Minor TV Mentions

The following is a list of Muppet Mentions made in TV shows outside of the Henson/Sesame fold, all of which are too brief or minor to constitute having their own page in the TV Mentions category. See also: Minor Movie Mentions.

The Amazing Race
Gay couple Joe and Bill, from the program's first season, were nicknamed Team Guido, but were often referred to by other teams as Bert and Ernie.

Baby Looney Tunes
Warner Bros. animated series featuring infantilized versions of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and other classic Looney Tunes characters. The setting of the show, with the characters in a nursery under the watchful eye of Granny, is very similar to Muppet Babies.

Episode Unknown: When the TV breaks down, the babies use a cardboard box to make their own TV and shows. One of the shows, "Caraway Street," is a parody of Sesame Street. Bugs dresses as a character named "Shmo" (a parody of Elmo), Tweety is a character named "Bird" (a parody of Big Bird), and Taz is a character named "The Grump" (a parody of Oscar the Grouch) who lives in a crate. The show is sponsored by the letter "scribble" and the number "1,000,000,000,000,000,000." ("The other show took all the others.")

Connections:
 * Rick Lyon puppeteered Baby Bugs in a Baby Looney Tunes puppet video pilot.

The Bob Newhart Show
The second season episode "The Last TV Show" deals with psychologist Robert Hartley appearing on a public television show. His neighbor Howard Borden says, "Oh, I love public television. They have such interesting people on: William F. Buckley, David Susskind, The Muppets."

Connections:
 * Peter Bonerz played dentist Jerry Robinson.
 * Bob Newhart stars as Dr. Robert Hartley.
 * Tom Patchett and Jay Tarses wrote and executive produced the show.

Boston Legal
In the season two episode "Stick It," Paul Lewiston's daughter Rachel can be seen cleaning up her daughter's toys. Clearly visible in one shot is The Sesame Street Treasury Volume 8.

Connections:
 * Candice Bergen plays Shirley Schmidt
 * Corbin Bernsen played Eli Granger in "...There's Fire!"
 * Phyllis Diller played herself in "Brotherly Love"
 * Michael J. Fox played the recurring role of Daniel Post (2005-2006)
 * Heather Locklear played Kelly Nolan in "The Black Widow" and "Schadenfreude"
 * Michael McKean played Dwight Biddle in "Truly, Madly, Deeply"
 * Jenny O'Hara played Judge Kimberly Ohlund in "Squid Pro Quo"
 * Bernadette Peters played Judge Marianna Folger in "Guantanamo by the Bay"
 * Richard Portnow played Judge Peter Harding in four episodes
 * Tom Selleck plays the recurring role of Ivan Tiggs
 * William Shatner plays Denny Crane
 * Nicole Sullivan played Joan Rubin in "...There's Fire!"
 * Lisa Waltz played Dorothy Scanlon in "Trial of the Century"

Chuck
On the third episode of Chuck, the title character's best friend and sister discuss Chuck's future:
 * Morgan: You don't understand. He is a fragile little gelding. You know? Still trying to find his legs. The real world will crush him.
 * Ellie: Do you know what a gelding is?
 * Morgan: [scoff] It's that weird creature from The Dark Crystal. "Smells like gelding"... that guy.

Degrassi: The Next Generation
In the episode "Ghost in the Machine, Pt. 2", Ashley Kerwin and Craig Manning are having a discussion about their rock band and fellow bandmembers.
 * Ashley: You know, you guys should try going a little more post-Emo. Still punk, but less mopey.
 * Craig: I don't think the other guys even know what regular Emo is. Spinner probably thinks it's a Muppet.

Dharma and Greg
In the season 4 episode "Sleepless in San Francisco," Pete mentions his dad's favorite movie is The Muppets Take Manhattan.

Connections:
 * Jenna Elfman played Dharma Freedom Montgomery
 * Mimi Kennedy played Abigail "Abby" Kathleen O'Neil
 * Yeardley Smith played Marlene

Drawn Together
In the episode "Little Orphan Hero," Foxxy Love, Princess Clara, Spanky Ham and Ling Ling gather around the telephone, going "Yip yip yip yip yip...", like the Yip Yips from Sesame Street. In the scene, all the characters have strange triangular mouths. Episode director Peter Avanzino, who was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1997, confirmed this on the Yahoo Group where he found the clip.

The episode "Drawn Together Babies" spoofs Muppet Babies by telling the story of the characters as they were babies living together in a nursery. The opening theme is replaced with a direct spoof of the Muppet Babies opening sequence and portions of the episode cut to old black and white stock footage (ala the live-action cutaways on Muppet Babies).

Eek! the Cat
In the episode "Eek vs. The Flying Saucers," Eek begs a race of aliens not to blow up the Earth, listing a large amount of reasons, including the Muppets.

Everwood
A television drama that ran on the WB network from 2002 to 2006.

In the episode "The Great Doctor Brown," Amy Abbott reveals to Ephram Brown the origin of her unusual nickname.


 * Amy: Grover.
 * Ephram: Grover?
 * Amy: It's my nickname. I always loved Grover as a kid. I know for most kids it's all Winnie the Pooh and Hello Kitty, occasionally Strawberry Shortcake, but for me, life was about a little blue Muppet named Grover.
 * Ephram: Well, Grover was a very underrated Muppet.

Extras
A British sitcom about film extras, created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant.

In episode 2.4, Darren Lamb and Barry discuss Crazy Frog.


 * Darren: I'd have thought he's probably the second-richest frog in the world, after Kermit.
 * Barry: Kermit, yeah! There was his nephew, Robin...
 * Darren: Ah, Robin was good.
 * Barry: Looked set to take over the empire for a while, didn't he.
 * Darren: Oh yeah, he was a very good actor, and singer.
 * Barry: "Halfway Up the Stairs".
 * Darren: Good song.

The Flight of the Conchords
In the episode "Bowie", Bret has visions in which he receives advice from various incarnations of David Bowie. The third and final Bowie is Jareth from Labyrinth.

Growing Pains
A sitcom that ran on ABC from 1985-1992.

In the episode "Feet of Clay", Ben Seaver (Jeremy Miller) finds out that his favorite rock star isn't such a nice guy after meeting him, and decides to stop being a fan. At one point, his father, Jason (Alan Thicke), compares this to the time when Ben learned that Kermit the Frog isn't real. Ben said that because of that he couldn't get himself to watch Sesame Street for awhile.

Connections:
 * Jeremy Miller played Ben Seaver.

Heroes
When Claire researches her birth parents in the first season episode "The Fix," she and her friend Zach find a newspaper article from Kermit, Texas. When Zach wonders why that sounds so familiar, Claire replies, "`Cuz of the frog?"

Connections
 * Eugene Byrd played Nathan's campaign manager in four episodes
 * Jesse Corti played the LAPD police captain in "The Fix"
 * Stan Lee played the bus driver in "Unexpected"
 * Eric Roberts played Thompson in five episodes
 * Richard Roundtree played Charles Deveaux in four episodes
 * George Takei plays Kaito Nakamura

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
In the season one episode "The Gang Gives Back", Dee (Kaitlin Olson) wears a yellow pantsuit, and her friend Mac tells her she looks like Big Bird.

In the season three episode "Mac is a Serial Killer" a pimp named Pepper Jack mistakes Dee for one of his prostitutes. Her brother Dennis offers to buy her back for seven dollars and a Fraggle Rock thermos. Pepper Jack agrees, enthusiastically saying he loves the show.

Kids in the Hall
In one sketch from Season 5, a little boy is waiting for the Chicken Lady (Mark McKinney) to finish riding a quarter horse at the mall. He asks "Are you Big Bird?" and the Chicken Lady replies, "No, but I want to meet him, 'cause the Bearded Lady says they call him Big Bird 'cause he's got a really big--" at which point the boy's mother prevents the Chicken Lady from finishing the sentence.

Connections: Like Fraggle Rock, this show was produced for HBO and CBC. As a result, several of the Fraggle Rock crew members also worked on this show.

King of the Hill

 * "Plastic White Female" - Hank and Peggy are arguing over whose fault it is for how their son Bobby turned out. Hank accuses Peggy of letting Bobby watch "all them Muppets! ... They got frogs kissin' pigs - what the hell did they think was gonna happen?"
 * "Goodbye Normal Jeans" - Peggy overhears Hank watching a Thanksgiving Day parade on TV with Bobby. She hears Hank say to Bobby, "That Miss Piggy balloon has the same hairdo as your mother."
 * "Stressed for Success" - In a discussion about the presence of pop culture in academics, Boomhauer points out that Oberlin College has a course on the Muppets.
 * "Edu-macating Lucky" - Lucky comments on Luanne's sense of humor: "I'm datin' a regular Fozzie Bear."

The Knights Of Prosperity
When he leaves the building this is referred as: Big Bird has left it's nest.
 * "Pilot" - When Eugene wants to enter the building te find out wich key fits Mick Jagger's appartment, Esperanza has to distract the doorman that stays behind, while a other (more serious) doorman goes for a cup of coffee.

