''Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas'' is a 1977

television special A television special (often TV special, or rarely television spectacular) is a standalone television show which may also temporarily interrupt episodic programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Some specials provide a full range of ent ...

directed by

Jim Henson James Maury Henson (September 24, 1936 – May 16, 1990) was an American puppeteer, animator, cartoonist, actor, inventor, and filmmaker who achieved worldwide notice as the creator of The Muppets and '' Fraggle Rock'' (1983–1987) and ...

, based on the 1971 children's book of the same name by

Russell Hoban Russell Conwell Hoban (February 4, 1925 – December 13, 2011) was an American expatriate writer. His works span many genres, including fantasy, science fiction, mainstream fiction, magical realism, poetry, and children's books. He lived in ...

. The special features an ensemble cast of Henson's

Muppet The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an absurdist, burlesque, and self-referential style of variety-sketch comedy. Created by Jim Henson in 1955, they are the focus of a media franchise that encompasses tele ...

characters as well as characters from Hoban's novel, in a teleplay adapted by

Jerry Juhl Jerome Ravn Juhl (July 27, 1938 – September 27, 2005) was an American television and film writer, best known for his work with The Muppets. Biography Juhl was born in St. Paul, Minnesota; his family moved to Menlo Park, California, when ...

. The special features narration by

Kermit the Frog Kermit the Frog is a Muppet character created and originally performed by Jim Henson. Introduced in 1955, Kermit serves as the everyman protagonist of numerous Muppet productions, most notably '' Sesame Street'' and ''The Muppet Show'', as w ...

, who tells the story of Emmet Otter and his widowed Ma, a poor family of

otters Otters are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic, or marine, with diets based on fish and invertebrates. Lutrinae is a branch of the Mustelidae family, which also includes wea ...

who struggle to get Christmas presents for the other as a result of their financial situation. The special was produced by

The Jim Henson Company The Jim Henson Company (formerly known as Muppets, Inc., Henson Associates, Inc., and Jim Henson Productions, Inc.; commonly referred to as Henson) is an American entertainment company located in Los Angeles, California. The company is known for ...

and first premiered on

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French- ...

on December 4, 1977. The special received positive reviews from critics and audiences, and would later be syndicated in the years that followed with airings on

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television, premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office busi ...

in 1978, and ABC in 1980. In 2019, it was announced that a film remake of ''Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas'' was in the works to be directed by

Bret McKenzie Bret Peter Tarrant McKenzie (born 29 June 1976) is a New Zealand musician, comedian, music supervisor, and actor. He is best known as one half of musical comedy duo Flight of the Conchords along with Jemaine Clement. In the 2000s, the duo's com ...

Production

In 1977, Muppets creator Jim Henson produced a one-hour television adaptation of the story filmed in Toronto. The special first premiered on CBC on December 4, 1977 with a U.S. premiere the following year on

on December 17, 1978. The special later aired on ABC and

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Group. Its ...

in the 1990s. The special features several original songs written by songwriter Paul Williams. The special utilizes a number of different puppetry methods. The main puppets used are the usual Muppet hand puppets, but the characters are frequently represented by

marionettes A marionette (; french: marionnette, ) is a puppet controlled from above using wires or strings depending on regional variations. A marionette's puppeteer is called a marionettist. Marionettes are operated with the puppeteer hidden or revealed ...

as well. It also utilizes the

bunraku (also known as ) is a form of traditional Japanese puppet theatre, founded in Osaka in the beginning of the 17th century, which is still performed in the modern day. Three kinds of performers take part in a performance: the or ( puppeteer ...

and Black Theater techniques. This is also one of the first Muppet productions to use radio control puppet effects, designed by

Faz Fazakas Franz "Faz" Fazakas (April 5, 1918 – September 28, 2013) was an American puppeteer, engineer, and special effects designer, best known for his work with The Muppets. He is the namesake for Fozzie Bear for whom he created the puppet's ear-wiggli ...

