Kermit, Fozzie and Gonzo in The Great Muppet Caper
A hot air balloon consists of a large bag filled with heated air that is capable of lifting a capsule, usually a wicker basket, containing a small number of occupants. They have been in use since the 1780s and mostly used for recreation, but have served other purposes in warfare and scientific research.
The Great Muppet Caper[]
In The Great Muppet Caper, Kermit, Fozzie and Gonzo are first seen flying in a hot air balloon, as the opening credits show up. After the credits are over, Fozzie asks how the movie starts, to which Kermit replies that they pull on a rope. Fozzie complies, also causing the hot air to go out of the balloon, which causes them to fall down into a busy street, leading up to the "Hey a Movie!" number.
Radio-controlled Muppets were used in wide shots of the balloon. For closeups, the Muppets were performed in a balloon on the ground.
As seen in the film, the hot air balloon has a variety of colors on it and a pattern to go with it - light green, purple, yellow, red, yellow, pink/green, yellow, red, purple and green. The whole sequence was shot in Albuquerque, New Mexico, famous for its annual Hot Air Balloon Festival, in February 1981.[1]
Jim Henson's difficulties filming the balloon sequence (including the Fozzie puppet getting singed, challenges filming with helicopters, and performing remote-controlled Muppets in a remote-controlled hot air balloon) were documented in The Muppet Show Fan Club newsletter (volume 3, issue 2), Jim Henson: The Biography by Brian Jay Jones (page 324), and a deleted scene from Muppet Guys Talking (YouTube). A behind the scenes look at the sequence was filmed by CBS News Sunday Morning when Charles Kuralt visited the Muppets on location for a 1981 report. (YouTube)
Other hot air balloons[]
Other hot air balloons have appeared in Muppet productions and merchandise, most notably as the landmark feature atop the Muppet*Vision 3D attraction in Walt Disney World.
Notes[]
- An unproduced concept for a Fraggle Rock spin-off, featured Uncle Traveling Matt and two new Fraggle characters exploring the globe in a hot air balloon.
- The plot for the unproduced special In Search of Bernice featured Grover giving Bert and Ernie a ride in a hot air balloon.