros. Games, in association with Sesame Street and Sesame Workshop, announced a few weeks ago that they would be releasing video games starring the Sesame Street characters. The first game, "Cookie's Counting Carnival" stars Cookie Monster and the second, "Elmo's A-to-Zoo Adventure" stars Elmo. Each game is available on the Nintendo Wii, the Nintendo DS, and the PC. The Wii versions of the games come packaged with a special Cookie Monster or Elmo Wii-Remote cover that hides many of the buttons to make the game-play easier for young children. The intended audience for these games appears to be very young, but as more information is released perhaps we'll find something enjoyable for older fans as well.

A Muppet fan, pseudonym "Bruce Wayne," has posted a YouTube video and a Flickr album chock-full of behind-the-scenes photos from the set of The Muppet Movie. It's an amazing look behind the cameras of the incredibly ornate sets of the film. From Kermit's Swamp to Rowlf's piano bar, the photos here will not disappoint!

Everyone's favorite furry red monster, Elmo, has taken over the UK. Well... UK TV at least. For the past few days, Elmo has been co-hosting This Morning, a morning TV show in the UK. And, as the video posted on his Facebook page shows, he wreaked some hilarious havoc in London. But wait, there's more, Elmo also performed an impromptu, a capella performance of some Beyonce and Alicia Keys while being interviewed on the set. Funny... he doesn't even have a British accent!

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier