SNL Muppet Appearances!

As most fans know, before heading off to make The Muppet Show, Jim Henson's Muppets were featured on Saturday Night Live's first season.

New characters were created for a series sketches called The Land of Gorch. While those characters wouldn't be used again, The Muppet Show and Sesame Street Muppets have made sporadic appearances on SNL since. 

Below are a few:

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Jason Segel and the Muppets Monologue:

  

SNL50: The Anniversary Special airs Sunday at 8pm EST on NBC.

NBC to Re-Air SNL's First Episode with The Muppets!

As part of SNL's 50th Anniversary Celebration, NBC will air the show's very first episode. 

The episode was hosted by comedian George Carlin with musical guests Billy Preston and Janis Ian.

As we know, SNL made stars of John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, Garrett Morris, Laraine Newman,  as well as future Muppet Show guest Gilda Radner, Chevy Chase who made a cameo in Follow That Bird, and Andy Kaufman, who's alter ego Tony Clifton appeared in The Fantastic Miss Piggy Show. 

The Muppets were also part of the SNL's first season in the recurring The Land of Gorch sketches, which the SNL writers famously hated to work on. Sadly, while the sketch wouldn't last beyond the first season, during their time at SNL, the Muppets got a deal for their own show. 

 
You can watch SNL's first episode, featuring The Land of Gorch Saturday, February 15 at 10PM on NBC.

Be sure to watch NBC's 3-hour SNL50: The Anniversary Special the following evening to see if the Muppets return to studio 8H!

"Saturday Night" Trailer!

Yesterday, we got our first look at as Nicholas Braun as Jim Henson in Jason Reitman's upcoming film Saturday Night, and today the first trailer including Braun's Henson.

You can watch the trailer below:

Saturday Night will be released October 11. 

"Saturday Night" First Look: Nicholas Braun as Jim Henson!

Saturday Night, Jason Reitman's upcoming film about the premiere of Saturday Night Live, is a only  few months away and Vanity Fair has a first look at the cast and scenes from the film. 

Of note to us Muppet fans is an image of Nicholas Braun playing Jim Henson, "who isn’t sure his kind of puppetry is the right fit for SNL. "  Braun also plays Any Kaufman in the film. 

You'll note a puppet of King Ploobus from the Land of Gorch sketches next to him. It looks like a recreation of the puppet (the original is currently on display at he Museum of the Moving Image). I'm sure we'll find out soon if the Henson company made it and if the other Gorch characters appear. 

The Original King Ploobus

In the Vanity Fair interview. Reitman says “What was so unusual about this show (SNL) was not only that it was live, but the format was unlike anything anyone had ever seen before. You had sketch comedy, you had two musical guests, you had a live band, you had stand-up comedians, you had Andy Kaufman, you had the Muppets, you had a film by Albert Brooks….”

And we'll see it all unfold in real time when Saturday Night is released this fall. 

Thanks to Lorna Mitchell for the heads up. 

Zoey "Sings" while SNL Heckles The Muppets!

A couple of NBC series showed some major Muppet love over the weekend. 

As most Muppet fans have seen my now Saturday Night Live's hand crafted Muppet Show skit blew up the internet thanks in part to media outlets like Variety claiming the puppets were the "actual Muppets."

If you’re one of the only people in the world who has not seen the clip, here it is below.
Spoiler Alert: Those are NOT the actual Muppets. 

However, there was another series that managed to shout the world of Jim Henson without having to punch any geriatric hecklers in the process. 

Zoe‘s Extraordinary Playlist started it’s season finale with one of Sesame Street's most famous songs “Sing."

For some reason the full video is not on the show's official YouTube page yet, but her are a few clips:

Below is the cast’s full version: