All About Muppets

Hideki Tanaka is a Japanese puppeteer and voice actor who worked on the Japanese co-production of Sesame Street, performing the role of Mojabo. Other puppeteers he worked with on that show include Kaori Takeda, Rena Mizushiro, Satoshi Tsuruoka, and Kenta Matsumoto. Other projects Hideki worked on involving puppetry is currently unknown as most of resume has been removed or something. Apart from puppetry, Tanaka had minor roles on anime series and also dubs American projects such as Star Trek, Desperate Housewives, and Shrek the Third, as well as Japanese McDonalds ads. He also acted on-screen in two productions known as Ramen Daisuki Koizumi San and Pachinko, though he received a bigger role for the former. It's a shame that his other puppetry projects are unknown to the world, at least until someone archives his resume in the future. Hideki Tanaka still did a fantastic job performing Mojabo on an international co-production of Sesame Street, you don't see a lot of TV puppets i...

Gil Correa was an animatronic designer and puppeteer who has worked at Jim Henson's Creature Shop briefly between 1996-1998. He also puppeteered on George of the Jungle, manipulating a snake and the animatronic faces for the gorillas, not to mention be a mechanic for a lion and arm extensions. Gil also contributed to Aliens in the Family and Dr. Dolittle (Jake the Tiger). Correa should have done way more productions with the Creature Shop following 1998, but he was probably more interested with different animatronics. Outside, he did film effects work in Operation Dumbo Drop, A.I., Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey, and U-571, for the latter he worked underwater. But apart from films, he was best known for working on theme park animatronics for numerous attractions. Some of the attractions Gil Correa did include the Disneyland rides like The Tower of Terror, the Jaws shark and Slimer for Universal Studios, and many others. Unfortunately, his life working with animatronics came to an...

Eric Woolfe is a Canadian actor, puppeteer, writer, and magician who is best known for work within the horror genre, as he is the artistic director of Eldritch Theatre. The theatre is specialized in horror plays using live actors, puppetry, and parlor magic. Some of the roles Eric did were featured on The Haunted Medicine Show, Madhouse Variations, The Strange & Eerie Memoirs of Billy Wuthergloom, and many more. As for television and film, Woolfe did Beyblade (US dub version), Survival of the Dead, Haven, Murdoch Mysteries, and more that involved his acting skills. As for puppetry, he puppeteered on Nikita, American Gods, and Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium (which featured a cameo from Kermit). Even though he didn't work on any Henson Company production, he has worked with Muppet performers on the Emporium film such as Bob Stutt, Mike Petersen, Trish Leeper, and Karen Valleau. Eric Woolfe has apparently been more focused in horror films and plays throughout his career, makin...

Jean Marie Keevins is a puppeteer, puppet builder, writer, and producer who serves as vice president for Puppet Heap, the company that currently builds the Muppets. She coordinated the puppet builds for tons of appearances and productions with them such as A Muppet Christmas: Letters to Santa, The Muppets (2011), Muppets Most Wanted, and more. Jean is also a three-time recipient of Jim Henson Foundation grants prior to working at Puppet Heap with her fellow co-workers. Keevins also built puppets for many shows such as Avenue Q, The Daily Show, Johnny and the Sprites, and numerous Broadway shows. She even served as a puppet wrangler for It's a Big Big World and puppet builder for Terry Factor (who has appeared with Kermit the Frog). Other than freelance work, she is both owner and operator of her own company known as Little Shadow Productions, which produced the 2015 film called The Adventures of Liverwurst Girl. That film involved Jean Marie Keevins working with several puppeteers ...

Kelsey Ann Brady is a puppeteer and actress who is best known for being the permanent performer of Crow T. Robot on Mystery Science Theater 3000, replacing Nate Begle. She was previously a "swing puppeteer" and understudy for Crow as well as two human characters before given the permanent role of Crow by Begle himself. In addition to MST3K, Kelsey also puppeteered on Blippi's Treehouse (as Scratch) and HedgeHearts, not to mention the puppetry troupe Bird Call Radio. Since 2021, Brady has been performing the robot on the 13th season of MST3K as well as other associated appearances. She didn't get to perform with actual Muppet performers, but she has worked with different puppet versions of Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy for Disney's Holidays in Hollywood. So technically she has worked with the Disney Muppets, in a way. I wonder if Kelsey Ann Brady will ever get to perform on an actual production starring the Muppet performers. You never know when she'll be aske...

