Before Elmo there was furry lovable Grover. His enthusiasm for life cannot be equalled and he remains one of my all time favourite characters from Sesame Street. He could kick Elmo’s butt in a minute.
I was always a huge fan of the original Muppet Show and it is really hard to pick just one. Statler and Waldorf also referred to as the “old guys” have always been favourites. You can add Gonzo, Floyd, and Animal to my list.
Fraggles are also Muppets as are the characters on “The Bear in the Big Blue House”. My daughter and I like this show and the otters are hilarious.
Although Animal was great, the snerfs were highly amusing, Beaker was hilarious and the Swedish Chef was fantastic, Statler and Waldorf are quite simply a stroke of genius. I give my vote to the cynical, sarcastic and dirty old men.
Sesame Street: Gotta be Bert. I always love the straight man in classic comedy duos.
Muppet Show: Way, way too many to choose from. Swedish Chef and Beaker (along with Doctor Bunsen Honeydew) top my list, as they do the lists of many other Dopers. That’s as far as the regulars go. My favorite one-shot appearances are the singing shopping cart of produce which sings “Yes, We Have No Bananas” and the guy who whacks these little fuzzballs with a hammer to produce the “Witch Doctor Song”.
From Sesame Street - the Two Headed Purple Monster (don’t know if he/they had a proper name, I never heard one). They taught about cooperation. I also like Telly and Herry monster.
From the Muppet Show, I like Rowlf and Beaker.
Sesame Street: This is tough, Cookie, Grover (esp. Super Grover!), Big Bird, Ernie, but I’ll have to say the blue guy that Grover is always helping at his various jobs. When I was a little kid, the blue guy used to talk in noises. That always cracked me up.
Other Muppets: I like the pigs that played Piggy’s brothers in Muppet Classic Theatre. I always love the dumb-as-dirt characters. They make me feel so superior.
Without a doubt; especially when he was Super Grover! As long as he didn’t get his cape caught.
I almost forgot about Beaker. Anyone else remember his rendition of Feelings? Mee-mee. Mee mee mee, mee mee. Hee hee, it makes me laugh just thinking of it. And, of course, he just looked hilarious.
M.S. Oh, man…How can I possibly choose! Animal, Beaker, Statler & Waldorf…but I think my hands down favorite is Sam the American Eagle. Much for the reason I like Graham Chapman: “Stop that! It’s silly…”
Muppet fans: You simply MUST get to Florida at least once in your lives and see MuppetVision 3D* at Walt Disney World. (This film will also be at the new Disney’s California Adventure park in Anaheim next year.) See it because:
It’s funny.
The 3-D effects are sensational.
It was Jim Henson’s last film and last performance as Kermit, The Swedish Chef, et al.
In the lobby of the Florida theater are large photos of different Muppets, including one that looks like Jim himself. A self-portrait, I guess.
One of my favorite memories is attending a lecture by Jim’s widow at the Los Angeles Public Library. She also showed the film Labyrinth and some of Jim’s short films. Did you know Jim made many of the short SS films, almost single-handedly, including the ones with claymation effects?
Jim Henson had many talents and we miss him greatly.
Haven’t seen SS in almost twenty years so I don’t know the newer muppets.
One of my favorite bits was The Count descending the stairs in his castle. At a landing he encounters a mirror. His comment: “You’re a terrible mirror! No reflection on you, of course.”
When my kids were kids, there was just about as much adult humor as kid humor.
