Steve Whitmire Discusses Kermit's Voice & Muppets' Lineage
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- Опубликовано: 5 сен 2024
- Another snippet from my candid conversation with Steve Whitmire. We talk about character integrity and how he took on the role of Kermit after Jim Henson's passing. We also discuss the best way for The Muppets to live on and stay true to themselves.
Watch the FULL interview here: • Steve Whitmire on Join...
Watch Steve's new series CAVE-iN: / @caveinwithweldontheitguy
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How can Steve Whitmire be so underrated to be the voice and puppeteer of one of the greatest known puppets in history?
Not to mention his equally prolific work for the Creature Shop: The Dark Crystal, Dreamchild, Labyrinth, The Witches, Dinosaurs and more!
That's why a lot of puppeteers choose their craft: relative annonymity. That's why I do it.
I will miss him being a puppeteer because Kermit doesnt sound like himself anymore
It's true, Matt Vogel can't consistently get the Kermit voice right. It's a shame because Vogel is a good puppeteer apart from the Kermit problem. And he doesn't seem to have been given much of a chance to fix his Kermit problem, either. Way back when Steve Whitmire was doing Dinosaurs, he told me how when he initially got assigned Kermit, the company gave him much of a year off so that he would have lots of time to simply study Kermit, practice Kermit, practice the voice etc. And it made a great difference as you can tell from the first footage of Whitmire having to do Kermit on short notice, vs a year later after he got time to improve. - - I don't think anybody gave Vogel much time to improve his Kermit voice
@@LoreleiMissionlately he has been working on it, as it has been somewhat better than usual (still sometimes rather jarringly not like Jim Henson)
He is absolutely right - today's Muppets are no where near as magical and funny as the original performers' versions
What about the fact that Frank Oz tutored and coached Eric Jacobson and David Rudman, so they could take over his characters? Here's Dave Goelz's opinion: muppet.fandom.com/wiki/Eric_Jacobson#The_Muppets
But by that logic, Kermit is nowhere near as magical and funny outside of the hands of Jim Henson.
There's still a lot of humor and sincerity coming from the current troupe of Muppet performers, but it'll never truly be the same style as it was in the '70s and '80s because that was a different unique group of people. Bill Baretta and Peter Linz and Matt Vogel and Eric Jacobson and David Rudman are all great. Jim Henson and Frank Oz and Dave Goelz and Jerry Nelson and Richard Hunt were all great too. Every performer brings something different to the table, though, and no two interpretations of the characters will every truly be identical. A different energy coming from a different group is inevitable.
I can’t believe we are wasting YEARS of Steve not performing on the Muppets
@@yosefdemby8792 you say that like it’s a bad thing. We got Kevin back after he’d been shunned
@@dillonohlemiller9027 Maybe you're right. Innocent until proven guilty.
Blame Disney and Henson for basically banding together on that decision
@@dillonohlemiller9027yeah I’m glad Kevin’s back but still miss him doing Elmo. Cause these days Ryan’s Elmo is sort of starting to get a little annoying. In the beginning, Ryan was great but as the years went on and still to this day, Ryan’s Elmo like I said is a little annoying now
Please please bring back Steve Whitmire we really really want him back
Steve is the best. He did Kermit so well. I'm glad he's doing his own thing now.
I agree
It's not just Kermit and Rizzo! Look at the rest of Steve Whitmire's resume! A indecisive and amiable Fraggle, a sadistic alien reptile/vulture scientist, a lugubrious and lachrymose Mock Turtle, a pompous hookah-smoking Caterpillar, countless Goblins, two different sheepdogs, a little boy transformed into a mouse, the world's first CGI puppet, a typical dinosaur teenage boy, a tyrannical psychotic Triceratops blue-collar boss and more! Disney and the Henson children fired and ostracized one of their most versatile performers!
Yeah he’s also Ernie, Statler, Beaker, Bean Bunny, Wembley and Sprocket!
Yeah, that too. @@brockpifer9929
@@brockpifer9929 I already listed Wembley. But thanks for the other stuff. Actually, Whitmire left Sesame Street because of the tiring traveling between Atlanta and New York. There were no hard feelings from either Whitmire or Sesame Workshop.
