What Vinnie Thinks

Back in 1989, The Muppet Show started to make a comeback with a whole new concept called The Jim Henson Hour. Jim Henson himself hosts this primetime series with each episode separated into two half-hours.

The first half is called Muppet Television. Kermit runs a variety show with a celebrity guest star, but instead of the Muppet Theater it’s at a satellite control center called Muppet Central. The types of acts and skits performed are more based on what you’d see on TV and commercials more than live theater. In a way, that takes away some of the impact The Muppet Show had on its level of creativity.

Some of the original Muppets return, but not many. Most of the Muppet characters featured are brand new like Digit the robot, who looks like Dr. Frankenstein and helps Kermit roll the segments, Vicki the film school student, and Limburg the handyman, or handybird. Not to worry. This show still has some of the old favorites like Gonzo, Link Hogthrob, Fozzie, Rowlf, and Bean Bunny. This show also introduces newer favorites like Clifford the pink babboon and Waldo the flying special effect that can take any form. He’s also featured in the Muppets 3-D attraction at Walt Disney World’s Hollywood Studios.

This show also made me more familiar with celebrities of the 80s. Ones like Louie Anderson, Ted Danson, Smokey Robinson, Bobby McFerrin, Buster Poindexter, and Marc Wiener.

Muppet Central has every kind of network you can imagine. The many monitors in the background are neat with each one showing something different. I’m sure Kermit has a difficult time deciding which ones to air on the show. It’s so incredible.

The second half of The Jim Henson Hour is a completely different feature. Most commonly it’s an episode from The Storyteller. I used to not like that show back then because it was nothing like the Muppets. Now that I’m older, I find it interesting sometimes. John Hurt tells old folktales and the stories come to life with darker Muppet characters that are more for older viewers. The Storyteller’s companion is a talking Muppet dog, who really gets into these stories.

In the second season of The Storyteller, Michael Gambon tells the tales, which are more based on Greek Tragedies. Yes, he played Dumbledore on Harry Potter films 3-6. These stories may be even darker, but that Muppet dog still gets into them.

I really enjoyed this classic Muppet series. At least the first halves. On occasion the second halves have something good also, but not often. It’s too bad it didn’t last very long. At times this show was difficult to keep track of, but I looked forward to it whenever I could find it on.

We all know the story of Superman as being the sole survivor of his home planet Krypton. But as it turns out, there were others out there, which include Superman’s cousin Kara a.k.a. Supergirl (Helen Slater). 

I met Helen Slater at FX Convention 2008. She was really nice.

As the story goes, the surviving Kryptonions live in an isolated community in inner space called Argo City, which is powered with an energy orb. Argo City’s creator Zaltar (Peter O’Toole) barrows the orb and Kara accidentally loses it on Earth. So Kara goes after it and must bring it back before the city dies. Luckily, Supergirl can track it. 

Of all the places the energy orb could’ve ended up, it lands square right in the orange dip and in the hands of Selena (Faye Dunaway), a power hungry sorceress bent on world domination. Talk about bad luck. 

Now you’ve got to hand it to Supergirl. She’s as pretty as Wonder Woman and has all of the same superpowers as Superman, but Supergirl doesn’t need a phone booth to change into her super suit. It looks just like Superman’s suit, only with a skirt. As a kid, I always thought it was the cape that makes a superhero fly, but it isn’t. Batman and Robin don’t fly with their capes. They glide or use a grappling hook. I realize that now. 

While taking the disguise of Linda Lee at a prep school, Kara meets Lois Lane’s sister Lucy (Maureen Teefy) and her boyfriend Jimmy Olsen (Marc McClure). Small world, eh? 

Things really start to get complicated when Selena puts a love spell on Ethan (Hart Bochner), a landscaper. He wonders off and Selena captures him with a construction vehicle that has jaws like a sea serpent. After Supergirl rescues Ethan, he falls for her as Linda Lee. I don’t know what to say about that, except that the battle between Supergirl and the monster truck was real exciting. 

Once Supergirl finds out where the orb is and who is using it, she heads for Selena’s new fortress on top of a mountain. Supergirl doesn’t have to climb the mountain, but it gets tougher inside. Selena has captured Ethan, Lucy, and Jimmy. Then she sends Supergirl to the Phantom Zone, where Zaltar was exiled. It won’t be easy getting back if Supergirl’s powers don’t work there. Soon it all comes down to the final confrontation with Selena and she’s not one to fight fair. 

Although I’m not much of a Superman fan as I am a Batman fan, Supergirl was a really good film. What surprises me is that Supergirl didn’t get as much recognition as Superman did. It would be nice to see a Supergirl remake.

Okay, I admit it. This show was a little before my time, but I still remember seeing it years ago. The Best of the Electric Company and The Best Of The Electric Company – Volume 2 (1971-1977) was so much like Sesame Street that I used to think the two shows were one and the same. It didn’t help that they were on PBS, back to back. The only major difference was that Sesame Street had a main story line that intertwined with the songs and skits and The Electric Company didn’t. Works for me, since the songs and skits were my only favorite parts anyway. There is a updated version that premiered on PBS in 2009, but it’s nothing like this one.

