Changes: Kermit the Frog Through the Years

Revision as of 17:48, 12 September 2015

The evolution of the Kermit the Frog puppet. For the character's age changes, see Kermit the Frog's Alternate Ages.

Image	As seen in / Year	Notes
	Sam and Friends (1955-1965)	The original Kermit is an abstract character, and not yet a frog. His feet are rounded, and he doesn't wear his signature collar yet.
	The Ed Sullivan Show (1965-1968)	Kermit sports a red sweater as his trademark attire during this period. By 1966, Kermit's skin becomes a brighter shade of green. Also, a distinctly angular arch begins to develop on his snout. The puppet was used again in a 1971 appearance on The Dick Cavett Show performing "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face."
	Sesame Street Season 1 (1968-1970)	Kermit is now officially a frog. From this redesign, he gains a single collar with thirteen points,^[1] a more rounded body, and flippers. The position of Kermit's eyes give him an almost cross-eyed appearance.
	Sesame Street (1970-1976)	Kermit sports a double collar, although it's never visible when he wears his reporter outfit for the News Flash segments.
	The Muppet Show (1976-1978)	When The Muppet Show begins, Kermit's collar is a single layer with eleven points.^[1] A series of Kermit puppets built at the same time specifically for Sesame Street remained in use on the show until 1981.
	The Muppet Movie (1978-1981)	In 1978, the company that produced the green cloth from which Kermit was made went out of business.^[2] From The Muppet Movie onward, Kermit has been built from antron fleece, giving him a sleeker, cleaner look. This puppet would also be used for the remaining production run of The Muppet Show (starting with Episode 314) and surrounding Muppet projects of the time.
	The Great Muppet Caper (1981-1982)	The arch down the middle of Kermit's snout (held together by what's known as "the Henson stitch") is more prominent on this puppet.
	A Muppet Family Christmas (1982-1990)	This version of Kermit has more of a pointier mouth.
	The Arsenio Hall Show (1990-1996)	Kermit's skin is lighter than the previous version.
	Muppets Tonight (1996-2002)	His eyes are slightly repositioned.
	Promotional photo (2002-2005)	Kermit now has a thinner diamond-like shape for his head, with eyes pointed more inward.
	The Muppets' Fan-A-Thon (2005-present)	Kermit has a rounder body and dons a slightly thicker collar.
Alternate Kermit Puppets
	Disney's Honorary VoluntEars Cavalcade	A slightly larger "weatherproof" version of Kermit with a much sturdier collar was built for Disney's Honorary VoluntEars Cavalcade parade that ran in early 2010. The puppet was later re-used for special sing-along performances at the El Capitan Theatre, preceding screenings of The Muppets and Muppets Most Wanted.

Sources

[redbook-1] 1.0 ^1.1 Jim Henson's Red Book entry which discusses Kermit's evolution

[2] Muppet Morsels, Episode 114: Sandy Duncan

[1]

