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15 Seconds to Curtain: Terry Fator · Muppet Fan Podcasts with ToughPigs.com

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Terry Fator and Winston, 15 seconds to curtain.
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Terry Fator and Winston, so great to be here.
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Thank you. Welcome to 15 seconds to curtain
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a muppet fan podcast. This is the podcast warm-up
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fans, talk with notable Muppet fans about what else The Muppets
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Our Guest today is a ventriloquist, impressionist
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singer and comedian who walked away with a million dollar grand
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prize on the second season of America's Got Talent.
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Just like you and me. He's a huge fan of Jim Henson.
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The Muppets who inspired him. Puppeteer he is today.
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You can see him perform in Las Vegas or on his North American
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tour. But today he is right here on 15
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seconds to curtain. We are extremely proud to
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welcome, Terry Fator to the podcast.
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Thank you for having me Emily. Don't forget me.
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Yes, the when Winston to my the, the the turtle who changed the
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world know, actually, who won America's, oh yeah, one
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America's Got Talent. I didn't change the world.
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Well, you changed the world of America's Got Talent, okay?
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I do want to point out to people who are listening that Winston
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is actually here in the room there.
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There's a turtle staring me right in the eye right now.
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Wearing a bow tie that is not just, that's not it.
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Well, it's not, you would tell people that's not you doing two
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different voices. That are two people that on
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select. Yes.
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And that's why do I always bring the puppet when I, when I'm
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doing radio interviews, the puppet always comes with me.
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I never just do the voice. Even like, if I'm doing a radio
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interview are on on telephone, on the telephone.
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I do, I always if I'm going to be doing the character, I always
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have the puppet there. It just makes it easier.
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It's really interesting. I'm sure.
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And I mean, that also goes back, Edgar Bergen on the radio would
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have, you know, do the puppets that way, which also kind of
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blows my mind. And I wonder if he moved his
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lips when he did radio shows he did.
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Yes, he definitely did. And well, the story is that he
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was an absolutely amazing ventriloquist when he did his
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Vaudeville stuff before the radio.
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And then, of course, when he first started, he had great lip
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control. But after 30 years of doing
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radio, he just realized there's no point.
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And, and he's kind of right in a sense of it's much more
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important for radio listeners to be able to Understand clearly.
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What the puppets say? That's true.
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And it's also so much more about the character than it is.
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Yeah, about the lips then. So, I do want to talk about a
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lot about your experience with the Muppets, but I do want to go
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back and if you could remember what your earliest memories of
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the Muppets, and that's, that's really easy.
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The, my earliest memories of the Muppets were being, you know, I
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can't remember what year did Sesame Street, start it
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starting, 69 69. So, I was four, I must have been
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The the earliest Watchers because I think around for is
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when I started watching and I was in a bird and I was so
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jealous of the little kid sitting there talking to
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puppets. I just wanted.
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I ate two literally ached inside to be one of those kids sitting
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there, talking to Kermit the Frog into all of the other
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puppets that when they would interacting with Grover, I loved
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Grover. And, and then I went to see, I
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was about five and I went to see Sesame Street Live in Dallas.
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Sure. Yeah.
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And I will never forget this. I I argued all the way home with
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a teenager because I said they're real and the teenagers
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had no their people doing. I said, no, I saw them.
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I saw Big Bird. He walked over, there was no
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person there and I was so utterly convinced, they were
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real and I don't actually remember being disappointed once
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I found out that it actually was a person doing it, but it's
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probably why I was so interested in doing puppeteering and
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ventriloquism. People say what made you want to
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do it, I found a book on how to do it, Adventure, liquid map,
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all Winchell's ventriloquism for A profit and I picked it up and
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I just immediately was drawn to it, and it probably had a lot to
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do with watching The Muppets on Sesame Street.
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And then, of course, when though, when the Muppet Show
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came out, I was an avid Watchers way before VCRs.
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Sure. Yeah, we did.
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I could even record it, man. It was I think if I'm not
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mistaken, I think it was on Tuesday night that me, but if my
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time maybe not remembering that correctly, but boy, I would sit
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there and I would study and I would watch and laugh and I love
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the humor, I love the fact that it was Lean.
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But it had that adult and it's exactly the way my show and Las
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Vegas is the Mirage is you can bring your kids and there will
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be adult jokes. Just like the Muppets did, but
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the kids won't get them. So they're very double entendre.
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I do not swear at all. Not that there's anything wrong
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with swearing. I mean people want to swear in
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their shows. That's fine.
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I just that's just my personal choice.
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Is to make sure that the show is something you can take your kids
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to and they won't say, oh my gosh, what did I just say?
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You know, expose them to. I mean it might be one of the
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most wholesome shows in Las Vegas.
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Right now, it is a fact I've won the best Friendly show on The
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Strip seven years running. Oh well congratulations.
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Thank you very proud of that. And I would imagine especially
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as you were talking about you know people being in those
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costumes this mistreat live as you got old enough to recognize
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like oh they're they're puppets. There are people underneath
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their people doing the voices and you know, singing the songs
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and things like that. Is that something that kind of
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inspired you to say, like, oh, it's not just that I want to
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talk to Grover. I want to like, work with grow
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up, I want to work with the guys.
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Yes, Grover. Absolutely.
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And I wanted to, I always I just always had this dream of being
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able to be in a Muppet movie and interact with or on The Muppet
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Show. And, you know, once the Muppet
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Show came along, and you've got Steve Martin and you've got John
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Cleese and you've got Elton, John, you've got all these
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people. I just thought I wanted so badly
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to be there, working with the Muppets and what's so a really
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amazing and cool is and honest-to-goodness.
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I don't think I've even thought of this until sitting here with
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you. But many of my puppets are made
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by Heat, who do, who do a lot of work with the Muppets.
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So, I actually got my dream to come true.
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It's just that instead of working with the actual Muppets,
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I was able to create my own characters, but I do I get to
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interact with them. Exactly.
