Thursday, November 27, 2014

Happy Thanksgiving!


Looking for a cheap way to entertain your family over the holidays? Disney put together a Muppets Most Wanted digital activity PDF set!


The set includes Kermit's Gulag Escape Maze, a coloring sheet, word search, connect the dots,  spot the difference game and more. 

You can download the PDF here

Wednesday, November 26, 2014

"Alexander and the Terrible, No Good, Very Bad Day" Home Video Release Date!

Disney has announced that Alexander and the Terrible, No Good, Very Bad Day will be released on Blu-ray Combo and DVD on February 10th, 2015.



You can pre-order it on Blu-ray and DVD from Amazon.

Tuesday, November 25, 2014

Center for Puppetry Arts Steve Whitmire's Memorabilia Auction!

Steve Whitmire, the performer of Kermit the Frog, Rizzo the Rat, Bean Bunny, Wembley Fraggle, Beaker, Ernie and many others has decided to auction off his huge collection of Muppet and Henson memorabilia.


The proceeds form "Whitmire's Wonders" will all go to the Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta, to help build the upcoming permanent Jim Henson wing.



The first auctions are now up, and bidding will be open until December 3rd. The first few lots include merchandise, crew gifts, and signed items from Muppet Treasure IslandThe Muppet Christmas Carol, The Muppets, Muppets Most Wanted and more!


Our friends at Tough Pigs talked with Steve about the auction:



Happy bidding everyone! 

PS: This is a great place start for anyone looking to get me a birthday/Christmas present LOL!

Monday, November 24, 2014

Miss Piggy Small Shoulder Bag UK!

"I love Diamonds, Paris, Shopping & Kermit" is a small Miss Piggy purse now  available in the UK. 


It measures 28cm x 20cm x 6cm and features a identification holder should you misplace it. 


Available from Amazon UK.



Friday, November 21, 2014

Animal Stainless Steel Thermos!

Remember the glory days of drinking from your Muppet thermos that came inside your Muppet lunch box? 

Well, half of those glory days are here again as Thermos has a brand new stainless steel Animal water bottle!




Available in the UK for now. 

Thursday, November 20, 2014

Throwback Thursday: 1978-1979 Avalon Catalog!

We have a very special Throwback Thursday today as we look through the 1978 - 1979 Avalon catalog!


In 1978, Avon was riding the successful wave of Sesame Street and The Muppet Show with all manner of craft toys featuring the Muppets. This catalog was given to toy dealers and stores to show off their upcoming products and hasn't been seen by the general public until now!

Keep a look out for other 1970's favorites like Ziggy, Raggedy Anne and Andy and The Amazing Spider Man too!

Be sure to click on the pictures to get a closer look!



Since this was not intended for the general public, the catalog also showcases various retail displays stores could use to entice people to buy the products.


Anyone remember Sand Art? Ah, the 1970's...











Thanks for leafing through the catalog, be sure to "dog ear" the pages that have want you want and get your orders in soon! 

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Jim Henson's The Storyteller: Witches Issue 3

Jim Henson's The Storyteller: Witches Issue 3 in now available through Amazon and your favorite local comic shop!




Paste magazine interviewed series editor Rebecca Taylor, so be sure to give it a read 

and preview the first five pages below. 




Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Funko Muppet Cupcakes Cancelled?

We haven't gotten official word yet, but Funko's Kermit and Miss Piggy Cupkake Keepsakes may become the latest entry in our "Never Made Muppets" series. 




After many product delays we received this notice from Entertainment Earth last week:
"We have been notified by the manufacturer that we will not be receiving any additional shipments of Muppets Kermit the Frog Cupcake Keepsakes Mini-Figure, (Item FU3315) and Muppets Miss Piggy Cupcake Keepsakes Series 1 Mini-Figure, (Item FU3313) because they have discontinued production of this item at this point in time."  
At this time all links to Entertainment Earth's listing come back with a "NO PRODUCT FOUND" message. 

If any were actually made it was in VERY limited quantities.

We're still waiting to hear back from Funko, but it's not looking good for these figures. 

Monday, November 17, 2014

Breaking News: DVR Alert - Miss Piggy to appear on "Michael Buble's Christmas in New York" Dec. 17 on NBC!

"Michael Buble's Christmas in New York" Special Brings Holiday Cheer to NBC, Dec. 17
He'll be joined by Barbra Streisand, Ariana Grande, Miss Piggy and The Rockettes.


[via press release from NBC]

"MICHAEL BUBLÉ'S CHRISTMAS IN NEW YORK" SPECIAL BRINGS HOLIDAY CHEER TO NBC, DEC. 17

Bublé is Joined by Barbra Streisand, Ariana Grande, Miss Piggy and The Rockettes For His Fourth Annual NBC Christmas Special

NEW YORK - Nov. 17, 2014 - Multi Grammy Award-winning singer Michael Bublé celebrates the holiday season with his fourth annual NBC Christmas special, "Michael Bublé's Christmas in New York," airing Wednesday, Dec. 17 (8 p.m. ET/PT).

Barbra Streisand, Ariana Grande, Miss Piggy and The Rockettes join Bublé for an hour-long celebration of Christmas, his favorite holiday. Song selections include festive classics such as "It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas," "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)," "All I Want For Christmas Is You" and more. Bublé will be also accompanied by his band for an "unplugged" series of songs requested by his social media followers, including "I'll Be Home For Christmas", "Cold December Night" and "Blue Christmas". The show originates from the storied Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

"I could not be more excited to celebrate the Christmas holidays in New York with such a fantastic array of talented women. I think my 4th holiday special for NBC may be the very best yet. I can't wait for everyone to see it," commented Bublé.