@@yosefdemby8792 oh yeah. It was cause Sesame couldn’t afford to have Steve fly into New York, cause he said they pay for his flight and stay in NY while he came to shoot, and he said he also had to take a pay cut
Steve is an incredible person. He will always have my support.
ha ha ha
@@AtheistCook ha!
@Philip Kippel You bring up an incredibly intelligent, level headed, and valid point. You possess an unprecedented knack for logic and present your points with such style and grace. I'll have to rethink my position on this matter. Thanks, PK.
Gobo's Lament be careful, he might think you’re serious
@@dillonohlemiller9027 Let me be clear here. There is nothing wrong with Phillip Kippel. He is of sound mind and body. He is hugely successful in life and in youtube comments. If I could walk a mile in PK's shoes he would have to pry them off my feet to get them back. I wish my sister hadn't married because I would totally fix her up with him just to be closer to him. A titan amongst men. A true inspiration to us all. P. Kips, everyone. Shines so bright you can't look at him longer than a second. Show him some love people.
Man this interview makes me so sad. Steve doesn't receive the amount of credit he deserves. He deserved the chance to teach his predecessor, it would've resulted in a much better evolution of Kermit. It really breaks my heart that Disney is disregarding such a beloved character.
Yeah the muppets have become sort of imitations of what they were like their being exploited for being nostalgic rather than being seen as genuine characters. Aardman who created Wallace and Gromit have a voice actor named Ben whitehead who is the current voice of Wallace who sounds exactly like Peter Sallis but that comes from a place where they know Sallis was right for the part so it’s more than an imitation.
I Miss Steve As Kermit
Most of us do….Phillip Kippel would disagree and call Steve the worst thing ever
Who doesn't
@@CandyKitty_Doll Philip Kippel doesn’t. He takes every opportunity to crap on this man
@@dillonohlemiller9027 Oh that sucks
His kermit is great but I give him so much praise for rizzo the rat
Yeah
He created the character.
That's because it's his character, not Jim's character. He sort of "owns" that character.
Thanks so much for this, Wesley. I appreciate you giving Steve this platform. I feel like I should warn you, this video is likely to draw some negative attention, if it hasn't already. There's a small but vocal contingent of the Disney fandom that can't stand when Steve speaks truth to power.
With all the respect and admiration I have for Steve, I say in the spirit of constructive criticism that I think he's selling the casual fans short, at least some of them. From what I've observed, it's the fans with the broad knowledge base about the Muppets, especially those who are in an influencer position, who largely express satisfaction with the recast, while the casual fans, who may just now be finding out about the recast, have been vocally critical of the current Kermit performance, sometimes even unfairly so.
With that said, there could be hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of casual fans who didn't know about the recast in the first place and don't notice it now. If they don't notice it, they have no reason to remark on it. So it's impossible to get a representative sample from which to draw conclusions. Maybe the majority of casual fans remain oblivious and are satisfied by superficialities, but there are plenty who have noticed the change and take issue with it.
Bruh it’s not even Disney that fired him, it’s the Henson children. So there’s no reason for Disney fans yo be pressed that Steve didn’t do anything to deserve getting fired, because it wasn’t Disney that did it.
@@FreeSpiritPaulette Ultimately, Disney made the decision, and the surviving Henson kids (with the exception of Heather, as far as I know) supported the decision, for whatever reason. But you bring up an interesting point, which is that the Disney fans who hate Steve are really quick to support the Hensons and privilege what they say about the matter because it serves their purpose to do so. But they don't really care anything about the Hensons at all. If the Hensons had come out in support of Steve, these same people would be railing up and down about how they've disgraced their father's name and they're not fit to run his company, etc.
@@frogoflamancha1647 you know if I ever become a part of the Board of Directors for the Jim Henson company I am definitely reversing that decision and bringing Steve back..Brian and the other Henson kids Who went along with the firing don’t realize that they are disrespecting their father’s memory by doing that
There is also a vocal minority who refuse to support Matt Vogel in any capacity too. I feel real bad for Vogel when he has to deal with stupid people who can't accept change.