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The way I dreamed of when I was young in Vegas, it's amazing.
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And now I'm sitting here kind of blown my mind is blown right now
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thinking. Wow, I got my dream.
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I just had to make my own dream come true.
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Yeah. Well that's something that I end
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up getting a lot of messages from people who are budding
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puppeteers and they say like, how do I get to work with the
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Muppets and it's hard because when You really look at the cast
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list, it's the same people to small group and it should be.
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It's not that's not a bad thing, that's a good thing.
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And you know what, if you're out there and you're thinking the
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same thing, how do I get to work with the Muppets, do what I did,
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start your own, you know, I didn't realize that it was my
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dream to work with the Muppets. I get to work with the Muppets
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every day. Now, in my own characters that I
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create and who knows, you might even start your own, your own
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entire franchise. That is a puppet based and even
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if you don't get hugely rich, In famous, it doesn't matter if you
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can make a career, if you can actually do put together an
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amazing show where you get to interact with puppets or you
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have puppet, puppet interact that you've created and a type
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of show. There's a lot of places out
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there. I mean, fairs, all over the
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country would love a great show. They're always looking for
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Quality entertainment. So if you can create a puppet
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show, you know, it's your pot. Let's learn not just their
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church anymore. That's a really good, that's a
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good. He just came up with that.
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I did that was right off the top of my head Harry's hand, right.
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Okay, someone someone others. Should Google church puppets and
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get a scared right now. Well, that's where we all
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started. I mean, I least me, I mean, you
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know, when I first started do ventriloquism, that's where I
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would go. And, and of course, oh gosh, the
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church puppets are awful and they have these terrible.
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They, I don't know why they keep using the same patterns these
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patterns, they're using the same freaking patterns that they use
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when I was, you know, when I was four and five, and the funny
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thing is that I could tell at five years old, when a
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ventriloquist, a bad ventriloquist would come to my
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church. I I could sit there and go.
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This is a really bad ventriloquist, and I knew they
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were bad. There was no, there was no.
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Oh, you know, I'm just going to pretend I couldn't pretend that
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they weren't bad. I knew they were and so I think
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that's probably why I'm so driven to be good because even
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at I want even the five year olds to say, wow, I really
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believe the puppets are alive, you know.
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And if they forget, I'm there that I didn't, I did my job.
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Yes, it's funny because ventriloquism is such a
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different art than just puppetry.
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I mean because Cuz it's everything the puppetry is.
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But then you have to the added, you know, you're having a
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conversation with the character. You're not moving your lips.
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I don't know how you breathe. When you do ventriloquism.
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That's one thing. I've never quite figured out.
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I saw this is annoying. Still on Mars.
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This isn't my per liter, but I saw Jay Johnson's one man.
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Show a few years ago, it's unbelievable.
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This up. Best things I've ever seen.
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My unbelievable and what an appreciation, such an
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appreciation for ventriloquist. I didn't have before that.
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I actually went back and I saw it twice just because like he
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goes over the whole history of ventriloquism and he's
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astoundingly good. I mean it's not a lead in the
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good. Yeah.
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And he's funny and it's heartfelt and, and all those
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things that I'm talking about, like, like how do you breathe?
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How do you, how do you have a character named Bob when your
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lips have to make that buzz motion?
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Yeah, it's really hard to say lob.
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All right, show-off. So, can you talk a little bit
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about your first interaction? Ends with with Sesame Street's.
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You do you, do you remember feeling like favorite moments
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from Sesame Street? Well, you know, the classic
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moments the ones, I always loved Ernie.
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And Bert, I always just adored that, that whole dynamic of the
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two of them where Ernie was kind of a little, you know, Bert was
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the guy who who wanted everything to be prim and proper
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and straight. And Ernie was the, you know, the
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guy that playing jokes and practical jokes, right?
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Right. That was just a wonderful
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dynamic. As a kid, I course, Big Bird who
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doesn't, who didn't love the, he was our best friend Grover to
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frog and I realize he's no longer in doing the Muppets
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other than the classic things. But Kermit was was, that's where
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I first. Got my, you know, I have you
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roving reporter. You know, doing his and that was
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huge to watch him do that, but I loved Grover.
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I remember one of my favorite bits, they did was when Grover
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was the waiter and he would go and he would come in and out
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that door and he would be bringing soup to the guy, the
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blue, the blue headed guy sir. And I don't speak.
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Remember the specifics. But boy, did it make me laugh
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when I was young? Well, you're back then.
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They were all it was all comedy writers.
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Just, you know, adding a little bit of curriculum.
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Yeah. And to these hysterical B.
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But that's that's the whole thing is that we learned so much
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through that and, you know, learning doesn't have to be to
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be difficult and painful, it can be fun and that's what I loved
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about Sesame Street, the electric company, those shows
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when I was growing up. I don't I don't think I'll ever
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really know how much influence they Had on me and learning how
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to read, learning how to count learning how to do math and all
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the other different things. And not just that they taught
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manners, you know, they taught ya, cooperation and sharing.
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Yeah, and empathy. Yeah, exactly.
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And, and they're still doing that today.
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And it's, it's just such a major impact.
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And the worst thing I think for for the puppet world is bad,
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puppeteering, and bad. And same thing we're saying for
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a ventriloquist. World is bad ventriloquist.
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And, and it's not that there's not room for bad Metro because
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there are, you know, a person who has their heart in the right
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place and wants to share the gospel through and church
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through puppets, wonderful, that's great, but it does.
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It does tend to give ventriloquism a bad name and
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puppeteering a bad name. You know, you talked about the
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church puppets, they are so ugly and so unbelievably, but it's
11:30
changing its really changing because, you know, you have
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incredible puppet makers, like, puppet Heap.
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You got Steve X Del out there. Make an incredible puppets for
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people so I think we are making A changes a little, at a time to
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really make make it more valid for adult entertainment.
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Well, I think a big part of that too is the fact that's, you
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know, Sesame Street is turning 50 this year.
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That's 50 years of Sesame Street.
