GGB Reno’s VIRTUAL Muppets March Meetup!
It’s time for the most sensational, inspirational, celebrational, muppetational…This is what we call our VIRTUAL MUPPETS BRUNCH!
In this time of international lockdown, with our members unable to go out and socialize in person, GGB Reno opted to attempt a “virtual brunch” in place of our scheduled “Muppets March” event. The different format had some ups and downs – Google Hangouts only allowed for 10 attendees, and we couldn’t have our traditionally endless number of tangential conversations, but attendees were able to instantly share links to videos and articles with the group – but overall it was a resounding success. We are already planning our virtual April brunch!
We maxed out with our 10 attendees, and Chelsea started us off, pointing out that Muppets Treasure Island contains one of the most appropriate lockdown songs of all time – Cabin Fever. She also educated all of us with some fascinating Star Trek/Muppets trivia – Gates McFadden was a choreographer on Labyrinth!
Piquing everyone’s interest Aja recommended the Jim Henson docuseries on Defunctland’s YouTube channel, which many of us hadn’t even heard of! She was also a huge fan of Bear in the Big Blue House.
Amy used to watch The Muppet Show with her family. She also got to see a fabulous Jim Henson exhibit at the Seattle Museum of Pop Culture – then we discovered that there is a permanent exhibit full of Jim Henson creations at the Museum of Puppetry Arts in Atlanta, GA! Side note – the museum has a variety of online digital offerings to enjoy during the lockdown. Click the link above to check it out!
Danielle considers The Muppets and Jim Henson to be a huge influence on her life. Her favorites include Follow that Bird and The Muppets Take Manhattan. She loves the lessons of acceptance and empathy taught in both The Muppets and Sesame Street, the cameos, and the songs! Her favorite characters are Ernie and Bert.
Julie’s favorite Muppets are Statler and Waldorf. She pointed out how influence of The Muppets can be seen in so many places you don’t even expect, like “Rubber Duckie” song in Three Men and a Little Lady and cameos on The West Wing! Julie was also able to get input from her mom over text, a fellow Geek Girl member too – Beth’s favorite muppet of all time is Sweetums, and especially loves this song featuring Ruth Buzzi!
Kayla couldn’t believe she was the first person to bring up Fraggle Rock! She remembers laughing hysterically at the episode with the exploding tongue joke. Making everyone jealous, she used to work at DisneyWorld, and loved MuppetVision 3D.
Nuriko and Ami (sharing a cam) are both MASSIVE Jim Henson fans. Nuriko told us how they used to have a mix tape in their car full of Henson songs, and said one of her faves is “Waiting at the Church.” Her favorite character is Gonzo! And while she’s still bitter that Disney hasn’t released the full run of The Muppet Show yet, she really loves the new Muppet Babies cartoon.
Ami loves literally everything Jim Henson with the SINGLE STRONG exception of Muppets in Space. She insists that Henson’s impact on society cannot be understated, given Sesame Street’s status as the flagship for PBS and young children’s education, and especially for inner city kids. She loves The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, calling out this phenomenally meta scene – puppets doing puppetry!
Stephanie actually wrote a paper in 9th grade, comparing Romeo and Juliet to The Muppets. We were all terribly disappointed that she no longer had a copy! Her love of The Muppets is grounded in her fiance’s tradition of watching The Muppets Christmas Carol over the holidays. And we can all thank her for bringing our attention to this – Swedish Chef vs. Gordon Ramsey!
Vanessa, Danielle’s sister, also grew up with SO much Jim Henson in her life. She loves The Dark Crystal (but has no love for Labyrinth!). She’s also a huge fan of another, more adult Henson productions, Farscape. And her fondness for the new Muppets movies is firmly rooted in her love Flight of the Conchords’ Bret McKenzie, who wrote the songs for both films.
Other mentions worth note included these gems:
- No one remembers The Muppet Musicians of Bremen!
- The Grouch Anthem from Follow the Bird is possibly the most relatable song ever
- Sesame Street parodies are on point
- No one should go their whole life without watching this parody video of The Count “I Love to [Bleep]”
- Don’t forget Kermit’s Swamp Years!
- And Jim Henson’s The Storyteller!
Reno’s officers had intended this to be a test to gauge interest and functionality, and we were overjoyed that it turned into a fun, informational, and truly successful brunch/meetup! We’ll be back for April with more socializing at a distance!