That replica amazing! Puppetry is such a cool and underappreciated artistry. I like how Kermit was intently listening to Boi without interrupting the video. Very polite! ☺
It's not a skill I possess either, but I've found Puppet Nerd's videos break it all down and make it seem achievable, if you were ever to make an attempt!
I made my own kermit. I discovered the puppet nerd channel a few years back and he inspired me to make my own which is not exactly like the ones used in the movies or shows but I like it.
I'm also a Puppeteer and I was really surprised when you mentioned Puppet Nerd, you're both some of my favourite channels and it was pretty fun to know you have watched him too hahaha (I also have his book!). Aside from that, I didn't really know about all of the legal stuff about Kermit, but it was really interesting, thanks for sharlng as always!
That's an incredible Kermit, I'm super jealous, but I'm glad he will have such a obviously loving home! Long overly personal story time about finding "my" Kermit for anyone who cares: I'm autistic and as a child always related more to puppets & cartoons than people because their expression & moods are much easier to read than humans. My whole family, including my aunt & grandparents were all big Muppet fans, and we bonded over watching repeats of the Muppet Show together, and them watching Sesame Street, Fraggle Rock etc with me. My aunt had a Rolf puppet and in some of the times when I was most vulnerable & least able to express my feelings, from a pre-school age even going up to going through severe depression as a teen, she would make Rolf talk or sing to me instead, & she did a great "Jim" voice and it always cheered me up. Being autistic, I get obsessed with learning every possible detail about things I like, and I was vehement on learning everything about Jim, Frank, and their careers. I felt strongly that if I learned enough about film and tv production & practiced puppeteering, learning about animatronics, practical effects etc, one day I would somehow meet Jim and work with him. I'm considerably older than you, I grew up in the 80s and 90s. When I was around 8 years old, my family didn't have much money, but we had a towable 1970s caravan that we'd take to random fields around the UK for a change of scene & to spend quality time as a family. One time, the morning when we were about to go away, I had excitedly watched a long advertising feature on Disney Club about the making of MuppetVision 3D in Disney World. Of course I was super desperate to go, but knew there was no way in hell my parents could afford it. During that holiday, the news broke that Jim Henson had passed away. I remember it so clearly. I felt like the world was ending, as if a family member had died. Returning home from the holiday, there was Jim's funeral televised, and the Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson special. I've never been able to handle muppets crying or being sad (I still can't get through Muppets Take Manhattan!) so the whole thing was somewhat traumatic, but I felt it was important to watch, tape, and rewatch them out of respect. When I realised that Muppetvision was the last thing that Jim had ever fully worked on, and the exclusive Disney World film was not only the last footage of Jim performing as Kermit, but also that it was in 3D (so in a way, the closest possible thing I'd ever get to "meeting" Jim's Kermit!) I made a vow to myself that one day when I was an adult I would somehow find a way to save up and go. I was well into my 30s before I finally made the pilgrimige to Hollywood Studios in Orlando and watched that show. I felt silly, but it made me cry, feeling my inner child's hope finally been met over 2 decades later. Since I was a kid I've had various plushie Kermits and loved them, but never found one that looked like a "real" Kermit, despite them being official. Its quite difficult to get the look right, especially the face shape. But at Muppetvision there was a themed shop that sold exclusively Muppet merchandise, and immediately upon leaving the show and walking into the shop, still quite emotional, I saw a plush, that was the most "Kermit" looking Kermit I'd ever seen. I made "eye contact" with a specific one and I instantly grabbed and bought him. I'm lucky enough to be a film producer, and have worked on many movies over the years, and because of work I've lived in amazing places in multiple countries. While I never got the chance to work with Jim, incredibly I've managed to meet and work with many of my childhood heroes, including Don Bluth, several Disney animators, many children's tv presenters from when I was little, actors, pop stars and musicians from the 80s/90s. My "gut instinct" of working with these heroes when I was a child turned out to be true - or maybe I've made it so - again, my autistic obsessions. And while I never got a chance to meet Jim, no matter where I've gone, since I've gotten him, my Kermit has followed, around the world, and is always sat on my desk as I'm editing, or in the production office of whatever movie I've worked on. I have many pictures of different celebrities posing with him, he always catches their eye! He even came to Pinewood when I worked on some Star Wars projects. In a way, I feel like Jim, or at least the spirit of inspiration that I got from him, has been with me all throughout. During Covid lockdowns, myself & a handful of friends made a zero budget Muppet style puppet movie, all working remotely, from multiple countries! For anyone interested, its available on Amazon Prime in the UK and USA, called "Odd Pod: The Movie... kinda". Part of that project was me making a CGI storybook classic Disney-style opening, setting up the story with some exposition. I wrote and animated it myself, and ended the intro with both an inspirational quote from Jim, and a dedication to him before the movie starts, with a sneaky "fair use" picture of him and Kermit briefly on screen as the pages of the book are flicked through. I hope and feel like Jim would approve both of the message of the film, and the creative spirit of a handful of friends, separated by hundreds/thousands of miles and stuck in lockdown in sad, scary and uncertain times, keeping busy by making a home-made movie together, for fun, friendship, and coming to terms with the way the world was changing, and maybe bringing some hope and smiles to people who watched it. Anyway, sorry for the long rant. I adore your Kermit, & its clear from your other videos that you are a true Muppet fan. I've been watching (and occasionally commenting) since the begining. You're doing awesome mate. [edit] Also, great shout on Puppet Nerd. What a fantastic channel and lovely guy. I'm planning on building my own puppets with help from his channel / site / book for use in another movie in the future.