Peter Linz could’ve learned many years from Steve and eventually taken over Kermit in a much truer fashion.
I believe he was the 2nd choice in the audition process.
@@patrickmanway290he could’ve been. I think the reason Matt got chosen was cause Disney and Henson thought that he was the most like Jim in terms of personality and voice that they thought Steve never had or did and they thought Matt could make Kermit not as they claimed “an angry and depressed victim” When TF did Steve’s Kermit ever act angry and depressed?
But I think Peter could’ve done awesome as Kermit. I mean just look at him with Ernie. He’s hitting it out of the park as Ernie. To me it’s the best of both Jim and Steve in one. That could’ve happened too with Kermit if Peter was the chosen one (Disney pun intended) 😂
I never noticed before how much Steve’s hands look like Jim’s.
Both must be meth heads then.
@@zebunker No no. See, they hold the puppets over their heads, and their hands became calloused. As Richard Hunt bluntly put it, "If you don't dig sore arms, don't do puppets."
As tall as Jim was Steve was even slightly taller at 6-4, but steve is also only 150 lbs.
His hands are almost skeletal.
@@zebunker Jim Henson rarely took stuff stronger than aspirin.
I met Steve in person in 2018 and, no joke, one of the first things I thought was, "man, that guy has huge hands."
Man, I swear I need to get in contact with him. I freaking love his work.
So do I
Hey. There was this Hallmark channel pilot created by Martin P. Robinson entitled Ibod's Waystation. The only proof of its existence is a few seconds of it on Robinson's performance reel and some information and artwork on his website. Do you think it'd be impudent if I were to try to gmail him to ask more about it?
@@yosefdemby8792 Go for it, and let me know how it goes!
@@booberfraggle Thanks for the encouragement pal!
@@booberfraggle I didn't do it. I chickened out. 😭
I'd much rather prefer if Netflix owned the Muppets, they'd probably get more creative control and not get dumbed down like Disney. They are *NOT* Sesame Street, those characters are meant to be sweet. The Muppets can be sweet, but as Frank Oz said, "They're supposed to be rebellious."
Actually, Frank Oz called Sesame Street, "a shadow of its former self", because "they're aiming it at little kids." Yes it's a show for children, but Jim Henson held this important philosophy: muppet.fandom.com/wiki/Quotes_on_the_Muppets_as_adult-oriented_characters He didn't pander or patronize.
Jim Henson believed in the importance of education. Even when he was making large sums of money with Sam and Friends and Wilkins Coffee commercials, he made sure to stay in college and graduate. When Frank Oz was hired in 1963, Oz took classes at the City College in his spare time. And David Rudman recalled Henson telling him to stay in college and finish before joining the crew full time. But what about Whitmire? Did he go to a community college or something like that in London?
Thanks for this in-depth interview.
Thanks for watching! There’s more on the way!
Steve is my favorite puppeteer
Mine too right after Jim.
@@Asukenick Same
The last appearance I ever remember him doing was that 1 season of The Muppets. on ABC when it was only 16 episodes that was the last time I saw the muppets in proper manner regardless there was that love triangle moment w/ Kermit, Piggy, and Denise. For that I miss and honor Steve the same way as I do Jim.
I love the muppets and particularly with this Kermit’s voice thing I’m never going to forget Jim he was the original and he always will be but Steve was a great successor with Kermit I’m really still a fan of the muppets but just for me Kermit essence doesn’t exist anymore I know Matt’s trying but I can’t take it yet 😢❤
Steve you are awesome and youe Kermit was the one of my Era. You also nailed Rizzo, Beaker, Link Hogthrob, Ernie, and other's.
Great interview, Wesley!
Disney screwed up the legacy of the muppets.
People who say this fail to look at projects like The Muppets 2011, Muppets Most Wanted, and the two Disney attractions Great Moments in American History & Muppet Vision 3D, while there’s some crap out there, there’s more gems that Disney’s done with the Muppets
@@FreeSpiritPaulette With all due respect, I agree with the original commenter; Disney screwed them up. The Muppets 2011 and Most Wanted are nowhere near the legacy of Jim’s creativity and what he would’ve liked done with them. That’s my opinion, and you can have your own, but as someone who grew up with the original Muppet content, the Disney stuff feels hollow to me. And that isn’t the nostalgia talking- I was a kid when Muppets 2011 came out, and even then, it felt completely wrong to me.
