I’m an independent filmmaker and puppeteer in Toronto, Canada who blogs about puppetry and film.
This is a fun segment that recently aired on Sesame Street featuring Elmo and Katy Perry (who’s apparently a Muppet fan). In it Katy sings a re-worked version of her hit “Hot `N’ Cold” while chasing Elmo around and playing tag. It’s a very cute and all (there’s even a don’t-blink-or-you’ll-miss-it cameo by Oscar the...
Ernie and Cookie Monster explain what a Ponzi Scheme is with a little help from The Jimmy Kimmel Show. Last week Jimmy Kimmel ran a hilarious segment that remixed clips from Sesame Street so Ernie and Cookie Monster could explain the Bernie Madoff Ponzi Scheme. I wonder, does this mean that the YouTube Muppet Mashup...
Ricky Gervais meets Elmo and (of course) hilarity ensues. This has been circulating around the web for awhile now (I shared it on Twitter earlier in the week)…outtakes from a shoot Ricky Gervais recently did for a guest appearance on Sesame Street. Gervais hits the ground running with Elmo, musing about being the only one...
Sesame Street at 40: A Night of Celebration and Discovery with the Legendary Cast was held last Friday at at William Paterson University in New Jersey. As I type this I’m bedridden with what’s probably pneumonia, so I don’t know how much I’ll be updating the blog this week. Something that I did want to...
Street Gang author Michael Davis (left) with puppeteer Caroll Spinney. Tough Pigs has posted part one of a two part interview with Street Gang author Michael Davis (see previous post). If you have an interest in Sesame Street and haven’t read Street Gang yet, I really have to recommend picking up a copy. It’s a...
Elmo and bunch of other Sesame Street Muppets make a special appearance on Scrubs tomorrow night. Sesame Street is coming to Scrubs. A special episode of the ABC sitcom featuring guest appearances by Sesame Street’s Muppets airs tomorrow night, January 27th. According to ABC, the plot of the episode revolves around Scrubs’ J.D. “learning the...
You can learn a lot about puppetry watching classic Ernie and Bert videos. Last week Tom pointed to a classic Sesame Street segment as an example of what to do with a puppet when you have no lines. As he points out, pay close attention to the puppets’ eye line, the positioning of their heads...
Street Gang, a comprehensive new history of Sesame Street written by Michael Davis was released just a few days ago. I haven’t had a chance to read it just yet, but Joe Hennes has posted a Street Gang review on Tough Pigs. If you’d like to sample the book for yourself, you can read a...
The Seattle Times profiled puppeteer Carroll Spinney earlier this year. This was published back in June, but I only discovered it this week and I wanted to share – a nice profile of Big Bird/Oscar the Grouch puppeteer Caroll Spinney by the Seattle Times. Oh, and in case you in missed it, here’s the Sesame...
Oscar the Grouch encourages Canadians to reduce their waste on The Hour.Oscar the Grouch was on The Hour (probably Canada’s most popular talk show) on Monday. He appeared in the show’s cold opening with host George Stroumboulopoulos to help kick off the One Million Acts of Green campaign (Oscar is the mascot for Waste Reduction...
Sesame Street sends up Law & Order with Law & Order: Special Letters Unit. I’d bet that the Sesame Street crew obviously had fun with Law & Order: Special Letters Unit. Also worth checking out: RSI: Rhyme Scene Investigation. Via...