The Muppets Take Chicago Part Three

Prompted by the New York Times' story on Disney's attempt to revive the Muppet franchise (you can read that store here), this is the third and final installment of interviews I've done with various Muppets over the years (that is, unless Kermit finally returns my calls). 

Truth be told, excluding Prairie Dawn, Elmo is probably my least favorite Muppet. I just found the whole "Tickle Me Elmo" thing to be, well, a bit too needy. You know Elmo is going to need years of therapy when he grows up. I can just imagine him moving from one clingy, unhealthy relationship to the next, but I digress.


Please to enjoy this interview which ran in the Chicago Sun-Times Dec. 4, 2002:

Even the folks on "Sesame Street" aren't spared the last-minute frenzy to get everything ready in time for the holidays. Everyone's favorite red-haired monster, Elmo, took time out from his busy schedule of chicken-dancing and coloring with crayons to talk to us about his latest TV special, "Elmo's World: Happy Holidays." Co-starring talk-show host Kelly Ripa as a friendly mail carrier, the show is available from Sony Wonder on VHS ($12.98) and DVD ($14.98).

Q. How are you, Elmo?
Elmo: You have to forgive Elmo. Elmo is stuffed.

Q. You have a cold?
E. No, Elmo's stuffed from eating at Thanksgiving.

Q. What did you eat?
E. Turkey. Whatever you do, don't tell Big Bird.

Q. How old are you, Elmo?
E. Elmo is 31/2. Sometimes Elmo's mom says he's 31/2 going on 42 and then she laughs. Elmo doesn't know why that's funny, but Elmo laughs, too.

Q. What's going on in Elmo's World right now?
E. Elmo just learned about Kwanzaa and Hanukkah. Elmo got to meet Santa Claus and Miss Kelly Ripa. She has a lot of jobs. She's also on that show with Mr. Philbin, but that must only be part time because she's a mailperson, too.

Q. She delivers the mail?
E. Yes. Elmo got a Christmas card, a Hanukkah card and a Kwanzaa card.

Talk show co-host, appliance spokesperson and postal carrier Kelly Ripa.

Q. What do you think about Santa?
E. Santa hugged Elmo. He was just like Elmo imagined. Very giving. And a nice voice, too. Elmo got to sing with him. It was a pretty song.

Q. What did you learn about Hanukkah?
E. Elmo learned about the candles. They're really cool. You light them every night when Hanukkah starts. You get a gift every day, too. Elmo really likes that last part.

Q. And Kwanzaa?
E. They use candles, too. And they sing songs and have a lot of food, too. Elmo likes food.

Q. You also got to dance, right?
E. Yes. Eldio Rolim, a member of the African dance troupe BatatoYetu is a wonderful teacher. He taught Elmo this really cool African dance and helped Elmo make a real cool outfit that Elmo got to wear. It had shells and a grass skirt. Elmo's going to wear it for Halloween next year.

Q. Do you have a favorite holiday tradition?
E. Elmo loves them all. Elmo loves snow and stuff because Elmo can make snowmen and stuff. In fact, Elmo likes making things and giving them to all his friends and family.

Q. So are you done making your gifts for this year?
E. Elmo has maybe one or two more gifts left to make. Elmo hasn't finished Big Bird or Snuffy's. It takes Elmo longer because it takes more paper to draw them, they're so big.

Q. And what did you learn from all the holidays?
E. Elmo learned it's all about giving, but not just about gifts. It's about giving of yourself. Elmo knows it's more important to give than receive.

Q. Anything else to say?
E. Elmo wishes happy holidays to everybody. And be safe.

Broadway's "American Idiot" headed to the big screen?

According to the website deadline.com (link is here), Universal Pictures is currently in negotiations to bring the Tony-nominated Green Day rock opera "American Idiot" to the big screen. Dustin Lance Black, the Oscar-winning scribe of "Milk," is currently in talks to write the film adaptation.

Should the film come to fruition, Green Day lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong is expected to reprise his role as the drug dealer St. Jimmy. 

