Little Muppet Monsters

First aired	September 14, 1985
Last aired	September 21, 1985
Network	CBS
Seasons	1
No. of episodes	3 aired, 18 made

Little Muppet Monsters was a short-lived 1985 Saturday morning TV show which aired only three episodes on CBS.^[1] The first season of Muppet Babies did very well in the ratings, so CBS decided to expand the series from half an hour to an hour-long block, pairing Muppet Babies with Little Muppet Monsters to make an hour-long package called Muppets, Babies and Monsters.

The show was anchored by three young Muppet monsters: Tug, Boo, and Molly. Occasionally, Muppet Show characters such as Scooter, Kermit the Frog and various penguins would drop by in cameos. The Electric Mayhem were featured in the opening credits sequence watching the show on television, as they excitedly bounced about on a living room sofa.

Recurring animated segments included "Pigs in Space," "Kermit the Frog, Private Eye," and "Muppet Sports Shorts" (featuring Animal). Muppet segments included "Fozzie's Comedy Corner," with Fozzie discussing issues related to old jokes, illustrated through animation, and Gonzo presenting a cavalcade of weirdness, using silent film footage. Each episode also featured an original Muppet song.

Storyboard director Scott Shaw discussed the show in MuppetZine issue #3 (Winter 1993):

“

The concept of this second half-hour was neither simple nor particularly well-developed. A trio of new (live-action) Muppet Monster Kids, working from the basement of the adult Muppets' home, create their own television station which broadcasts only to the TV sets in the house upstairs...

Although eighteen episodes were produced, only three of them ever aired; Henson Associates and CBS agreed that the concept had never been properly thought out and just wasn't up to Henson's high standards. To Jim's credit, it was his idea to pull the show from the Saturday morning lineup.

I've always felt that the juxtapositioning of live-action and animated Muppets invited an unfavorable comparison, to which the cartoon version inevitably suffered; the puppetry was just too good. The combination of Muppet babies, adults and kid monsters was very disorienting. Also, due to a lack of development time, the concept -- and therefore, the writing and designs -- never quite jelled.

The now-vacant second half-hour was filled with repeats of the first season's Muppet Babies episodes, and the ratings stayed strong.

”

Even after Little Muppet Monsters was cancelled, an instrumental version of its opening theme was used for the Muppet Babies end credits from 1985 onward.

The three monster kids were also seen briefly in the special The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years, which was broadcast in January 1986. The special was shot before the decision was made to take Monsters off the air, so the show cheerfully plugged the Muppets' latest production -- even though that production had been cancelled four months earlier.

Regarding merchandise, Henson archivist Karen Falk says, "As to Little Muppet Monsters, I do not have any licensed product from that show. There was an ambitious licensing program discussed (toys, games, puzzles, apparel, housewares, and stationery) but very little produced."

Puppet CastEdit

Richard Hunt as Tug Monster, Scooter, and Janice
David Rudman as Boo Monster
Camille Bonora as Molly Monster

With

Pam Arciero (as penguin), James J. Kroupa (as Nicky Napoleon), Cheryl Blaylock (as cow and alien), Martin P. Robinson (as rat and cow), Michael Earl Davis (as penguin), Noel MacNeal (as rat, cow and magic book)

And

Voice CastEdit

Frank Welker as Kermit and others
Hal Rayle as Miss Piggy, Gonzo, and Animal
Greg Berg as Fozzie Bear and Dr. Julius Strangepork
Bob Bergen as Link Hogthrob and Dr. Bunsen Honeydew
Richard Hunt as "Muppet Sports Shorts" Narrator and Beaker

CrewEdit

Producers: Bob Richardson, Hank Saroyan
Animation Supervising Director: Bob Richardson
Creative Producer and Conceptual Designer: Michael K. Frith
Executive Producers: Margaret Loesch, Lee Gunther, Diana Birkenfield
Associate Producers: Adam Bleibtrau, John Gibbs, Ritamarie Peruggi
Writers: David Babcock, Sarah Durkee, Chris Grabenstein, Bardley Kesden, Steve Morgenstern, Kathryn Mullen, Julia Murray
Animation Writing Consultants: Chuck Lorre, Barry O'Brien, Jack Mendelsohn, Bob Smith
Story Editors: Rick Merwin, Hank Saroyan
Performance Director: Richard Hunt
Director: Terry Maskell
Creative Consultant: Andrew Wilk
Voice Director: Hank Saroyan
Production Design: Victor Di Napoli
Muppets By: Edward G. Christie, Larry Jameson, Joanne Green, Will Morrison, Jan Rosenthal, Rollin Krewson, Robert Flanagan
Set Dressing: Richard Termine, Karl Soderstrom
Score Composer/Conductor: Robert J. Walsh
Songs: Michael Carney, Michael Carroll, Joe Carroll, Christopher Cerf, Sarah Durkee, Kevin Joy
Music Coordinators: Don McGinnis, Joe Carroll
Music Consultant: Christopher Cerf