Nudity or nakedness is the state of wearing no clothing. Wearing of clothing is a predominantly human characteristic, however many of the anthropomorphic animals, creatures and characters of the Muppet universe also wear various clothes. Yet still a number of the Muppet characters, such as Kermit the Frog, are most commonly seen unclothed.
References to nakedness
- In episode 206 of The Muppet Show, Sam the Eagle gives an editorial about nudity, complaining that underneath their clothing the entire population of the world is naked. Sam's editorial comes to an end when he realizes that underneath his feathers, he, too, is naked.
- After the Prairie Dogs steal his collar in The Muppet Show episode 402 of The Muppet Show, Kermit laments that he feels naked.
- Bert, in a Tarzan-like role, is shamed when he loses his loincloth in a Spanish Sesame Street comic from the 1970s.
- Oscar the Grouch dangles Bert's swimming trunks from the end of a fishing pole while a submerged Bert attempts to reacquire them in a studio photo used in View-Master reels and puzzles.
- Kermit the Frog briefly appeared in the nude (without his collar) on the German TV special Peter Alexander prรคsentiert Spezialitรคten in 1977.
- Gonzo embarrassingly covers his eyes in The Great Muppet Caper as Kermit pulls up his pants and zippers his fly during the Steppin' Out with a Star musical number (although he also sneaks a peak).
- In The Great Muppet Caper, Janice exclaims, "Look, mother. It's my life, okay? So if I wanna live on a beach and walk around naked..."
- Jen appears nude sitting by the pool playing his pipe in the opening of The Dark Crystal.
- SkekSil the chamberlain is shamefully stripped of his clothes in The Dark Crystal after losing in the Trial by Stone ritual.
- In The Muppets Take Manhattan, Janice again comments on nudity: "Look, buddy. I don't take my clothes off for anyone, even if it is artistic."
- The Muppets reenact the story of The Emperor's New Clothes in Muppet Classic Theater. Despite usually being seen without clothes, Fozzie (as the emperor) is revealed naked, save for a pair of boxer shorts. The citizenry think that since the Emperor isn't wearing clothing, that public nudity must be the latest fad.
- In the Muppet Heights sketch from Muppets Tonight episode 203, Chaz (played by Sal Minella) demands that Amanda (played by Heather Locklear) return the incriminating photos she took of him naked.
- In a parody of The Emperor's New Clothes, Clifford and Bobo arrest The Emperor for public nudity in the Fairyland PD sketch of episode 203 of Muppets Tonight.
- Kermit realizes he's naked in a 2001 TV series pitch and his crotch is censored out.
- When Pepe the King Prawn enters Oz in The Muppets' Wizard of Oz, he discovers he is naked. Dorothy makes him put on clothing from a teddy bear to cover himself up.
- Miss Piggy posed unclothed in a Nastassja Kinski inspired photo for Zink Magazine.
- In the 2015 presentation pilot for The Muppets, Animal announces that he'll do nudity if it's tasteful.
- A promotional poster for The Muppets, shows Kermit the Frog with the caption "Finally, a network TV show with full frontal nudity."
- In The Muppets episode "Got Silk?" Pepe the King Prawn, and Rizzo attempt to take off Gonzo's suit pants (without removing his shoes first), Kermit walks in on them, and asks them to always wear pants in the office, at which point Rizzo snaps back with "Okay, Mr. Naked."
Naked Muppets
Due to animal and abstract nature of many Muppet characters, it is not uncommon for there to be Muppet characters that are unclothed (or only partially clothed) with no shame or commotion from others. Occasionally typically unclothed Muppets will dress up for costumed roles or will wear seasonal or role-related clothing. Below are some exceptions or noteworthy examples of Muppets that don't wear clothing.
- Baby Bear often appears without clothes (although, like many of the puppet characters, he is not routinely shown below the waist on camera), however the walk-around version of the character wears overalls.
- Bobo the Bear is often seen without clothes. In his role as security guard at KMUP in Muppets Tonight he wore a security guard hat and ID badge. He wears a full suit in his roles as the bad guy's sidekick in Muppets from Space, Letters to Santa, and The Muppets. He wore gym clothes when exercising in an installment of "Better Living with Bobo" on muppets.com; and he'll also occasionally wear a necktie.
- In the teleplay for the Fraggle Rock episode "All Work and All Play", writer Jerry Juhl describes Doozer wardrobe on the morning of Cotterpin's helmet ceremony: "The female Doozers all wear little flowered hats and the men are in bowlers. Otherwise they are nude. This, apparently, is formal attire for state and religious occasions."
- Ernie is presumably naked in his bathtub when performing such songs as "Rubber Duckie" and "Do De Rubber Duck."
- Fozzie Bear is often seen wearing nothing more than a hat and necktie. However in his role as Patrol Bear he wears a uniform, which he loses in episode 416, and shies from his nudity. In The Great Muppet Caper, the removal of his hat causes him to be confused for a a frog, as it is a known fact that "bears wear hats." Fozzie plays the emperor in the story of The Emperor's New Clothes in Muppet Classic Theater, being exposed to the public when he doesn't wear clothes.
- Herry Monster, like most Sesame Street monsters, is unclothed; however in illustrations, storybooks and some merchandise he's invariably clad in pants with pink stripes.
- From her introduction until Season 33 (when she started being dressed in a tutu), Zoe did not wear any clothes other than her prized barrettes, bracelets, and necklace until. In Season 49, she returned to a sans-tutu wardrobe.
- Kermit the Frog often only wears a collar; although he sometimes wears a tuxedo, notably in the Panel Discussions in the first season of "The Muppet Show", and a trench-coat in his reporter role. Kermit will occasionally alludes to the fact that he doesn't wear clothes in interviews and other appearances, such as when he is pick-pocked by Fozzie Bear in It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie despite not having pockets or pants.
- In early appearances Rizzo the Rat, like most of the Muppet rats, was unclothed. He and the other rats have since adapted to wearing clothing (or at least shirts) on a regular basis.
- Sam the Eagle gives an editorial about nudity in episode 206 of The Muppet Show until he realizes that he is naked and shamefully exits the stage.