Pam Severns is a puppeteer, puppet builder, and filmmaker who is known for making YouTube videos as well as writing, directing, and performing on her own projects. She also puppeteered on episodes of the TV series Stan Against Evil, but most of her work was within online videos. Pam didn't work on any Muppet productions, but she has been interviewed by Muppet puppeteer Grant Baciocco on his podcast Under the Puppet. Severns also wrote, directed, and performed on numerous shorts such as Bunnies Are People Too, Murray at the Massachusetts Independent Film Festival, The Date, and more. It's a shame she never puppeteered on any other television series besides Stan Against Evil because television gives someone more opportunities. I saw an image of her kissing an Oscar the Grouch puppet, which means this woman has heard of Sesame Street. Actually, Pam Severns has worked with the Henson Company at the 2016 Puppets for Puppetry event honoring Dave Goelz, according to an interview. She ...

Jack Jameson is a British director and producer who is known for working on numerous British children shows such as ChuckleVision, Topsy and Tim, and Teletubbies (reboot). He later served as a revolving director for Pajanimals and The Furchester Hotel (Season 1) prior to being tapped to direct for Sesame Street itself. Since the 47th season, Jack has directed many episodes, segments, and specials of the show including Sesame Street's 50th Anniversary Celebration special. In addition, Jameson also directed the spin-off show The Not-Too-Late Show with Elmo during its first season, meaning talk-show. Earlier in his career, he was previously a floor assistant and additional puppeteer on The Hoobs, though he wasn't credited for that, along with other assistants. He wasn't the only person to be an uncredited puppeteer on The Hoobs, others have included Steven Kynman, Lynn Robertson Bruce, Andrew Spooner, and Andy Heath. It's almost like being a puppeteer eventually led to Jac...

Darryl Worbey is a British puppet designer, builder, and performer who is best known for freelancing at many companies over the years in his career, including with the Creature Shop. With the Creature Shop, he built puppets as well as supplied effects for many productions such as The Storyteller, The Ghost of Faffner Hall, Mother Goose Stories, TMNT films, and Dinosaurs. Darryl also worked with the Muppets on a few projects which were The Muppet Christmas Carol, Muppet Treasure Island, and Muppets Most Wanted, not to mention two CD-ROMs. Worbey worked alongside puppet builder Jane Gootnick, on all of the series and other creature effects projects both in London and the USA until the late 1990s. Apart from the Creature Shop, he formed his own London-based studio in 1993, specialized in puppets, skins, and animatronics for entertainment. Some of his notable creations include rebranding Basil Brush and co-creating The Leprechauns from The Kicking, written and performed by Don Austen, John...

Frank Langley is a puppeteer, suit performer, and fabricator who did the latter for several Creature Shop projects. He mostly worked with the Creature Shop on films like Cats & Dogs, Snow Dogs, Stuart Little 2, and The Country Bears, as well as TV show Brats of the Lost Nebula. Frank should've done puppetry during his time with them as he is shown to be an excellent puppeteer on outside projects. Langley has puppeteered on numerous productions like Spider-Man 2, Team America: World Police, Stargate SG-1, and SpongeBob SquarePants (as Potty the Parrot). As for his fabrication credits, he contributed to Tron: Legacy, The Mandalorian, The Masked Singer, and music videos, concert tours, and other projects with several musical artists. Other puppeteers he got to work with include Brad Abrell, Donna Kimball, and Greg Ballora, all three have performed with Muppet performers. Frank Langley would be a wonderful addition to the Muppet performer category on the Wiki, if he ever performs o...

Trace Beaulieu is an actor, puppeteer, comedian, and writer who is known for being one of the original cast members of Mystery Science Theater 3000. He is also known for working on MST3K's successor Cinematic Titanic which had the original creators and cast from MST3K. On MST3K, Trace was on for the first eight seasons where he performed the Crow T. Robot puppet, portrayed Dr. Clayton Forrester, and wrote for the show itself. After the seventh season, Beaulieu left the show, and the role of Crow was taken over by various puppeteers over the years such as Nate Begle and Kelsey Ann Brady. Apart from MST3K, he also served as a writer on America's Funniest Home Videos from 1998-2007 and made lots of appearances on many shows like Freaks and Geeks. But the other production, Cinematic Titanic, was his other best project as it appeared both on television and live on stage from 2007-2013 when the show went on an indefinite hiatus. I wonder if Trace Beaulieu ever got to meet the Muppets...

