David Charles Goelz (; born July 16, 1946) is an American

puppeteer A puppeteer is a person who manipulates an inanimate object, called a puppet, to create the illusion that the puppet is alive. The puppet is often shaped like a human, animal, or legendary creature. The puppeteer may be visible to or hidden fr ...

and puppet builder known for his work with

the Muppets The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an absurdist, burlesque, and self-referential style of variety- sketch comedy. Created by Jim Henson in 1955, they are the focus of a media franchise that encompas ...

. As part of the Muppets' performing cast, Goelz performs Gonzo the Great, as well as

Dr. Bunsen Honeydew Dr. Bunsen Honeydew is a Muppet character from ''The Muppet Show'', performed by Dave Goelz. He is a bald, yellow-skinned, bespectacled, lab-coated scientist who presented periodic science segments from "Muppet Labs, where the future is being mad ...

, Waldorf (after

Jim Henson James Maury Henson (September 24, 1936 – May 16, 1990) was an American puppeteer, animator, cartoonist, actor, inventor, and filmmaker who achieved worldwide notice as the creator of The Muppets and '' Fraggle Rock'' (1983–1987) and ...

's death), Zoot and Beauregard, originating on ''

The Muppet Show ''The Muppet Show'' is a sketch comedy television series created by Jim Henson and featuring the Muppets. The series originated as two pilot episodes produced by Henson for ABC in 1974 and 1975. While neither episode was moved forward as ...

''. Goelz's puppeteering roles also included in ''

Fraggle Rock ''Fraggle Rock'' (also known as ''Jim Henson's Fraggle Rock'' or ''Fraggle Rock with Jim Henson's Muppets'') is a children's musical fantasy comedy puppet television series about interconnected societies of Muppet creatures, created by Jim Hen ...

'', ''

The Dark Crystal ''The Dark Crystal'' is a 1982 dark fantasy film directed by Jim Henson and Frank Oz. It stars the voices of Stephen Garlick, Lisa Maxwell, Billie Whitelaw, Percy Edwards, and Barry Dennen. The film was produced by ITC Entertainment and The ...

'', and ''

Labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth (, ) was an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by ...

''. Outside of puppeteering work, he was also the voice of Figment in the Journey into Imagination with Figment attraction at

Epcot Epcot, stylized in all uppercase as EPCOT, is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. It is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks, Experiences and Products division. Inspired by an unre ...

Early life

Born in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

, Goelz had an interest in puppetry as a child, including an affinity for the children's television show ''

Time for Beany ''Time For Beany'' is an American children's television series, with puppets for characters, which was broadcast locally in Los Angeles starting on February 28, 1949 and nationally (by kinescope) by the improvised Paramount Television Network fro ...

'', but after high school, he attended the Los Angeles

Art Center College of Design Art Center College of Design (stylized as ArtCenter College of Design) is a private art college in Pasadena, California. History ArtCenter College of Design was founded in 1930 in downtown Los Angeles as the Art Center School. In 1935, Fred ...

and began work as an

industrial design Industrial design is a process of design applied to physical products that are to be manufactured by mass production. It is the creative act of determining and defining a product's form and features, which takes place in advance of the manufactu ...

er. The mechanically-minded Goelz worked for such companies as

John Deere Deere & Company, doing business as John Deere (), is an American corporation that manufactures agricultural machinery, heavy equipment, forestry machinery, diesel engines, drivetrains (axles, transmissions, gearboxes) used in heavy equipment, ...

American Airlines American Airlines is a major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the largest airline in the world when measured by fleet size, scheduled passengers carried, and revenue passeng ...

, and

Hewlett-Packard The Hewlett-Packard Company, commonly shortened to Hewlett-Packard ( ) or HP, was an American multinational information technology company headquartered in Palo Alto, California. HP developed and provided a wide variety of hardware components ...

. However, when ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000 ...

'' premiered, he was fascinated by the craftsmanship, as he recalled in an interview: While working full-time for an electronics firm, Goelz began dabbling with puppet building.