Malcolm in the Middle

 * Malcolm's Girlfriend - After recently breaking up with a cute girl, Malcolm (played by Frankie Muniz) decides to "go back" and play in the moon bouncer at the birthday party for his little brother Dewey's new friend. As he does, the Sesame Street Theme plays (the 1998-2001 version), and then suddenly stops when Malcolm wrecks the moon bouncer.
 * Cheerleader - A sub-plot involves little Dewey wanting a Tickle Me Elmo-type doll called Sleepy-Time Herbie, a blue aardvark. They are very expensive and can be ordered by a special TV offer, and Dewey hallucinates the Herbie talking directly to him from the TV. Once he gets the Herbie, he imagines it saying "Break me."

Meet the Press
In the October 21, 2007 episode of Meet the Press, Tim Russert interviewed Stephen Colbert regarding his run for the presidency. Russert asked Colbert why he pronounces his name "Col-bare" as opposed to "Col-bert," and brought out a Bert doll to help illustrate the difference.

Newhart
In the episode "Dick the Kid," Dick Loudon (Bob Newhart) spends a week at a Western ranch. On movie night, while the other residents want to watch High Noon, a tough resident wants to watch The Muppets Take Manhattan, and he almost gets his way until Dick takes a stand for the others.

Connections:
 * Star Bob Newhart hosted Holiday Greetings from The Ed Sullivan Show, which featured an appearance by the Muppets. Newhart also interacted with Kermit and Miss Piggy.
 * Brandon Maggart guest starred in the episode "The Boy Who Cried Goat".
 * Don Rickles guest starred in the episode "Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Loudon".
 * Johnny Carson guest starred in the episode "Malling in Love Again".
 * Jason Alexander guest stared in the episode "Courtin' Disaster".
 * Merv Griffin guest starred in the episode "Hi, Society".

NOVA scienceNOW
An episode of the PBS documentary series NOVA scienceNOW featured a segment on the development of sociable robots. One robot in particular, "Leonardo" developed by Cynthia Breazeal, is used in an on-camera study of recognition behavior. The tools used are an Elmo doll and a Cookie Monster puppet, which are presented to Leonardo and vocally asked to find the character by name. After a simple demonstration, the technician holds up Cookie Monster and asks Leonardo to find Elmo, but the robot cannot be tricked.

The Proud Family
Animated series that aired on the Disney Channel from September 2001 - August 2005. The show centered around an African-American teenager, Penny, her family, and her friends. Basically an animated sitcom in format, it was geared towards a pre-teen and teen audience.

Episode 214: Pulp Boot Camp: Penny's family sends her to boot camp because they fear she is becoming a bully, and she steals cookies from a little girl there. The sergeant catches her and says "Well, well. We have ourselves a little Cookie Monster."

Connections: Some actors who have appeared in Henson/Muppet productions performed voices on The Proud Family.
 * Kyla Pratt as Penny Proud
 * Tara Strong as Bebe Proud
 * Soleil Moon Frye as Zoey

Rugrats
Animated television show that first aired on Nickelodeon in 1991. This series focuses on the point of view of a group of babies, including Tommy Pickles, Chuckie Finster, Phil and Lil, and Angelica Pickles.

In the episode "Toys in the Attic," Tommy and Angelica's grandparents, Boris and Minka, argue over which one of them will turn on the "Sesame Seed," an obvious reference to Sesame Street.

Samurai Pizza Cats
On Saban's English dub of Samurai Pizza cats, an episode features a giant Buddha statue that has a bird's face. One of the characters remarks, "A Big Bird? Go Back to public television! We don't want your kind here!"

The Secret Lives of Vampires
A 2005 documentary produced for television by NBC studios looks at vampire culture and the history of such characters as Dracula. Examples include Count Chocula cereal, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Sesame Street’s Count von Count. Video footage of the sketch with the Count counting his mail is featured, as well as a photo of a stage version of the character.

The Smoking Room
A British comedy first aired on BBC Three in 2004, focusing on the conversations of characters while on their smoke breaks, all shot inside their office's smoking room.

In episode 3, "Pantball," the manager's assistant Janet is trying to get other employees to sign up for a company paintballing event:


 * Janet: No, what I was getting at is - I hope [the sign-up sheet] doesn’t end up covered in jokey names. According to the one downstairs, the only people planning to go paintballing are Marge Simpson, Osama Bin Laden, Barbara Windsor and The Bear in the Big Blue House.

Spielberg on Spielberg
A 2007 television documentary by Richard Schickel for the Turner Classic Movies channel features a 90-minute interview with Steven Spielberg about his career. In recalling his inspiration to make Schindler's List, Spielberg remembers his grandmother teaching English to Nazi concentration camp survivors, one of whom would entertain the 3-year-old Spielberg with a trick involving the numbers printed on his arm. He cites this as sticking out in his memory for a time in his life when he was learning his letters and numbers, since in those days, there was no Sesame Street.