@@awesomeocelot7475 You missed the fact I said I grew up in the 80s & 90s, & it was a 1970s caravan. It was very small, very old, falling apart. Infact, it was what was once used as a burger van that toured county fairs lol. Parents bought it for under £100 from someone in the paper that just wanted to get rid of it as it was unused and rusting on their driveway. Parents redecorated and cleaned it up best as they could. I remember us finding these cool 1970s flowerpower style orange curtains at a charity shop and my mum cutting and sewing them to fit the smaller windows of the van. It was a tiny little touring van (the kind you pull with your car) and we had many happy memories in it, just me and my parents, parking it in random fields (my dad had a rule that we couldn't drive more than 100 miles round trip because of petrol, but that included lots of cool places in England and Wales as I grew up in Gloucester). I often think back to those happy times playing card games together, eating beans on toast, watching the sun set and having them read me bedtime stories. I especially loved it when it rained and it was so loud on the roof but you felt cozy & warm inside. Often, when I can't sleep now as an adult, I put on a youtube video of rain noise and imagine I'm back in that van, as a little kid, with my mum and dad right there with me :) [edit] I just did some googling and if you search "Vintage Retro 1970s Refurbished Sprite Caravan 2 Berth" the first thing link that should come up, showing a blue & white model, is the exact type.
Wow, what a wonderful story, really appreciate you sharing that! It's certainly encouraging that your passion for Jim's work got you so far in the industry!
I've built 2 myself. It's a magical process to build your own...it's like Kermit is just appearing in front of you, piece by piece. Love him and use him for good and i think everything will be ok. ❤
Hi! Love your channel. When you were showing the images of the different Kermit’s you were looking at, one of my builds came up, which was quite surreal. I wanted to give a brief explanation to why the prices of some of these Kermit’s are so high. The materials are relatively cheap to buy, such as foam, Frog fuzelle fleece (which is what ECL uses), rubber gasket, etc, but it’s the labor, work, and attention to detail that goes into each puppet that makes them incredibly difficult and time consuming to create. I’ve made two Kermit replicas now, and still feel the process gets quite strenuous. If I priced my Kermit much lower than what I was asking for, it wouldn’t be worth the labor and time. Not everyone is able to build accurate replica Kermit’s. So technically, you’re paying for not only the puppet, but for the skill and time that was put into making it. Each puppet is made by hand. Sewing machines can’t be used with this style of puppet because the seams would be too obvious. Although I will say some of these black market Kermit’s you speak of are quite insanely priced. I remember seeing one for $1300 and thinking it was just ridiculous. Anyways, just wanted to give some insight because I’m making two more Kermit puppets then probably stopping and will only build for myself. Thank you for the video! You shed light on a lot of info that isn’t generally well known to the community.
Thanks and yes I can imagine! That's why I paid a decent amount for mine when I could see it had plenty of work put into it. I honestly love seeing builders make their own Kermits and it's great to see people finally given the chance to purchase them. What I was more referring to was the likes of one ebay seller who's sold well over a hundred Kermits, which aren't quite as well made but are on the high end price wise. Unfortunately though, the listings are all removed from that account even when looking at sold items, so there was no footage to use for the video. So apologies if I've labelled your Kermit as a "black market" one by mistake!
@@SomeBoiOnline thank you for making this video, it brought a lot of light onto a subject that isn’t really talked about in the Muppet community. I really enjoyed watching!
Great story! I made a similar journey that brought me to learn how to make a Kermit, has taken me 5 years to perfect my craftsmanship and the information that Ecl sheared has helped me so much. Still not 100% Kermit but I am so happy I took this journey! Great video 🐸❤️
I just finished a Kermit based on Puppet Nerd's Fried Frog pattern with some alterations to the hands so they are more "Kermit-like" definately a fun project and worth the time (took me a lot less time than my first, probably due to being much quicker at stitching and there's no foam in the head). Worth trying to make one yourself if you get time!
I remember when I was a kid I always wanted a Kermit puppet. So my mom got my Kermit plush cut the back of it took the stuffing out of the head and sewed his back and boom I had my very own Kermit and I love him so much.
@@SomeBoiOnline Finally got the chance to get around to snapping some photos of them. My Sam & Friends-era Kermit replica: drive.google.com/file/d/1VPBmikfLEX_50zyqOV9Zftykg1TvVIf0/view?usp=drivesdk My Harry the Hipster replica: drive.google.com/file/d/1IcShOBBX0KIcJvfPDjL7nW9g8GpR-ynj/view?usp=drivesdk Pretty cool, right? And before anyone asks, no, they are NOT for sale. I just thought it would be fun to show them. 🤣🤣🤣
Ah man that's awesome I'm happy you got one you deserve it enjoy it! I went down the rabbit hole to look into one myself and hoo boy did it lend me down to learning alot behind the craft and had alot of fun Bit of a side tangent but have you listened to Puppet nerds podcast puppet tears? I feel like you'd get a kick out of it many of the stories muppet and sesame workshop members have working in the field are fascinating!
Thanks, it can certainly be an experience! Yes, I'm a big fan of the podcast and found the episode featuring Steve Whitmire to be especially interesting! I'd love to interview him myself one day in regards to Kermit and the rest of his work.
This is awesome and terrific video there! Keep up the great work and I can't wait to see any more Muppet related content on here. Plus I was a huge Muppet fan back in the early 90's when I was a kid at that time and the very first Muppet Movie made a huge impact in my life that I would hopefully become a puppeteer as a career job as well.
I'm also on a quest for the perfect Kermit for a cost somewhat less that one of my kidneys. What I've got is close, an old plush from Eden, that I've converted into a proper muppet (cutting out the plastic mouth plates without doing serious damage was a major challenge), and he looks just about right. Only problem is he's just a teensy bit too small. Once my hand is up there, things are great, but the broken stitches are evidence of the wrestling match of getting in and out of the poor frog.
