Episode 31 - Sensational, Inspirational, Celebrational, Muppetational

To commemorate this week's brand new Halloween special on Disney+, It Happened One Year is taking a look at the status of Jim Henson's Muppets circa 1994, through the lens of that year's projects Muppet Classic Theater and the comedy album Kermit Unpigged! Sarah & Joe breakdown what works and doesn't in this era, following the impact of Jim and Richard Hunt's deaths, and how MCT was indicative of the franchise's direction for years to come. Along the way, plenty of time is given to Frank Oz's recent comments about Disney, characters that got pushed aside in the '90s, the Muppet live shows of recent years in Los Angeles and London, the overwhelming importance of Dave Goelz's Gonzo, Joe's only Muppet impression, and a few choice internet parodies of the group from the 21st century. Cameos abound from man and Muppet alike, with Ozzy Osbourne, Lily Tomlin, the Swedish Chef, Miss Piggy, George Benson, Jimmy Buffett, the Wilkins Coffee characters, SNL's The Land of Gorch, John Denver, Lady Gaga, Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, and many more popping up in the discussion. So now let's get things started (Why don't you get things started??) in this thirty-first muppetational episode of It Happened One Year!