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Even more of just, Jim Henson making, you know, video not
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videos doing sketches on like the Ed Sullivan Show, and things
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like that, and just kind of introducing people to the idea
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that like, puppets can be fun and it can be for adults.
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And yeah, be professional. And when we say adults, we don't
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mean dirty. We mean adult intellect.
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Exact my show is always been about.
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About adult intellect. It's never been.
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I've never done dirty shows, they tell me sometimes.
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When you know what I'm rehearsing, they say I should
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have a late night show because, you know, but I'm sure that it's
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the same with the Muppets. You know, we are adults.
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And yeah, and we get the puppies and safe pretty funny things at
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times, but but I would never do that in my show, just because I
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want it to be. I like having that Muppet and I
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probably got that from watching The Muppets that whole thing of,
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you know, we're not going to go this far and then we have Happy
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Time murders. So right, what do you think
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ahead of time workers? I think it's hilarious.
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I think. Absolutely brilliant.
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And I got to tell you when I saw the ads, I was going to own.
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This is gonna be terrible em. I've seen it twice now and it's
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absolutely brilliant. It really has a great story,
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it's funny, the a it's really great, it means very adult but
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it's her really great. It's interesting to hear you say
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that. I feel like most people have
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talked to did not care for the film either realize it was it
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was two adults or I mean honestly my personal opinion.
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I thought that it was the story was Little dull, I think really
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into the story, but I will say the thing that blew me away and
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it's the thing that the Henson company does better than anyone
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else in. You really just can't hold a
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candle is the puppets, the pup out there, they're amazing the
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way they like. They feel like they developed
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new ways to have them interact with the world.
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I was every frame was just something amazing to look at.
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I wonder if our different perceptions is not because of
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our expectation. I really expected it to be
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horrible. I did.
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I went in going. Okay, I'm going Do this because
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I have to support these guys but this is going to be awful and I
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was like, wow there's you know, it's a real murder mystery and
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er yeah and Melissa McCarthy is unbelievably good in it.
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I loved her. And she's hysterical also
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everything with Maya Rudolph. I love her so much.
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True. Yeah, and she was amazing in
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that, and so that's what kind of blew me away.
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I'm like, wow, this is a real murder mystery.
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It's really fun. And, you know, the dirty stuff
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wasn't as in your face. Is it looked like when they were
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doing the, you know? I mean, it's definitely dirty.
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All right. That's okay.
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But you know, I'm 50. For I can handle it and there's,
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there's room for all different kinds of humorous.
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Yeah, that's right. That's one ugly things about
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puppetry. Yeah, I've never seen it.
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No, I won't let him. He's on two innocent.
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Yeah, one day. How one day, how old are you
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supposed to be? Winston, how old are you?
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Hundred fifty. No.
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Yeah, you're a little too young for this me.
14:27
Exactly. Well, that's a teenager in
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Turtle years. So so what it, let's talk about
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the Muppet Show for a second. So you watch The Muppet Show
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during its first original run? Oh yeah.
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Do you have any favorite episodes boy?
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That's a, that's such a good question, probably.
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The first one and I think the reason the first one is my
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favorite is that before DVDs? And before we could record I got
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a book that had actual pictures and it basically told the entire
14:56
story of the first episode and it had actually about the Muppet
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Show book. Yes.
15:00
Yes. The illustrative up at using
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book and go, hey, I probably read that thing about a thousand
15:07
times guy studied it looked at it, read it, loved it.
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And and so that really has such a warm place in my heart because
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of reading this book over and over and over and over and over.
15:18
But I mean just the the entire series was and I liked Muppets
15:23
tonight. I thought that was brilliant and
15:25
I like the new Muppets, I thought, you know, the where the
15:27
kind of did the office. And I thought they kind of went
15:30
in some different directions that I wish they hadn't.
15:35
I thought it was I thought it was working at the way and then
15:37
they started kind of going off into left field and maybe they
15:39
were trying to do some other things.
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And I was like You know, it's they're changing the format.
15:44
I think if they had just stuck with the original, it might have
15:47
worked. But who knows?
15:47
You know, I mean when you're, when you're working with the
15:49
network, they might be saying, no, no, you gotta do this, you
15:52
gotta do this. You gotta do is, but I
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absolutely loved it. I watched every episode of the
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new, you know, the the new office type Muppets.
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I didn't like that, they made Kermit and Miss Piggy, you know,
16:03
it's strange, I that one just never worked with me and I think
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because we always love them, I think it would have been much
16:09
better if they had if they had still kept that.
16:11
Sexual tension and I know it's hard to say sexual tension team
16:14
is picking, but I think they should have just kept that whole
16:16
tension as opposed to being X's that, that sure that never
16:19
worked for me. So what's interesting to me
16:20
about that. So it took me a while to realize
16:22
this. It's not the fact that they were
16:25
estranged for that, they were exes.
16:26
It's the fact that for the first time with very, very few
16:29
exceptions throughout Muppet history, they've confirmed what
16:33
their status is. Yes.
16:34
Because for you, like exactly. Will they won't?
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They, that's what I was younger. She liked him, that tension was
16:39
gone and, and that was sore. Miss Tian the in, yeah, like I
16:44
know the in The Muppets Take Manhattan, they get married,
16:46
there's a confirmation there, but doesn't really extend beyond
16:48
that. And then, yeah, but we also kind
16:51
of Wonder I was always left with a question it must Take
16:53
Manhattan is was that a real wedding?
16:55
Because that's what you're supposed, that's what we wanted,
16:57
we wanted. What did they really?
16:58
I think they may have just really do this, you know?
17:01
And and so that missing that really, I think it really hurt
17:05
that that Dynamic right. But that you know, that's just a
17:08
critique. And again, I loved it and I
17:10
thought it was I thought there were some brilliant moments in
17:13
it, but, you know, the original just, there was something so
17:17
Charming about. Oh, we've got our own little
17:19
theater, we've got a show to fill and and just that form that
17:22
entire format was so beautiful and so easily drawn into.