It's certainly not a done deal by any means. Universal has a bit of a history of optioning Broadway shows and then doing nothing with them ("In the Heights" anyone?)

"American Idiot" will end its Broadway run on April 24. Critics and regular theatergoers criticized the show for lack of plot and dialogue. Perhaps it was a case of lower expectations, but when I caught the show in February, I found it to be insightful, energetic and thought-provoking. Much like "Wicked" (and "Rent," "Hair," and others before it) it's appeal might be generational. Without a question, the Broadway production of "American Idiot" seemed to speak to a younger generation of non-traditional theatergoers.

Two numbers from the Broadway show that I found particularly moving are "21 Guns" and "Are We the Waiting."

The Muppets take Chicago Part Two

Prompted by the New York Times' story on Disney's attempt to revive the Muppet franchise (you can read that story here), this is part two in the series of interviews I did with various Muppets over the years.

Today, it's a furry blue guy very near and dear to my heart, Grover.

 Grover is the star and narrator of the first book I can remember owning as a child, The a Monster at the End of This Book.

First published in 1971, the book chronicles Grover's comical attempt to keep the reader from reaching the end of the book and thus, the monster that is waiting there. It taught me one of those great life lessons; have the courage to face your fears, because those fears are either not really real or not as bad as you initially think they might be.

So, yes. It was a bit of a thrill in August, 2004 to interview one of my childhood heroes. This Q&A with him originally ran in the Chicago Sun-Times Sept. 3, 2004:

  

Yes, there have been new monsters who have moved onto television's"Sesame Street" and tickled our fancy. Still, Grover is one of the originals who still has a place in many people's hearts.

It's hard not to love the cuddly blue guy. No other monster on Sesame Street works as hard or at as many jobs as Grover.

The people in his neighborhood honor him with the DVD/video release "A Celebration of Me, Grover" -- released in August 2004.

We recently spoke with one of Sesame Street's oldest lifelong residents by phone. Here's what Grover had to say:

Q. You've lived on Sesame Street for a while now. When new monsters like Zoe and Elmo moved in, did they ask you for advice?

Grover. There's kind of hierarchy on Sesame Street. Elmo and Zoe look up to me because I am a little bit taller. I look up to Big Bird. Big Bird doesn't look up to anybody. He's pretty big. I've shown Elmo the ropes. I've taken him with me to work on "Bring your little monster friend to work" day. He has accompanied me when I have delivered telegrams and even gone with me on my missions as a superhero.

Q. So, Elmo's kind of like your superhero sidekick?

G. You could say that. I really work better alone, though. Still, every now and then it's good to have help. I try to help as many people as I can. I need all the help I can get.

Q. Do you remember your first job?

G. I've had so many, you know. I think my first job would have been as a waiter at Charlie's Restaurant. This is the only job that I haven't been fired from. Waiting tables doesn't put food on table, though. So, I moonlight a lot.

 

Q. What do you like best about working in a restaurant?

G. The customers. More specifically, really one customer. He's loyal, a good tipper and cute with chubby cheeks. I do not know his name. He was there my first day at Charlie's and he keeps coming back. I do not let anybody else wait on him now. I make sure he always gets the service he deserves.

Q. How many jobs have you had?

G. 4,332. No, 3 -- 4,333. I have been everything from a waiter to a
hot dog vendor, a mail carrier to a superhero. Being a superhero,
you do not get paid for that, though.

Q. Of all those jobs, what has been your favorite?

G. My stint as a stenographer. Yes. You would not believe how exciting a stenographer's life is. Oh, yeah. You learn so many things, too. Do you know you have to know how to read and write? Pictures do not cut it. I tried to get away with it for about a month.

Q. You've had a messy, furry "bed head" hairstyle for a while. A lot of rock stars and Hollywood celebrities are now wearing it. Are you surprised to be a trend-setter?

G. Not at all. It was just a matter of time. I predict people will start dying their hair blue in the near future. Oh, yeah. You will be seeing it soon.

Q. You've met a lot of celebrities. Do you have a favorite?

G. Sesame Street is like a Bermuda Triangle for celebrities, isn't it? I love them all. I'm a big fan, boy. So many have come by. Some of the more recent ones have been Ray Romano -- he was very funny -- Norah Jones -- she is very sweet and has a lovely voice -- and I had a great old time with Stevie Wonder. We got down and got funky when he came by. Another person -- Lena Horne -- sang a song with
me about being friends.

The Muppets take Chicago

The New York Times had an interesting article on Disney's attempt to revive the Muppet franchise (you can read it here).

Some of my favorite interviews of all time are the Q&As I've done with various Muppets. The highlight, of course, was my sit down interview with Miss Piggy. At the end of the interview she offered to put me in touch with Kermit. Sadly, Kermit remains the elusive "get" in my career. In 2010, I came close to finally sitting down with him for a book he was plugging. He ended up bowing out of the interview. He said he had a "frog" in his throat. I still don't believe him. Anyway, here's my chat with the divine Miss Piggy:

This riviting interview somehow lost the Pulitzer in 2009. Photo (C) 2009 by John J. Kim/Sun-Times. Used with permission.

This interview originally ran in the Chicago Sun-Times Aug. 21, 2009. Miss Piggy was a guest of honor at that year's Glamorama.

After 35 years in show business, you're bound to rack up a few dresses and develop a signature sense of style. Actress, singer and best-selling author Miss Piggy throws open her closets to give the rest of us just a glimpse of her glamor with a retrospective on display through Aug. 22, 2009 on the seventh floor of
Macy's on State Street.

She spoke to us Aug. 20, 2009, ahead of a rumored appearance at that night's Glamorama at the Chicago Theatre, 175 N. State.

Q. Was it hard to part with the outfits on display?

Miss Piggy: No. I'm getting them back. [Loudly, to a Macy's employee passing by.] I AM GETTING THEM BACK, right? This isn't a charity. Well, Glamorama is for a charity, but I'm not giving away my clothes. I'm just letting them air out a little bit.


Q. Can you talk about what you'll be wearing tonight?

MP: You mean who I'm wearing, right, dearie? Moi is wearing Marc Jacobs. Isn't he lucky?

The divine swine with designer Marc Jacobs and the dress he designed for her.

Q. What's the one item that every female should have in her closet?

MP. A Starbucks. It really perks you right up when you're stuck in there trying to decide what to wear. I have two.

Q. Given all the hysteria around the swine flu, are people treating you any differently?

MP. People look at moi as a fashion icon first. They see me as a woman first. Wait! How many firsts did I say? Regardless, they see me as a pig last. I am proud to be a pig. Not too many pigs have risen to the level of success I have. Babe the pig was a robot! Just as an aside.

Q. Lady Gaga recently turned heads with a coat fashioned out of stuffed animals that looked like your beloved Kermit. Reaction?

MP. That was faux frog. I have the real deal at home. I have no problem with what she wears. She has impeccable fashion sense. She has obviously been inspired by moi.

 





Q. What would you like to see Kermit wear?

MP. Um, I don't know ... PANTS, for starters. A shirt. If he's not
going to wear pants, how about a long shirt? A Snuggie? Something!
 

Q.Who has yet to design for you that you are dying to wear?

MP. Vera Wang. A wedding dress, perhaps. [Sighing, and throwing her head back.] One can dream. From my lips to Vera Wang's ears.

Q. Speaking of weddings: Will Kermit ever propose, or are you both OK with him being the Stedman to your Oprah?

MP. Ask Kermit why he's never proposed. Seriously! I'll give you his number. Ask him!

Not to be outdone, I spoke with Bert and Ernie by phone on June 16, 2002 while the pair were on a breaking from film "Sesame Street." On the heels of a rather nasty Q&A with Entertainment Weekly, their publicist (yes, Bert and Ernie have a publicist) warned me that any inappropriate questions would result in a termination of the call. So, I was on my best behavior. It turns out, they were good sports, though. It was seriously one of the funniest interviews I've ever done. It originally ran June 21, 2002 in the Chicago Sun-Times:

Long before Barney, Blue and Arthur, there were Bert and Ernie. For 33 seasons, the pair have been delighting the preschool set on "Sesame Street." The duo finally got their due earlier in June 2002 when Sony Wonder released "Bert & Ernie's Word Play" on VHS and DVD.

We sat down with the Muppet pals to talk about their "play" and life on Sesame Street.

Q. Just how old are you?

Ernie: It's the darndest thing. I've been on the show for 33 years, but don't look or feel a day over 6.

Bert:  I don't discuss my age. Next question.

Q. Do you have last names?

E: No. We're like Cher.

B: Or Madonna.

E: It's kind of a one-name thing.

Q. Can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street?

E: We can try. Practice.

B: Actually, Ernie, I think you take the R train.

E: That's right. We're somewhere in Queens. You should visit us if you're ever in New York.

Q. Who are the people in your neighborhood?

E: Gordon, Susan, Bob, Maria, Luis, Big Bird, Oscar, Cookie Monster, Grover. It's kind of stayed the same.

B: And the people who have moved there tend to stay there.

Q. Why is that?

E: I think it's the asphalt.

Q. Who keeps their side of the room the cleanest?

B: You have to ask that? I do, of course. I keep Ernie's side clean, too. He doesn't pick anything up.

E: That's the best thing about a roommate like Bert. He picks up for me.

Q. You both wear stripes. Any thought about plaids or solids?

E: Bert has a pair of plaid pants he wears with his striped shirt.

B: I tried wearing stripes on stripes. It didn't work. I'm a fashion-oriented guy here. The stripes on plaid just seem to go.

E: I'm more of a blue jean guy.

Q. So, Bert, how's your pet pigeon, Bernice?

B: She's great. She told me to say "Hi" and she reads the Sun-Times every day.

Q. And Ernie, how about Rubber Ducky?

E: He's terrific. He's not really here right now. He's actually traveling with Bernice at the moment.

Q. Really? Where'd they go?

E: Paris, Rome. It's a package tour through Europe by bus.

B: I just got a postcard from Bernice. She's loving all the statues she's perched on. There are a lot of statues in Europe, I guess.

Q. Elmo has put on a lot of shows. This is your first. What took so long?

E: Gee, I don't know.

B: It was getting the money together. We didn't want to do just anyshow. We wanted to go all-out.

E: Yeah, I even put 49 cents in this. That was my lunch money, which means I didn't eat lunch that day.

B: Nothing but the best production values for us.

Q. Whose idea was it?

E: It was mutual.

B: But the name was my idea.

E: That's right.

B: "Bert & Ernie's Word Play." It's a play on words, get it? [Bert laughs]

Q. Was it difficult to get your friends to perform in your play?

B: No, not really.

E: They were happy to do it.

B: They'll do anything for free food.

Q. You had a craft services table of free food?

E: Yep. Cookie Monster actually had a dual role on the project. He also did craft services.

Q. That must have been difficult. Didn't he eat everything?

B: You aren't kidding. I usually gain 10 pounds on a shoot. I actually lost weight on this set.

Q. Do you worry about weight gain?

E: Bert is a fit guy. He works out regularly. I'm more of a round guy, myself.

Q. So, what's your exercise regiment, Bert?

B. I don't want to give out the secrets now. I've got a book coming out. If I tell you, people won't buy the book.

E: You should see his workout video, though.

B: ERNIE!

E: Come on, Bert. I'm just trying to give him an exclusive.

Q. So, why wasn't Big Bird in your "Word Play"?

E: He was too tall.

B: And he didn't really fit on the stage.

E: He had his head up in rafters and we were worried about those hot stage lights.

Q. Kermit has made a few movies. Is that something that interests you when you grow up?

E: We've already done a few. "Follow That Bird" and "Elmo in Grouchland." We narrated that.

B: I really see my role behind the scenes. What I really want to do is direct. TV and movies first, of course, but eventually I'd like to direct community theater.

Q. Any show in particular?

B: Yes! "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers"... but as a one-man show.