Career

Muppet building

He met

Frank Oz Frank Oz (born Frank Richard Oznowicz; May 25, 1944) is an American actor, puppeteer, and filmmaker. He began his career as a puppeteer, performing the Muppet characters of Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, and Sam Eagle in ''The Muppet Show ...

at a puppetry festival in 1972, and during a vacation in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, he attended daily ''Sesame Street'' tapings. A few months later, Goelz showed his design portfolio to

, and in 1973, he was offered a job with

Henson Associates The Jim Henson Company (formerly known as Muppets, Inc., Henson Associates, Inc., and Jim Henson Productions, Inc.; commonly referred to as Henson) is an American entertainment company located in Los Angeles, California. The company is known for ...

as a part-time puppet builder. His first assignment was to build puppets and design effects for a proposed Broadway show. However, the show was soon abandoned in favor of an ABC pilot, ''

The Muppets Valentine Show ''The Muppets Valentine Show'' aired on ABC on January 30, 1974. It was one of two pilots produced during the planning stages for ''The Muppet Show''. The other pilot was '' The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence'', which aired in 1975. In this half-h ...

'', for which Goelz built characters and got his first chance at performing, playing Brewster, whom he also designed. Upon Goelz's return to California, he learned that he had been replaced by his electronics employer, so he set up shop creating puppets and videos for industrial videos. Eight months later, in the fall of 1974, Henson offered him a full-time position as a builder/designer, and occasional performer in specials, while still allowing him to keep his industrial clients. Returning to New York, Goelz began work on '' The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence'', for which he built the new host character, Nigel. Working from sketches by Jim Henson,

Michael K. Frith Michael Kingsbury Frith (born 8 July 1941) is a British artist and television producer. He is the former Executive Vice-President and Creative Director of The Jim Henson Company. His contributions to Muppet projects have been extensive and vari ...

, and Bonnie Erickson, he also built

Animal Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals consume organic material, breathe oxygen, are able to move, can reproduce sexually, and go through an ontogenetic stage ...

, Floyd Pepper, and Zoot, the latter becoming his first major character.

''The Muppet Show'' and the birth of Gonzo

In 1976, Goelz joined the rest of the Henson team and flew to

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

to begin work on ''The Muppet Show''. In addition to reprising his role of Zoot and playing background roles, as in the earlier specials, Goelz was promoted to "Principal Muppet Performer" with the starring role of The Great Gonzo. The puppet had debuted in ''

The Great Santa Claus Switch ''The Great Santa Claus Switch'' is a musical Christmas special featuring Jim Henson's Muppets. It first aired on CBS on December 20, 1970, as an episode of ''The Ed Sullivan Show''. It was directed by John Moffitt, written by Jerry Juhl, with ...

'', as Cigar Box Frackle, and had made brief appearances in '' Muppet Meeting Films'' and ''

Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass Herb Alpert (born March 31, 1935) is an American trumpeter who led the band Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass in the 1960s. During the same decade, he co-founded A&M Records with Jerry Moss. Alpert has recorded 28 albums that have landed on the ...

'', with different performers. The sad-eyed creation was now given a permanent name and puppeteer. However, in addition to playing Gonzo, Goelz was still employed in the Muppet Workshop. Goelz recalled the hectic schedule of working full-time behind the scenes and in front of the cameras in a 2004

Film Threat ''Film Threat'' is an online film review publication, and earlier, a national magazine that focused primarily on independent film, although it also reviewed videos and DVDs of mainstream films, as well as Hollywood movies in theaters. It first ...

interview: Gonzo, that first season, like many of the new ''Muppet Show'' creations, was a work in progress, and especially for Goelz, playing his first starring character and major speaking role. When he was assigned the character, he panicked: "I have no voice!" He thought of the voice the morning before the first taping performance. As recalled later, Goelz thought that he had the worst voice out of all the Muppet performers, and was scared the first time he had to sing. The early Gonzo, with a permanently sad expression, inspired a similarly depressed portrayal from the novice puppeteer: "The downcast eyes made him easy to play because that was exactly how I felt. I was an impostor in show business. I was learning how to perform and to puppeteer on the job." In that first season, Gonzo was a misfit and out of place, according to Goelz, which was how he saw himself as a performer: Looking at the character in retrospect at MuppetFest, he recalled that "over the years, he sort of evolved along with me... I was an impostor in show business. In the first season, Gonzo is always self-effacing and embarrassed. But he knows he has something special." Adding to Goelz's insecurity was the jaded veteran crew members of ATV Studios, who had worked with the likes of

Julie Andrews Dame Julie Andrews (born Julia Elizabeth Wells; 1 October 1935) is an English actress, singer, and author. She has garnered numerous accolades throughout her career spanning over seven decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy F ...

and

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

, and were thus hard to impress. Finally, towards the end of the first season, Gonzo had a scene where he had to shout, in amazement, "No!" Jim Henson told him to go bigger, so Goelz obliged with an overemphatic "NO!" This earned his first laugh from the crewmembers. As Goelz increased in confidence, and Gonzo transitioned from a nervous depressed failure to a manic, confident stuntman, other facets of the character fell into place. The second season introduces his romantic fascination with

poultry Poultry () are domesticated birds kept by humans for their eggs, their meat or their feathers. These birds are most typically members of the superorder Galloanserae (fowl), especially the order Galliformes (which includes chickens, qu ...

. As the performer reminisced in '' Of Muppets and Men'':

Other Muppets

In addition to the starring role of Gonzo, during the first season of ''The Muppet Show'', Goelz also had the slightly less challenging but still time-consuming supporting roles of Zoot and another new creation, scientist

. In later seasons, a new Goelz character was added, the well-meaning but slow-witted janitor, Beauregard:

''Fraggle Rock''

With the debut of ''

'', Goelz was cast as one of the five leads, the depressed, pessimistic Boober Fraggle. Boober stemmed from something Goelz had said while working on the first season of ''The Muppet Show'', that he was so busy on the show that the only things he had time to worry about were death and laundry. At Muppetfest, Goelz related the process of character creation for the show: "They looked at the performers, and picked out our flaws, and made characters out of them. They denied it... So that's how I ended up with Boober, the superstitious, paranoid character." In the '' Fraggle Rock: Complete First Season'' interviews, Goelz also mentioned that "I was cast with Boober, who was sort of grumpy and inflexible, just like I could be a lot of the time." Demonstrating his versatility, he also played the pompous Uncle Traveling Matt, the rat-like

Philo Philo of Alexandria (; grc, Φίλων, Phílōn; he, יְדִידְיָה, Yəḏīḏyāh (Jedediah); ), also called Philo Judaeus, was a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria, in the Roman province of Egypt. Philo's de ...

, and the cantankerous World's Oldest Fraggle, as well as a variety of guest characters and memorable incidentals, such as Wrench, Cotterpin Doozer's best friend, the obese Large Marvin and Sidebottom, Boober's more jovial alter-ego from his dreams. In the '' Fraggle Rock: Complete Second Season'' interviews, Goelz talked about how he developed Traveling Matt's character, from the starting point as Matt being simply a misinterpreting chronicler of human life, to determining that Matt was also inherently clumsy and inept, which led to Matt covering up his blunders in his postcards and developing a comedic air of ostentation. Goelz reprised his roles as the voices of Boober and Travelling Matt in the 2020 Apple TV+ spin-off series ''Fraggle Rock: Rock On!''; the two characters were puppeteered by

John Tartaglia John Nicholas Tartaglia (; born February 16, 1978) is an American actor, singer, and puppeteer. Early life Tartaglia was born in Maple Shade Township, New Jersey, and graduated from Upper Dublin High School in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, in 19 ...

, who also puppeteered Wembley (to Frankie Cordero's vocals) and performs Gobo (a role he inherited from

Jerry Nelson Jerry L. Nelson (July 10, 1934 – August 23, 2012) was an American puppeteer, best known for his work with The Muppets. Renowned for his wide range of characters and singing abilities, he performed Muppet characters on ''Sesame Street'', ' ...

Films and beyond

Goelz continued to reprise his roles as Gonzo and Bunsen in feature films, slowly adding more aspects to "the weirdo," and also worked on Henson's forays into "realistic" fantasy, ''

'' (performing the Garthim Master SkekUng and the dog-like Fizzgig), and ''

'' (playing a variety of roles, notably Sir Didymus). As the 1980s progressed, in addition to switching between the manic Gonzo and the phlegmatic Boober (a variety which Goelz recalled as "stimulating"), Goelz played occasional new roles in specials, notably Rugby Tiger in ''

The Christmas Toy ''The Christmas Toy'' is a 1986 television film directed by Eric Till and produced by The Jim Henson Company, featuring Jim Henson's Muppets, including Rugby the Tiger who remembers how he was the Christmas Toy last year, and thinks he is going t ...

'': Another new character was Digit in ''

The Jim Henson Hour ''The Jim Henson Hour'' is a television series that aired on NBC in 1989. It was developed as a showcase for The Jim Henson Company's various puppet creations, including the Muppet characters. Nine of the twelve episodes produced aired on NBC bef ...

''. Goelz also provided the puppetry for Kermit the Frog for ''

Muppets Most Wanted ''Muppets Most Wanted'' is a 2014 American musical crime comedy film and the eighth theatrical film featuring the Muppets. Directed by James Bobin and written by Bobin and Nicholas Stoller, the film is a sequel to ''The Muppets'' (2011) and sta ...

'' test footage.

Other roles

Following Jim Henson's sudden death in 1990, and with

continuing to focus heavily on directing, Gonzo the character and Goelz the performer gained increased significance, starting with the first new feature, '' The Muppet Christmas Carol''. By performing Gonzo as

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...

as narrator, Goelz (accompanied by

Steve Whitmire Steven Lawrence Whitmire (born September 24, 1959) is an American puppeteer, known primarily for his work on ''The Muppets'' and ''Sesame Street''. Beginning his involvement with the Muppets in 1978, Whitmire inherited the roles of Ernie and Kerm ...

Rizzo the Rat Rizzo the Rat is a Muppet character, created and originally performed by Steve Whitmire. He is a fictional rat who appeared on '' The Muppet Show'' and numerous films, with a starring role in the 1992 film '' The Muppet Christmas Carol''. The ch ...

, a pairing which would be repeated in subsequent productions) largely dominated the Muppet side of the film, and received top billing as "Muppet Performer" (a distinction which would continue through ''

Muppet Treasure Island ''Muppet Treasure Island'' is a 1996 American musical swashbuckler comedy film directed by Brian Henson. It is the fifth theatrical film in ''The Muppets'' franchise. Adapted from the 1883 novel ''Treasure Island'' by Robert Louis Stevenson, ...

'' and ''

Muppets from Space ''Muppets from Space'' is a 1999 American science-fiction comedy film directed by Tim Hill (in his feature film directorial debut) and written by Jerry Juhl, Joseph Mazzarino, and Ken Kaufman. The sixth theatrical film in ''The Muppets'' fran ...

'') "...when we did ''The Muppet Christmas Carol'', he onzodeveloped a soulful side. He played the part of Dickens, and I just loved doing that. It just paralleled my own growth. Jerry Juhl wrote it as a way of getting Dickensian prose into the movie. But the fact that he chose Gonzo was very satisfying to me. And I think it was because he saw me changing and I think he felt that Gonzo could change too" (Film Threat). Goelz also took over the part of Waldorf from Henson. ''Muppets From Space'' was both Gonzo the character and Goelz the performer's first leading role in a Muppet production. Apart from a brief stint operating the face of Earl Sinclair and performing hand-puppet guest characters on ''

Dinosaurs Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is the ...

'', and reprising Rugby in ''

The Secret Life of Toys ''Secret Life of Toys'' is a 1994 children's TV series based on the 1986 Christmas TV special ''The Christmas Toy''. Each of the fourteen 30-minute episodes consists of two 15-minute stories. The show was taped in Monheim, Germany (near the Dutc ...

'', Goelz' most notable new television character was Stinky the Skunk in ''

Jim Henson's Animal Show ''Jim Henson's Animal Show'' is an American children's television series from the Jim Henson Company that aired from October 3, 1994, to June 28, 1998. The show premiered as part of '' The Fox Cubhouse'' for its first two seasons. The show later ...

''. Otherwise, the puppeteer remained mostly occupied with Gonzo in movies, videos, and the 1996 series ''

Muppets Tonight ''Muppets Tonight'' is an American live-action/puppet family-oriented television series created by Jim Henson Productions and featuring The Muppets. Much like the "MuppeTelevision" segment of ''The Jim Henson Hour'' (1989), the show was a contin ...

