That Wacky Redhead

[Thande]

I'm actually familiar with My Family, and have been for quite some time (it made the transatlantic crossing early in its run, back when all three kids were still regulars). There's almost an "uncanny valley" affect to it - neither truly "British" nor "American" in tone or sensibilities. The limited number of episodes per season is, without question, the biggest disappointment. The whole reason to have a team of writers is to enable many episodes per season! I Love Lucy had five writers and they churned out 39 episodes in each season, once upon a time. Meanwhile, My Family just barely makes it to 100 overall after a decade of trying? Pathetic.

Nobody would make a British show that has that many episodes though, our licensing etc just aren't set up for it. I remember it being controversial when it was announced that the revived Doctor Who would have as many as 13 episodes per series--everyone could tell this was so they could try and sell it to America (2 series = 1 American season) and people were up in arms about it. (Of course, the Doctor Who fanbase have never been known for calm, reasonable behaviour, but still ).

Obviously they do show American shows that last that long over here but usually they go out in a format that lets each episode stand alone, and broadcasters are generally leery about those with a story arc. (I remember when DS9 started developing one, the BBC started doing its own recaps before each episode AS WELL AS the "Last Time on Star Trek DS9" one from the show itself, just because they didn't think anyone would actually tune in every week for that long). The BBC did make a big thing about showing "Heroes" a few years ago, and "24" was briefly big, but the people who like those shows generally just buy the DVD anyway so you don't see them very much.

This is somewhat counter to stereotype, of course, because everyone thinks Americans have a short attention span--but then I remember some American executive in the early fifties claiming that television would never catch on in the USA because "the American family does not have the attention span to sit still watching a box for an hour". I love that, because it's a totally logical prediction, yet we know from our perspective that it makes no sense. Over here the TV broadcasters seem to think people have the memory of goldfish when it comes to showing repeats all the time, especially for children's shows (there are kids' TV programmes where they only ever made 12 episodes and then just repeat them endlessly for 25 years...)

 

[phx1138]

I always thought so. (Though it might start in the 1900s - like I said, search for the perfect POD.)

There's plenty of them in the early 1900s.

I still think that 100,000 more in just two months might be pushing it, just a little

It may be. However long it takes, I'll be here.

Have this thread's readers encouraged me to take this timeline in directions I never would have considered otherwise? Absolutely. When I started writing, it was very much an independent project, with a few "marker" ideas on the journey from beginning to end. Things have firmed up a lot more since then, thanks in large part to my consultants

This really is a great place, ain't it?

That vexes me most of all, not just because I (like all of us) have been on the other side. Just post it to Finished Timelines if you don't want to interact with anyone!

Sometimes, I don't understand humans...

I've always understood it to be fear of counterfeiters. Why do you think they keep changing the bills so often?

There is some of that, to be sure, but I've seen signs expressly saying "no change for $50" at the likes of 7-11.

Thank you, but you're in for a very long wait...

Again, however long, I'll wait. It will be worth it. When I find anything good, I don't mind waiting.

Thinking of "get rich quick" schemes, I'm reminded Lovejoy never seemed to quite get it right, either. As I recall, the one time he actually had any success (albeit a more/less legit gig, which may also have been a factor), his "talent" went away...

there are kids' TV programmes where they only ever made 12 episodes and then just repeat them endlessly for 25 years...

There's something to be said for that: new audience coming along every year.

OTOH, that was the argument DC used for recycling stories: they (rightly) thought their audience was mainly young kids who wouldn't notice. What they didn't take account of was the aging of their audience...never expecting they'd keep them that long.

TV broadcasters seem to think people have the memory of goldfish

Great phrase. Wish I'd thought of it.

 

[Glen]

That vexes me most of all, not just because I (like all of us) have been on the other side. Just post it to Finished Timelines if you don't want to interact with anyone!

Actually, the posting criteria for Finished Timelines requires a certain amount of discussion occur before being posted there.