@@booberfraggle I understand, and thank you for being respectful in stating your opinion, but I have a few questions: if you were a kid when the muppets 2011 came out but grew up on Jim Henson’s muppets, what does that mean exactly? And number two: could elaborate please on the muppets most wanted movie with how it missed the mark of Jim’s muppet vision? Because my personal viewpoint is that it’s funnier than the first one yet doesn’t tug at your heartstrings as much, but it works as a comedy. Personally I laughed watching it more so than the muppet movie 1979, and also it’s better in my opinion than muppets from space (yes I know that’s not really saying much nor was it even a project Jim worked, but my point is that Disney could have done worse with the muppets, but they managed to handle them better than Sony did with that movie).
@@FreeSpiritPaulette I was raised with The Muppet Show and Fraggle Rock from as far back as I remember, and even by 2011, I had seen them through many times (and had practically memorized the Muppet Morsels on the DVD set- they’re just so interesting!!) and when I saw the trailer for The Muppets 2011 in theatres, it immediately felt wrong to me. Of course, I knew it wasn’t Henson himself, but the whole demeanor of the trailer felt completely off from the Muppets that I loved and already knew so well at that point. Even now, it’s still somewhat hard for me to sit through, because at its core, it feels much more corporate and pandering than the original Muppet productions. I very recently got the opportunity to talk to Steve Whitmire, who brought up the same sense of unease that I feel about Disney’s version of the Muppets and what’s happened to that franchise. While I did find The Muppets ABC funny when it first aired, and I still laugh at it now, there’s plotlines and other things that I feel don’t exactly honor Henson’s legacy? (It’s 3:30am for me, so I’m sorry if this is disjointed 😅) Mr. Whitmire and I talked about that as well, and again, he and I were dissatisfied with the fact that it didn’t seem to respect what Henson had set up before it. Granted, the world’s sense of humor has largely changed since the original show aired, and I get that they were trying to be more modern and.. edgy? (probably not the correct word, again, it’s 3am) with ABC, but it felt out of place with that cast of characters. There’s plenty of ways to be funny without being crass, and while I admittedly did laugh at the majority of the show, it didn’t feel like something Henson would’ve agreed with (See: the “gas station sushi” joke, which I absolutely cracked up at, but didn’t seem like something Henson would’ve exactly wanted his legacy to turn into).
I respect your opinion of course, this is just how I personally feel about the state of things at Disney right now- so I want to go ahead and watch Muppets Most Wanted again before I give you my opinion, since I haven’t seen it in a while, and I want to be fair to it and you. Who knows, I may appreciate it more this time around! ☺️ However, I feel it should be noted that I am not a fan of Disney due to their dealings with Henson himself, or how they went about firing Whitmire and sidelining Frank Oz. (But my feelings on that are another beast entirely, so I’m not going to get into that right now). Puppetry is also my ultimate career goal, and has been since I was introduced to it, so I also may be a bit more critical of what I feel doesn’t match up to the standards of the original content that I know these characters for? Either way, I do appreciate being able to have a calm, understanding conversation with you, and I’ll be sure to update you when I get a chance to brush up on Most Wanted! ☺️
Amen
I Can’t Believe Steve Doesn’t Like Voicing The Trumpet Player Lips…
(He Does A Pretty Good Louie Armstrong)
A white person can't get away with that now anyway.
@cartersummer3881, why? Because Steve wanted to have Lips to have that Louis Armstrong voice!
Why do you think he dozen't like doing it?!🤔
Steve sound exactly like Jim it’s now fair that he was fired by Jim’s own kids
Wembley!!!
YES!!!!!
And now the Henson children have fired the puppeteer Jim Henson et al chose for Wembley, and "replaced" him with Jordan Lockhart.
Here, I'm noticing Steve Whitmire has a similar cadence to Jim Henson. And he respects Jim Henson's original ideas. The lineage is noticeably lost and it makes the productions slightly hard to view.
Ikr
Interesting stuff.