I remember not having an Etsy account and always remember going on the website looking at replica Kermit's and one day I saved up and bought myself a replica😊❤
I was about to go through this exact same rabbit hole, so I'm so happy that i found an interesting video that completely summed everything up before I wasted hours of researching myself
I cannot imagine that the "guy named Gordon" wasn't me. And I stand by everything in that post! Make a Kermit for yourself! Don't make 200 Kermits and sell them! ❤
@SomeBoiOnline intellectual copyright nuances are difficult to understand in the best of circumstances. I've looked at them more than the average person and I still dont fully grasp a lot of it. But many fans will willingly refuse to understand them when it conflicts with their personal desires. So I realized that I don't have the lifetime left to evangelize for IP rights other than my own. I keep my nose clean and leave others to their own devices. As far as ruining it for others, there's not much likelihood of that since Disney doesn't want to sue all their fans. They just want to sue ONE transgressor to make an example that everybody understands. So...make yourself a Kermit. Have fun. Learn skills. Enjoy a hobby. Disney doesn't have time or money or will to come after you. Just don't post Frog porn videos to the internet. 😉
@@SomeBoiOnline Yes, I sure did! I'm an original 1979 Muppet Show fan and I've always loved the Muppets for bringing such joy and laughter to our childhood.
Just like you wanted to replicate Kermit, kids today also want to replicate what they know and see. And it is up to adults like us, and their parents, to not abuse that and make sure they can be innocent children for the duration of their childhood. Frankly, entire generations have been failed basic adult supervision and parenting. I see parents who are more childish and amoral than their own children on a daily basis. All you can do is not add to that, and try to make the world a little bit more beautiful and wholesome, one step at a time.
I had the same thing, heres my story: i kept searching and searching for the perfect one, but i was too young then. Later i tried it again because i actually wanted a mickey mouse mascot head but they were in another currency and i kinda was super sad about that. So now i am trying to find a good kermit replica, yours looks amazing! But this story has set me to get a puppeteer
Sounds like a fun journey! As somebody who went on a similar journey, but wanting a Robin... I can relate. Although in my case I ended up having to learn how to make them myself, as an accurate Robin replica appears to be an even smaller niche!
@@SomeBoiOnline my then-gf, now wife made me a Kermit puppet she cobbled together from some older stuffed Kermits. Smaller than a "proper" Kermit, but fun to play with, and, as I was working as a karaoke host at the time, Kermit was always a hit when I brought him out for "Rainbow Connection," "Man or Muppet," (one guy Kermit sang it with insisted on singing Walter's part, to Kermit's eternal bemusement...) or "Bein' Green." Also, "Turtle Power," by Partners in crime (from the 1989 TMNT movie). Loved that puppet. Then some asshat broke into my car and stole him. Wifey did have another version half-built which had some real issues with the mouth (we call him "Constantine"). Downloaded the ELC archive and we'll probably just end up trying to make another one from scratch. My birthday is next week and I suspect she did buy me one of those Chinese knock off puppets from eBay. Which I would appreciate for the thought. She's not actually a Muppet fan - but I married her anyway. 😉 Edit: Also, I've just realized that my original comment was left under my other (Hitfilm University) account. Heh. Lost track of my login. Edit: Ah. I uploaded Kermit doing Turtle Power years ago to amuse one particular person. I wasn't in my best voice that night. Somewhere between Steve Whitmire and Matt Vogel. th-cam.com/video/A-HM_pTKbAQ/w-d-xo.html Edit, Edit, Edit: I won't pick on Vogel. Jim's portrayal of Kermit drifted over the years and, honestly I think it took almost a decade before Whitmire's Kermit really became Kermit. Vogel is getting better at the voice he's finding his personality and his hand acting is dead-on. It's like how Bugs Bunny's voice keeps changing and ain't none of them Mel Blanc.
Wow, great story unitl some berk stole your Kermit, who breaks into a car for that? I was impressed with how close your Kermit sounds to Steve Whitmire, definitely his pitch of voice. Best of luck in possibly receiving another Kermit! It's the sentiment that counts indeed!
@@SomeBoiOnline Wow. No one else is Jim, but I'll take being close to Whitmire as high praise! Thanks! On the puppeteering. I really need to study how the Muppet performers cheat and where/when they skip syllables cuz my hand/forearm were always sore after Turtle Power. 😂 Oh, when Kermit was stolen someone had gone down the street and broken into EVERY car. I also lost a laptop and microphone set, but that was just money to replace. The Kermit was a gift made with love - and he had a little banjo! He's irreplaceable. Even if we make or buy another Kermit, it won't be the one she made for our second (dating) anniversary. Hope he was appreciated by whoever got him.
I have a pretty decent Kermit puppet but I feel the eyes are just a little too small. If I fixed the eyes I think it would be the perfect Kermit puppet. any suggestions on how to create the eyes?
I think you're overthinking the whole copyright issue too much. As long as you arent selling DVDs or whatever of your puppetry videos, you should be perfectly fine doing whatever you want. If you want to attempt to lip sync to actual muppets audio, that in itself could be considered transformative enough to be fair use since you're just practicing. The only real problem would be TH-cam's copyright detection, but as long as the scene you try lip syncing to isnt too long and doesnt have music you should be fine. That being said, what a really cool video! I do relate to wanting a replica of something in film/tv, Ive always wanted a replica of Gizmo from the first Gremlins movie so it's really cool that you were actually able to get him since I know how difficult it is to find replicas that are both good looking and fairly priced.
I thought that myself at first, but it's something people are very wary of in the puppetry community, so I wanted to address it. But thanks! I had a Gizmo toy when I was younger, he looked great and used to make sounds etc. Probably a bit smaller than the real thing however!