 

[NCW8]

Nobody would make a British show that has that many episodes though, our licensing etc just aren't set up for it. I remember it being controversial when it was announced that the revived Doctor Who would have as many as 13 episodes per series--everyone could tell this was so they could try and sell it to America (2 series = 1 American season) and people were up in arms about it. (Of course, the Doctor Who fanbase have never been known for calm, reasonable behaviour, but still ).

That's strange, as the original series generally had longer seasons (26 half hour episodes). Doing a complete story in one (or occasionally two) episodes rather than 4 or 6 does fit in with the way that Dr Who was broadcast on PBS.

Over here the TV broadcasters seem to think people have the memory of goldfish when it comes to showing repeats all the time, especially for children's shows (there are kids' TV programmes where they only ever made 12 episodes and then just repeat them endlessly for 25 years...)

For very young children, there's a certain amount of justification there as they do like hearing the same stories over and over.

Cheers,
Nigel.

 

[stevep]

That's strange, as the original series generally had longer seasons (26 half hour episodes). Doing a complete story in one (or occasionally two) episodes rather than 4 or 6 does fit in with the way that Dr Who was broadcast on PBS.



For very young children, there's a certain amount of justification there as they do like hearing the same stories over and over.

Cheers,
Nigel.

Guys

Not just the doctor. I remember a lot of programmes doing a longer run and thought that 13 episodes used to be the standard. Know a few of the bigger, two hour type programmes tend to be only 4-6 episodes, thinking of the last 'series' of Lewis. However could that be as much the expense of such long programmes.

Steve

 

[naraht]

For very young children, there's a certain amount of justification there as they do like hearing the same stories over and over.

Cheers,
Nigel.

Teletubbies yes, but once the shows actually get to the point where there are words... But, Timmy Time is better in terms of number of episodes..

 

[Thande]

That's strange, as the original series generally had longer seasons (26 half hour episodes). Doing a complete story in one (or occasionally two) episodes rather than 4 or 6 does fit in with the way that Dr Who was broadcast on PBS.

I know, I think it was a fusion of younger people who didn't know that with older people complaining that the absence of the serial format in favour of the 45 minute standalone episode was an Americanisation of a different kind (i.e. designed to appeal to people who are used to the Star Treks, Stargate etc having that episode format). Like I said above about "Whose Line", British people are so used to complaining about Americans and Americanisation ruining our shows that a fair percentage of outright lies and xenophobia gets into the mix sometimes.

 

[NCW8]

I know, I think it was a fusion of younger people who didn't know that with older people complaining that the absence of the serial format in favour of the 45 minute standalone episode was an Americanisation of a different kind (i.e. designed to appeal to people who are used to the Star Treks, Stargate etc having that episode format). Like I said above about "Whose Line", British people are so used to complaining about Americans and Americanisation ruining our shows that a fair percentage of outright lies and xenophobia gets into the mix sometimes.

Thanks for that. I've been an ex-pat for 15 years now, and sometimes present-day England seems like a foreign country to me.

Cheers,
Nigel.

 

[Brainbin]

It’s Time to Play the Music, It’s Time to Light the Lights

“Who would want to read a story about TV shows anyway?”
“Hey! I read about TV shows all the time!”
“Really?”
“Yeah – in TV Guide!”
(laughter)

– Statler (performed by Jerry Nelson) and Waldorf (performed by Jim Henson), from The Muppet Show

The Muppets were the brainchild of puppeteer Jim Henson, who had spent his entire adult life furthering the art through the medium of television; his career had started with Sam and Friends, a five-minute series airing on the local WRC-TV, an NBC affiliate in Washington, DC. It was there that he met his eventual wife, Jane, along with one of his key collaborators, Jerry Juhl (who had initially been a puppeteer himself, before realizing that his true calling was writing, thus emerging as the primary writer for the Muppets). However, as had proven the case with the field of animation, puppetry had seemingly been stereotyped as entertainment for children – which Henson had to face throughout his career. On the one hand, he had no objection to his Muppets being generally wholesome and appealing to a wide variety of people including children and families, but on the other, he resented being pigeonholed[FONT=&quot]… which came [/FONT]to pass after he had agreed to participate in the development of the seminal educational program, Sesame Street.

