Marilyn Sokol and Jim Henson in the recording studio for Emmet Otter.
Marilyn Sokol, in 2005.
Marilyn Sokol (b. 1937) is an Emmy and Obie award-winning actress who provided the voice of several Muppet characters, most famously Alice Otter in Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas.
Her first performance in a Jim Henson production was The Great Santa Claus Switch, in which she was an actual puppeteer. In Behind the Scenes in Frogtown Hollow, she recalled that while performing on that special, she realized that she wasn't very good at puppeteering. She felt she was better with voices, and since Jim Henson needed female voices for Muppets, he continued to use her voice only, while others performed the characters she was voicing. Thus, in addition to Emmet Otter, she was frequently heard on Sesame Street as an array of Anything Muppets and was also featured on the albums (notably singing "I Want a Monster to Be My Friend") and in animated (including "Bumble Ardy,"[1] "The King of Eight," and many pieces by Bruce Cayard) and film inserts.
Sokol appeared on-camera on Sesame Street in 1982, guest starring as Aunt Mae, the director of the sleep-away camp that Big Bird attended from Episode 1706 through Episode 1710.
Sokol has appeared in numerous television shows (including Law & Order and Barney Miller), commercials, films, and plays over the years. In 2005, she played a bag lady in the film adaptation of the Broadway version of The Producers.
Credits[]
- The Great Santa Claus Switch: Puppeteer
- Sesame Street:
- Characters include: Aunt Mae (episodes 1706-1710, live-action), Astronaut, Betty Lou, Dolly Pardon, Kathleen the Cow, Loaf of Bread, Marshal Earp
- Singing performances include: "City-Country Song," "Family," "How Do You Get from Here to There?," "I Want a Monster to Be My Friend," "I'm Cold," "It's Been a Long, Long Time," "Me," "Me and You (Two Rhinos)," "Monster Lullaby," "Numerical Correspondence Song," "Oh, G (I Love That Letter)," "Please Keep Off the Grass," "Pockets," "Soap Opera," "The Subway," "Three Waltzing Chickens," "We're a Family," "Women Can Be"
- Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas: Alice Otter (voice only)