17:27
And then you've got, you know, the way that the the co-stars
17:31
interacted with the Muppets is just genius in that in that
17:34
original Muppet Show. Those runs that they did.
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It's there's just no, there's really no words.
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I mean and and those of you listening obviously Muppet fans.
17:42
But if you haven't really watched all the original
17:43
episodes you should it there Gene brilliantly written.
17:47
I've had several of the Muppet Riders, right?
17:50
Right stuff for me as well, like, who Jim Lewis?
17:53
Great. Yeah, and then there's been a
17:54
couple of others that have come and gone that that my head
17:58
writer, John Max's, he knows these guys and they kind of but
18:02
Jim Lewis wrote for me for many years and he'll I'm sure he'll
18:04
be writing for me in the future to.
18:05
Oh, that's great. Yeah, he's wonderful.
18:07
It just got a long history with the Muppets.
18:09
Hmm. So what about the film seems do
18:13
you? Well, let's well just ask you.
18:14
Do you have a favorite Muppet movie?
18:15
The Muppet Movie, the remaining original?
18:16
Yeah. Edgar Bergen was in it for
18:18
crying out loud. It's true.
18:19
No. And but the Steve Martin thing
18:21
with the, you know, the bottle cap.
18:23
Just just brilliant. That was a brilliant movie, but
18:26
I love all of them. And, and the funny thing about
18:28
me is I'm one of those that, you know, even the ones that people
18:31
don't care for, you know, I like Muppets in Space.
18:34
I thought that was funny. I liked, I liked Muppet Treasure
18:37
Island. I liked the, you know, the
18:39
Christmas specials. They've done.
18:41
I'm sure. I love those.
18:42
You know, I just, I just like them all.
18:43
I just think they're I really do enjoy.
18:45
I think. I just am in love with the
18:47
Muppets. All right, so let me let me flip
18:48
that. Is there something that the
18:49
Muppets have done that? You did not.
18:50
Like that's a good question offhand.
18:55
I honestly can't think of anything.
18:57
That's okay. That's okay.
18:58
No, I really can't think of anything other than what I just
19:00
mentioned in the fact that I felt like they, they ruined the
19:03
dynamic between Miss Piggy, and, and, and Kermit, and I
19:06
understand whether we're going, they thought it would be edgy
19:08
and kind of bring him into the real world, but I think that
19:12
always worked for all of us, you know, we didn't want Genie and
19:19
you know yeah, whatever his name was, what's his name the guy
19:22
from Dallas? Yeah.
19:25
Oh, that's what drives me crazy. What was his name?
19:26
Well, someone out there, it's going to write Major Nelson
19:28
major. I knew it would come to me to
19:32
get married. We never wanted that.
19:33
We just, we loved that. That's what works for us, right?
19:37
You know, we didn't want the nanny to get married to, you
19:40
know, her boss. Sheffield mr.
19:42
Yeah, that one I got I just want to feel that showing.
19:45
It was named. Yeah.
19:46
Right well it's you know it's Sam and Diane and it's like it's
19:49
all these well and I think that's kind of what they were
19:50
going for on the sitcom of because there's experimenting
19:53
with long-form storytelling. For the first time, the old
19:56
Muppet Show, are there all done in one episodes and now it's
20:00
like, it's not even just a two-hour movie.
20:02
This is exactly in half an hour. I just think it really works
20:06
with Miss Piggy being in love with Kermit and Kermit not.
20:11
Being interested it just always is funny you know, it's like a
20:14
genie always wanted to marry Major Nelson and wanted me to
20:17
end Major Nelson just wasn't interested, you know.
20:19
Yeah. And that was, that was the
20:20
beautiful Dynamic. And I think I think what they
20:23
could have done and should have done is kept that Dynamic of
20:25
Miss Piggy. You know, she thinks they're
20:27
together and she thinks he's in love with her and maybe he has a
20:30
little bit, you know. But he's a little scared and
20:32
he's you know he's got that kind of Gilligan thing going where
20:35
he's not sure how to handle a woman, especially a woman like
20:37
Miss Piggy, instead of taking it to, it got be too real.
20:41
You know so we all have x's and you know who wants to see a show
20:44
about Kermit and Miss Piggy being X's.
20:45
It's true. That's true.
20:46
And actually now I'm thinking about those are actually that's
20:48
a really good comparison to I Dream of Jeannie because there
20:50
are two women who are very powerful and Men.
20:52
Who the I think I feel like the main reason they are hesitant to
20:57
engage in a relationship is because they don't want to take
21:00
advantage and insecure. They're also insecure about
21:03
themselves. They don't know.
21:04
I don't know if they think they deserve a woman like that.
21:07
Yeah and that's that's part of it too.
21:08
And so there would that was such a beautiful Dynamic that I feel.
21:11
That was really my only thing that I feel like they didn't
21:14
get, right? But I've just I adore The
21:16
Muppets, I love that. I my I cannot even begin to
21:19
express what a crazy dream. It was for me to be standing
21:23
next to Kermit the Frog. I didn't get to meet him.
21:26
No he didn't. But that was Johnny, Johnny
21:29
Vegas and Johnny Vegas is I just made that up for the Las Vegas
21:32
for the America's Got Talent special.
21:35
That guy's not even in my show, you want to give me a Vegas
21:37
show. I got a Vegas guy Vegas.
21:38
Yeah, whatever you know. So but yeah.
21:41
To be standing next to Kermit. The Frog singing was, it was a
21:45
weird ethereal moment. It almost was like an
21:48
out-of-body experience. I mean, I just remember standing
21:51
there thinking this. I've been dreaming of literally,
21:53
I've been dreaming of this since Sesame Street, since I watched
21:56
those little kids, and I was suddenly five years old again,
21:59
for years old, again, standing next to Kermit singing a song.
22:01
It was incredible. It really was one moment, the
22:04
house. How did you remember the words
22:05
of the song when you're that? You know, I actually intimidate.