Sarah Nolen is a puppeteer, puppet builder, and filmmaker who is known for performing many styles of puppetry for both stage and screen. She didn't work on Muppets or Sesame Street, but she has trained in one of Sesame Street's puppeteer workshops under the supervision of Muppet performers. Sarah's recent well-known show is called Treeples and it involves children and creatures. Nolen has also performed so many shows on stage such as Goblin Market, Peter & The Wolf, National Puppet Slam, and even shows at the Boston Pops. She even has her own company called Puppet Motion, where she serves consulting, puppet building, and media work for many types of productions such as many theatres and even college departments. In addition to puppetry, she also writes, directs, edits, and designs/builds puppets for many short films including ABC Detectives, Jump In, Ancestral, and Lullaby of Broadway. Sarah Nolen could be perfect to help out on Sesame Street, after all she did train in...

Nina Conti is a British ventriloquist, comedian, and actress who is best known for being her characters for many appearances. Her main characters included Face Mask, Granny, and Monkey, while other ones are more minor (not to mention originally made by Steve Axtell). Nina performed comedy for numerous appearances since 2002 and is also a regular at London comedy venues, like The Comedy Store. Conti had a relationship with comedian and actor Ken Campbell who mentored her, and she later inherited his ventriloquist dummies after his death, according to an article. She may not be considered as a puppeteer, but she has met Muppet performer Grant Baciocco on his podcast Under the Puppet, which I must say should count. As an actress, she's been working since 1996 on several theatre and television productions across the UK and the world as well. Some of the shows Nina Conti did include The Warp, Clare in the Community, For Your Consideration, and Bromwell High, just to name a few. She also...

Katy Williams is a puppeteer, designer, builder, and director who is known for doing numerous theatre productions over the years in her career. She puppeteered on many shows such as Lobstermen in Love, Avenue Q, Death Goes on Strike, and many others. Katy is also known for being both a puppeteer and a producer for The Rocky Mountain Puppet Slam (since 2018) and Rocky Mountain Puppet Palooza. It's amazing how Williams is able to do all of those theatre productions, even creating her very own puppet company called Katy Williams Design. In addition to puppets, she also designs makeup, props, sets, and many forms of artwork, as seen in Fiddler on the Roof, Shrek the Musical, and more. Though I wish she would perform or contribute designs for a production featuring the Muppets because she's done several forms of puppet artistry over the years in her career. However, Katy Williams has met one performer of a Muppet production which is Grant Baciocco, who interviewed her one time on hi...

David Showler is an English puppeteer who worked on a few productions featuring the Muppets as well as on Labyrinth as one of the Goblin puppeteers. He was one of the many additional Muppet performers for The Tale of the Bunny Picnic, The Muppet Christmas Carol, and Muppet Treasure Island, although he was uncredited for the latter. Despite all of that info, David hardly has any puppeteering roles outside of the Muppets, well not yet anyway. The only known non-Henson project Showler did was the Frank Oz film Little Shop of Horrors as one of the many puppeteers for Audrey II. At least he has a picture of himself as seen above, it also shows him with one of the Goblins. Other puppeteers he got to work with during his time with the Muppets include Ron Mueck, Kay Bradshaw, Judy Preece, and Ian Thom, just to name a few. Nobody else knows this, but David Showler also puppeteered on Wizadora and Julie and the Cadillacs, according to IMDb, but then again, those shows could also list him in the ...

Alfonso Vallejo is a Spanish actor and puppeteer who is best known for performing Don Pimpon on the Spanish co-production of Sesame Street, Barrio Sesamo from 1983-1987. Before getting the full-bodied puppet, he appeared on-screen in the first incarnation of the show as Manolo. For 4 years, Alfonso was the Don Pimpon on the show alongside Chelo Vivares as Espinete, they were the only puppeteers during that time. From 2006-2017, Vallejo reprised the role of Don Pimpon for guest appearances on numerous Spanish television shows, including one called Espinete no existe. After leaving Barrio Sesamo, he still remained active as an actor, performing on projects like El Lute, La ley del deseo, and Los mundos de Yupi, to name a few. His career was limited in the 1990s only appearing on a miniseries called Riders of the Dawn, however after 1995, he appeared in several films from minor roles to earning himself bigger roles overtime. Apparently, television is where Alfonso Vallejo has more promine...

