Christmas Nostalgia: Emmett Otter's Jugband Christmas (1977)

Mom surprised us this Christmas with a DVD version of this classic Jim Henson special and we watched it the other night.

So I'm gonna have to do write-up about it now. Not that this in anyway makes up for the fact I'd seldom posted on this blog these past few months except for when we've gone to the movies.

I said in my previous post how this was one of the Christmas specials we had on a recorded VHS and used to watch when we were kids.
And I was always kinda annoyed that my mom never let us sit through all of it in one sitting.
I mean, c'mon... all that Christmas goodness, why stop it?
Getting to the last two specials (Charlie Brown and Claymotion) was always a bit of a... I don't even know what word I want to use here... it wasn't easy to do. We'd get so far along, stop, and sometimes we just never got around to finishing and next year we'd be back at the start.

Anyway... trip down memory lane aside...
I had so many thoughts on this as I was watching, but I'll start with the craziest revelation that might not be so crazy...

Emmett Otter's special is universal in that it's good for all ages. And I found that I was getting a lot more out of it as an adult than I ever did as a kid.

This time around, for example, I was just marveling at the craftsmanship of the whole thing. Just looked it up and by the time this special was made (and apparently it was based on a book), Sesame Street and The Muppet Show were already in full swing.
So it's interesting to see marionette work at the forefront opposed to the muppets we got to know over the years.

I remember seeing this a few years ago, maybe on a home video VHS (that one of my aunts gave to us), and noticing the strings for the first time. I made a bit of a ruckus during Rudolph this year because our HD TV revealed strings I never knew were there. Not that totally ruins the illusion.

With this, I see strings with Emmett and his Ma and his friends. Moreso this time around, but the illusion isn't ruined at all. I find it endearing at certain points actually. Particularly where Emmett and Ma ride the slide onto the newly frozen lake. So cute to see them running and sliding around.

And the sets... just wow... in real life, all these buildings are probably so small, but they look so big on TV. And the way they're adorned, that's Christmas nostalgia right there.

I guess that means I need to get to the main story, then.

Emmett and his Ma, Alice, live in the town of Waterville. They get by doing odd jobs for neighbors like fixing things and doing laundry. They don't have a lot of money, but they always had each other. And a washtub, apparently.
It'll make sense later...

This year, both of them decide on their own that they really want to give the other a nice Christmas present, but they can't quite afford it. Alice wants to give Emmett a guitar they saw in a music store in town and Emmett wants to put a down payment on a piano for Ma. They had to sell it after Emmett's Pa died and they started struggling with money. Even though they were never rich with him being a snake oil salesman (haha- I didn't get that joke until a couple years ago- "there just aren't enough people who want to oil a snake").
And a local talent show presents the opportunity both of them want to take advantage of. But certain sacrifices need to be made...

This is sort of a take on "The Gift of the Magi," except that both of them sacrifice something that the other needs for their odd jobs.
Maybe 5-10 minutes after the two of them sing about not having a hole in the washtub... Emmett has to put a hole in it so he can play washtub bass in his friends' jugband. And Alice hocks Emmett's tool chest (that originally belonged to Pa) to get dress fabric so she has something nice to wear.
In the end, it is the thought that counts, though.

Throughout this special, we also see the residential antagonists from River Bottom. They're a bunch of delinquents with attitude. And surprise, surprise, they make an appearance at the talent contest as well.
Now that I think about it, I don't think I know any of their names aside from their leader, Chuck.

Oh man... that was something I found so hilarious as a kid and I still do. Chuck is a man (I have no idea what kind of furry creature he is, a bear, maybe?) of few words, but when he talks, you listen.
One of the them is a weasel who's very chatty and kinda talks for the group, but Chuck will often correct him and intimidates the crap out of him with his tough-guy voice. Just love it.

Chuck: I'm hungry
Weasel: Hey everybody, Chuck's funny
Chuck: No, I'm not hungry. I'm HUNGRY... now!

Oh geez... I guess Chuck is supposed to be a woodchuck, then, lol.
I just know there's a weasel, a lizard, a snake and some fish/mudskipper thing that they always seem to have a tub of water for him to swim in when they're traveling around town.