22:08
I actually blue one of the line. Did you really?
22:10
I didn't I Song. No, not in song, I did find in
22:13
the song. Luckily, but my thing is, you
22:16
just gotta be so rehearsed and so prepared that you could do it
22:18
in your sleep, which is pretty much what I did because I was
22:20
literally feeling like I was in a dream, right?
22:22
So, so, I was letting Johnny Vegas, do the you've got a
22:26
friend, but and I was just so excited to be there with Kermit
22:29
that I just couldn't remember the lines.
22:31
And I think they even had them on a teleprompter and I'm still
22:34
screwed up. I stepped on one of his lines
22:36
and I had to stop so I love watching it and it doesn't
22:39
bother me because I'm like, Never forget that feeling, you
22:42
know, just being so overwhelmed with Kermit and then the code
22:44
the Cryptid chickens came up and started singing.
22:46
It was just great that's it was not a part of me is like it's
22:49
great to sing with Kermit but you also got to sing backed up
22:51
by chicken the chickens. It was so good.
22:54
How did you find out? That was going to happen.
22:57
It was a complete and total surprise, and it was beautiful.
23:00
Because what happened was they, they said, okay.
23:05
Now Terry we have to, we have to you need to talk to one of the
23:10
producers. They really need to get some
23:13
blocking in. Talk to you about the different
23:15
song, you're going to be doing and all this stuff and I said,
23:17
oh great, great. And this is what, you know, you
23:19
know, come into this room that he's going to call you.
23:20
It's one of the top producers, I was thinking Simon Cowell, you
23:23
know, because he had already called me once and kind of give
23:25
me some advice, which he does a lot by the way.
23:27
Well, I don't know if he does now that he's a judge, but back
23:29
when he was in a producer he would call a lot, if not, all of
23:31
the contestants give us advice. So that's good to know.
23:34
And, and so they bring me into this little room and, and they,
23:40
and they say, okay, When the phone rings pick it up, it's
23:42
going to be the producer and you'll, you know, and you just
23:45
send. So I pick up the phone and I'm
23:48
like, hello and it's like, hi, this is Kermit, the Frog is
23:51
Terry Fator there. I'm like, I just I they actually
23:56
had to have me reshoot the the phone conversation, as if
24:01
because I was so stunned. They made me do it again and act
24:06
more support more happy. Oh, my, I was just like well,
24:09
huh? And he's like, yeah.
24:11
Yeah, this is good with frog. I'm like this.
24:14
Wait, is this? Is this Carmen?
24:16
He goes? Yes it is.
24:17
And I'm going. Uh-oh, really nice to meet you
24:21
Kermit, and he said, I've been getting a call from all the
24:25
people at America's Got Talent. They said, they'd like me to
24:27
sing with you. And I'm like, okay, I would love
24:31
to and he said we're working out, the song will talk about
24:33
it, but I can hardly wait to see what I was like, okay, this you
24:36
know, I was just, I was so blown away that they made me reshoot
24:40
the Doubt him on the phone but they, you know, and and I had
24:44
they were like, now you got to look a little more excited
24:46
because I was just so, but see, right petrified?
24:49
Yeah, they couldn't reshoot because it was live, but when I
24:52
won the show, I was so stunned that I had won.
24:55
I was convinced they had said the other guy's name and I
24:58
didn't want to do a Zoolander and go.
25:00
Yeah. Oh sorry.
25:01
It was him, you know? So I kind of stood there and I
25:03
and I just bawled my fists in front of my face and I was like
25:07
guitar and I honestly, I just didn't know what to, I didn't
25:10
know. How to react I was so because I
25:13
was absolutely 100% positive. I was not going to win 100%.
25:17
Everybody tells me. They knew it.
25:18
But I was the old. I must have been the only one
25:20
who had no clue at all. Wow, that's amazing.
25:24
And then and then of course the judges that were there were
25:27
Beaker Swedish Chef. Yeah, animal spouting.
25:30
Some gibberish to you after your after your number which is what
25:33
are beautiful because we look at each other me and me and I think
25:36
Johnny Vegas would say like oh, it was Kermit was there too.
25:39
And we were like, did he like it?
25:40
And I don't know, I think so. You know, and and but what a
25:44
surreal experience to have to be sitting there and have have
25:48
followed the Muppets in bins, such a muppet follower, in
25:50
lover, my whole life. And here, I've got, I've got
25:55
animal on stage, going down, Terry Terry Terry.
25:58
And I'm just like, how do you even process something like
26:02
that? You know?
26:02
I mean really, it's like there because there is no, there is no
26:08
in them, the Muppet world. If you're a, if you're a
26:10
puppeteer, Or a ventriloquist or a fan of the Muppets, there's
26:13
just nothing better than to have the Muppets chanting your name
26:16
and be singing with Kermit the Frog and and and then Miss Piggy
26:20
came on afterwards and she said, you know, everybody vote for
26:23
Terry and I can't do Miss Piggy so don't try and have been able
26:26
to do Miss Piggy. But yeah, she's and she's she's
26:31
telling me, you know, I love you call me.
26:33
And I mean it's just one of those things where you it's like
26:36
a dream. It really is like a dream II
26:39
mean I can honestly say, I've never had him up a chant my
26:41
name. It I have been in a circumstance
26:44
where it's like, oh, I'm doing something, you know, on set,
26:46
with one of the puppeteers and they put the puppet on and the
26:47
public talks to me and it's like, oh my God, crazy is my
26:50
God. Like, it's just like, I'm not
26:52
prepared for this like meeting Robert De Niro.
26:54
It's like, it's like you really? There's, if you've never met a
26:58
muppet those of you listening, I mean a real Muppet, and they're
27:01
in character and they're talking to it really is like meeting
27:05
Tony Bennett or yeah, or, you know, the biggest stars in the
27:07
world because they are the biggest stars in the world to
27:09
us. So we are yes, 100 Percent.
27:12
So did you get to work with the puppeteers?