Christopher Leith was a British puppeteer, puppet maker, and artist who performed on many projects for the Muppets and the Creature Shop. He began on The Great Muppet Caper as a marionette operator for the "Couldn't We Ride" sequence, though he was uncredited. Christopher later puppeteered a Goblin on Labyrinth and the Ultragorgon on Monster Maker (a special on The Jim Henson Hour). Leith ended his Muppet gig on The Muppet Christmas Carol and Muppet Treasure Island, serving as one of the several additional puppeteers on both. Outside of Henson, he got to puppeteer on two well-known films, Little Shop of Horrors (Frank Oz version) and Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Other puppeteers he got to perform with over the years include Ian Tregonning, Toby Philpott, Michael Bayliss, and David Greenaway. As a respected puppeteer in England, Christopher Leith he was a longtime member of Little Angel Theatre, joining in 1962 as the first apprentice to artistic director from 1992-2000. I fin...

Michelle Hickey is a puppet wrangler and puppeteer who is known for being the head puppet wrangler on Sesame Street and also worked with the Muppet Workshop. She did lots of Sesame Street specials and videos, as well as the spin-off series Play with Me Sesame, Sesame Beginnings, and Panwapa. In addition to Sesame Street, Michelle also was a wrangler for Kermit the Frog's guest host appearance on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Outside, Hickey worked on numerous projects both wrangling and performing puppets, like Crank Yankers, It's a Big Big World, Helpsters, and Donkey Hodie. According to a 2009 interview on her duties, she called her position a "dream job" and shares how much work it takes keeping Big Bird in perfect condition. Other puppet wranglers she worked on with on the show include Lara MacLean, Andrea Detwiler, and Elizabeth Hara, to name a few. In addition to still working on Sesame Street, Michelle Hickey also was in the workshop on Fraggle Rock: Back to ...

Ilana Yahav is an Israeli puppeteer and sand animation performance artist who is known for performing her sand arts in front of audiences, clips, and ads. Earlier in her career, she ran a studio that created latex puppets, specialized in special effects for movie productions and ads. While there, Ilana created puppets for an Israeli satire program known as Chartzufim, based on Spitting Image. Other than that, Yahav has performed at the Kremlin and before the King of Spain, and the King of Belgium, according to archived documents. While doing Chartzufim, she got to work alongside Rechov Sumsum puppeteer Gilles Ben-David (known for being Moishe Oofnik). I personally think she should have performed/assisted on that international co-production of Sesame Street, but she probably never heard of that show. Ilana Yahav is more well known for doing sand art since she's been doing it for years even landing her on Israel's Got Talent in 2018. An article stated that each performance requir...

June Privett is a puppeteer, puppet designer, and builder who is best known for performing on the Baby Einstein videos. She worked alongside her husband Dave Privett on the videos and also at their puppet company PlaySoup, which made the puppets. June and her husband replaced Markie Scholz since more puppets were probably needed during the later video series. Privett appears to have done wonderful as an entertainer for babies since she's done numerous videos until the series ended. Afterwards, she and her husband have been introducing many innovations at PlaySoup such as the Toobie puppets. The two also sell their puppets to people, sort of like Steve Axtell at Axtell Expressions, he also sells puppets for people to use in their acts. Though I wish June Privett would've met a Muppet performer from Sesame Street for they did their own project for babies, Sesame Beginnings. Since 2018, she and her husband sold their company to another couple, Kristofer and Amanda Sommerfeld, two ...

Paulo Henrique is a Brazilian puppeteer, actor, writer, and director who performed Cookie Monster (or Come-Come) and others on the Brazilian co-production Sesamo and related appearances since 2016. In addition to Sesamo, he also dubbed Cookie Monster on most projects as well, such as Hotel Furchester (The Furchester Hotel) for example. Apart from performing Come-Come, Paulo also puppeteered Bel on Pequenas Aventureiras as her performer Thais Carvalho was already playing Abby Cadabby. Other puppeteers Henrique worked with include Kelly Guidotti, Marilice Cosenza, and Magda Crudelli, to name a few. I wonder what other characters he performed on that show besides Come-Come since his page mentions "others" under the credits. Outside of Sesamo, some of his other puppet credits include the Brazilian TV series Que Monstro te Mordeu? and Os Cupins. Other than television, Paulo Henrique also worked in the theater as seen in shows like Show das Mascaras and Ze Ninguem, he also wrote an...