The talent show... wow, the nostalgia the first few minutes in that concert hall before it even starts... I'm just transported back with that. I remember watching the horse- which unfortunately gets split up in an earlier scene and the whole act gets ruined. I remember the dancing squirrels (omg, so cute!) and their mom cheering and clapping like a maniac when they're all finished.

An interesting curveball gets thrown at the jugband and they easily could have avoided having an issue if they rehearsed more than one song.
It turns out "Barbeque" is popular and some hillbilly badger takes up a banjo and performs it before it's their turn. So they need to put together a new song and fast.

Alice goes on just ahead of them and gives a really moving performance with a ballad. Complete with that out-of-tune piano (Rowlf might have been onto something- he said in "Muppet Family Christmas" how he loves out of tune pianos), nostalgia hits again.

With the jugband, they sound and look really good considering how last minute this song change was. But "Brothers" is not as catchy as "Barbeque"... I've always felt a little bit of disappointment where the first chords begin and it's not the same song. Just doesn't have that same impact.

Then the "River Bottom Nightmare Band" shows up and all hell breaks loose :P
Now this was memorable. The whole song and look of it. And each time, you pick out something different. Weasel does the main vocal on the bridge and his voice still stands out to me. And of course all Chuck has to say/growl is "River Bottom Nightmare Band!"... he's all decked out like Elton John or Liberace with this long blue shiny cape and Kiss-style platform shoes.

Gotta give them credit- they were true to themselves and didn't sugarcoat anything. This is more of a heavy metal type song with an organ, guitars and drums, so the song really isn't sing-along-y. But they do play good music.
There's an earlier scene where they're playing instruments in a music store and they sound better than you would think. Maybe they wouldn't be as troublesome if they spent more time with the music because it's a good outlet for them.

Anyway... the results are kinda disappointing. The Nightmare winds up winning. It's slightly more annoying when you consider the fact that they were a last minute entry. And they heard from the jugband about the talent contest... although Weasel says something like "they think they're gonna win the talent contest" jokingly, which says to me that they already knew about it.

But our heroes do get a happy ending and all they had to do was invent the song mash-up. They're walking by Doc Bullfrog's diner as they put their songs from the talent show together and he recruits them to be regular performers there with a salary and free food.

If I were to nit-pick anything... you hear a couple songs more than once and if you're not feeling it, you might get sick of them. But they are great songs.
"When the River Meets the Sea" is great and beautiful and it became a Henson classic because it was written for this and also featured on the Muppet Christmas album with John Denver. Even was played at Jerry Nelson's funeral, which was a fitting tribute. He did the voice of Emmett.

When they showed this on TV (and this carries over to our recorded VHS), they had an intro with Kermit pedaling his bike to Waterville, introducing the special and the River Bottom gang interacts with him.
It's a pretty funny exchange.

"What about the scarf?"- Chuck says after he's asked by Weasel whether he wants to take anything from Kermit.
And they argue among themselves before that whether he's a frog or toad :P

Kermit also appears at the end of the diner scene- they pan over to him as they're performing and he says (I think) how they were a big hit and their lives became better as a result. It's been so long that I don't remember the exact dialogue.
OH- someone posted them on YouTube calling them "the lost scenes"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_B8xVwHTgw

Overall... great special and definitely will look forward to bringing it back every year from now.

Christmas Nostalgia: Muppet Family Christmas (1987)

A Trip Down Memory Lane...

I would have dubbed this as one of my Christmas essentials, but it isn't among those specials that are shown every year around this time.

In fact, it hasn't been shown on TV maybe since its first airing. And my mom had the foresight to record it so my sister and I could watch it again in the future.
This was one of several Christmas specials recorded on this old VHS. I keep meaning to record it onto DVD- we have the machine to do it- but I just keep forgetting. Plus YouTube makes things so much more convenient and accessible.

Other specials included:
* Disney cartoons featuring Donald, Mickey and Pluto, leading up to their "Christmas Carol"
* behind-the-scenes footage of "Oliver and Company" (not Christmas-y, but if I ever see that footage again... man... I can only imagine the nostalgia- between that and the commercials that somehow made the cut)
* Rudolph
* Emmett Otter's Jugband Christmas (which I may write-up one day as well)
* Charlie Brown
* Claymotion's Christmas (also on YouTube- we may or may not get to it this year).

