The Muppets Star in "Studio DC: Almost Live!"
The Muppets will star in an all-new original television special coming to Disney Channel later this month. The Muppets have teamed up with popular Disney Channel stars - including Miley Cyrus, Ashley Tisdale, Dylan & Cole Sprouse, and Jonas Brothers - in the all-new television special "Studio DC: Almost Live!". The show is currently set to air on the Disney Channel on Saturday, July 19, 2008 at 8:00PM ET/PT (check local listings for details).
The special will feature singing and dancing, comedy sketches and the backstage antics of a fictional Disney Channel variety show.
The project was developed to order to introduce a new generation of fans to the Muppets – while keeping the classic feeling and tone that the Muppets are known for. This Muppet and Disney Channel project was first announced last year; and interestingly enough, many segments for the "almost live" show were filmed almost a year ago (with principle photography for those segments wrapping in early August 2007).
So mark your calendars, and prepare for an all-new Muppet variety show for an all-new generation of fans! I will be sure to keep you updated with more information on the premiere of this long-awaited television event as details become available.
22 comments:
Cool! A new Muppet special!
I hope that this new special will squelch the fears of the Muppet fans that think that the "Disney Channel Stars" and the Muppets wouldn't work together well and possibly give them at least some incentive to be nicer to those kids and stop bashing them and their productions so mercilessly.
Those DC stars might even reveal themselves to be Muppet fans and I think that they'll indeed work well together and make a good combination.
'Ya never know. :)
But..the original muppet show was with stars that appealed to both adults and children. This line up is clearly aimed at the under 14 crowd.
That is horribly disappointing.
This is EXACTLY what the Muppets needs! A lot of adults like the Muppets because they were kids when they were in their prime. Disney is not stupid. With the upcoming movie they're going to need to position the Muppets as an active, viable brand. Even if this tv special is completely stupid, it sets the ground work for the Muppets to be in kids' consciousness. If Disney can tell kids that Hannah Montana is what they want, why shouldn't they do the same with the Muppets?
Quit whining about whether the new special will suck. Chances are it will. Just be happy that Disney's putting some life into (let's be honest here) a brand that hasn't met its potential.
But..the original muppet show was with stars that appealed to both adults and children. This line up is clearly aimed at the under 14 crowd.
That is horribly disappointing.
To quote Marvin Suggs, "Who cares?!"
Some people over the age of 14 like them, too.
And not all of the original Muppet Show's guests appealed to kids.
And I don't think this program will suck at all. It's not wise to slam something right away. Give it a chance and reserve judgement until you actually see the entire thing.
Pessimism is a health hazard.
It is no secret around the Muppet forums that I'm not a big fan of what I refer to as the Disney kids or their media. That's not to say I think they are terrible, merely mediocre as far as my tastes are concerned. That aside - these projects are popular. They are particularly with the younger audience the Muppets need to reach to be successful!
This Disney Channel special is a good thing! For better or for worse this tween star fare is where much of the Disney Company's investment dollar goes these days and they're trying to attach the Muppets to some of that magic - but not to change them. The Muppets already have longtime fans like me who saw the Muppet Show in its original run and every Muppet film theatrically.
The Muppets aren't going to change, they are merely reaching out. Kermit's Swamp Years was pandering; this appears to be a real effort at connecting.
Would I rather have the Muppets singing and dancing on network television with the Foo Fighters, OKGO or Green Day? Heck yeah! But that's more likely to happen later on if this is a hit. I'll be watching - and with high hopes.
And let's not forget this is a big step up from Pizza Hut ads! Disney really wants to bring the Muppets back.
That's not to say I think they are terrible, merely mediocre as far as my tastes are concerned. That aside - these projects are popular.
And at least some of them ARE actually well-done, too (such as the High School Musical trilogy).
Not all of those DC productions are mediocre.
And the DC stars themselves are not necessarily the idiots that some people like to make them out to be. You have to remember: when they're appearing in a show or movie (playing characters other than themselves), they're given scripts and mostly have to follow them and do whatever they say, no matter what.
And their "show/film" personalities aren't always reflections of their "real life" personalities, either. In real life, more likely than not, they could very well be good people...and they're only human, just like the rest of us.
There's always a chance that the DC stars could appear in the special as their "real life" selves in some scenes (think of the part where Kermit and Pepe briefly chatted with Miley Cyrus in the Grammy Awards video that appeared on Muppets.com earlier this year...and she probably enjoyed interacting with them as much as all the other celebrities did).
