Crank Yankers

Crank Yankers is a puppet series (aimed at mature audiences, though rated TV-14 usually) originally broadcast on Comedy Central from 2002-2005 and later on MTV2 in 2007, in which the characters (voiced by professional comedians) make prank phone calls. The calls are then dramatized through puppets and sets. The series was revived on September 25, 2019.

Crank Yankers uses the slogan "The calls you are about to see are real. The names have not been changed. Screw the innocent." The calls dramatized on Crank Yankers are often of a somewhat adult nature. Some of the more risque calls have related to drugs or sex. However, some are of a more humorous or irritating nature, such as a woman who has her phone call to UPS hijacked by people who are intent on giving her anything but service.

Muppet Mentions

• Short insert: Camera zooms left to a building that says 321 with a trashcan nearby and at the far end is a Big Bird parody smoking a cigarette. He notices the camera and remarks in his typical friendly voice, "Oh! Hi!" until he starts to cough and is bothered by an itch on his bottom, uttering out, "Christ!".

• Crank Call: At the beginning of Special Ed's phone conversation with a man in a swamp, a Kermit parody is sitting on a log playing the banjo until the hillbilly's wife throws a soda can at him. He then yells out, "Ow! Damn it!".

• Crank Call: In Elmer's "crank call" segment and most of Special Ed's "crank call" segments, a Big Bird parody can be seen on a chicken wing bucket.

• Short insert: At the same building where Big Bird was before, Kermit and Miss Piggy parodies are seen mating on top of a trashcan.

• Short insert: Billy West announces a trailer for the shockumentry "When Puppets Explode!". A parody and tribute of Muppet explosions.

• Crank Call: At the beginning of Hadassah Guberman's "crank call" for a nanny position, the beginning had a blue background with toys as a voice says, "Today's show is brought to you by the letters, F, U, and K." Then alphabet blocks appeared with the announced letters on them. A parody and reference to the sponsor letters on Sesame Street.

• Crank Call: In a call Gladys makes to a video store, a poster is seen for Elmo's Fire with an illustration of an Elmo parody.

• Crank Call: In another Hadassah's "crank call", she calls a landfill to recover her diary and the scene ends with a trashcan thrown onto a pile of garbage bags and out pops a beat-up Oscar parody.

• Crank Call: In a call Terrence places to a doll-store posing as an assistant to Demi Moore, a poster is seen behind him for St. Tickle Me Elmo's Fire, with an Elmo parody wearing a graduation cap and a cigarette in his mouth.

• Crank Call: In a "crank call" between an anti-fur protester named Robbie and a fur salonist, a coat made of Grover can be seen in the background.

• Crank Call: At the beginning of Cammie's "crank call" for a house sitter from Season 3, a dark city alley had a graffiti art of Ernie and Bert parodies with machine guns with "R.I.P." on the bottom on them. Then it pans to a character beating up Oscar the Grouch. As soon as the character leaves, Oscar moans, quickly pulls out a tissue or handkerchief, and cries out loud.

• Crank Call: In a season 3 crank call, Birchum volunteers to help a man hunt Bigfoot. In the background, there are 3 mounts in the background, one of which is Cookie Monster.

• Crank Call: OCD Ken's "crank call" to a theater with the title of a show entitled "Bi-Bi-Birdie" with a picture of a Big Bird parody.

• Crank Call: Two characters who debuted in the revival, Brad and Mork, have a bedroom modeled after Ernie and Bert's apartment.

• Crank Call: In the November 13, 2019 episode, Demetri Martin, posing as an aspiring actor, does a Kermit impression.

Big Bird parody

Big Bird parody on a chicken wing bucket

Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy parody mating

Kermit parody playing the banjo

Oscar the Grouch parody

Grover coat

Graffiti artwork of Ernie and Bert parodies

Oscar parody beaten-up

Cookie Monster parody's head

Bi-Bi-Birdie

Connections

• Fred Armisen voiced Chip Douglas
• Hank Azaria voiced Chief Yellow Feather and Crazy Yitzhak
• Greg Ballora serves as puppeteer for the revival
• Jack Black voiced himself
• Carol Binion puppeteered various roles and served as costume designer
• Ronald Binion puppeteered Special Ed, Elmer Higgins, Dick Birchum, Niles Standish, and various roles
• Tim Blaney serves as puppeteer for the revival
• Matt Brooks was a puppeteer and puppet builder
• Julianne Buescher puppeteered various roles for an appearance at MTV Awards
• Tyler Bunch puppeteered various roles in the third season
• Tim Burns wrote for the series
• Kevin Carlson puppeteered various roles
• Stephen Colbert voiced various roles
• Dane Cook voiced Sav Macauley, Gene Winterbuck, and Foreign Guy
• Gretchen Crookes built puppets for the series
• Carole D'Agostino built puppets for the series
• Lisa Davis served as puppet builder
• Alice Dinnean puppeteered various roles in the second season and the revival
• Snoop Dogg voiced himself
• Eric Engelhardt was a puppet builder and puppeteered various roles
• Artie Esposito puppeteered Elmer Higgins, Tony DeLoge, and Deaf Frat Guy for seasons 4 & 5 and various roles
• Charles Fleischer provided voices in season three
• Jim Gaffigan provided voices in season two
• Jeff Goldblum voiced Ira Fermstein
• Gilbert Gottfried voiced George Zucco
• Seth Green voiced Travis Grummin
• David Alan Grier voiced Danny and Landalious "The Truth" Truefeld
• Kathy Griffin voiced Marion Simons and Francine Johnson
• BJ Guyer served as coordinating producer, puppet builder, and puppeteered various roles
• Tiffany Haddish provides voices for the revival
• Michelle Hickey puppeteered various roles
• Patrick Johnson serves as puppet builder and puppeteer for the revival
• Sean Johnson serves as puppet builder and puppeteer for the revival
• Donna Kimball was a puppeteer
• Jimmy Kimmel co-created and voiced Elmer Higgins, Terrence Catheter, The Nudge, and Jimmy
• Denis Leary voiced Denis
• Rick Lyon served as chief puppeteer and as designer during the first season
• Amanda Maddock serves as puppeteer for the revival
• Hugh Martin served as director for the second and third seasons
• Drew Massey puppeteered various roles
• Ted May served as director for the first and second seasons
• Paul McGinnis puppeteered various roles
• Tracy Morgan voices Spoonie Luv
• Alison Mork puppeteered various roles
• Bobby Moynihan provides voices for the revival
• Brett O'Quinn serves as puppeteer for the revival
• Sharon Osbourne voiced herself in season three
• Patton Oswalt voiced Boomer
• Chelsea Peretti provides voices for the revival
• Marc Petrosino puppeteered various roles
• Andy Richter voiced Lloyd
• Jeff Ross provides voices for the revival
• Paul Scheer provides voices for the revival
• Adam Schlesinger composed the theme song
• Jason Schwartzman voiced Jammer Knight
• Sarah Silverman voiced Hadassah Guberman
• Robert Smigel voiced various roles
• Nicole Sullivan voiced Esperanza Torres
• Wanda Sykes voiced Gladys Murphy
• Kirk Thatcher was a director for the fourth season
• Allan Trautman puppeteered various roles in the third season
• Stacey Weingarten serves as puppet wrangler for the revival
• James Wojtal served as puppet builder
• Victor Yerrid served as chief puppeteer in the second season and puppeteered Spoonie Luv, Hadassah Guberman, Cammie Smith, and various roles

External links

• TV.com Show Guide