Anyway... the short of it is... I know my sister had watched this particular special on YouTube one other year and I only heard it going on. I didn't get to see this. This year, I finally got that opportunity and Google Chrome did a great job casting it. [YouTube is the only website where the streaming works perfectly without the audio and video being out of sync].

And the nostalgia hit me right in the heart and it was AWESOME... I don't think I'd seen this in 15-20 years. And I still remember so much of it like it was yesterday.
The coolest part... my mom was late recording the special and I did the math... this was the first time I saw the first 2 minutes of this special ever. And it does explain one thing I never thought to ask...

In a Chestnut[shell]... with all the trimmings

I never thought to ask why they came to Fozzie Bear's mom's farmhouse. I didn't add up that fact and her being ready to go to Hawaii. All I knew is that they crashed at her house, which was a huge surprise to her as well as Doc, the boarder she invited to watch the house while she was gone.

BTW, RIP Gerry Parks. He passed away in 2014. And he was such a great guy in a special where he was the only human character.
Fraggle Rock had been around for a couple years before this special, but Doc and his dog Sprocket were in it and he always told his dog that he was crazy for imagining Fraggles.
I actually caught one interesting bit of dialogue for the first time- when the Muppets invade, he asks Sprocket if they were anything like the Fraggles he kept telling him about.

Funny he should mention that... but more on that later...

Anyway, he starts as this curmudgeon of an old man, being bent out of shape that he's being denied this "nice quiet Christmas" he'd been promised.
But at the same time, Fozzie's mom is a little miffed that she took 3 months of surfing lessons and getting nothing in return for it.
Uh... I guess she didn't have the heart to tell Fozzie and the others that she had plans?? I thought for years that she found out she couldn't go because of the upcoming snowstorm. But she might have been out of dodge before it got there...

I'm thinking too much about this :P time to move on.

So anyway, everyone is here to celebrate Christmas at the farmhouse. And three spheres of Jim Henson's incredible universe [four if you include the Muppet Babies footage] come together for the first time EVER... and never really did again. Unless you account for the fact Kermit occasionally cameos on Sesame Street.
There's a running joke that they're having trouble finding room for everybody to spend the night, the icy patch at the front door keeps getting tripped over (it's still funny every single time, lol), and Miss Piggy is literally doing every last minute thing before she gets over there.
And we have this impossible snowstorm on the horizon- barometers are falling sharply!!!

That was one of those jokes I didn't get until I was older. :P
Much of Kermit's storyline was worrying about Miss Piggy and whether she'd get to the farmhouse safe and sound. As materialistic as she is, it's not surprising that she has to go to a photo shoot (that she somehow forgot she scheduled) and does some last minute shopping (and we never see her give away those great fuzzy flipper snippers) before actually making the trip.
I mean, these are just puppets at the end of the day, but that part of the story has so much suspense in it. I mean, it didn't make me a sobbing mess when I was a kid (Mickey's Christmas Carol on the other hand... I have to just think about Christmas Future and the song at the beginning and end... that messes me up... Muppet Christmas Carol has a few spots that do the same thing)... but it's kinda sad and kinda scary. Right along with Kermit, I'm worried if things will work out all right even though I know the ending.

Kermit does have some good distractions to help keep his mind off things, though.
Fozzie, as anyone knows, is a comedian and he finds a new act after he builds a snowman.

Yeah, the snowman comes to life. And the act kinda goes bust (Statler and Waldorf happened), but hey, certainly can't blame him for trying.

Then there's the great scene where Robin takes Kermit to Fraggle Rock and we get to meet some Fraggles. Of course, the main characters from the TV series. (I'd only seen it a couple times maybe ever, but it might be worth looking up in the future... maybe YouTube will indulge me like it did with this).
And they introduce to us the art of regifting... and they're happy to receive any gifts at all, which is kinda nice.
And they get their own musical number too. Good times 8-)

And just to finish my comments on Doc- the way his character evolves throughout these 45 minutes is a great example of Christmas spirit. He doesn't get the Christmas he wanted when he first arrived, but he comes to like the Muppets a lot and goes above and beyond in a couple ways.
One of them, of course, has to involve Miss Piggy. Despite all the hardship, they make a pretty amazing and touching entrance (complete with a duet of "There's No Place like Home for the Holidays" with her and Kermit). Makes me wonder if she really is that composed a person... er, pig. Or she was a complete mess and she threatened to karate chop Doc if he said anything about the state he found her in.
The other way... you'd have to watch it to see, but it allows for a really nice cameo by Jim Henson himself. For years, I didn't know it was him and learning how he died a couple years later... it's a sweet and bittersweet moment all at the same time.