"Michael Bublé's Christmas in New York," is produced by Brad Lachman Productions and Bruce Allen Talent. Executive producers are Brad Lachman, Bruce Allen and Michael Bublé. The special is directed by Emmy winner Gary Halvorson and the lighting designer is Emmy winner Bob Dickinson.

In 2011, Bublé released the album "Christmas" and hosted his first NBC special, "A Michael Bublé Christmas." Bublé brought his special to his hometown of Vancouver, BC for "Michael Bublé: Home for the Holidays" in 2012 and "Michael Bublé's 3rd Annual Christmas Special" in 2013.

Michael Bublé:

Michael Bublé has had four #1 albums on the Billboard Top 200 charts, won three Grammys, had six top-10 multi-platinum albums and two platinum singles, "Home" and "Haven't Met You Yet." He has sold more than 50 million albums worldwide in the course of his extraordinary career. Currently, the Canadian superstar is on a world tour in conjunction with his "To Be Loved" album, which debuted at #1 in 20 countries and includes the Bublé-penned hit singles "It's A Beautiful Day" and "Close Your Eyes." Bublé's 2011 album, "Christmas," sold over 7 million copies, was the second bestselling CD of 2011 and continues to be a big holiday hit. "Christmas" was produced by David Foster, Bob Rock and Humberto Gatica and includes such holiday classics as "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," "The Christmas Song," "Silent Night," "White Christmas," featuring Shania Twain, "Jingle Bells," featuring the Puppini Sisters, and an original song written by Bublé, "Cold December Night."

Miss Piggy:

Born and raised on a farm, Miss Piggy enjoyed a typically happy agricultural childhood - if hunkering down in mud is your idea of a good time. Miss Piggy's luck prospered when she found frequent work as a hand model, a gig which oddly enough led to her entering the Miss Bogen Country beauty contest that changed her life forever. There she met her adored frog, Kermit. Along with her Kermie, she has starred in all eight Muppet feature films - "The Muppet Movie," "The Great Muppet Caper," "The Muppets Take Manhattan," "The Muppet Christmas Carol," "Muppet Treasure Island," "Muppets From Space," "The Muppets" and most recently "Muppets Most Wanted." Miss Piggy's memorable divine face has been seen on hundreds of television shows and she has been featured on the cover of countless magazines. Miss Piggy is also an established author, credits include "In The Kitchen with Miss Piggy," "Miss Piggy's Rules," "The Diva Code" and national best-seller "Miss Piggy's Guide to Life".


Past Muppets to appear on "Michael Buble's Christmas in New York" include Cookie Monster, Oscar, and Elmo, though Miss Piggy marks the first "Muppet Show" Muppet.
 

Fraggle Rock: "Journey to the Everspring" Issue 2!

I'm not sure how, but we completely forgot to mention that Fraggle Rock: "Journey to the Everspring" Issue 2 is now available at comic shops everywhere and Amazon!



You can take a look at the first few pages thanks to Comic Book Resources.

 

 


Friday, November 14, 2014

NY Comic Con 2014 Round Up!

Way back on October 11th, I made my way to New York City's Javitz Center for New York Comic Con. I honed my Sixth Sense and was on the hunt for Muppet stuff! 



I only had a one day Saturday pass, so I unfortunately wasn't able to attend many of the 
Henson panels and activities happening around the con. Our friends at ToughPigs, however, were able to get to most of them so be sure sure to check out their report as well. 

The day started slow with barely and Muppet in sight. I entered the hall and immediately got inline  waited in line for the chance to purchase the con exclusive Pop! Vinyl Super Grover figure. 

After an hour in line they were out of timed tickets that allowed you to come back and 
purchase the toy you wanted at a specific time while supplies lasted. After another hour in line we were informed they had already sold out. Usually you can find con exclusives at other vender's booths, but not Super Grover. He was VERY popular and the lucky few who were able to purchase him weren't giving him up.

Another popular item were these Fraggle Rock shirts from Zen Monkey Studios. I was told they even sold out of Red shirts, and had to reorder them. If you weren't able to make to the con, you get the whole set of 
Fraggle Rocks shirts for 25% off on their site.


Hallmark showed off their new Muppet CUBEEZ and the Gonzo Keepsake ornament, but nothing else we previewed back in July.





Over at the Boom/Archaia booth, Fraggle Rock: Journey to the Everspring writer Kate Leth was on hand to sign copies of her work, talk all things "Rock", and show off the variant cover created exclusively for NYCC.



On the other side of the booth, was The StoryTeller: Witches #1 writer and illustrator Shane-Michael Vidaurri as well as Brian and Wendy Froud!


Many other Muppet comic artists were over in Artist's Alley. David Petersen, Amy Mebberson, Katie Cook, James Silvani, Jay Fosgitt,  were all there as was Dave Alveraz - who was not only thrilled to talk about his work on the Muppet comic book, but told me he's a fan of blog as well!




 As usual, there was much fan art to be enjoyed throughout the show...










as well as many custom: 


contemporary:


and classic merchandise available:





And yes, that's the Labyrinth cup set we featured a last month.

There were many panels and other Muppet events over the course of the 4 day convention. Unfortunately, we only were able to attend one day, and it was the one day none of them took place. 

So until next year that's going to wrap up our coverage of NYCC!