Henson first became involved with Desilu when he answered a call for the development of an unusual bear-like creature called a sehlat, for a fourth-season episode of Star Trek. The usual creature designer for the series, Janos Prohaska, was already being tasked to create a predatory beast, called a le-matya, that would attack and mortally wound the sehlat, named I-Chaya, in the climax of the episode. By this time, Henson’s reputation preceded him, and the producers of Star Trek hired him; writer D.C. Fontana instructed him to create a creature able to convey “affection, snuggle-ability, the fastest claws in the West, and a complete disregard for orders”, even showing him the model for the character, her housecat. [1] Using a variation on a full-body Muppet form similar to ones he had developed previously, with an extremely expressive face, Henson was able to bring life to the sehlat in ways that impressed not only Prohaska, but also the production team; particularly Executive in Charge of Production Herb Solow, who was later promoted to SEVP and COO of Desilu, a position that gave him final authority over the operation of his studio, excepting only a veto from his immediate superior, Lucille Ball.

Desilu was one of many studios that Henson approached with the idea that he had carried with him for much of his career: a Muppet-oriented variety series. As he had feared, most of the other studios had rejected his pitch, unable to see him as anything more than an entertainer of the burgeoning mini-boomers. He even had an “in” with Solow, who admired his work ethic and creativity, but they quickly ran into problems with his boss. Ball was extremely reluctant to give Henson and his Muppets the variety show commitment that he so craved, because she thought so little of the format. One of her dearest friends, Carol Burnett, had declined her offer to appear in a Desilu-produced sitcom in order to star in a variety program of her own, The Carol Burnett Show, which had become very successful and critically-acclaimed. Henson explained the nature of his Muppets; the “variety show” would have to be pre-recorded, with no audience present, as the complicated puppetry involved would totally destroy suspension of belief on the part of any live observers – and there was an absolute need for the use of cinematography to frame the setting and create the needed atmosphere for the show. It would be as carefully structured and rehearsed as a sitcom, allowing for musical performances throughout – a structure that strongly resembled none other than I Love Lucy.

Having cunningly convinced Ball that their Muppet show could be a success on her terms, she accepted the pitch to produce the pilot special. With decent ratings, good critical notices, and star power (in the person of Mia Farrow) behind the special, the network on which it aired (ABC) was convinced to give it a full-season pickup for 1974-75. [2] Among those involved with the continuing series were Henson and Juhl (Henson’s wife Jane, who had worked with him in the past, had retired from active production work in order to raise their five [3] children), and Frank Oz, the performer with whom Henson enjoyed his most fruitful collaborations. Many of the other performers were brought over from Sesame Street, most notably Fran Brill [4], who became the only significant female performer on The Muppet Show, and accordingly provided most of the female roles for the series. Other prominent “Muppeteers” included Dave Goelz, Richard Hunt, and Jerry Nelson; Juhl headed the writing staff.

The Muppet characters were treated as “real people” by all celebrity guest stars, and within the context of their own interactions. The central Muppet character was Kermit the Frog, a very early creation by Henson that dated back to his original series, Sam and Friends, in the 1950s (though he had not become recognizably frog-like until far more recently). [5] He was the producer of the variety show put on by the Muppets, and generally the straight man to all their antics; though, at the same time, he was far more serene and harmonious than most other straight men, often noting that, as crazy as everyone else seemed to be, he was surely worst of all (for he had hired all the others). But one of the breakout stars was the prima donna diva character, Miss Piggy. Played with an outrageously phony female timbre by Frank Oz, she was perhaps best known for her attempts at romance with Kermit, who seemed ambivalent at her attraction to him. Kermit and Piggy served to represent the program, hitting the talk-show circuit with gusto; Henson and Oz typically hid behind the couch or just off-camera as they performed. [6] Other characters included the Greek Chorus, Statler and Waldorf, a pair of heckling seniors perched in their balcony seats; an all-Muppet band, most of the members of whom were incomprehensible; social commentator Sam the Eagle, a stuffy parody of Media Watchdogs; and Kermit’s sidekick, Fozzie Bear; however, these were all among a veritable rainbow of Muppets participating in the show.