27:15
The Muppet performers much during that shoots and not
27:18
really know, but I got to watch them work and that was an
27:20
amazing experience, you know, other than Steve Whitmire who
27:23
was doing Kermit that the time, you know, we did chat about some
27:27
things and some little things but, but just to watch them work
27:30
was so much fun and I mean there was laughter from beginning to
27:34
end. It was nothing but laughing,
27:36
laughing laughing. We were all having so much fun,
27:38
there were working so hard, they had to completely rebuild Judges
27:42
thing because they had to make it Muppet friendly sure.
27:44
Yeah. And one of my favorite moments
27:47
was, I think it was, I think it was Beaker and and Baker, one of
27:53
the one of The Producers was said, Beaker, Beaker.
27:56
I need you to look this way and bigger goes.
27:59
I can't see. I'm a puppet, you know, and
28:01
everybody just died laughing. It was so funny because they
28:05
totally bought they had to, you know, they didn't, they were
28:08
saying this way and the guy couldn't see, you know, he could
28:10
not see the the the producer. And I mean, the producer just
28:14
about fell over. I mean, he was so he was so
28:16
embarrassed and laughing so hard that he had made that mistake
28:19
try as if he could just point to Beaker and people would know
28:21
what which direction. Well, there's a famous story and
28:23
I wish I could remember what show was on The Tonight Show or
28:25
something like that. Back in the day and they could
28:28
something was wrong with the way.
28:29
Kermit was sounding and long story short, they figure out the
28:32
old their booming Kermit. They're not booming Jim.
28:36
I have that happen all the time. In fact, on America's Got
28:38
Talent, every time, one of my puppets will talk.
28:41
Jerry Springer would move the mic in front of the puppet so
28:43
they couldn't hear the puppets reaction.
28:46
So after the first episode, they actually had to like edit it
28:49
because you couldn't hear the puppet.
28:52
So, in the second episode, they actually put a lav on me and
28:55
they kept telling Jerry, they kept saying Jerry, don't make
28:58
the puppets. Don't put and he did it every
29:00
single time. They hire series.
29:02
Every time he asked the puppet a question, he would put the mic.
29:05
So luckily we had me laughed for every other episode except the
29:07
first? Well, yeah it makes sense like
29:09
it knowing Jerry's career. Like he goes after people with
29:12
the microphone, they're having an argument.
29:14
He's going back and forth. Exactly.
29:16
Have you crossed paths with the Muppets at all, since the
29:18
America's Got Talent occasionally, I have had a
29:20
couple of the Muppets come to see me perform, and at one point
29:25
and I've had Brian Henson, come to the show, and, and I went and
29:29
saw Brian show, pop. Pop it up.
29:32
Is that what happened? Well, there's Pump It Up and
29:34
stuffed unstrung. They're the same show with their
29:36
puppet up was the one I saw in Vegas.
29:38
And and it was a shame that didn't work because you know,
29:40
it's just And it's fun to it to really, watch the puppets, do
29:44
their thing and and but it's really one of those.
29:47
It's like Happy Time murders. You know, there's a niche that's
29:49
not going to ever appeal to a really big, you know.
29:53
Same would like the Dark Crystal and Labyrinth is brilliant and
29:56
amazing. As those are, that's just,
29:58
you're never going to appeal to the wide know, I'd group of
30:02
people, right? You know, Ami as a puppeteer,
30:04
holy cow. I mean, it's in Nirvana.
30:06
Watching this stuff, right? It's same like as a muppet fan,
30:10
you know, I watching, Labyrinth Dark, Crystal pop it up.
30:12
Oh, yeah. If you like that, you know,
30:14
blows my mind. I do understand, you know, not
30:17
everything should be for everyone, exactly.
30:19
And I very much appreciate that. Muppets Henson Sesame, they all
30:23
go after those those a little more of a niche audience for,
30:28
you know, some of their projects.
30:30
But your show, obviously you, you definitely it seems like you
30:33
do a good job of getting the attention of everyone.
30:37
Well, I think my secret is that I move quickly.
30:40
I have Four different puppets that I use in my Vegas show.
30:45
I don't do long intros, I don't do long segments and there's not
30:49
a puppet that's longer than that's not on stage longer than
30:52
four minutes. You know, I go, I do parts of
30:55
songs. I do something like 70 different
30:57
songs so it goes Bam. Bam, Bam, Bam, Bam.
30:59
So if you don't like what I'm doing now just wait 30 seconds,
31:02
30 seconds. Yeah.
31:03
And and and that's a trick though.
31:05
You don't want it to seem frenetic and you don't want the
31:07
audience to get nervous and feel like holy cow.
31:09
What's going on? I'm you know, it's like, you
31:11
know, No, he's on crack and caffeine.
31:13
I get this a lot people, but this is 10 years of putting my
31:16
show together and letting it evolve and people say, oh my
31:19
gosh, the the transitions were so smooth and it just flowed so
31:23
well and you know the timing is so is so wonderful with that.
31:25
Again that's 10 years of doing a show every single night in Las
31:29
Vegas. Yeah, practice makes perfect.
31:32
So I'm assuming a lot of celebrities have come to see
31:34
you, perform. I'm curious just as you meet
31:38
them and puppet. You talk about puppetry things
31:40
like that? You encountered any other Muppet
31:42
fans in the wild notable people? Well II do get to meet a lot of
31:47
in Trilla quests and a lot of puppeteers.
31:48
They will come. And am I standing my standing?
31:52
So, if you're a puppeteer and you're a or, you're a
31:54
ventriloquist, and you're listening to this, let one of
31:57
the ushers know when you come to my show, that you are a
32:00
puppeteer or a ventriloquist, and I will make sure they Usher
32:03
You backstage and we'll chat and get a picture because I really,
32:06
really want to to encourage and see people.
32:10
And I hope that when people people come to my show, if
32:12
you're an Entertainer, whether you're a puppeteer or a singer
32:14
or whatever that you leave inspired.