. ''Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas'' also featured extensively platformed-up sets, all created with great attention to detail. Jim Henson explained: The original special featured an introduction by

, who also narrated certain scenes (in the 1978 release), and made an appearance near the end delivering closing remarks.

sold the rights to the Muppets (including Kermit) to

The Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on Octobe ...

in 2004 (namely their branch in

The Muppets Studio The Muppets Studio, LLC, formerly The Muppets Holding Company, LLC, is a wholly owned entertainment subsidiary of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, formed in 2004 through The Walt Disney Company's acquisition of ''The Muppets'' and ''Bear i ...

), and Kermit's scenes and narrations were thus omitted from the special's 2005 DVD. The 2018 releases of the special on Blu-ray and DVD reinstate Kermit's scenes, but not his narrations.

Plot

Following an introduction by Kermit the Frog, the story tells of Emmet

Otter Otters are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic, or marine, with diets based on fish and invertebrates. Lutrinae is a branch of the Mustelidae family, which also includes we ...

and his Ma, a widow who scrapes by on the small amount of money she gets from doing laundry and that Emmet gets from doing

odd job Odd job or Oddjob may refer to: Entertainment * Oddjob, a James Bond villain * ''Oddjob'' (comics), a comic book series * Oddjobs, a music group * ''Odd Jobs'' (1986 film), an American comedy film * ''Odd Jobs'' (1997 film), an American TV movie ...

s around their home in the town of Frogtown Hollow despite both of them often being cheated. Some of the people who cheated them are Old Lady Possum and Gretchen

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve s ...

(the wife of

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

Harrison Fox) of Waterville. While going into Waterville for some window shopping, Ma and Emmett reflect on Emmett's father's life, including his unsuccessful attempt at selling snake oil. As Christmas approaches, they hear of a talent contest in the nearby town of Waterville with a grand prize of $50, and separately decide to enter to buy store-bought presents for each other: an elaborate guitar for Emmet or a piano for Ma. However, in a twist on "

The Gift of the Magi "The Gift of the Magi" is a short story by O. Henry first published in 1905. The story tells of a young husband and wife and how they deal with the challenge of buying secret Christmas gifts for each other with very little money. As a sentimental ...

" by

O. Henry William Sydney Porter (September 11, 1862 – June 5, 1910), better known by his pen name O. Henry, was an American writer known primarily for his short stories, though he also wrote poetry and non-fiction. His works include " The Gift of the ...

, they must sacrifice each other's livelihood for the talent contest. Ma hocks Emmet's tools for dress fabric while Emmet turns Ma's washtub into a

washtub bass The washtub bass, or gutbucket, is a stringed instrument used in American folk music that uses a metal washtub as a resonator. Although it is possible for a washtub bass to have four or more strings and tuning pegs, traditional washtub basses ha ...

for a

jug band A jug band is a band employing a jug player and a mix of conventional and homemade instruments. These homemade instruments are ordinary objects adapted to or modified for making sound, like the washtub bass, washboard, spoons, bones, stovep ...

. Emmet assembles Wendell

Porcupine Porcupines are large rodents with coats of sharp spines, or quills, that protect them against predation. The term covers two families of animals: the Old World porcupines of family Hystricidae, and the New World porcupines of family, Erethiz ...

, Harvey

Beaver Beavers are large, semiaquatic rodents in the genus ''Castor'' native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. There are two extant species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers are ...

, and Charlie

Muskrat The muskrat (''Ondatra zibethicus'') is a medium-sized semiaquatic rodent native to North America and an introduced species in parts of Europe, Asia, and South America. The muskrat is found in wetlands over a wide range of climates and habitat ...

as the Frogtown Hollow Jubilee Jug Band. Emmet and Ma each do an excellent job (despite Emmet's jug band having to frantically change songs after another contestant performs their song), only to be defeated at the last minute by a rock and roll band called The Nightmare, which comprises a hoodlum gang from the fairly distant town of River Bottom made up of Chuck

Stoat The stoat (''Mustela erminea''), also known as the Eurasian ermine, Beringian ermine and ermine, is a mustelid native to Eurasia and the northern portions of North America. Because of its wide circumpolar distribution, it is listed as Least Con ...

