Friday, September 30, 2016

"My Favorite Item" Celebrating The Muppet Show's 40th Anniversary - Part 2!

To celebrate The Muppet Show's 40th Anniversary we continue our look at the Muppet communities favorite Muppet Show related items.



Jarrod Fairclough (The Muppet Mindset)


My favorite bit of Muppet Show merch is these figures from. They're such strange little designs, but every single one works in its own strange little way. I have a Statler, but my life's mission is to get my hands on them all.

Nate Downs



I have to drop a quick note to say that the Muppet Show Colorforms set was my go to play thing for many years. I'd pop in a cassette of Muppet music, or throw on a Muppet record and make my own little Muppet show. When I'd get frustrated by the lack of characters, I'd drag out the Crayola Color and Play and use Scooter and the rat and chicken to add to the mayhem. 


I would have voted for the Muppet Show Comic Printer, but even as a kid my collector instinct kicked in and I barely used it because I didn't want to ruin it. :)

D.W. McKim

Probably the coolest Muppet toy ever released were The Muppets Shrinky Dinks Play Set.

For years, I loved playing along to Muppet books and records and audio recordings of The Muppet Show I'd religiously tape from the TV with my collection of hand puppets (something I'd done for as long as I can remember having first started with the Sesame Street hand puppets) - but there were only a few available characters.

But then this toy came along and it was FILLED with Muppets - even supporting and obscure ones! My very favorite, Crazy Harry, was actually included!

This was the first place I learned what Doglion and Fletcher Bird's names were!


Plus an actual Muppet Theater you could use as the setting!


The illustrations of the various Muppets were simply GORGEOUS, you got to see what they all looked like in full-body form ... and all the characters were "in scale" with each other! This became a "supplement" to my Muppet Puppet tradition - playing with the puppets were always my first choice (heck, my best friend and i would play at being "Jim Henson and Frank Oz" the same way other kids would play "Cowboys & Indians") - but when it came time to enact a scene with other characters not available in puppet form, I'd then turn to the Shrinky Dinks.

Kenny Durkin


My favorite Muppet Show related item was the Muppets Shrinky Dinks Playset. It features a cardboard diorama of the Muppet Show Theater (with backstage areas and theater boxes) and 35 Shrinky Dinks of all the classic Muppets ranging from the mighty Thog to the tiny Robin. 


It even included characters rarely featured on other merchandise like Annie Sue, Fletcher Bird, and even an alligator. A great, fun set that is worth tracking down if you can!




Editor's Note: I remember burning myself more than once while making these!

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