The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an absurdist, burlesque, and self-referential style of variety-sketch comedy. Created by Jim Henson in 1955, they are the focus of a media franchise that encompasses television, film, music, and other media associated with the characters. Originally owned by the Jim Henson Company for nearly five decades, the franchise was purchased by the Walt Disney Company in 2004.
A Muppet Family Christmas is a Christmas musical television special starring Jim Henson's Muppets. It first aired on December 16, 1987, on the ABC television network in the United States. Its teleplay was conceived by longtime Muppet writer Jerry Juhl, and directed by Peter Harris and Eric Till. This television special was filmed at 9 Channel Nine Court in Toronto, Ontario. The special features various Muppets from The Muppet Show, Sesame Street, Fraggle Rock, and Muppet Babies. It also stars Gerard Parkes as Doc from the North American wraparound segments of Fraggle Rock, and Henson as himself in a cameo appearance at the end. In the plot, the Muppets surprise Fozzie Bear's mother with a Christmas visit to her farmhouse, unaware of her planned getaway to Malibu.
Richard Hunt was an American puppeteer, best known as a Muppet performer on Sesame Street, The Muppet Show, Fraggle Rock, and other projects for The Jim Henson Company. His roles on The Muppet Show included Scooter, Statler, Janice, Beaker, and Sweetums and characters on Sesame Street include Gladys the Cow, Don Music, and Forgetful Jones.
Sesame Street... 20 Years & Still Counting is a 1989 television special celebrating the 20th Anniversary of Sesame Street. Hosted by Bill Cosby, the special aired on Friday, April 7, 1989, on NBC.
Elmo Saves Christmas is a Sesame Street Christmas musical fantasy comedy drama television special released on PBS on December 2, 1996. It was released to VHS that same year. Inspired by the 1892 short story "Christmas Every Day" by William Dean Howells, Elmo wishes for Christmas to occur every day, only to be taken to the future to learn the adverse consequences of his wish. The program was filmed in Sesame Street's usual home, the Kaufman Astoria Studios in New York City. Footage from the film It's a Wonderful Life also appears in the program and after the credits.
Elmopalooza! is a Sesame Street 30th anniversary special that aired on ABC on February 20, 1998. It was taped in the middle of the 29th season of Sesame Street, and features music video remakes of several classic songs from the show performed by celebrity guests.
CinderElmo is a 65-minute television film that aired on Fox in the United States on December 6, 1999. It was released on VHS and DVD in North America on February 29, 2000.
Noel MacNeal, sometimes credited as Noel McNeal or Edward Noel MacNeal, is an American puppeteer, actor, director and writer of children's television who has performed since the early 1980s. He was the voice and puppeteer of Bear on Bear in the Big Blue House. He also starred as Kako on Oobi, Leon MacNeal on The Puzzle Place and as Magellan on Eureeka's Castle. He is also the resident puppeteer for Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, portraying puppet characters such as "Mr. Nutterbutter".
Elmo's Christmas Countdown is a 2007 television Christmas film, featuring the characters from Sesame Street. It was first aired on December 23, 2007, on ABC and starred Ben Stiller.
Tyler Bunch, also known as H.D. Quinn, is an American puppeteer, puppet designer, director, and voice actor.
The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years is a one-hour special starring Jim Henson's Muppets. It was shot in Toronto, Ontario in 1985 and aired January 21, 1986 on CBS.
The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson is a one-hour special that aired on CBS on November 21, 1990. The program was a tribute to Muppet creator Jim Henson, who had died earlier in 1990 due to toxic shock syndrome caused by a streptococcus infection, and featured characters from The Muppet Show, Fraggle Rock, and Sesame Street.
Joseph Mazzarino is an American puppeteer, writer, director and actor. He is best known for his roles on Sesame Street as Murray Monster, Stinky the Stinkweed and other Muppets, and being Head Writer and Director on Sesame Street, winning 22 Emmy Awards for his work.
The Furchester Hotel is a puppet series that aired on CBeebies. It was the second British-American spin-off of Sesame Street that the BBC had made after Sesame Tree 6 years before. The show ran on CBeebies on 26 September 2014. The show aired in 2016 on Sprout until March 2, 2019.
Once Upon a Sesame Street Christmas is a one-hour Sesame Street Christmas special that first aired on HBO on November 25, 2016, and on November 22, 2017, on PBS. It was the franchise's first Christmas special in ten years.
Sesame Street Jam: A Musical Celebration is a television special which was first broadcast on PBS on March 6, 1994 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the educational television series Sesame Street. Its home-video version, Sesame Street: 25 Wonderful Years was released on October 29, 1993. Caroll Spinney plays Big Bird, reading the title card in a voiceover. Celebrity guests and the Muppets sing songs together.
Sesame Street: 25 Wonderful Years is the home video version of Sesame Street Jam: A Musical Celebration, a special aired on PBS during their pledge drive on March 6, 1994, that commemorates Sesame Street’s 25th anniversary in 1994. This program was originally released on October 29, 1993, under the title Sesame Street's 25th Birthday: A Musical Celebration!. 25 Wonderful Years focused on celebrity segments, many coming from segments filmed for the show's upcoming 25th season, of artists such as En Vogue and Ladysmith Black Mambazo.
Sesame Street's 50th Anniversary Celebration is a 2019 musical television special to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Sesame Street. Hosted by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, the special aired on November 9, 2019, on HBO, followed by a November 17 airing on PBS. It stars the cast and Muppets of Sesame Street, including Kermit the Frog, from the past and present. Many retired cast members and characters reunited on the street for the first time in years since their last appearances. This is the final Sesame Street special to feature long-time Muppet performer Caroll Spinney, who performed Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch for 50 years as well as the cast members Emilio Delgado and Bob McGrath, who played Luis and Bob, respectively, for 45 years.
Sesame Street: Elmo's Playdate is a 2020 television special which was produced as an extension of Sesame Workshop's Caring for Each Other initiative in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. The special follows Elmo and other Sesame Street characters having a virtual playdate, along with a few celebrity guests. HBO and WarnerMedia's parent company, AT&T, was the program's sole sponsor, with United Health Care sponsoring the PBS Kids broadcast.
The Not-Too-Late Show with Elmo is an American late-night talk show hosted by the Muppet character Elmo. It is a spin-off of Sesame Street and was developed exclusively for the HBO Max streaming service. The series, consisting of 13 episodes, debuted on HBO Max on May 27, 2020. The first three episodes were available at launch, after which new episodes were premiered weekly. Each episode runs for 15 minutes. In March 2021, the series was renewed for a second season which premiered on September 30, 2021, when the show moved to the service's Cartoonito section. However, in August 2022, the series was removed from HBO Max. The series began airing on PBS Kids on February 10, 2023.