, Fred

Lizard Lizards are a widespread group of Squamata, squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbae ...

, Howard

Snake Snakes are elongated, limbless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales. Many species of snakes have skulls with several more ...

, "Pop-Eyed"

Catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive ...

, and Stanley

Weasel Weasels are mammals of the genus ''Mustela'' of the family Mustelidae. The genus ''Mustela'' includes the least weasels, polecats, stoats, ferrets and European mink. Members of this genus are small, active predators, with long and slender bodi ...

. However, as the Frogtown Hollow Jubilee Jug Band sing a song together on the way home (more accurately, both of their talent show songs together after Ma realized they fit together), they are overheard by Doc Bullfrog (owner of a local restaurant called the Riverside Rest) who hires them to sing for his customers. Kermit concludes the special with Emmet, Ma, and the gang playing in front of Doc Bullfrog and the customers.

Muppet performers

, Harvey

, Howard

and

Harrison

Frank Oz Frank Oz (born Frank Richard Oznowicz; May 25, 1944) is an American actor, puppeteer, and filmmaker. He began his career as a puppeteer, performing the Muppet characters of Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, and Sam Eagle in '' The Muppet Show ...

as the performer of Alice Otter and the voice and performer of Chuck

Jerry Nelson Jerry L. Nelson (July 10, 1934 – August 23, 2012) was an American puppeteer, best known for his work with The Muppets. Renowned for his wide range of characters and singing abilities, he performed Muppet characters on ''Sesame Street'', ' ...

as Emmet

, Doc

Bullfrog ''Bullfrog'' is a common English language term to refer to large, aggressive frogs, regardless of species. Examples of bullfrogs include: Frog species America * Helmeted water toad (''Calyptocephalella gayi''), endemic to Chile *American bullfr ...

, Melissa

Rabbit Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit spec ...

, Stanley

and Yancey

Woodchuck The groundhog (''Marmota monax''), also known as a woodchuck, is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels known as marmots. The groundhog is a lowland creature of North America; it is found through mu ...

* Richard Hunt as Charlie

, Fred

and George Rabbit *

Dave Goelz David Charles Goelz (; born July 16, 1946) is an American puppeteer and puppet builder known for his work with the Muppets. As part of the Muppets' performing cast, Goelz performs Gonzo the Great, as well as Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Waldorf (afte ...

as "Pop-Eyed"

, Wendell

and Will Possum * Eren Ozker as Gretchen Fox, Hetty Muskrat, Mrs.

Mink Mink are dark-colored, semiaquatic, carnivorous mammals of the genera '' Neogale'' and '' Mustela'' and part of the family Mustelidae, which also includes weasels, otters, and ferrets. There are two extant species referred to as "mink": t ...

and Old Lady Possum *

Marilyn Sokol Marilyn Roberta Sokol (born February 22, 1944) is an American actress, musician, comedian, and producer, perhaps best known for her roles as Lulu Brecht in '' Can't Stop the Music'' (1980) and as Ma Otter in '' Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas'' ...

as the voice of Alice Otter

Songs

The special features several original songs penned by songwriter Paul Williams. Williams had previously worked with the Muppets on ''The Muppet Show'' and collaborated with the Muppets by writing the songs for ''

The Muppet Movie ''The Muppet Movie'' is a 1979 American musical road comedy film directed by James Frawley, produced by Jim Henson, and the first theatrical film featuring the Muppets. A co-production between the United Kingdom and the United States, the film w ...

'' and ''

The Muppet Christmas Carol ''The Muppet Christmas Carol'' is a 1992 American Christmas musical comedy drama film directed by Brian Henson (in his feature directorial debut) from a screenplay by Jerry Juhl. Adapted from the 1843 novella ''A Christmas Carol'' by Charles D ...