Still Standing
Judy Miller, one of the show's lead characters, is sometimes seen wearing Sesame Street T-shirts.

Connections:
 * Mark Addy played Bill Miller
 * Justine Bateman played Terry
 * Tim Doyle was a writer and executive producer of the show.
 * Adam Goldberg was a writer and co-producer of the show.
 * Richard Kind played Dr. Nathan Gerber
 * Tom Martin was a writer and supervising producer of the show.
 * Kevin Nealon played Ned Halverson
 * Sally Struthers played Louise Miller

Super Mario Brothers 3
In the episode, "Cheatin' Lyin' Nasty Giant Ninja Koopas," a giant parrot laments King Koopa using its giant cage to capture Luigi, Toad, and Princess Toadstool: "My whole life was in that cage! My Big Bird poster, my 'Worms From Outer Space' comics..."

Teen Titans
In the season three episode, "Bunny Raven... or... How to Make A Titananimal Disappear," this animated DC Comics spin-off series features two elderly characters who sit in a theatre box and make wisecracks about the mock variety show being performed on stage. The manner in which they laugh at their particular flavor of jokes is reminiscent of, and likely a direct reference to, Statler and Waldorf. Most of the episode's third act is a homage to The Muppet Show, complete with a spoof of the theme music and a parody of Scooter.

TV's Most Censored Moments
The program, an original presentation of the now-defunct Trio Channel, briefly touches on Sesame Street's state-wide banning from broadcast in the state of Mississippi for one month during 1970, due to its integrated neighborhood.

That '70s Show
A sitcom that took place in the 1970s. The episode "Rock Opera" begins with a fantasy sequence in which Fez leads the cast in a rendition of "Sing". In the episode "Thank You", Fez serves thanksgiving dinner. After serving food to Kitty Foreman's father, Burt, he hands food to Bob Pinciotti and calls him "Ernie", then commenting that he looks like the Muppet. Connections:
 * Jessica Simpson guest starred in three episodes from the fifth season.
 * Brooke Shields portrayed the recurring role of Brooke.
 * Joe Flaherty guest starred in the episode "Canadian Road Trip".
 * Dave Thomas guest starred in the episode "Canadian Road Trip".
 * Seth Green appeared in a few episodes as Mitch.
 * Gary Owens appeared as a narrarator for a few fantasy sequences that spoofed educational films in a handful of first season episodes, appearing on-screen in "The Pill".
 * Alice Cooper guest starred in the episode "Radio Daze".
 * Mary Tyler Moore played Christine St. George in three episodes from season 8.
 * Don Knotts guest starred in the episode "Stone Cold Crazy".
 * Bruce Willis guest starred in the episode "Misfire".
 * Sam McMurray guest starred in the episode "My Fairy King".

Unfabulous
In one episode, the main character, Addie Singer's brother Ben is sick. Their mom says his favorite film as a kid was "The Muppets Take Manhattan."

The Vicar of Dibley
In the Easter Special of 1996, (sometimes entitled "Easter Bunny") the vicar is explaining the truth behind the Easter Bunny to Alice. The vicar (while trying to break it gently to her) says: "Now at 10 your mother sat you down, and she told you that Kermit was really just an old windsock..."

In a sketch entitled "Celebrity Party", aired as part of a Comic Relief (UK) special in 1999, the Vicar and Alice prepare for their party with Johnny Depp.
 * Vicar: Johnny's spent his whole life being surrounded by exotic birds.
 * Alice: Yeah, like Paris and Britney and Big Bird from "Sesame Street".

Connections:
 * Dawn French played The Rev. Geraldine Kennedy
 * John Bluthal played Frank Pickle
 * Trevor Peacock played Jim Trott
 * Liz Smith played Letitia Cropley

WKRP in Cincinnati
Sitcom centered around a rock-and-roll radio station, which ran from 1978 until 1982. In the first season episode "A Commercial Break," from 1979, Venus Flytrap and Herb Tarlek are auditioning jingle singers for an in-house commercial, and trying to coax shy Bailey Quarters into singing.


 * Venus: '' Come on, sing. Sing a song!
 * Herb: Sing out loud! Sing out strong! Sing of good things...

Connections:
 * Loni Anderson played Jennifer Marlowe
 * George Gaynes played Henri in the episode "Jennifer's Home for Christmas."
 * Edie McClurg played Lucille Tarlek in three episodes.
 * Julie Payne played Buffy Denver in the two-part episode "For Love or Money."

Wonderfalls
In the episode "Muffin Buffalo," lead character Jaye is playing Pictionary with her family and her friend Pat. While Jaye's sister draws frantically, Pat shouts out guesses as to what she's drawing: "It's a frog! He's singing! 'Rainbow Connection!'