I dont know if you are reading this but heres my story So when i was like 2 years old, my parents took me to the land of jan klaassen. With a playplace and most importantly... a puppet theatre the size as a house (in square meter) it ddnt affect me much until i was 8 years old. I wanted all puppets of jan klaassen, but unfortunatly it couldnt be possible. The creator of the land of jan klaassen has made over a 1.000 puppets. I was so amazed there, but let it go after a time Then a couple years later i found the muppets and especially kermit, i really wanted a puppet and my wish came true. As you may have guessed it was not a replica but a wish one. I still was happy with it and my parents were too. Then again a couple years later on middle school, i searched for a mickey mouse mascot head like they use in the disneyland parks, but they were in other currencies or were sold before i could buy it. Then i wanted kermit... again... but this time. A replica of kermit, but my father said the seller was a fraud. But i dont think he is, he had an entire website showing his face. But to this day, im still thinking about buying the kermit replica of the ''fraud'' guy
I one time bought an Kermit replica puppet it was awesome amazing but the quality was not great it feel apart quickly and seemed like it was made fast I would love another Kermit replica but I think I need to make mine myself if I really want one of good quality
I know about Disney and copyright laws and all but when you started talking about the puppets being overpriced I got a little upset, as a puppet builder myself and being friends with some of the Puppeteers to make a puppet like this is not cheap , materials are not your typical fabrics and to get the muppet colors you need to get it dyed or dye it yourself or buy pre dyed colors, and then there is the Labor, no hate at all, im a huge fan of your channel and just wanted to clear some stuff up. EDIT: I do not believe ecl actually worked for Henson , he may have been doing something else there but I believe in one of his forums he said Kermit was his first build , currently a company called puppet heap builds the muppets and Jim Henson's creature shop builds the sesame street muppets
if you make perody videos with him just change his name to kramit instead of kermit theres nothing they can do then because legally youve changed the performance once you changed a certain percentage of anything it no longer becomes copyright..
The fact that Are u super cereal never mentions Jim Henson in any of his videos pains me.Not to mention he probably does not even know half of the muppet character names.
Kermit's an amazing ventriloquist! We never even saw him move his lips!
Indeed! 😂
fr
Never thought I'd hear someone talk about Kermit's bone structure until now.
That replica amazing! Puppetry is such a cool and underappreciated artistry. I like how Kermit was intently listening to Boi without interrupting the video. Very polite! ☺
Thanks! Yes,Kermit was a great silent co-host 😂
One of my biggest personal regrets is not learning to sew when I was younger, because I'd love to make my own Muppets
It's not a skill I possess either, but I've found Puppet Nerd's videos break it all down and make it seem achievable, if you were ever to make an attempt!
I made my own custom Muppet called baggy the paper bag
@@scotchtapeentertainment7713well im guessing it was made from a paper bag
I made them out of paper
What a fanTASTIC video!
Thank you!
Thumbs up for the western "hey you do not belong here" gag! Subtle but powerful comedy!
I made my own kermit. I discovered the puppet nerd channel a few years back and he inspired me to make my own which is not exactly like the ones used in the movies or shows but I like it.
Aw that's great to hear!
I made my Kermit from scratch
I'm also a Puppeteer and I was really surprised when you mentioned Puppet Nerd, you're both some of my favourite channels and it was pretty fun to know you have watched him too hahaha (I also have his book!).
Aside from that, I didn't really know about all of the legal stuff about Kermit, but it was really interesting, thanks for sharlng as always!
Love to hear that, Adam's a great guy and I've been thoroughly enjoying his book! Glad to be of service!
That's an incredible Kermit, I'm super jealous, but I'm glad he will have such a obviously loving home!
Long overly personal story time about finding "my" Kermit for anyone who cares:
I'm autistic and as a child always related more to puppets & cartoons than people because their expression & moods are much easier to read than humans. My whole family, including my aunt & grandparents were all big Muppet fans, and we bonded over watching repeats of the Muppet Show together, and them watching Sesame Street, Fraggle Rock etc with me. My aunt had a Rolf puppet and in some of the times when I was most vulnerable & least able to express my feelings, from a pre-school age even going up to going through severe depression as a teen, she would make Rolf talk or sing to me instead, & she did a great "Jim" voice and it always cheered me up.
Being autistic, I get obsessed with learning every possible detail about things I like, and I was vehement on learning everything about Jim, Frank, and their careers. I felt strongly that if I learned enough about film and tv production & practiced puppeteering, learning about animatronics, practical effects etc, one day I would somehow meet Jim and work with him.
I'm considerably older than you, I grew up in the 80s and 90s. When I was around 8 years old, my family didn't have much money, but we had a towable 1970s caravan that we'd take to random fields around the UK for a change of scene & to spend quality time as a family. One time, the morning when we were about to go away, I had excitedly watched a long advertising feature on Disney Club about the making of MuppetVision 3D in Disney World. Of course I was super desperate to go, but knew there was no way in hell my parents could afford it.
During that holiday, the news broke that Jim Henson had passed away. I remember it so clearly. I felt like the world was ending, as if a family member had died. Returning home from the holiday, there was Jim's funeral televised, and the Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson special. I've never been able to handle muppets crying or being sad (I still can't get through Muppets Take Manhattan!) so the whole thing was somewhat traumatic, but I felt it was important to watch, tape, and rewatch them out of respect.
When I realised that Muppetvision was the last thing that Jim had ever fully worked on, and the exclusive Disney World film was not only the last footage of Jim performing as Kermit, but also that it was in 3D (so in a way, the closest possible thing I'd ever get to "meeting" Jim's Kermit!) I made a vow to myself that one day when I was an adult I would somehow find a way to save up and go.