Some of the most memorable reoccurring segments include Silhouettes, Letterman, and Spiderman. Oddly, Spiderman never actually speaks. His dialogue only comes out as comic book balloons. The “Silent ‘E’” song was pretty catchy. As it turns out, Tom Lehrer, one of the top artists on The Dr. Demento Show, performed it. Many of my favorite artists and songs came from there.

When I saw this show on the “Noggin” channel a while back, I’ve noticed that big stars like Rita Moreno, Bill Cosby, and Morgan Freeman were among the regular cast members. Interesting, it makes me think of how many stars start out on creative shows like this. Such as Rowan & Martin’s Laugh In, Saturday Night Live, and Hee Haw.

The DVD sets also feature interesting factoids about the series. One that really stood out was that head writer Tom Whedon is Joss Whedon’s father. It’s definitely a different style from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Another interesting factoid was that Zero Mostel, Gene Wilder, Joan Rivers, and Mel Brooks were all voice actors for some of the animated segments. What I don’t understand is why they were never credited for it.

Just to set the record straight, this is not the same version with Slimer or the “Stay Puffed” Marshmallow man. It’s the one with Tracy the ape and arch nemesis Prime Evil. Like He-Man and She-Ra, Filmation’s Ghostbusters – The Animated Series, Vol. 1and Filmation’s Ghostbusters – The Animated Series, Vol. 2 (1986-1987) was also a classic series, which had some memorable villains. One of my favorites was Scared Stiff. He’s a ghost who always fell to pieces like a skeleton. Other villains include Fangster the red werewolf, Haunter the British hunter, Sir Trance-a-lot the skeleton knight, Long John Scarechrome the pirate ghost, and Brat-a-rat. I think he’s some kind of rat ghost.             

The heroes reside at Ghost Command. I mostly remember it for it’s talking appliances like Anzabone, Skelevision, and Shock Clock. It reminds me of Pee-Wee’s Playhouse. The Ghost Buggy is hilarious and not just because it’s a talking car. He always complains whenever the Ghostbusters “drop in” on him. Especially Tracy because of his gorilla weight.           

The Ghostbusters always go through a transformation sequence before a mission. I wonder if Eddie ever got used to it. They also have all kinds of gadgets and stuff. It makes me wonder how they get all of that gear inside those little backpacks. At least we know they always come prepared.             

The humor on this series was very helpful because it made the ghosts seem less frightening. I was never scared of those colorful villains, not even back then. Of course the ghosts from the Ghostbusters movies left something to be desired.           

An interesting comparison between the two versions is that Jake, Eddie, and Tracy don’t use ghost traps. Their electric beams merely send the ghosts to limbo. Eventually they come back, thanks to Prime Evil. When I got the DVD sets, I had learned that there was another Ghostbusters series from 1975, which starred two of the stars of F Troop, Forrest Tucker and Larry Storch. That turned out to be a great show also with its brand of humor.       

Here’s me with a couple of Cosplay Ghostbusters from Spooky Empire 2009.

It’s amazing that even nowadays, it seems like the only version of Ghostbusters anyone has ever heard of is from the two films and the cartoon series based on them called The Real Ghostbusters. Has this classic version become long forgotten? I sure hope not.

         

As long as I can remember, I’ve always been a Bill Cosby fan. I can still remember some of his “Jell-O Pudding Pops” commercials and Picture Pages segments from the Nickelodeon channel, where Bill Cosby uses that musical marker called Mortimer Ichabod. Remember little Mortimer? 

Fat Albert’s Greatest Hits The Ultimate Collection (4-discs) (1972-1984) definitely stands out as a classic. I first discovered Fat Albert back in second grade. There was a small poster on the wall of the characters and several class rules on it. A short time later, I found out that it was actually an animated series. The class watched a couple of episodes and I enjoyed it. Partly because there was no homework assignment involved. Two of my favorite characters were Rudy and Dumb Donald. At first it was because of their unique hats. Then when I saw the show, I liked their comedic personalities. Dumb Donald more than Rudy.

I used to not understand what this show was about and it was difficult to keep track of on cable. Just like The Muppet Show. When the DVD sets came out, I was thrilled. And I had a better understanding on what the show was all about, real life situations and pro-social concepts.

Fat Albert is also based on Bill Cosby’s high school days. Like Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, if the show had aired while I was in high school, I would’ve thought that this was a teen show, even though it’s not. Even now I don’t think it is, but I still love it. What I admire most about the show was how creative Fat Albert and the guys are when turning any junkyard trash into all sorts of things from Halloween costumes to musical instruments. It may not be the most sanitary, but you’ve got to work with what you can afford.

I also saw Bill Cosby perform his stand-up comedy act the UCF (University of Central Florida) arena in 2007. It was mostly new material with items like, his 42-year-old daughter giving him a pair of croc shoes for Christmas, which he is wearing in this photo. He would understand for Father’s Day, but for Christmas? Bill Cosby also talked about how men now have a theme song and he whistles the jingle for those male enhancement commercials. Then he ends with his classic dentist bit, which is featured on Bill Cosby, Himself. I’ll tell ya. Bill Cosby is still as creatively funny as ever.