Elton John

The Muppet Show guest star
episode 214

Pop and rock megastar Sir Elton John (b. 1947) was the guest on The Muppet Show episode 214. On the show, he performed four of his hits: "Crocodile Rock," "Bennie and the Jets," "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" and "Don't Go Breaking My Heart."

John's flashy onstage persona partly inspired Dr. Teeth's groovy look. Michael Frith's original sketch for Dr. Teeth has the heading "Leon 'Doctor' Eltonjohn Dontshoot (the Piano Player)."

John is ranked as one of the best-selling solo artists of all time, with over 60 million albums sold worldwide. He performed and co-wrote songs for Disney's The Lion King in 1994, and won the Best Song Academy Award for "Can You Feel the Love Tonight." His 1997 re-recording of "Candle in the Wind" for Princess Diana is the world's best-selling single of all time.

He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1998.

ReferencesEdit

In his book Before You Leap, Kermit says his mother booked Elton John into the local theatre, the Bayou Bijou. While there she introduced John to the crocodile that inspired "Crocodile Rock."

When asked about their musical influences during an interview to promote The Muppets, Dr. Teeth said, "Personally speakin’ I gotta shout out to the great Dr. John, as well as the inestimable Elton John and the inextinguishable Liberace."^[1]