I was well into my 30s before I finally made the pilgrimige to Hollywood Studios in Orlando and watched that show. I felt silly, but it made me cry, feeling my inner child's hope finally been met over 2 decades later. Since I was a kid I've had various plushie Kermits and loved them, but never found one that looked like a "real" Kermit, despite them being official. Its quite difficult to get the look right, especially the face shape. But at Muppetvision there was a themed shop that sold exclusively Muppet merchandise, and immediately upon leaving the show and walking into the shop, still quite emotional, I saw a plush, that was the most "Kermit" looking Kermit I'd ever seen. I made "eye contact" with a specific one and I instantly grabbed and bought him.
I'm lucky enough to be a film producer, and have worked on many movies over the years, and because of work I've lived in amazing places in multiple countries. While I never got the chance to work with Jim, incredibly I've managed to meet and work with many of my childhood heroes, including Don Bluth, several Disney animators, many children's tv presenters from when I was little, actors, pop stars and musicians from the 80s/90s. My "gut instinct" of working with these heroes when I was a child turned out to be true - or maybe I've made it so - again, my autistic obsessions. And while I never got a chance to meet Jim, no matter where I've gone, since I've gotten him, my Kermit has followed, around the world, and is always sat on my desk as I'm editing, or in the production office of whatever movie I've worked on. I have many pictures of different celebrities posing with him, he always catches their eye! He even came to Pinewood when I worked on some Star Wars projects. In a way, I feel like Jim, or at least the spirit of inspiration that I got from him, has been with me all throughout.
During Covid lockdowns, myself & a handful of friends made a zero budget Muppet style puppet movie, all working remotely, from multiple countries! For anyone interested, its available on Amazon Prime in the UK and USA, called "Odd Pod: The Movie... kinda". Part of that project was me making a CGI storybook classic Disney-style opening, setting up the story with some exposition. I wrote and animated it myself, and ended the intro with both an inspirational quote from Jim, and a dedication to him before the movie starts, with a sneaky "fair use" picture of him and Kermit briefly on screen as the pages of the book are flicked through. I hope and feel like Jim would approve both of the message of the film, and the creative spirit of a handful of friends, separated by hundreds/thousands of miles and stuck in lockdown in sad, scary and uncertain times, keeping busy by making a home-made movie together, for fun, friendship, and coming to terms with the way the world was changing, and maybe bringing some hope and smiles to people who watched it.
Anyway, sorry for the long rant. I adore your Kermit, & its clear from your other videos that you are a true Muppet fan. I've been watching (and occasionally commenting) since the begining. You're doing awesome mate.
[edit] Also, great shout on Puppet Nerd. What a fantastic channel and lovely guy. I'm planning on building my own puppets with help from his channel / site / book for use in another movie in the future.
If your family as poor how’d they afford a whole caravan?!
@@awesomeocelot7475 You missed the fact I said I grew up in the 80s & 90s, & it was a 1970s caravan. It was very small, very old, falling apart. Infact, it was what was once used as a burger van that toured county fairs lol. Parents bought it for under £100 from someone in the paper that just wanted to get rid of it as it was unused and rusting on their driveway. Parents redecorated and cleaned it up best as they could. I remember us finding these cool 1970s flowerpower style orange curtains at a charity shop and my mum cutting and sewing them to fit the smaller windows of the van.
It was a tiny little touring van (the kind you pull with your car) and we had many happy memories in it, just me and my parents, parking it in random fields (my dad had a rule that we couldn't drive more than 100 miles round trip because of petrol, but that included lots of cool places in England and Wales as I grew up in Gloucester). I often think back to those happy times playing card games together, eating beans on toast, watching the sun set and having them read me bedtime stories. I especially loved it when it rained and it was so loud on the roof but you felt cozy & warm inside. Often, when I can't sleep now as an adult, I put on a youtube video of rain noise and imagine I'm back in that van, as a little kid, with my mum and dad right there with me :)
[edit] I just did some googling and if you search "Vintage Retro 1970s Refurbished Sprite Caravan 2 Berth" the first thing link that should come up, showing a blue & white model, is the exact type.
Wow, what a wonderful story, really appreciate you sharing that! It's certainly encouraging that your passion for Jim's work got you so far in the industry!
Lovely story. Thanks for sharing!
@@SomeBoiOnline Thank you mate. Again, rally like what you're doing with your channel. All the best! :)
Man what I wouldn’t do to get a one of these Kermit. I love the character so much
8:48 Best part of the video. I'm still laughing LOL 🤣😆🤣
I've built 2 myself. It's a magical process to build your own...it's like Kermit is just appearing in front of you, piece by piece.
Love him and use him for good and i think everything will be ok. ❤
he's perfect
Glad you think so!
One of the greatest quests in the world, nice one!
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!
Hi! Love your channel.
When you were showing the images of the different Kermit’s you were looking at, one of my builds came up, which was quite surreal.
I wanted to give a brief explanation to why the prices of some of these Kermit’s are so high. The materials are relatively cheap to buy, such as foam, Frog fuzelle fleece (which is what ECL uses), rubber gasket, etc, but it’s the labor, work, and attention to detail that goes into each puppet that makes them incredibly difficult and time consuming to create. I’ve made two Kermit replicas now, and still feel the process gets quite strenuous. If I priced my Kermit much lower than what I was asking for, it wouldn’t be worth the labor and time. Not everyone is able to build accurate replica Kermit’s. So technically, you’re paying for not only the puppet, but for the skill and time that was put into making it. Each puppet is made by hand. Sewing machines can’t be used with this style of puppet because the seams would be too obvious.
Although I will say some of these black market Kermit’s you speak of are quite insanely priced. I remember seeing one for $1300 and thinking it was just ridiculous.
Anyways, just wanted to give some insight because I’m making two more Kermit puppets then probably stopping and will only build for myself. Thank you for the video! You shed light on a lot of info that isn’t generally well known to the community.