The conceit of The Muppet Show was its depiction of a stage production being put on by the Muppet characters, as supervised by Kermit. Each episode would revolve around a single human guest star, and for the first season, most of these were those with connections to Desilu, as many actors were not eager to share the screen with puppets. [7] The conceit entailed the actors playing fictional “versions” of themselves, often to suit the over-arcing plot of the episode. One of the biggest highlights of the first season of episodes was an appearance by William Shatner. In what would eventually become known as a standard stock parody, most of the crew were subject to bizarre metamorphosis on the part of some bizarre stellar anomaly (enabling them to be played by the various Muppets), leaving only Captain Kirk unmolested, and bemused by the changes to his crew. [8] Other well-known guests in that first season included Martin Landau and Barbara Bain (jointly); Mike Connors of Mannix; and Micky “Mash” Dolenz, from Rock Around the Clock. (Rod Serling was offered the chance to host an episode, but declined due to his ill heath; he would die shortly thereafter). [9]

It was the surprise success of the series in the ratings – and particularly with desirable demographics – and its popularity with critics – that assured its future. That said, it certainly didn’t hurt that Fred Silverman [10], the new Head of Programming for ABC, greatly appreciated variety shows that were popular with the younger, urban demographics he so cherished above all else; it was his aggressive promotion of The Muppet Show that allowed it to truly thrive, making it – against all odds – one of the biggest hits for Desilu in the late 1970s, two others of which would also air on ABC; one of those two, in fact, was the result of an affiliation arrangement engineered by Silverman to replace the pre-existing one that Desilu had in place with CBS (“he left and took Lucy with him”, an executive ruefully remarked upon hearing the news). Indeed, The Muppet Show would later be remembered as arguably the last of the great variety shows. Perhaps most bemused by all of this was Lucille Ball herself[FONT=&quot]…[/FONT]

---

[1] Said housecat, named Bobby McGee, was credited as the inspiration behind I-Chaya (for the episode “Yesteryear”) IOTL, as well. We will assume, based on experience and common sense, that Henson has more talent and ability at realizing her description than the “animators” at Filmation did.

[2] This, obviously, did not happen IOTL, as The Muppet Show was not picked up by any American studio or network; Lew Grade of ATV in the UK eventually did so, however.

[3] They had only four children IOTL. Remember the Mini-Boom slogan: “Let's try for one more”.

[4] Brill had minimal involvement with The Muppet Show IOTL – the filming taking place in Los Angeles as opposed to Merrie Old England changes this.

[5] Though there is conflicting evidence regarding the subject, it is generally accepted that Kermit was considered a frog from the late-1960s; he was firmly, unambiguously established as such as of the 1971 special, which was, naturally, The Frog Prince.

[6] For an example of how Henson and Oz handled interviews (IOTL and ITTL), this clip from Parkinson (a British talk show, as The Muppet Show was of course filmed there IOTL and was very popular from the outset) might prove illuminating. (The two performers were interviewed beforehand.)

[7] The Muppet Show had the same problem IOTL, until Rudolf Nureyev (of all people) quite famously broke the ice (the fantastic ratings didn't hurt, either).

[8] This is an extremely common format for Star Trek parodies, IOTL and ITTL. In addition to the aforementioned The Two Ronnies sketch, it also describes parodies by Kevin Pollak, Carol Burnett, and even the cast of Frasier. (ITTL, of course, there are also the “Captain Kirk interrupts” sketches.)

[9] Serling died on June 28, 1975, IOTL. Since he has a more vigorous workload ITTL, he died several months earlier, prior to the end of the production season.

[10] During his tenure at ABC IOTL, Silverman oversaw the development of such variety shows as Donny & Marie and, most notoriously, The Brady Bunch Hour.

---

My apologies for the delay regarding this post! I hope you all enjoy this look at the Muppets ITTL. We may yet revisit them in the future.

 

[Thande]

Love the Jim Henson sehlat connection, makes perfect sense in-universe.