Only Jim Henson could come up with something where you have nothing but puppetry and you get to feel all kinds of emotions. Everyone takes part in a really sweet Christmas Carol medley where they cover pretty much all the songs we grew up on. Plus maybe two I hadn't heard anyone but with the Muppets.

Of course there's also a lot of comedy. The icy patch is only the... I guess, the tip of the iceberg... shut up!
Maybe the funniest beside that is the saga of the Christmas Turkey and Swedish Chef. The turkey shows up, alive and well and Gonzo tries to talk him into leaving.

The Swedish Chef gets all confused about which creature is the turkey.
Doc: I don't care if the turkey says the dog is the turkey. The dog is not the turkey. The turkey's the turkey, you turkey!

There's a love triangle between Gonzo, Camilla and the turkey.
Gonzo: But Camilla's my girlfriend
Turkey: You gotta be kidding! You're not even a bird!
Gonzo: [shrug] well, nobody's perfect

Then he beats the stuffing out of the turkey when he finally catches him... but then this turkey is so slick, he thought up another lie and he thought it up quick... yeah, I'm quoting The Grinch :P so what? I'm finishing this up on Christmas Eve.

Yeah, he told Swedish Chef that Big Bird is a turkey. And he exclaims: "Gobble Gobble Hugmungo!"

I believe Doc gets into the Christmas spirit right around the time Bert and Ernie show up and they do their "small talk" routine.
You know... Doc starts with the letter D, and so on...
and he cheerfully says he's gotta build some bunk beds.

If I watched Sesame Street as a kid, I don't remember it... but after all these years, when Big Bird shows up, I get warm and fuzzy.
His big moment in this special is when he talks to Swedish Chef, saying how he might be lonely because his family is back in Sweden and Christmas is about spending time with family.
I mean, I've said it a bunch already... these are puppets! Yet their duet of "The Christmas Song" is a tearjerker every time :P And the sweetest part is that Swedish Chef decides on a vegetarian menu as a result of this.

"Shredded wheat and cranberry sauce- my absolute favorite!"

At least "There's No Place Like Home for the Holidays" has the icy patch gag to keep it from getting too sappy and too teary :P

And while we're going with the animal friendly theme here- I love Kermit's present to Miss Piggy. It's a live mink [opposed to a mink coat or stole] who's Miss Piggy's biggest fan.
"I've seen everything you've done... I worship the ground you walk on."
If there's one thing Miss Piggy loves more than minks and Kermit, it's herself. So it's perfect.

And Robin has a nice moment where he continues to the Fraggle tradition of regifting, but he gives it to one of the Sesame Street gang.
Also RIP Jerry Nelson- who did the voice for The Count, Fozzie's mom and Robin in this special. I don't know if it's because of this special or Muppet Christmas Carol where he plays Tiny Tim [ :sniff: ]... he's always been one of my favorite Muppets characters and Jerry Nelson is the biggest reason for that.
Also he was Emmett Otter and Doc Bullfrog in "Emmett Otter's Jugband Christmas"... and I just found that that Emmett Otter was made in 1977... 10 years before Muppet Family Christmas... just wow... I don't know how I feel about Emmett Otter being older than me :P

Most of the other cast members are still alive, which is good. Or I'd be here for ages.

A couple more things:

* Animal has some of the funniest moments. Like when Cookie Monster eats all the Christmas cookies and Animal says "that my kind of fella."
And Gonzo and Animal are totally game for sleeping on hangers in a closet- the only places left to sleep in the house. ["That's the only way Animal ever sleeps, man."]
* Mechanical Mayhem do a kick-ass version of "Jingle Bell Rock."
* Oscar and Rizzo bond in a cute scene- Rizzo asks if he can bunk out with Oscar and Oscar says "I've never had a rat in my trashcan before. That might be kinda nice."

...
and it looks like we might be entering into a similar situation. Some unexpected guests are coming to our Christmas Eve gathering.
And I guess we'll see how it goes. The idea of it is getting some mixed results.
Hopefully it all turns out ok in the end.