''. The song "Brothers in Our World" was later covered by

My Morning Jacket My Morning Jacket is an American rock band formed in Louisville, Kentucky in 1998. The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Jim James, bassist Tom Blankenship, drummer Patrick Hallahan, guitarist Carl Broemel, and keyboardist Bo Koster. Th ...

for the Muppets cover album '' Muppets: The Green Album''. :List of songs :* "The Bathing Suit That Grandma Otter Wore" :* "There Ain't No Hole in the Washtub" :* " When the River Meets the Sea" :* "Bar-B-Que" :* "Our World" :* "Brothers" :* "Riverbottom Nightmare Band" :* "Brothers in Our World" On November 2, 2018,

Varese Sarabande Records Varese ( , , or ; lmo, label= Varesino, Varés ; la, Baretium; archaic german: Väris) is a city and ''comune'' in north-western Lombardy, northern Italy, north-west of Milan. The population of Varese in 2018 has reached 80,559. It is the ...

released the soundtrack on CD and LP on November 23, 2018. #"The Bathing Suit That Grandma Wore" – 2:43 #"Jam Session – 1:07 #"Ain't No Hole in the Washtub – 2:11 #"When the River Meets the Sea – 2:30 #"Bar-B-Que (Jug Band) – 1:39 #"Carrots the Dancing Horse – 0:51 #"Bar-B-Que (Yancy Woodchuck) – 0:36 #"Dancing Rabbit Act – 0:44 #"Squirrel Acrobatic Act – 0:39 #"Our World – 1:51 #"Brothers – 2:03 #"Riverbottom Nightmare Band – 2:42 #"Our World-Brothers – 2:13 #"Our World-Brothers Club Reprise – 0:50 #"When the River Meets the Sea Reprise – 2:32 #"Born in a Trunk – 1:09 (Bonus Track)

Releases

In 2005,

HIT Entertainment HIT Entertainment Limited (commonly written as HiT) was a British-American entertainment company founded in 1982 as Henson International Television, the international distribution arm of The Jim Henson Company, by Jim Henson, Peter Orton, and So ...

released a "Collector's Edition" DVD which featured several deleted or alternate scenes, as well as a "lost" song that was recorded, but never actually used in the special. Called "I Was Born in the Trunk", the song was written for the talent show scene and was performed by the Waterville music store owner. Due to the sale of the Muppets to Disney a year earlier, Kermit's scenes and narrations were omitted from this release. On Saturday, December 12, 2015, a remastered version of the special's 1980 release had its cable channel debut alongside remastered '' The Bells of Fraggle Rock'' on

ABC Family The American cable and satellite television network that is now known as Freeform was originally launched as the CBN Satellite Service on April 29, 1977, and has gone through several different owners (and six different name changes) during its h ...

during its ''

25 Days of Christmas Freeform's 25 Days of Christmas is an American annual seasonal event of Christmas programming broadcast during the month of December by the U.S. cable network Freeform. The event was first held in 1996, and has been an annual fixture of the chann ...

'' programming block. A 40th Anniversary DVD of the special was released by

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (abbreviated as SPHE) is the home video distribution division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. Background SPHE is responsible for the distribution of the Sony Pictures li ...

on October 10, 2017, followed by a Blu-ray release on December 18, 2018. For the 2015 airing, as well as the subsequent DVD and Blu-ray releases, Kermit's introduction and closing scenes were restored. In 2017, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the special, musician Matt Surowiec produced an officially licensed "tribute" album featuring all-new covers of Paul Williams' original songs from the special. In 2022, the special, with Kermit's introduction and ending but not his other narrations, was made available for streaming on

Peacock Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera '' Pavo'' and '' Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female peafowl are r ...

Reception

''Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas'' received very positive reviews from critics. John J. O'Connor gave the special a very positive review in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' on December 15, 1980 for its ABC airing: "Jim Henson and the Muppets are on a dazzling winning streak these days... Mr. Henson has produced and directed one of the most charming Christmas specials of the last several years... Once again, Mr. Henson's creations verge on the marvelous, perfectly capturing the ''Wind in the Willows'' aspects of Emmet Otter's story... These really are the nicest folk on the river – and on prime-time television." Review aggregator

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

gave the film a score of 100% based on 8 reviews, with an average score of 8.4/10.

