Welcome to Muppet Wiki!
| Music by | Harold Arlen |
| Lyrics by | E.Y. (Yip) Harburg |
| Date | 1939 |
| Source | The Wizard of Oz (MGM film) |
| Publisher | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc., EMI Feist Catalog, Inc. |
"Over the Rainbow" is one of the most famous "songs about rainbows" and was written by Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harburg for the 1939 film version of The Wizard of Oz. The song was performed by Judy Garland as Dorothy during the film's first desaturated section.
The song was performed by Robin the Frog as he sat beside a pond in episode 307 of The Muppet Show while a rainbow appeared overhead. The episode, which guest starred shock-metal musician Alice Cooper, was otherwise filled with spooky acts, both on stage and off. Fozzie Bear referred to Robin's simple, unadorned performance as the "one thing nice on this show tonight."
The song was later performed by Miss Piggy as Dorothy, holding Foo-Foo as Toto, at the beginning of the Wizard of Oz medley in The Muppets Go to the Movies. Partway through her performance, she was interrupted by Rowlf the Dog, who was concerned that the picture was in black and white. When he was assured by Piggy that it was supposed to be that way, Rowlf promptly advised viewers at home not to adjust their television sets. At the end of the song, Rowlf cued the color, and the medley continued with "If I Only Had a Brain" and "We're Off to See the Wizard."
References
- Piggy quotes the song in one of her first segments of Miss Piggy's Hollywood: "This is Hollywood, where the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true."
- The song was spoofed in the Sesame Street outreach video Food for Thought as "Somehow You'll Make a Rainbow."
Releases
- Video
- Children's Songs and Stories (1985) - episode 307 version