'', the latter introducing a few new characters such as Randy Pig and Bill the Bubble Guy. Goelz also performed a handful of minor ''

'' characters and appeared in ''

The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland ''The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland'' is a 1999 American musical adventure comedy film directed by Gary Halvorson in his feature film debut. This was the second film to be based on the children's television series ''Sesame Street'', after '' ...

'' as Humongous Chicken. His most recent credits include ''

The Muppets' Wizard of Oz ''The Muppets' Wizard of Oz'' is a 2005 musical fantasy television film directed by Kirk R. Thatcher. It is the second film to be made for television in ''The Muppets'' franchise. The film stars Ashanti, Jeffrey Tambor, Quentin Tarantino, Davi ...

'' and the first few installments of the online series '' Statler and Waldorf: From the Balcony''. In 2011 and 2014, he reprised his performance as Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Zoot, Waldorf, Beauregard and other signature roles in ''

The Muppets The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an absurdist, burlesque, and self-referential style of variety- sketch comedy. Created by Jim Henson in 1955, they are the focus of a media franchise that encompas ...

'' and ''

''. In 2015, Goelz voiced Subconscious Guard Frank in the

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

Pixar Pixar Animation Studios (commonly known as Pixar () and stylized as P I X A R) is an American computer animation studio known for its critically and commercially successful computer animated feature films. It is based in Emeryville, Californ ...

film ''

Inside Out Inside Out may refer to: *Backwards (disambiguation) or inverse Books * '' Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd'', by Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason * ''Inside Out'', Christian book by Larry Crabb * ''Inside Out'', novel by Barry Eisler ...

''. He also voiced Baffi the Fizzgig in the 2019

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...

original series '' The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance''.

Personal life

Over the years, Goelz has suffered a number of injuries due to the way Muppet performers must hold up their arms for extended periods and contort into small spaces. These include four shoulder surgeries and a hip replacement. At 46, he married his wife Debra, who was formerly a Jim Henson Productions VP of Finance, and subsequently had two children. They live on a forested 20-acre space in Northern California.

Filmography

*'' The Parent Trap'':

Extra Extra or Xtra may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film * ''The Extra'' (1962 film), a Mexican film * ''The Extra'' (2005 film), an Australian film Literature * ''Extra'' (newspaper), a Brazilian newspaper * ''Extra!'', an American me ...

*''

'': Gonzo the Great, Zoot,

, Beauregard, Alfredo the Mop Dancer,

Ali Baba "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves" ( ar, علي بابا والأربعون لصا) is a folk tale from the '' One Thousand and One Nights''. It was added to the collection in the 18th century by its French translator Antoine Galland, who heard ...

, Alien, Avocado, Banananose Moldenado, Baskerville the Hound (episode 524), Behemoth (episode 115), Billy the Bear (episode 412), Brewster, Brown Bat, Bullets Barker, Dr. Salamander, Geri and the Atrics (Drummer), The Gingerbread Men, The Gogolala Jubilee Jugband (Blue Whatnot), Gorgon Heap (episode 119), Inspector LaBrea, Johnny, Kermit the Pig, Klaus Mueller, Koozebanian Spooble, Lenny the Lizard (episode 103), Sundance, Lubbock Lou, Luis Greco, Luncheon Counter Monster (occasionally), Mackerel, Matador, Mean Mama (episode 202),

Mildred Huxtetter The Muppets are an ensemble group of comedic puppet characters originally created by Jim Henson. The Muppets have appeared in multiple television series, films, and other media appearances since the 1950s. The majority of the characters listed ...

(episode 115), Miss Kitty (episodes 101, 103 and 107), Mr. Dawson, Muppy, Otto the Automatic Entertainer, Paul Revere (legs), Rabbi, Righton Bird, Salzburg Sauerkraut Singer, Signor Baffi, Timmy Monster (occasionally), Tom, Dick, and Harry (Dick), Walter Tell, Warthog, Wig Trainer, Additional Muppets *''

'': China Shop Clerk, Elephant, Humongous Chicken, Mr. Between, Piño, Rocky, Tom Piper's son, the Lavender Royal Sycophant *'' The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence'': Avarice, Brewster, Zoot, Righton Bird, The San Francisco Earthquake *''

The Muppet Movie ''The Muppet Movie'' is a 1979 American musical road comedy film directed by James Frawley, produced by Jim Henson, and the first theatrical film featuring the Muppets. A co-production between the United Kingdom and the United States, the fil ...

