Byron Whiting

Byron Whiting was a puppeteer and actor who performed on the 1970 Muppet special The Great Santa Claus Switch with others like Cary Antebi, Greg Antonacci, and Marilyn Sokol. He usually performed marionettes by serving as a long-time member of Bil Baird's troupe. Some of the productions Bryon did include Winnie the Pooh, The Wizard of Oz, Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves, and others. When doing that special, Whiting either did hand puppets or marionettes, because if he was doing the former, he would have difficulties. He was one of the many puppeteers to be a part of Bil Baird's marionette troupe and the only one to be a long-time member. His other Bil Baird projects include The Whistling Wizard and the Sultan of Tuffet (Heathcliff), Davy Jones' Locker (title character), and concert appearances by the Bil Baird puppets with New York Philharmonic. Byron Whiting had also acted in both summer stock and regional theater, such as a 2015 Tennessee production of 12 Angry Men, as stated on the Wiki. Too bad that he only did one project with the Muppets and that was filmed decades ago. At least he had the chance to work alongside the famous Muppet performers. Byron must have been very busy performing with Bil Baird over the years. Whiting sadly died in 2019 in Tennessee at the age of 90, according to the IMDb. I wonder if there are any marionette performers who see him as their idol since he worked with legendary Bil Baird for many productions. If there are, they'll be forever grateful. Byron Whiting, you did wonderful performing marionettes for millions of people as well as act on-stage in theater. Although you're gone, your spirit will be in everyone's hearts, mainly those who idolize you (if there are any). In heaven, you'll stay with other dead puppeteers. RIP Byron. You will never be forgotten Whiting!