32:16
I know I do, every time I go to a show, whether it's, you know,
32:19
to go see Jay Johnson, or Jeff Dunham or any of the others.
32:22
I leave inspired and ready to ready to create new material.
32:26
And that's what I hope is that my show inspires you.
32:28
But yes, I love to meet and meeting celebrities is an
32:31
interesting thing and I've met a lot of them and a lot of them,
32:36
but big celebrities, play my theater, you know, the Terry
32:38
Fator theater. You got Jay, Leno, and Ray.
32:41
And Adam Sandler and I've gotten to meet all those guys and it's
32:43
cool and Mel Gibson showed up at the show one time.
32:47
And it's like after the show, they said Mel Gibson's here.
32:49
Do you want to meet him? I like it.
32:51
Yeah, yeah, you know. So they bring him back and he
32:56
was doing a show. He was doing a movie called the
32:59
beaver. I was gonna ask you.
33:00
This is around the beaver was and he said, I just wanted to,
33:02
you know, I looked up and Trail Aquos and that your name came
33:05
up. And so, he drove he and his son
33:07
from LA from Hollywood to where he lives will surely than Bel
33:10
Air. Everything else or something,
33:12
but he drove. And he brought his son to see
33:14
the show and he loved it. He absolutely loved it.
33:16
And I told him, I said, listen, you know, let me know if you
33:19
need any pointers or whatever, that movie, by the way, was
33:21
horrible. Oh my God.
33:23
It was never never saw versus the pieces of garbage I've ever
33:26
seen in my life. I cannot believe anyone.
33:27
First of all said, yes to it. It was awful.
33:30
It was just awful. And but, you know, and I told
33:34
him, I said, you know, was really nice to me and I got
33:35
pictures of him. It's so funny because I have a
33:38
picture with him and it literally looks like I'm
33:39
standing next to a cardboard cutout.
33:41
Out of him. It does not look like I'm really
33:43
with him, but he actually was with they're in the dressing.
33:45
Oh, that's cool. That's cool.
33:47
So I noticed that I saw online that you got your start doing an
33:54
impression of Kermit with a Kermit puppet, and I'm assuming
33:57
is a store-bought puppet. And that's me.
33:58
Yes, well, the story is and I had to put Winston up because my
34:02
hand was sweating and getting tired.
34:04
I don't know how the Muppets do it all the time because I have
34:06
an hour and a half that I do. And I but I do, you know,
34:08
20-something for puppets. So I use wooden ones and
34:10
everything. But I did have a store-bought
34:14
Kermit, the Frog that I bought on eBay actually, and this was,
34:17
it wasn't the start of my career, but it was a start of my
34:20
of my impression of doing impressions in ventriloquism.
34:24
And I was singing What a Wonderful World with Kermit the
34:26
Frog. And I was singing as Louis
34:27
Armstrong. And when that be cool to have a
34:29
really Louis Armstrong puppet on one.
34:31
Hey, Louis Armstrong and Kermit and Winston.
34:34
Well, the story is the end. This true story that I asked, I
34:38
actually asked the Muppets if I could use the Kermit America's
34:41
Got Talent but they said no we only allow Steve Whitmire to do
34:44
that. There is no other Kermit and
34:46
certain absolute hard, fast Rule and I totally got it.
34:49
I wasn't angry. I was incredibly disappointed
34:51
because I'm thinking to myself, look, this is about, as sure.
34:55
A thing as you, this is almost 100% guarantee.
34:58
If not fully 100% guarantee that I'm going to get through with
35:02
this because people everywhere I would do this, I would get
35:05
enormous standing ovations, people go crazy.
35:08
So I'm thinking, okay, can't use Kermit and So I asked the
35:12
Muppets I say it, is it okay? If I do an impression of Kermit
35:15
the Frog through another puppet? And they said, no problem at
35:16
all. We don't mind that you can do
35:17
the voice. No problem.
35:18
Just you can't use the actual puppet.
35:20
So I Googled and found this little puppet at a toy store in
35:25
Austin. And my friends lived in Austin,
35:27
it was a little turtle puppet and I and I had them go by it
35:31
and overnight it to me and I just as soon as I open the box,
35:34
I said it's Winston, the impersonating Turtle, he had a
35:35
little bit of a different voice, a little bit of a different
35:37
personality. And the funny thing is that I
35:40
actually got Sued by the guy who made that puppet show using that
35:44
puppy that one in the Emma Taylor puppet were made by the
35:46
same, got the same person. So I got sued by him and we
35:50
fought him for a couple of years in line.
35:52
And we finally had this big settlement where I paid him a
35:54
bunch of money. And then he said, yeah, I'll
35:56
give you permission to use a puppet.
35:57
I'm like, screw you. I'm not using your puppets and
35:59
so I that's when I went to puppet Heap and had them making
36:01
him and Winston great. And so, so that, but that's
36:04
really how Winston was born was, he was, you know, and people,
36:06
it's hilarious because that David Hasselhoff said, it's just
36:09
such a genius. To have a turtle doing an
36:12
impression of a frog and I'm like, yeah, you know, genius the
36:14
what is they say? It is the mother of invention.
36:17
What necessity is the mother of invention is I would have used
36:19
to Kermit puppet if I could have right.
36:21
Right. And so you know sometimes you
36:23
just have to but that but that's really a good Testament though
36:27
to anyone listening about don't if you're told no figure out a
36:31
way to do what you want, you know you just you don't want to
36:34
just don't take no for an answer.
36:36
I mean obviously I wasn't going to go on there with the Kermit
36:38
the Frog. They wouldn't let me anyway even
36:39
if I had. But but I'm saying Just you
36:41
know, don't don't say well I guess that there goes that idea.
36:44
Just figure out, you know. Yeah.
36:46
And it might be it. Winston the impersonating turtle
36:48
is Far and Away my favorite a, my most popular.
36:52
And favorite character, will he want America's Got Talent.
36:54
I mean a turtle, they could sing like, Roy Orbison.