Mike Osborn is a fabricator, designer, and puppet builder who worked in Jim Henson's Creature Shop from 1982-1992, a whole decade. His first project was on The Dark Crystal where he fabricated both Jen and Kira while Wendy Froud built the two Gelflings. Other Creature Shop films Mike worked on include Dreamchild (as cable control puppeteer), Labyrinth (on the Ludo unit), The Witches, and the TMNT films (the Creature Shop versions). As for television, Osborn did The Storyteller, 2 Jim Henson Hour specials, and The Ghost of Faffner Hall, where he built puppets with Ron Mueck. Outside of the Creature Shop, he was one of the designers of Jabba the Hutt for the original Star Wars trilogy. His last known project was on the Muppet film The Muppet Christmas Carol, and after that nobody knows his whereabouts. It's a shame the Creature Shop doesn't have any idea on why Mike Osborn would leave after The Muppet Christmas Carol wrapped production. He was doing so well with that company ...

John Cody is a puppeteer, puppet builder, and writer who worked freelance with Jim Henson's Creature Shop since 2017. As for Sesame Street, he worked on seasons 49, 50, and 55 of the show, the window videos at Sesame Street Land in SeaWorld, and the Snuffleupagus walk-around for Sesame Place. John also built puppets for the stage show Jim Henson's Inspired Silliness, both directed and choreographed by John Tartaglia (who also did voices). Cody was also responsible for refurbishing Barkley when the dog returned for online appearances. Outside of Henson, he has served as an ensemble puppeteer for an episode of Helpsters and also works with the company No Strings Productions. In addition to those two, he also puppeteered on numerous projects such as Pineapple Playhouse (as SpongeBob), Treeples, Mr. Crocket, and Paddington Gets in a Jam, to name a few. John Cody also drafts scrips whenever he is not building or performing puppets including one featuring the Muppets, which might not...

Tim Lawrence was a puppeteer, builder, sculptor, and visual effects artist who was known for working on various feature films over the years. He puppeteered on Caddyshack (as Mr. Gopher), Purple People Eater (as Purple), and TMNT III (assisting Splinter), to name a few. For television he built and designed the character costumes and puppets for Dumbo's Circus and puppeteered D.E.C.K.S. on Wake, Rattle & Roll. Other than that, Tim has mostly been involved with films within the science fiction or horror genre such as Howard the Duck, Gremlins 2: The New Batch, Harry and the Hendersons, and more, all within the visual effects department. In addition to puppets/creatures, Lawrence was also a sculptor for the first three Shrek films before taking a hiatus from 2007-2018. I only wish he got to work within the Creature Shop because the company provides both puppets and creatures for film and television. I've read online that in 1983, he got to perform one of the zombies for Michae...

Aiysha Nugent Robinson is a British puppeteer, actress, and practitioner who is known for puppeteering on numerous theatrical productions. Some of the shows include Tiny Echos, In the Night Garden Live, Penguin Pig, and more. Aiysha also puppeteered on The Furchester Hotel mostly assisting the main and doing background characters. Robinson did other television shows too such as Becca's Bunch, Strange Hill High, Newzoids, and most recently, Dodge's Pup School. She even has her own YouTube channel where she makes puppets out of arts and crafts. Her most well-known theatre company she performs at is Dragons and Mythical Beasts, a show based on Dinosaur World Live. Aiysha Nugent Robinson is still considered an international Sesame Street performer since she did work on The Furchester Hotel, stated on her bio. She also got to work with other Muppet performers on Dodge's Pup School such as Louise Gold, Warrick Brownlow-Pike, Dave Chapman, Beccy Henderson, and Katherine Smee. She ...

Sarah Lafferty is a puppeteer, puppet builder and costumer who built puppets for numerous Muppet and Henson Company projects. She worked on Sesame Street (credited on and off) and its specials, Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock (2nd season), The Happytime Murders, and The Muppets Mayhem. Other than building puppets, Sarah has also acted, sung, danced, and puppeteered in many theatrical productions. It is such a shame Lafferty never did those skills on any Muppet nor Henson show. Some of her theatrical shows include puppeteering "Fearzilla" for a rally hosted by Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart, as well as the short film The Never Bell, alongside Ben Durocher and Spencer Lott. She has also served as the co-captain of an award-winning dance troupe known as The Sexcamaids seen at parades. Sarah Lafferty is very creative for television but more active in the theatre based on the theatrical productions she did like Senseless! A Brick Foley Adventure. Working with Muppets and Henson Co...