Awards

''Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas'' was nominated for four

Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

in 1981: * Outstanding Children's Program, David Lazer (executive producer) and Jim Henson (producer) * Outstanding Individual Achievement – Children's Programming, Calista Hendrickson (costume designer) and Sherry Ammott (costume designer) * Outstanding Individual Achievement – Children's Programming, Paul Williams (composer/lyricist) for the song "When The River Meets the Sea". * Outstanding Individual Achievement – Children's Programming, Tom Wright (lighting)

Later appearances

* Emmet Otter, Alice Otter, Mayor Harrison Fox, Gretchen Fox, Doc Bullfrog, Yancy Woodchuck, Will Possum, Fred Lizard, Stanley Weasel, Chuck Stoat, Howard Snake, Charlie Muskrat, Harvey Beaver, and Wendell Porcupine, George and Melissa Rabbit, two squirrels, and Old Lady Possum made cameos in ''

''. They are seen in the Rainbow Connection Finale. * Some of the puppets made cameos in ''

The Muppet Show ''The Muppet Show'' is a sketch comedy television series created by Jim Henson and featuring the Muppets. The series originated as two pilot episodes produced by Henson for ABC in 1974 and 1975. While neither episode was moved forward as a s ...

'': ** Mayor Harrison Fox's puppet was reused in several episodes that included the Woodland Animals including the "

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in Bob Hope filmography, more than 70 short and ...

" episode (where he was in the "For What It's Worth Number" with unclothed versions of Old Lady Possum, James Badger, Will Possum, George Rabbit, and Nat Muskrat alongside a deer, a mouse, a toothless beaver, and a weasel), the "

Kris Kristofferson Kristoffer Kristofferson (born June 22, 1936) is a retired American singer, songwriter and actor. Among his songwriting credits are " Me and Bobby McGee", " For the Good Times", " Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and " Help Me Make It Through the ...

and

Rita Coolidge Rita Coolidge (born May 1, 1945) is an American recording artist. During the 1970s and 1980s, her songs were on ''Billboard'' magazine's pop, country, adult contemporary, and jazz charts, and she won two Grammy Awards with fellow musician and th ...

" episode (where he alongside James Badger, Nat Muskrat, and Will Possum were repurposed for the "We're All Alone" song that also featured Billy the Bear, a Deer, a Beaver, and a Weasel), and the "

Leo Sayer Gerard Hugh "Leo" Sayer (born 21 May 1948) is an English-Australian singer and songwriter whose singing career has spanned five decades. He has been an Australian citizen and resident since 2009. Sayer launched his career in the United Kingdom ...

" episode (where he was featured in the "When I Need You" number with Billy the Bear, Mickey Moose, Harold Woodpecker, a beaver, a weasel, James Badger, and Crazy Harry). ** Fred Lizard was seen in the "Shields & Yarnell" and the "Dyan Cannon" episode. * Emmet Otter, Alice Otter, Mayor Harrison Fox, Gretchen Fox, and Wendell Porcupine appeared in '' The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years''. * Doc Bullfrog, Yancy Woodchuck, Old Lady Possum, George and Melissa Rabbit, and two squirrels appeared in the "Jim Henson's Musical World" concert at

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th and 57th Streets. Designed by architect William Burnet Tuthill and built b ...

Film adaptation

On October 21, 2019, it was announced that

is writing the script and songs for a film adaptation of the TV special, which will be produced by

, Pacific Electric Picture Company, and Snoot Entertainment.

References

External links

* *
''Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas''
at Muppet Wiki
''Emmet Otter's Jug-Band'' fan site
{{Jim Henson films Christmas television specials The Muppets television specials The Jim Henson Company films HBO network specials Television shows directed by Jim Henson 1970s musical films 1977 television specials Television shows written by Jerry Juhl Films about otters American Christmas television specials