36:56
I wish I could sing like, Roy Orbison.
37:00
So, I would love to ask you about the Terry Fator
37:04
Foundation. You tell me what that is.
37:06
Yes, I have been donating 100% of the profits of Of all the
37:11
sales of my merchandise, since I started the Mirage to and I
37:14
started out being 100% military Charities and as we began to
37:19
expand and I began to realize there's so much need in so much
37:22
people hurting out there and need that.
37:24
I just started an entire foundation and most of the money
37:27
does go to military Charities, to help buy, you know, amazing
37:32
chairs and things that will allow people who have lost use
37:35
their legs to walk and and just amazing.
37:38
They buy houses for that are Lately friendly for quadruple,
37:44
amputees and things like this, but but we've also expanded to
37:48
include Shriners Hospital st. Jude's hospital.
37:50
We work with kids with cancer, blind, children, and, and all
37:54
sorts of things. And we've had just people just
37:56
donate to, you know, to the Terry Fator Foundation, which is
37:59
wonderful. But but we continue to raise,
38:01
you know, hundreds of thousands of dollars just by selling
38:03
merchandise and taking all the profits and giving it to to the
38:06
foundation and and helping a lot of people out there.
38:09
That's fantastic. Let's go.
38:11
At work that you do. Thank you.
38:12
And then, can you tell us a little bit about the kind of
38:14
you're doing a tour right now through through North America
38:17
and then you've also got the show in Vegas.
38:18
How are you into place? So no, I do the show in Vegas.
38:21
Yeah, my tour dates are one-off. So I'm there all the time.
38:25
I'm at the Mirage. I just had a week off, and and I
38:28
decided I did Bensalem Pennsylvania on Friday, and then
38:32
I did Englewood New Jersey, which is only about half an hour
38:34
from here on Saturday, and the rest of the week.
38:38
I did some press. I did go to Good Morning,
38:40
America, strain. Sarah supposed to do some Fox
38:43
and Friends and they had to cancel because of the press
38:46
conference but we'll do it. Next time I come into town, I'm
38:48
coming in and you know, September December.
38:52
Okay. December y'all be coming in a
38:54
December? That's my wife, Angie.
38:55
She knows my schedule better than I do.
38:57
She's mouthing the word December.
38:58
Yes, but I, yeah, so I'm always at the Mirage and just check and
39:01
make sure I'm not on one of my week off, because if I'm not
39:04
vacationing, I'm performing. And and that's when and I do it
39:07
because I love it. I love my fans and I get lots of
39:09
letters from people saying, oh my Mom can't come, he's 85, and
39:12
he's in a wheelchair and he just can't travel.
39:14
Would you please, please, please play in New Jersey?
39:17
And I'm like, yep. And I tell my agent.
39:19
You get me in New Jersey so they can come bring their grandpa.
39:21
That's great. Alright, one, last question for
39:23
you, Terry, who's your favorite Muppet?
39:27
I'm actually surprised that we've been talking for, for over
39:29
half hour and that hasn't come up yet.
39:31
But who is your favorite Muppet? Well, I mean, obviously Kermit,
39:34
you know, he's kind of like but but you know, it's okay if you
39:40
ask me who my Properties in my show.
39:41
And we'll all this reason I'm saying this is because there's,
39:44
there's a reason. My favorite puppet.
39:46
I have three favorite puppets. My favorite puppet obviously is
39:49
Winston because he won America's Got Talent.
39:51
My sentimental favorite is is Walter Tierre Del because he was
39:55
my first professional puppet. I got him out of my 18th
39:57
birthday, and he still in my show and my favorite to perform
40:00
is Maynard. You know, pay Maynard, Tompkins
40:02
the Elvis impersonator who doesn't own any Elvis songs and
40:04
he says he's fun. I just, he's the most fun to
40:07
perform, so see, that's, that's kind of a loaded question.
40:09
I mean, we all love Kermit Has Kermit Kermit you know?
40:12
And and obviously my first memory ever is of a little boy,
40:15
sitting there singing a song with Kermit and being able to
40:18
reach over and give him a kiss. And and it was something I just
40:21
wanted so badly to be that little boy, and to be able to do
40:25
that and why dream was to go to Sesame Street to me Kermit.
40:28
But as the Muppets come along, you know, I loved Grover, Grover
40:31
was kind of that, you know, he kind of thought like us like us
40:35
little kids, you know, he had that and then who doesn't love
40:38
Cookie Monster. You know?
40:39
And yeah and then when Fozzie Bear came along fine.
40:41
There's kind of that struggling comedian, which any of us who
40:43
have a comedy show. We certainly relate to that, you
40:46
know, of having jokes that bomb and don't go, you know.
40:49
So it's really a loaded question, but I think at the end
40:52
of the day, would have to be Carmen.
40:53
I'm gonna go with the crowd and it's hard to be the Frog.
40:55
Yes, it is. Yeah.
40:57
Well Terry, thank you so much for joining us for this is
40:59
fantastic. Thank you, please say, thank you
41:01
to Winston for us. I will.
41:02
Yeah, he had to go because my hand started getting sweaty.
41:05
I don't know what that has to do with with the turtle, but okay,
41:08
that's weird. But all right.
41:09
But thank you so much and every one of You are in the Las Vegas
41:12
area. Please go see Terry faders show.
41:15
I know I will be seeing at the next time I'm in Vegas.
41:18
And thank you all for listening to 15 seconds to curtain by 15
41:25
seconds. To curtain is hosted and
41:26
produced by Johannes. And this is the best.
41:28
I could come up with what a bunch of malarkey edited by
41:31
Jared. Faircloth he should have left a
41:34
whole thing on The Cutting Room floor.
41:35
Local artwork by Dave Hall team and J foskey.
41:39
Well hello goes pretty good anyway.
41:41
Music by Stacey Rosen. All right.
41:43
That's a catchy song. This has been a lover fan
41:45
podcast brought to you by tough. Kings.com, I love this show.
41:49
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