Thanks and yes I can imagine! That's why I paid a decent amount for mine when I could see it had plenty of work put into it.
I honestly love seeing builders make their own Kermits and it's great to see people finally given the chance to purchase them.
What I was more referring to was the likes of one ebay seller who's sold well over a hundred Kermits, which aren't quite as well made but are on the high end price wise.
Unfortunately though, the listings are all removed from that account even when looking at sold items, so there was no footage to use for the video. So apologies if I've labelled your Kermit as a "black market" one by mistake!
@@SomeBoiOnline thank you for making this video, it brought a lot of light onto a subject that isn’t really talked about in the Muppet community. I really enjoyed watching!
No problem, glad you enjoyed!
Glad I'm still subbed to this channel since I got really into the muppet movies back in march
That's brilliant, glad you're still here!
Dude, you are living the dream.
Happy for you. Glad he landed with someone who appreciates him so much.
Great story! I made a similar journey that brought me to learn how to make a Kermit, has taken me 5 years to perfect my craftsmanship and the information that Ecl sheared has helped me so much. Still not 100% Kermit but I am so happy I took this journey! Great video 🐸❤️
Thank you, glad yo hear you enjoyed and congrats on learning the skills yourself!
great video, that kerm is insane
Thank you! 😀
I just finished a Kermit based on Puppet Nerd's Fried Frog pattern with some alterations to the hands so they are more "Kermit-like" definately a fun project and worth the time (took me a lot less time than my first, probably due to being much quicker at stitching and there's no foam in the head).
Worth trying to make one yourself if you get time!
Congrats on the Kermit! Sounds great and Puppet Nerd is as ever a great resource.
I remember when I was a kid I always wanted a Kermit puppet. So my mom got my Kermit plush cut the back of it took the stuffing out of the head and sewed his back and boom I had my very own Kermit and I love him so much.
That's a lovely wee video mate. Thanks for sharing your passion. Very best to you
Thanks very much, glad you enjoyed!
The muppet looks just like the real thing
Thanks, that's what I was aiming for!
Ooh, love the dilophosaurus pfp!
He looks so good! I’m super interested to see how you plan to use him in future projects!
Thank you, me too! 😄
i remember having a kermit pillow case as a kid
Awesome! Now all you need is a Gonzo.
I would love a Gonzo not gonna lie 😅
You should probably make Gonzo and Fozzie
Awesome video & replica puppet! I am glad that you were able to find the perfect one.👍👍👍
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!
@@SomeBoiOnline 👍👍👍
I was nervous that I was going to see one of my own Kermit videos in this lol
You never know 😅
The only part about mine I don’t like is that it doesn’t have a rubber mouth plate, so he can’t be expressive like the real Kermit
I too have a full body replica Kermit, but it’s a replica of the original Sam & Friends-era Kermit. Disney isn’t doing ANYTHING with that design! 🤩🙌
Amazing, never seen such a replica before!
@@SomeBoiOnline Finally got the chance to get around to snapping some photos of them.
My Sam & Friends-era Kermit replica: drive.google.com/file/d/1VPBmikfLEX_50zyqOV9Zftykg1TvVIf0/view?usp=drivesdk
My Harry the Hipster replica: drive.google.com/file/d/1IcShOBBX0KIcJvfPDjL7nW9g8GpR-ynj/view?usp=drivesdk
Pretty cool, right?
And before anyone asks, no, they are NOT for sale. I just thought it would be fun to show them. 🤣🤣🤣
Ah man that's awesome I'm happy you got one you deserve it enjoy it!
I went down the rabbit hole to look into one myself and hoo boy did it lend me down to learning alot behind the craft and had alot of fun
Bit of a side tangent but have you listened to Puppet nerds podcast puppet tears? I feel like you'd get a kick out of it many of the stories muppet and sesame workshop members have working in the field are fascinating!
Thanks, it can certainly be an experience! Yes, I'm a big fan of the podcast and found the episode featuring Steve Whitmire to be especially interesting! I'd love to interview him myself one day in regards to Kermit and the rest of his work.
This is awesome and terrific video there! Keep up the great work and I can't wait to see any more Muppet related content on here.
Plus I was a huge Muppet fan back in the early 90's when I was a kid at that time and the very first Muppet Movie made a huge impact in my life that
I would hopefully become a puppeteer as a career job as well.
Thanks so much, nice to hear so many are inspired by the Muppets!
@@SomeBoiOnline You're very welcome bro! Also yep! 👍
Ok, THAT Kermit the Frog puppet is much more accurate than Are U Duper Cereal's!
Thanks, I should hope so 😂
Great video so glad you are the owner you’ll keep him very safe. Hope you do a doctor who collection video soon!
Thanks, yes I hope so too!
I actually own a really good Robin replica, but the shipping fees were…
Not great and it took ages to get
That's excellent, I love Robin. Suppose I was lucky that this was in the UK, as import fees can often be drastic these days.
I got one of does Kermit puppets on 5:39 on Christmas day.
I'm also on a quest for the perfect Kermit for a cost somewhat less that one of my kidneys. What I've got is close, an old plush from Eden, that I've converted into a proper muppet (cutting out the plastic mouth plates without doing serious damage was a major challenge), and he looks just about right. Only problem is he's just a teensy bit too small. Once my hand is up there, things are great, but the broken stitches are evidence of the wrestling match of getting in and out of the poor frog.
I remember not having an Etsy account and always remember going on the website looking at replica Kermit's and one day I saved up and bought myself a replica😊❤
Funny you got Kermit in 2020. That’s when I got Calypso. My frog.
The world being put on hold for a year had its benefits after all...
I was about to go through this exact same rabbit hole, so I'm so happy that i found an interesting video that completely summed everything up before I wasted hours of researching myself
Glad to hear it helped!