 

[Thande]

Also, I can imagine a few things different in this alternate US-based Muppet Show. Sam the Eagle will probably be different and perhaps less visible: in the OTL show he was a take-that in part to the US studio executives who hadn't backed the show in the US, and there was a certain transatlantic component to the mockery, playing to the British audience. That won't happen in TTL of course and I imagine he'll be a purer example of a strawman moral guardian. Also, given the close Star Trek connection, "Pigs in Space" will presumably be absent or very different...which might butterfly away the memetic "X IN SPAAAAAACE!" phrase it created (regrettably few of The Youth seem to realise this is where it's from).

 

[vultan]

Henson really is a man who deserves more praise than he gets, if that's possible. In addition to the Muppets, he pioneered most of the techniques used to create realistic animatronic puppets. The question here is whether, in this story, he gets more recognition for his serious, realistic puppetry and creature design...

 

[John Fredrick Parker]

I'm guessing the slight alterations to the show will affect The Muppet Movie somehow...

 

[Thande]

Henson really is a man who deserves more praise than he gets, if that's possible. In addition to the Muppets, he pioneered most of the techniques used to create realistic animatronic puppets. The question here is whether, in this story, he gets more recognition for his serious, realistic puppetry and creature design...

He might get to do the animatronics for some more big budget 'alien' aliens in a Star Trek movie perhaps, like his company did later on for Farscape in OTL. An Oscar for special effects would certainly win him the recognition you're talking about.

 

[Kalvan]

Last great variety show? I think In Living Color would like to dispute this...

 

[e of pi]

Last great variety show? I think In Living Color would like to dispute this...

Well, that's in the 90s--nearly 30 years of butterflies by then. Heck, most of the cast isn't even born yet by this point And from what I read on the wikipedia page, In Living Color was more of a sketch comedy show in the vein of Saturday Night live, not a variety show.

Even if you want to count it as a variety show, it's like trying to call A Prairie Home Companion a competitor for Last Great Radio Variety Show--it's inspired by the traditions of the applicable genre (In Prairie Home's case the radio shows of the 20s and 30s), but they were mostly dead for decades before it started.

 

[vultan]

He might get to do the animatronics for some more big budget 'alien' aliens in a Star Trek movie perhaps, like his company did later on for Farscape in OTL. An Oscar for special effects would certainly win him the recognition you're talking about.

That would cement him as a Stan Winston type, though he'd need to get some version of the Creatire Shop running. Remember, he always wanted to produce genre TV shows and movies to really show off what his compatriots could accomplish.

 

[Orville_third]

One problem- wasn't the Muppet show picked up by CBS OTL? (While it was syndicated, CBS wanted it for their O&Os, and the end credits mentioned the CBS Television Stations.)

 

[NCW8]

Also, I can imagine a few things different in this alternate US-based Muppet Show. Sam the Eagle will probably be different and perhaps less visible: in the OTL show he was a take-that in part to the US studio executives who hadn't backed the show in the US, and there was a certain transatlantic component to the mockery, playing to the British audience. That won't happen in TTL of course and I imagine he'll be a purer example of a strawman moral guardian.

Very good point. They could decide to reverse the mockery and have a different character - Leroy the British Lion perhaps?

Also, given the close Star Trek connection, "Pigs in Space" will presumably be absent or very different...which might butterfly away the memetic "X IN SPAAAAAACE!" phrase it created (regrettably few of The Youth seem to realise this is where it's from).

I don't think that "Pigs in Space" appeared in the first season of the Muppets in OTL anyway. By the time they decide to do such a sketch ITTL, maybe Adama's Ark will be well enough known to serve as the basis of the parody. Or if they do have a British characature on the show, he could star in a sketch based on Dr Who, with Miss Piggy as his companion.

Cheers,
Nigel.

 

[Falkenburg]

Cheers!

While it's a shame Lord Grade won't have the involvement with the Muppets he did OTL, it could be a boon for the show.

I'm imagining some of the Guest Stars that might be available for US recordings that couldn't make UK tapings.

Miss Piggy meets The King? Imagine the duet!

Falkenburg