[2]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-'''The Evolution of [[Kermit the Frog]] (1955-present)'''
+The evolution of the [[Kermit the Frog]] puppet. For the character's age changes, see [[Kermit the Frog's Alternate Ages]].
 {| border=2 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=8 style="border-collapse:collapse"
 |- bgcolor=#eeeeee
-! Image !! As Seen in !! Year !! Notes
+! Image !! As seen in / Year !! Notes
 |-
+| [[Image:KermitSAF.JPG|250px|center]]
-| [[Image:KermitSAF.JPG|250px]] || ''[[Sam and Friends]]'' || 1955-1965 || The original Kermit is an abstract character, and not yet a frog. His feet are rounded, and he doesn't wear his signature collar yet.
+| align=center | ''[[Sam and Friends]]''<br />(1955-1965)
+| The original Kermit is an abstract character, and not yet a frog. His feet are rounded, and he doesn't wear his signature collar yet.
 |-
+| [[Image:KermitEdS.JPG|250px|center]]
-| [[Image:KermitEdS.JPG|250px]] || ''[[The Ed Sullivan Show]]'' || 1965-1968 || Kermit sports a red sweater as his trademark attire during this period. Kermit also begins to develop a more distinctly angular arch on his snout. In a 1965 appearance on [[The Tonight Show]] his skin was gray, however his skin first turned green when he appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show.
+| align=center | ''[[The Ed Sullivan Show]]''<br />(1965-1968)
+| Kermit sports a red sweater as his trademark attire during this period. By 1966, Kermit's skin becomes a brighter shade of green. Also, a distinctly angular arch begins to develop on his snout. The puppet was used again in a 1971 appearance on ''[[The Dick Cavett Show]]'' performing "[[I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face]]."
 |-
+| [[Image:Kermit-the-Frog-1970.jpg|250px|center]]
-| [[Image:Kermitthefrog1969.jpg|250px]] || ''[[Sesame Street]]'' [[Season 1]] || 1968-1970 || Kermit is now officially a frog. From this redesign, he gains a single collar (similar to the present-day version), a more rounded body, and flippers. The position of Kermit's eyes give him an almost cross-eyed appearance.
+| align=center | ''[[Sesame Street]]''<br />[[Season 1]]<br />(1968-1970)
+| Kermit is now officially a frog. From this redesign, he gains a single collar with thirteen points,<ref name="redbook">
+[http://www.henson.com/jimsredbook/2014/08/8201975/ Jim Henson's Red Book entry which discusses Kermit's evolution]</ref> a more rounded body, and flippers. The position of Kermit's eyes give him an almost cross-eyed appearance.
 |-
+| [[Image:KermitSS.jpg|250px|center]]
-| [[Image:KermitSS.jpg|250px]] || ''[[Sesame Street]]'' || 1970-1976 || Kermit sports a double collar, although it's never visible when he wears his [[Reporter Kermit|reporter outfit]] for the [[Sesame Street News Flash|News Flash]] segments.
+| align=center | ''[[Sesame Street]]''<br />(1970-1976)
+| Kermit sports a double collar, although it's never visible when he wears his [[Reporter Kermit|reporter outfit]] for the [[Sesame Street News Flash|News Flash]] segments.
 |-
+| [[Image:KermitTMS.jpg|250px|center]]
-| [[Image:KermitTMM.JPG|250px]] || ''[[The Muppet Movie]]'' || 1976-1981 || When ''The Muppet Show'' begins, Kermit's collar is a single layer with 11 points.
+| align=center | ''[[The Muppet Show]]''<br />(1976-1978)
+| When ''The Muppet Show'' begins, Kermit's collar is a single layer with eleven points.<ref name="redbook"></ref>
+[[:Image:Kermit in drawer.jpg|A series of Kermit puppets]] built at the same time specifically for ''Sesame Street'' remained in use on the show until 1981.
 |-
-| [[Image:Gmckermit.jpg|250px]] || ''[[The Great Muppet Caper]]'' || 1981-1982 ||
+| [[Image:KermitTMM.JPG|250px|center]]
+| align=center | ''[[The Muppet Movie]]''<br />(1978-1981)
+| In 1978, the company that produced the green cloth from which Kermit was made went out of business.<ref>[[Muppet Morsels]], [[Episode 114: Sandy Duncan]]</ref> From ''The Muppet Movie'' onward, Kermit has been built from antron fleece, giving him a sleeker, cleaner look. This puppet would also be used for the remaining production run of ''The Muppet Show'' (starting with [[Episode 314: Harry Belafonte|Episode 314]]) and surrounding Muppet projects of the time.
 |-
+| [[Image:Gmckermit.jpg|250px|center]]
-| [[Image:KermitMFC.JPG|250px]] || ''[[A Muppet Family Christmas]]''. || 1982-1990 || This version of Kermit has more of a pointer mouth.
+| align=center | ''[[The Great Muppet Caper]]''<br />(1981-1982)
+| The arch down the middle of Kermit's snout (held together by what's known as "the Henson stitch") is more prominent on this puppet.
 |-
+| [[Image:KermitMFC.JPG|250px|center]]
-| [[Image:Kermitrobin-earthday.jpg|250px]] || ''[[The Earth Day Special]]'' || 1990-1996 || Kermit's skin is lighter than the previous version.
+| align=center | ''[[A Muppet Family Christmas]]''<br />(1982-1990)
+| This version of Kermit has more of a pointier mouth.
 |-
+| [[Image:KermitonArsenioShow.jpg|250px|center]]
-| [[Image:KermitMT.JPG|250px]] || ''[[Muppets Tonight]]'' || 1996-2005 || His eyes are slightly repositioned.
+| align=center | ''[[The Arsenio Hall Show]]''<br />(1990-1996)
+| Kermit's skin is lighter than the previous version.
 |-
-| [[Image:Kermit-the-frog.jpg|250px]] || Promotional photo || 2005-present ||
+| [[Image:KermitMT.JPG|250px|center]]
+| align=center | ''[[Muppets Tonight]]''<br />(1996-2002)
+| His eyes are slightly repositioned.
 |-
+| [[Image:Kermit-the-frog.jpg|250px|center]]
-| [[Image:Disney'sHonoraryVoluntEarsCavalcade-KermitCollar.jpg|250px]] || [[Disney's Honorary VoluntEars Cavalcade]] || 2010 only || A "weatherproof" version of Kermit with a much sturdier collar was built for Disney's Honorary VoluntEars Cavalcade parade that ran in early 2010.
+| align=center | Promotional photo<br />(2002-2005)
+| Kermit now has a thinner diamond-like shape for his head, with eyes pointed more inward.
+|-
+| [[Image:Kermit-2011.png|250px|center]]
+| align=center | ''[[The Muppets' Fan-A-Thon]]''<br />(2005-present)
+| Kermit has a rounder body and dons a slightly thicker collar.
+|- bgcolor=#eeeeee
+! '''Alternate Kermit Puppets'''!!       !!
+|-
+| [[Image:Voluntears parade 3.jpg|250px|center]]
+| align=center | [[Disney's Honorary VoluntEars Cavalcade]]
+| A slightly larger "weatherproof" version of Kermit with a much sturdier collar was built for Disney's Honorary VoluntEars Cavalcade parade that ran in early 2010.
+The puppet was later re-used for special sing-along performances at the [[El Capitan Theatre]], preceding screenings of ''[[The Muppets (2011)|The Muppets]]'' and ''[[Muppets Most Wanted]]''.
 |}
+==Sources==
+<references />
 [[Category:Character Variants]]