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Tuesday, September 19, 2017

SNARKY HALL OF FAME / WALDORF AND STATLER FROM THE MUPPET SHOW.

WALDORF (left): I still don't think this show (The Muppet Show) is really suitable for children.
STATLER: I don't think this show is suitable for anyone!
GUEST BLOG / By Muppet Wiki--Statler and Waldorf share the stage left balcony box in The Muppet Theatre, and the two delight in heckling every aspect of The Muppet Show. They usually have the last word, with a final comment at the end of most (but not all) episodes. Statler and Waldorf are especially unforgiving to Fozzie Bear. However, it is revealed in A Muppet Family Christmas that the two critics were friends with Fozzie's mother, Ma Bear. Waldorf is the one with the pug-like face, mustache, and whiter hair. In almost all productions, Statler appears on the audience's right and Waldorf on the left. A helpful mnemonic is that Waldorf has the wide face.

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YouTube compilation of Waldorf and Statler’s greatest hits: Click here.
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Statler and Waldorf first appeared as a pair in the 1975 pilot The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence.

Waldorf (left) and Statler pose for a
cheesy Hollywood style publicity still
On the first season of Muppets Tonight, Statler and Waldorf are seen watching the show from the living room of what appears to be a retirement home. In the second season, they watch the show on a portable television from various locations, including a golf course and a ski lift.

In The Muppet Christmas Carol, they play the ghosts of Scrooge's business partners, Jacob and Robert Marley. In Muppet Treasure Island, Statler and Waldorf are the Figurehead of the Hispaniola. In The Muppets' Wizard of Oz, they appear as the Kalidah Critics, strange beasts who shout insults at anyone attempting to cross a treacherous bridge.

From 2005-2006, Statler and Waldorf starred in a bi-weekly online series, From the Balcony, on the website Movies.com. In the series of short videos, the crotchety pair dished on the latest movie releases.

The duo take on a featured role in The Muppets, sharing the fine print of the Muppet contract with villain Tex Richman. Of course, Statler and Waldorf don't realize that Tex plans to raze Muppet Studios and drill for oil, which would mean the end of their balcony - and their heckling.

In Muppets Most Wanted, they travel with the Muppets watching their touring show. And they say Miss Piggy's performance of the Macarena has made the show even worse, managing the impossible.

PERFORMER(S)
            Richard Hunt, Statler, 1976-1991
            Jerry Nelson, Statler, 1975; 1992-2003
            Steve Whitmire, Statler, 2002-2016
            Jim Henson, Waldorf, 1975-1990
            Dave Goelz, Waldorf, 1992-present
            more...
DEBUT
            1975
DESIGN          
            Bonnie Erickson designer/builder

TRIVIA             

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            Statler and Waldorf were named after two New York City hotels -- the            Statler Hotel (which was renamed the Hotel Pennsylvania in 1992),        and the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. Waldorf's wife, Astoria, completes the set.  Early in The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years, Statler claims Waldorf has had a pacemaker for over 30 years.

Original concept sketch by creator/designer/builder Bonnie Erickson, circa 1975.

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