Q. You've been friends a long time. What's the secret to your lasting friendship?

B: We try not to kill each other.

E: Well, there's that, sure. We certainly have our differences. Cooperation. I think it's cooperation. That's a great big word on Sesame Street.

B: It certainly is, Ernie. It certainly is.

Q. What do each of you like about the other?

E: Bert's arms are floppy. He's got that one eye brow that can go up or down and that little tuft of hair on his head. Oh, and he's a nice color. All those things.

B: I like how honest Ernie is ... but you don't have to be honest all the time ...

E: Like when?

B: Like now. Could you say something more flattering, Ernie?

E: I like your ears, Bert. They remind me of potato chips. Mmmm. I love potato chips.

B: I know, Ernie. [Sighs.] I know.

Q. So, what's next for you two?

E: Well, a bus ride back to Sesame Street and then lunch, I guess.

B: I think he means in our careers, Ernie.

E: Oh. We're going to hang out on Sesame Street for a while. It's home.

Tomorrow: My Q&A with Grover.

"Dancing With the Stars" gets magical

It was classic music night on “Dancing With the Stars” Monday and one dance was just a little bit more magical than all the rest.

Yes, we're just as shocked as you two are.

Disney star Chelsea Kane and her partner Mark Ballas topped the leaderboard with a 26 after conjuring up a beautiful, contemporary Viennese Waltz set to “Hedwig's Theme” from John Williams' score for “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.”

“It was magical, fabulous, beautiful and bewitching,” said judge Brune Tonioli. “It was the best dance of the night.”

The contemporary choreography didn't sit well with judge Len Goodman, though.

This is a Viennese Waltz. It's 300 years old. It is the most traditional of all the ballroom dances,” Goodman said. “I don't care if she is 22. Her job at 22 is to interpret a dance that is 300 years old and your job is to help her get through it, not to distract her by creeping all over the floor.”

There was more bad luck for Kristie Alley, whose shoe fell off  in the middle of a waltz to Leo Delibes' "The Flower Duet." Perhaps it was a hex from Kane?

"You are the queen of the mishap," said judge Carrie Ann Inaba.

Despite of the mishap, the pair scored a 22.

The worst of the night?

Former Playboy centerfold Kendra Wilkinson and her partner Louis van Amstel scored a trio of sixes from the judges for their less-than-magical Viennese Waltz to Andrea Bocelli's 1995 crossover hit “Con te Partiro.”

“Kendra, you messed it up and you know that,” Tonioli said. “'Con te Partiro' is a song of heart-breaking longing. You should have transformed yourself and became one with the music.”

“If I had more than four days of practice, I'd be there,” Wilkinson replied in a tone usually reserved for contestants on “American Idol” after a judge's berating on that show. 

I'm expecting the former Playboy Bunny to go hopping off the stage Tuesday.

Commodore 64: Basking in the glow of Generation X nostalgia

The Vic 20 (the precursor to the Commodore 64) was the first computer I ever worked on. Shocking to think that the original Commodore 64 sold for $595 (a small fortune in 1982, at least to a kid). I still can remember spending hours coding a silly little game and saving it to the datasette recorder. Granted, there wasn't a lot you could do with it (though 64K seemed like a ton of memory back in the day). Now I have memory sticks that hold a full two gigs of memory. Ah, the good old days.

Well, the Commodore 64 is back --sort of. It may look like a Commodore 64, but the new Commodore 64 is actually a modern computer. Yes, someone is trying to play into Generation X nostalgia. And the basic model is selling for the computer's original price of $595  The L.A. Times has more here.

Hawkeye makes an appearance in "Thor"

Ok, I know only comic geeks such as myself are probably the only ones who are going to scream with glee, but the rumor that  master archer Clint Barton (a k a Hawkeye and played by Oscar-nominated actor Jeremy Renner) will make a cameo appearance in "Thor" has been confirmed. Check out 0:23 of the new trailer.



"Thor," directed by Kenneth Branagh and starring Chris Hemsworth as the god of thunder, opens nationwide May 6.