 | While most people recognize him for his trademark green collar and ping pong eyes, where and how people know Kermit has changed with time.--Bella Coles |
Entertainer, singer, and now: internet meme. Since 1955 Kermit the Frog has embodied all of this, and more. While most people recognize him for his trademark green collar and ping pong eyes, where and how people know Kermit has changed with time. He has gone from being a charismatic TV show host, to an unpopular icon, and now, a well known internet meme.
Kermit the Frog was the awkward, underdog of the Muppet show. He was the star, but never in an over the top boisterous way. He was modest in his ways, he never took up too much space. He appealed to audiences, because in a show of such absurdity, he acted as a middle ground for the rest of the craziness that was The Muppets.
Kermit the Frog made his first screen appearance in Sam and Friends, a project Jim Henson created a few years before The Muppet Show took off in 1955. In Sam and Friends he was originally a lizard and not a frog. When The Muppet Show aired from 1976-1981, Kermit was the quirky host, he was Miss Piggy’s unrequited love interest (the character Miss Piggy was voiced by Frank Oz, Mike Oz’s uncle). He was the hero of countless Muppet movies, and the token cast member of the company.
The Muppet Show was well known for incorporating adult humour with children-geared themes. The Muppets were ridiculous, satirical, entertaining and original. They gathered the attraction of a wide audience, entertaining the masses.
Jim Henson, the mastermind behind The Muppets, created, voiced, and controlled Kermit, until his death in 1990. The Jim Henson company is also responsible for projects such as Fraggle Rock, Labrynth, Sesame Street, and The Dark Crystal. Kermit the Frog however, is by far the most recognizable character from any Jim Henson project.
After Henson’s death in 1990, the company struggled to stay grounded in its financial affairs. Henson’s son, Brian, took over the company and a number of Muppet-oriented movies were released. They received mediocre reviews, but it was evident that it did not equate to the Muppets of Henson’s era. From 2000-2001 The Muppets only made a few television appearances, but nothing comparatively to the amount that they had used to.
Eventually in 2005, Disney bought The Muppets, which included Kermit The Frog. Since then, Disney has produced two big Muppet-oriented movies: Muppets Most Wanted and The Muppets. While the issue of popularity is one of controversy, since Disney bought the Muppets, the sales for Muppet merchandise has certainly increased. The mass production of Kermit the Frog dolls, Miss Piggy shirts, and toys have skyrocketed since the purchase by Disney.
Part of what was so unique and lovable about The Muppets was their originality. Jim Henson has been acclaimed for being an influential entertainer, his talent clearly reflected in his work. Once the group was purchased by Disney, however, some argue that much of the originality and drive behind Henson, and therefore Kermit, was gone. The newest Muppet movies didn’t yield nearly as good reviews as the older ones, “As a died-in-the-wool Muppets fan, this overripe nostalgia trip only almost captures that Henson magic. There are moments of exuberance, but they're scattered and isolated.” -- Rotten Tomatoes.
They also received critique for not incorporating the same humor as the original Muppets have highlighted in the past.
Along with all this change the Muppets were facing, Kermit the Frog was also changing. Between his early fame in the 70’s-80’s and his resurgence in present day, his image took a bit of a hiatus. He wasn't iconic or cool for a good fifteen years, until the newest Muppet movies came out, and meme culture rapidly garnered popularity for Kermit.
Later in 2014, Muppets: Most Wanted was released. The movie featured a scene where Kermit is confronted with Constantine, a twin frog who played the antagonist of the film, attempting to steal Kermit’s identity. The confrontation was an image of the two frogs in front of a black backdrop, Constantine cloaked in a dark hood covering most of his face, and Kermit is just in the green.
The first of the Kermit memes spawned from an image of the puppet drinking tea. An accidental meme arose from this image (originally a 2014 Lipton tea commercial). The image went hand in hand with the caption, ¨but that’s none of my business¨. Kermit’s meme debut was sassy new material that quickly became popular and outdid his fellow frog meme component, Pepe the Frog.
In late 2016, this image sparked the internet’s interest and became a popular meme. It focused around the idea of an “inner evil you” versus the “good you.”
Kermit the Frog was the awkward, underdog of the Muppet show. He was the star, but never in an over the top boisterous way. He was modest in his ways, he never took up too much space. He appealed to audiences, because in a show of such absurdity, he acted as a middle ground for the rest of the craziness that was The Muppets.
Kermit the Frog made his first screen appearance in Sam and Friends, a project Jim Henson created a few years before The Muppet Show took off in 1955. In Sam and Friends he was originally a lizard and not a frog. When The Muppet Show aired from 1976-1981, Kermit was the quirky host, he was Miss Piggy’s unrequited love interest (the character Miss Piggy was voiced by Frank Oz, Mike Oz’s uncle). He was the hero of countless Muppet movies, and the token cast member of the company.
The Muppet Show was well known for incorporating adult humour with children-geared themes. The Muppets were ridiculous, satirical, entertaining and original. They gathered the attraction of a wide audience, entertaining the masses.
Jim Henson, the mastermind behind The Muppets, created, voiced, and controlled Kermit, until his death in 1990. The Jim Henson company is also responsible for projects such as Fraggle Rock, Labrynth, Sesame Street, and The Dark Crystal. Kermit the Frog however, is by far the most recognizable character from any Jim Henson project.
After Henson’s death in 1990, the company struggled to stay grounded in its financial affairs. Henson’s son, Brian, took over the company and a number of Muppet-oriented movies were released. They received mediocre reviews, but it was evident that it did not equate to the Muppets of Henson’s era. From 2000-2001 The Muppets only made a few television appearances, but nothing comparatively to the amount that they had used to.
Eventually in 2005, Disney bought The Muppets, which included Kermit The Frog. Since then, Disney has produced two big Muppet-oriented movies: Muppets Most Wanted and The Muppets. While the issue of popularity is one of controversy, since Disney bought the Muppets, the sales for Muppet merchandise has certainly increased. The mass production of Kermit the Frog dolls, Miss Piggy shirts, and toys have skyrocketed since the purchase by Disney.
Part of what was so unique and lovable about The Muppets was their originality. Jim Henson has been acclaimed for being an influential entertainer, his talent clearly reflected in his work. Once the group was purchased by Disney, however, some argue that much of the originality and drive behind Henson, and therefore Kermit, was gone. The newest Muppet movies didn’t yield nearly as good reviews as the older ones, “As a died-in-the-wool Muppets fan, this overripe nostalgia trip only almost captures that Henson magic. There are moments of exuberance, but they're scattered and isolated.” -- Rotten Tomatoes.
They also received critique for not incorporating the same humor as the original Muppets have highlighted in the past.
Along with all this change the Muppets were facing, Kermit the Frog was also changing. Between his early fame in the 70’s-80’s and his resurgence in present day, his image took a bit of a hiatus. He wasn't iconic or cool for a good fifteen years, until the newest Muppet movies came out, and meme culture rapidly garnered popularity for Kermit.
Later in 2014, Muppets: Most Wanted was released. The movie featured a scene where Kermit is confronted with Constantine, a twin frog who played the antagonist of the film, attempting to steal Kermit’s identity. The confrontation was an image of the two frogs in front of a black backdrop, Constantine cloaked in a dark hood covering most of his face, and Kermit is just in the green.
The first of the Kermit memes spawned from an image of the puppet drinking tea. An accidental meme arose from this image (originally a 2014 Lipton tea commercial). The image went hand in hand with the caption, ¨but that’s none of my business¨. Kermit’s meme debut was sassy new material that quickly became popular and outdid his fellow frog meme component, Pepe the Frog.
In late 2016, this image sparked the internet’s interest and became a popular meme. It focused around the idea of an “inner evil you” versus the “good you.”
Internet culture is probably heavily responsible for Kermit’s most recent evolution, but many would argue that the Walt Disney Company is, too. After turning the Muppets into a mass produced commodity, the original intent and art of the Muppet was lost, their purpose more for profit than performance. People who grew up watching The Muppets are perhaps more susceptible to noticing this difference, while those who grew aware of Kermit through his meme imagery are less so, as the current generation is more comfortable with placing importance based on commodities rather than original intent.