Hi-Ho! Wocka Wocka! I thought I would use my first post to introduce myself and share a little bit about myself and my love for the Muppets. My name is Jordan Harff and I am a 22-year old college student currently pursuing my Bachelor’s in film and video, already having an Associate’s in journalism. I live in Long Island, New York and have lived here my whole life. I’m the oldest of 4 kids and we all have been, at some point, involved in Community Theater as actors, while I have also had the fortunate opportunities of being able to be a director and stage manager of musicals a few times in the past. Since before I was born, my father has been a children’s pastor, and through this I was exposed at an early age to a gift he possessed since college: puppetry.
I remember, even as a little kid, having puppets around the house. Watching my dad practice funny voices and characters was the norm. Later in life I realized how much I can relate to Jim Henson’s children now. My mom has often shared about how I, even as young as 2 years old, would empty out my large toy box, climb inside and turn it into a puppet stage, holding up stuffed toys and simple hand puppets and putting on a performance like my dad would do to minister to children. Around the age of 4 or 5, my dad allowed me and my sister to have two of his puppets: an orange skinned man with bright neon yellow hair and a red nose became Howey for me and my sister’s puppet was Lucy, a female puppet with human skin color and the same bright neon yellow hair on her head. At such a young age, having a puppet like that in my hand was like possessing a Green Lantern ring or Dorothy’s ruby slippers. It was the greatest gift I could ever ask for and it was the tool I needed to become a real puppeteer.
From a young age, I was immediately drawn to Sesame Street. As much as I loved my sister and she was, and still is, my best friend, my mom still tells me to do this day that my best friend as a little kid was Elmo. I used to carry an Elmo stuffed toy with me everywhere and made him apart of the family by calling him “Elmo Harff”. If we went to church, I’d insist my mom put one of my ties on Elmo Harff, and she always supported me with any of my seemingly wacky ideas. As important as trips to Disney World and Disneyland were, visiting Sesame Place every summer when I was young was always a requirement as my love for Sesame Street just exploded once I visited that park. I can remember when Sesame Street had a promotion in which small little stuffed toys could be found in cereal boxes and for months my parents and grandparents bought only that brand and as many varieties as they could to ensure my sister and I could collect as many of those characters as possible. A trip to Costco or Wal-Mart was never complete unless we came home with a new Sesame Street video. I even remember having rare videos such as Basil Hears a Noise in which Elmo was the only familiar character and had a very small role in the video. Both my home and my Grandparents’ home were filled with Sesame Street videos and toys and my family always supported my love for the show and its characters.
Once I grew out of the Sesame Street phase, there was a gap of time where I needed to find my “new obsession”. I remember being aware of who Kermit the Frog is but how I caught onto the Muppets and fell in love with them is really a blur to me. All I remember is walking into a Toys R Us one day with my family and getting to pick something out for graduation and finding two action figures I just immediately latched on to: the Palisade Toys figures of Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy. Then I was able to find a copy of The Best of the Muppet Show DVD series with episodes featuring Elton John, Julie Andrews and Gene Kelly and I was able to see these “toys in action”. Through that time, my grandparents and parents would purchase more Muppet figures on Amazon and Toys R Us for every holiday and “rewards for good grades”. Instead of choosing another Scooby-Doo or SpongeBob video at Blockbuster, I now found myself picking up copies of The Muppet Movie, eventually owning my own copies of Muppet Treasure Island and The Muppets Take Manhattan. As time has gone on I’ve introduced myself to Fraggle Rock and, even as a young adult, find myself watching Sesame Street videos along as well as documentaries and older TV specials about Jim Henson and the Muppets.
Now, I know it’s not the most liked or appreciated project the Muppets have worked on, but The Muppets Wizard of Oz will forever hold a special place in my heart. Being a teenager into characters that were sometimes looked upon as “old school”, that TV movie was the first big Muppet project I was personally able to watch unfold. I remember reading Muppet Central articles when the film was first announced and being confused as to why Rowlf the Dog wasn’t Toto or why Queen Latifah’s Aunt Em was owning a karaoke diner. While back then I fell in love with the movie, and it reintroduced me to the Wizard of Oz franchise, I can now see why it doesn’t get much love from the Muppet fan community. But it’ll always be a special part of my story getting involved in the Muppet community.
Why do we love the Muppets? It’s something I began thinking about before writing this post and it really got me asking myself what the Muppets mean to me. The first time I visited Muppet Vision 3D as a fan was the first time I was able to decide who my favorite Muppets are: Kermit the Frog, Gonzo and Rizzo the Rat. I think almost every Muppet fan feels obligated to list Kermit as their favorite, but for me he’s more than just the ringleader. Kermit doesn’t give up, and even when he does, he always holds on to one glimmer of hope. Even in the 2011 movie The Muppets, while he has distanced himself from his friends over the years, he’s still holding on to hope that they’ll one day be together, even displaying his friends in giant picture frames around his home. Kermit’s purpose in life is to bring joy and laughter to people. As Kermit has said several times over the years, his dream is to make people happy and make the world a little brighter, mirroring something Jim Henson has often been quoted saying. As far as my love for Gonzo and Rizzo, I’ve always preferred seeing them together than apart. For me, while the Muppets have always represented strong friendships like Kermit and Fozzie, Bert and Ernie and Elmo and Zoe, these two represent polar opposites who attract because they sincerely care for one another.
Whenever I think of my first trip to Muppet Vision 3D, Rizzo’s appearance as Mickey Mouse is always what I remember being the reason why I fell in love with these characters. And it doesn’t help that Rizzo comes from New York with that accent of his and so do I! For me, I love the Muppets because they represent so many things: friendship, loyalty, humor, music, courage and truth. They stick together through thick and thin and, despite their friendships being tested numerous times, they are always there for one another. Their humor is contagious and, even when they get wacky, they still respect one another as performers and true artists in their crafts. Deep down, I even think Miss Piggy respects her fellow Muppets, despite finding many of them to be weirdos and pests. Deep down I think she knows she needs them just as much as they need her. I went through a tough time in my life a few years ago and just being able to watch the movies and The Muppet Show and think about their friendship, it helped me get through it, knowing even if I felt lonely, I never was. I think we all saw a bit of ourselves in the character of Gary in the 2011 Muppets film. We all wished we could live in a world with the Muppets, maybe even have a chance to live with one as a best friend. And being that I come from a background in musical theater, I of course appreciate their love for music and performance.
Enough about me. It’s time for you to think about this for yourself. Why do we love the Muppets? Why do we latch on to some characters over others? With the new TV show only a few days away, the Muppets are truly back on a global spotlight and we as loyal Muppet fans aren’t now seen as the “weirdos” who are obsessed with characters from an old TV show. We each have a story for how we were introduced to the world of the Muppets and we each have the opportunity now to share these stories with our family and friends. I know on September 22, I’ll be sitting in front of my TV screen with my family around me, having supported my love and appreciation for these characters since day one. We love these characters and we’ve been dreaming of new movies and TV shows for years now, wanting these characters to get the respect and representation they deserve. And I hope you’ll all be doing the same because that one line in “Rainbow Connection” could very well be referencing all of us: “The lovers, the dreamers and me”.
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