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[SANDBOX NOTE: Collecting information on early/proto versions of major characters.]
Proto characters[]
Primitive or precursory versions of major Muppet characters.
Recycled Puppets[]
Main characters that originated from generic/unnamed puppets.
Miss Piggy's origins[]
[SANDBOX NOTE: Possibily spin-off into a page on "proto-Piggy" or "Piggy Lee" to discuss the early Piggy... or just an expanded section on the Miss Piggy article.]
"Piggy Lee" on The Tonight Show.
Fran Brill with the early proto-Piggy puppet on the set of The Muppet Show: Sex & Violence.
The early season 1 puppet shared by Frank Oz and Richard Hunt.
Prior to her breakout role on The Muppet Show, the character of Miss Piggy evolved from a simple chorus girl to show star.
An early Piggy puppet (performed by Frank Oz) appeared as "Piggy Lee" alongside Hamilton Pig (Jim Henson) on the May 24, 1974 episode of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'. She lip-synched with Hamilton Pig to "Old Black Magic".
Five months later on October 13, 1974, Jerry Nelson performed "Piggy" (still not yet Miss Piggy) on Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass alongside Hoggie Marsh (Jim Henson).
A beady-eyed variation of the puppet later appeared briefly in The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence (1975), performed by Fran Brill in a sketch called "Return to Beneath the Planet of the Pigs."
By the time The Muppet Show began in 1976, she was retooled to the more recognizable Miss Piggy, sporting large blue eyes and wearing a flowing lavender gown.
Throughout the first season of The Muppet Show, the role alternated between Frank Oz and Richard Hunt. She was performed by both Oz and Hunt for the "Temptation" number in the show's first episode. While Hunt pre-recorded her singing voice for the number, Oz provided the puppeteering and all of the spoken dialogue. Hunt continued to perform Piggy occasionally throughout the early episodes, often in "At the Dance" segments and several early "Veterinarian's Hospital" bits.
Richard Hunt as Miss Piggy:
- Episode 101: Juliet Prowse — At the Dance and singing lines in "Temptation."
- Episode 103: Joel Grey — At the Dance and third backstage scene.
- Episode 104: Ruth Buzzi — At the Dance and Panel Discussion.
- Episode 105: Rita Moreno — First two backstage scenes, Veterinarian's Hospital, and At the Dance.
- Episode 108: Paul Williams — At the Dance.
- Episode 109: Charles Aznavour — At the Dance.
- Episode 110: Harvey Korman — Panel Discussion, At the Dance, and Veterinarian's Hospital.
- Episode 111: Lena Horne — At the Dance.
- Episode 112: Peter Ustinov — At the Dance.
- Episode 113: Bruce Forsyth — At the Dance.
- Episode 115: Candice Bergen — Panel Discussion and last backstage scene.
- Episode 117: Ben Vereen — Veterinarian's Hospital.
However, by the end of the season, the character had grown and evolved under Oz from a one-joke running gag into a complex, three-dimensional character and gaining such trademarks as her karate chop, faux-French, obsession with Kermit, and her overall prima-donna persona.
Muppet designer Bonnie Erickson remembers, "My mother used to live in North Dakota where Peggy Lee sang on the local radio station before she became a famous jazz singer. When I first created Miss Piggy I called her Miss Piggy Lee -- as both a joke and an homage. Peggy Lee was a very independent woman, and Piggy certainly is the same. But as Piggy's fame began to grow, nobody wanted to upset Peggy Lee, especially because we admired her work. So, the Muppet's name was shortened to Miss Piggy."
The later character was referred to as "Piggy Lee" in one Muppet Show episode, episode 106. She also uses that name in the 1977 Muppet Show Annual released in the United Kingdom.
External links[]
Prairie Dawn's origins[]
The character of Prairie Dawn evolved out of a generic "little girl" Anything Muppet before getting a consistent name, appearance and personality. Not every little pink AM in the early years was Prairie Dawn, but she has distinctive hair and dress. Most of these girls, including Prairie, were performed by Fran Brill.
This list tracks the early uses of her name either in scripts or dialogue:
Performed by Fran Brill, script just calls her "girl" and she is addressed as "Penelope" on screen.
Performed by Fran Brill, just called "little girl" in script, but carries personality and appearance of Prairie
Performed by Fran Brill, called "girl" in script; she refers to having piano lessons
Prairie named in script for Street scene with Oscar. Incidentally, this episode is the first appearance of the haunted house insert where she's not named on screen and the script just calls her "girl".
Guy Smiley origins[]
In the first season, the Guy Smiley puppet was used in a variety of different ways, with different names in each appearance (if named at all), though often a game show host or show business type and normally performed by Jim Henson.
This list tracks his first season appearances.