I have built 4 Kermit replicas over the last 6 years.
That's great, I love seeing different versions of him!
Brilliant. 👍great 😮DALEKS on the shelve as well 👍
I cannot imagine that the "guy named Gordon" wasn't me. And I stand by everything in that post!
Make a Kermit for yourself! Don't make 200 Kermits and sell them! ❤
Well hello there! Yes I have seen at least one notable ebay seller exploiting this, which is a shame as it may ruin things for others.
@SomeBoiOnline intellectual copyright nuances are difficult to understand in the best of circumstances. I've looked at them more than the average person and I still dont fully grasp a lot of it. But many fans will willingly refuse to understand them when it conflicts with their personal desires.
So I realized that I don't have the lifetime left to evangelize for IP rights other than my own. I keep my nose clean and leave others to their own devices.
As far as ruining it for others, there's not much likelihood of that since Disney doesn't want to sue all their fans. They just want to sue ONE transgressor to make an example that everybody understands.
So...make yourself a Kermit. Have fun. Learn skills. Enjoy a hobby.
Disney doesn't have time or money or will to come after you.
Just don't post Frog porn videos to the internet. 😉
It's not easy finding Green..................................................
Its funny how calm some boi online is if it was me I would be uncontrollably laughing the intire time
😂😂
I actually own the officially licensed version of that Chinese knockoff Kermit puppet
Simply divine... I love it. I am happy for you that you have fulfilled your childhood dream to have your own Kermit. 😍
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed.
@@SomeBoiOnline Yes, I sure did! I'm an original 1979 Muppet Show fan and I've always loved the Muppets for bringing such joy and laughter to our childhood.
Just like you wanted to replicate Kermit, kids today also want to replicate what they know and see.
And it is up to adults like us, and their parents, to not abuse that and make sure they can be innocent children for the duration of their childhood.
Frankly, entire generations have been failed basic adult supervision and parenting. I see parents who are more childish and amoral than their own children on a daily basis.
All you can do is not add to that, and try to make the world a little bit more beautiful and wholesome, one step at a time.
I was trained by Matt Vogel at a puppetry workshop at sesame workshop.
That's great! Do you still do any puppeteering for Sesame Workshop?
@@SomeBoiOnline Covid kind of screwed that opportunity up for me.
@@SomeBoiOnline Now, I can get back on track, but it was touch and go for a while there.
Does he have anymore left in stock?
Kermit looks so sad in this video I wanna give him a hug 😭
I had the same thing, heres my story: i kept searching and searching for the perfect one, but i was too young then. Later i tried it again because i actually wanted a mickey mouse mascot head but they were in another currency and i kinda was super sad about that. So now i am trying to find a good kermit replica, yours looks amazing! But this story has set me to get a puppeteer
I liked the video, but when I clicked on it, I thought you were going to document your quest to build your own replica lol
Sounds like a fun journey! As somebody who went on a similar journey, but wanting a Robin... I can relate. Although in my case I ended up having to learn how to make them myself, as an accurate Robin replica appears to be an even smaller niche!
It was and that's great to hear. A Robin replica is a great one to have!
He's beautiful
Thanks!
In another twist that eBay seller was me! It’s randomly popped up on my feed 🙏
Ah no way! He has a good home in rhe background of every video now! I'm so grateful that I ended up with him.
That’s really cool, I was looking everywhere for a Kermit pattern, can’t find one haha
Love ur vids
Thank you! 😊
I actually like areusupercereal’s vids
Who used to work at the Jim Henson company?
Imagine going to a dark web and buy a Kemir lol
And my own search continues.... 👍
Best of luck! 🐸
@@SomeBoiOnline my then-gf, now wife made me a Kermit puppet she cobbled together from some older stuffed Kermits. Smaller than a "proper" Kermit, but fun to play with, and, as I was working as a karaoke host at the time, Kermit was always a hit when I brought him out for "Rainbow Connection," "Man or Muppet," (one guy Kermit sang it with insisted on singing Walter's part, to Kermit's eternal bemusement...) or "Bein' Green." Also, "Turtle Power," by Partners in crime (from the 1989 TMNT movie). Loved that puppet.
Then some asshat broke into my car and stole him.
Wifey did have another version half-built which had some real issues with the mouth (we call him "Constantine").
Downloaded the ELC archive and we'll probably just end up trying to make another one from scratch.
My birthday is next week and I suspect she did buy me one of those Chinese knock off puppets from eBay. Which I would appreciate for the thought.
She's not actually a Muppet fan - but I married her anyway. 😉
Edit: Also, I've just realized that my original comment was left under my other (Hitfilm University) account. Heh. Lost track of my login.
Edit: Ah. I uploaded Kermit doing Turtle Power years ago to amuse one particular person. I wasn't in my best voice that night. Somewhere between Steve Whitmire and Matt Vogel.
th-cam.com/video/A-HM_pTKbAQ/w-d-xo.html
Edit, Edit, Edit: I won't pick on Vogel. Jim's portrayal of Kermit drifted over the years and, honestly I think it took almost a decade before Whitmire's Kermit really became Kermit. Vogel is getting better at the voice he's finding his personality and his hand acting is dead-on. It's like how Bugs Bunny's voice keeps changing and ain't none of them Mel Blanc.
Wow, great story unitl some berk stole your Kermit, who breaks into a car for that?
I was impressed with how close your Kermit sounds to Steve Whitmire, definitely his pitch of voice.
Best of luck in possibly receiving another Kermit! It's the sentiment that counts indeed!
@@SomeBoiOnline Wow. No one else is Jim, but I'll take being close to Whitmire as high praise! Thanks!