And I still think that those DC stars are probably Muppet-lovers, too, so they deserve a chance to prove that they and the Muppets can be a good combination.
I suppose it's just a matter of different tastes. In my day we had Saved by the Bell, Kids Incorporated and different incarnations of the Mickey Mouse Club. I never cared much for those projects either (except for Nick's You Can't Do That on Television). However production values have vastly improved since my day and today's stars appear to have at least a little more talent and resonance.
The DC projects don't much suit my palette. They aren't really designed with folk like me in mind and that's okay. I do note their place in popular culture and respect their success. The fact that Disney wants the Muppets associated with that success is demonstrates the high regard the company has for Kermit and the gang.
I think there is a fear that the Muppet characters will get all "tweened-up" in subject matter and comedy, but I don't see it. The Muppets have a way of taking their trademarked mania wherever they go. And we know where they’re headed – the silver screen! Now Disney’s going to make sure to get more audience members to fill those seats in 2010.
I just checked both the listing on disneychannel.com and on TV Guide's website and they both say that Life with Derek is airing Saturday the 19th instead of Studio DC. What's up with that? Has Studio DC been delayed or something?!
Yahoo TV listings has it set for Saturday July 19th
"8:00pm - 8:30pm, DISNEY (55)
Studio DC: Almost Live
Miley Cyrus, the Jonas Brothers, Ashley Tisdale, the Cheetah Girls, and Dylan and Cole Sprouse join Kemit the Frog and Miss Piggy for a variety show f…"
so I guess there's no problem. It's only a half hour and that's kind of strange.
i'm really disappointed. i can't find it either. i'm 46 and was looking forward to watching it with my daughter...what now??
I think it is gone. Maybe Disney is retooling it to be a bigger special later on this fall. I heard there were two parts of this special. It is possible they might be joined. I don't think Disney would scrap anything with HSM or HM players. I would expect to see this sometime this year. However a year and a half after a shoot is not "almost live" in any definition.
I was surprised by the weak promotion of this. Maybe they want to build bigger buzz?
I to cannot find it in the listings. I'm 48 and was excited to see them back on. I wanted to show my 15 yr old daughter just how great the muppets are.I hope there is news about it soon.
The Airdate has been pushed 2 weeks... and some of your information is wrong. The Cheetah girls are not in this first special. The Jonas Brothers are. There will be 2 more this year. And not all Principal photography was completed last year. Only 3 of the segments, they were shot as stand alone interstitials, and proved to test extremely well. More were shot, and the idea to do a series of specials was greenlit.
Enjoy! THey are very funny!
Thank you very much for your information on this. Fans have been scrambling in the dark. Do you know if the Muppets will be in all three of the specials you have reported?
The Airdate has been pushed 2 weeks... and some of your information is wrong. The Cheetah girls are not in this first special. The Jonas Brothers are. There will be 2 more this year. *And not all Principal photography was completed last year. Only 3 of the segments, they were shot as stand alone interstitials, and proved to test extremely well. More were shot, and the idea to do a series of specials was greenlit.
Enjoy! THey are very funny!*
The above is totally bogus. The interstitials did NOT "test well", and for a variety of reasons, Disney has had second thoughts about alloting air time to a full-fledged Muppet special. What those thoughts will amount to is unknown at this time. Stay tuned...
The above is totally bogus. The interstitials did NOT "test well", and for a variety of reasons, Disney has had second thoughts about alloting air time to a full-fledged Muppet special. What those thoughts will amount to is unknown at this time. Stay tuned...
Oh, be quiet Anonymous! You're wrong and you know it!!!
The special WILL air!
Where's GelflingWaldo when you need him?
We have been watching the listings, but haven't found Muppets. :( I hope the show has just been pushed 2 weeks. My family is really bummed.
I saw a commercial for this on Disney Channel today. It showed actors from Suite Life, Miley Cyrus, and the Jonas Brothers.
Its slated for August 3rd. :-)ay
I've been A muppet fan for a long while now. So I'm Pretty Excited for this :D
I've been A Muppets fan for a long time now and i must admit that This Looks Pretty good.
the reason I posred twice was because....I dunno.
The Muppets have finally made the right decision.
Not many people under the age of 15 know who the Muppets are.
It’s great to introduce them to a new generation. A lot of the current fans are growing out of them and heading into there mid 30's or older. And the past few movies have not introduced the characters.
The are assuming people already know who they are, which makes it almost impossible for children or new fans to become interested. This is a great move!
I’ve already heard some of the younger people talk about the muppets and this special.
Thank you for this.
New Muppet fan
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