On the puppeteering. I really need to study how the Muppet performers cheat and where/when they skip syllables cuz my hand/forearm were always sore after Turtle Power. 😂
Oh, when Kermit was stolen someone had gone down the street and broken into EVERY car. I also lost a laptop and microphone set, but that was just money to replace. The Kermit was a gift made with love - and he had a little banjo! He's irreplaceable. Even if we make or buy another Kermit, it won't be the one she made for our second (dating) anniversary.
Hope he was appreciated by whoever got him.
Great Story
Glad you enjoyed!
I mean that’s a pretty good Kermit. I just got mine off of Amazon. It was like $39 I think.
I have a pretty decent Kermit puppet but I feel the eyes are just a little too small. If I fixed the eyes I think it would be the perfect Kermit puppet. any suggestions on how to create the eyes?
If you have a look on ECL's build diaries, I'm sure he mentions what ended up working best for the eyes, so I'd have a look there!
FOZZIE NEXT!
Fozzie would be amazing... Not to mention huge! 😅
I think you're overthinking the whole copyright issue too much. As long as you arent selling DVDs or whatever of your puppetry videos, you should be perfectly fine doing whatever you want. If you want to attempt to lip sync to actual muppets audio, that in itself could be considered transformative enough to be fair use since you're just practicing. The only real problem would be TH-cam's copyright detection, but as long as the scene you try lip syncing to isnt too long and doesnt have music you should be fine. That being said, what a really cool video! I do relate to wanting a replica of something in film/tv, Ive always wanted a replica of Gizmo from the first Gremlins movie so it's really cool that you were actually able to get him since I know how difficult it is to find replicas that are both good looking and fairly priced.
I thought that myself at first, but it's something people are very wary of in the puppetry community, so I wanted to address it. But thanks! I had a Gizmo toy when I was younger, he looked great and used to make sounds etc. Probably a bit smaller than the real thing however!
Thank you for making this video.I love it
Glad you enjoyed it!
I love the film I have Kermit bag plush Fromm craven Dale milk and Walter from the Disney store
Yes I got the Cravendale Milk Kermit too 😅
yeah would love one too :( I got the voice down pretty much. In my opinion better than the new official guy
I haven't had much practice myself, so I imagine yours will be closer!
The only normal Kermit
I dont know if you are reading this but heres my story
So when i was like 2 years old, my parents took me to the land of jan klaassen. With a playplace and most importantly... a puppet theatre the size as a house (in square meter) it ddnt affect me much until i was 8 years old. I wanted all puppets of jan klaassen, but unfortunatly it couldnt be possible. The creator of the land of jan klaassen has made over a 1.000 puppets. I was so amazed there, but let it go after a time
Then a couple years later i found the muppets and especially kermit, i really wanted a puppet and my wish came true. As you may have guessed it was not a replica but a wish one. I still was happy with it and my parents were too.
Then again a couple years later on middle school, i searched for a mickey mouse mascot head like they use in the disneyland parks, but they were in other currencies or were sold before i could buy it. Then i wanted kermit... again... but this time. A replica of kermit, but my father said the seller was a fraud. But i dont think he is, he had an entire website showing his face. But to this day, im still thinking about buying the kermit replica of the ''fraud'' guy
I wish I had the Kermit puppet that you made 😢
I one time bought an Kermit replica puppet it was awesome amazing but the quality was not great it feel apart quickly and seemed like it was made fast I would love another Kermit replica but I think I need to make mine myself if I really want one of good quality
I WANT THAT PUPET
I love your accent 🫶
Cheers 😄
How did Kermit sip that drink in the in the clip?
He was thirsty lol
Is Ecl selling kermit still or selling at all?
I don’t know why, but you look like a 3D character in some playstation game, anyone else notice?
What's your favorite Muppet movie?
The Muppets (2011)
Hello I have subscribed to your TH-cam channel
Thanks very much, I appreciate it!
I know about Disney and copyright laws and all but when you started talking about the puppets being overpriced I got a little upset, as a puppet builder myself and being friends with some of the Puppeteers to make a puppet like this is not cheap , materials are not your typical fabrics and to get the muppet colors you need to get it dyed or dye it yourself or buy pre dyed colors, and then there is the Labor, no hate at all, im a huge fan of your channel and just wanted to clear some stuff up. EDIT: I do not believe ecl actually worked for Henson , he may have been doing something else there but I believe in one of his forums he said Kermit was his first build , currently a company called puppet heap builds the muppets and Jim Henson's creature shop builds the sesame street muppets
Hi ho, I"M the perfect Kermit!
You didn't let him get a word in edgeways smh
Why does he look so sad though?
Depends on how you position the hand, subtle changes affect his expressions.
I really need to know how much you paid for him
I'll say a few hundred, but I was honestly quite lucky to get him for that. Having a look now, some go up into the thousands!
@@SomeBoiOnline I was expecting way, way more. Great job!
@@SomeBoiOnline You were lucky to get him that cheap!
Feel very lucky indeed, I very nearly settled for a lesser quality puppet which would've been more!
@@SomeBoiOnline I heard the real Kermit costs about 10,000 dollars or more.
When I just got on the video I got this... 8:29
How much money
if you make perody videos with him just change his name to kramit instead of kermit theres nothing they can do then because legally youve changed the performance once you changed a certain percentage of anything it no longer becomes copyright..
I wonder why they don’t out right sell Muppet replicas.
This video just explained it for me.
Glad to hear it! 😅
You may have a replica of me but you don't have my voice
The fact that Are u super cereal never mentions Jim Henson in any of his videos pains me.Not to mention he probably does not even know half of the muppet character names.
Hi
Can u pls send me your Kermit I live in 20 Kanooka grove ❤ thanks 😊
dang the internet is making kids dull
You have all my jealousy. I want a real Kermit so bad.
It could happen one day! I never thought it would.
I wish I had the Kermit puppet that you made 😢