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Zoot, Doglion, Beauregard, Wendell Porcupine, Pop-eyed Catfish *''

The Great Muppet Caper ''The Great Muppet Caper'' is a 1981 British-American musical heist comedy film directed by Jim Henson (in his feature directorial debut). It is the second theatrical film in ''The Muppets'' franchise. In addition to the Muppet performers, the ...

:'' Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Zoot, Beauregard, Lubbock Lou *''

The Muppets Take Manhattan ''The Muppets Take Manhattan'' is a 1984 American musical comedy drama film directed by Frank Oz. It is the third theatrical film in ''The Muppets'' franchise. In addition to the Muppet performance, the film features special appearances by Ar ...

'': Gonzo, Zoot, Bill, Chester Rat, Beauregard, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Penguin, Dog *''Inner Tube'': Jake (unaired television pilot) *''

'': Gonzo, Digit, Oznog, Tigid, Stunt Cat, Additional Muppets *'' The Muppet Christmas Carol'': Gonzo (as

), Waldorf (as Robert Marley), Betina Cratchit, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew *''

'': Gonzo, Waldorf (as Figurehead of the Hispaniola), Dr. Bunsen Honeydew (as Dr. Livesay), Zoot, Mudwell the Mudbunny *''

A Muppet Family Christmas ''A Muppet Family Christmas'' is a Christmas television special starring Jim Henson's Muppets. It first aired on December 16, 1987, on the ABC television network in the United States. Shot in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, its teleplay was conceived ...

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Zoot, Beauregard, Boober Fraggle, Uncle Traveling Matt *''

'': Gonzo, Waldorf, Randy Pig, Beauregard, Artie, Baby Kramer, Bill the Bubble Guy, Bud, Cupid, Dr. Pain, Elvises, Gary Cahuenga, Jean-Dodd van Clamme, Morty, Purple Extreme (puppetry and speaking voice), Purple Rain Man, Stu, Additional Muppets *'' Rudy Coby: The Coolest Magician on Earth:'' Gonzo ''(as Gonzo the Great)'' *''

'': Boober Fraggle, Clerk Fraggle, Large Marvin Fraggle, Philo, Uncle Traveling Matt, 7-Words-Max, Sidebottom, Skenfrith, World's Oldest Fraggle, Wrench Doozer *''

'': Rugby Tiger *''

'': Fizzgig, SkekUng (both puppetry only) *''

'': Firey 3, Left Door Knocker, One of The Four Guards, Sir Didymus, Wiseman's Hat (all puppetry only) *''

Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas ''Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas'' is a 1977 television special directed by Jim Henson, based on the 1971 children's book of the same name by Russell Hoban. The special features an ensemble cast of Henson's Muppet characters as well as chara ...

'': Wendell Porcupine, Will Possum, Pop-eyed Catfish *'' The Animal Show'': Stinky the Skunk *''

'': Earl Sinclair (face, through Episode 207), Grapdelite (Episode 205), General Chow (puppeteer, Episode 207) *''

Bear in the Big Blue House ''Bear in the Big Blue House'' is an American children's television series created by Mitchell Kriegman and produced by Jim Henson Television for Disney Channel's Playhouse Disney preschool television block. Debuting on October 20, 1997, it aire ...

'': Jack the Dog (Episode 325: A Berry Bear Christmas part 1 and Episode 326: A Berry Bear Christmas part 2) *''Muppet Sing Alongs: It's Not Easy Being Green'': Gonzo, Wendell Porcupine *'' Muppet Meeting Films'': Big Mean Carl, Franklin ("The Meeting That Would Not Die"), Mulligan *''

'': Rugby Tiger *''Wow, You're a Cartoonist!'': Gonzo *''

The Muppets at Walt Disney World ''The Muppets at Walt Disney World'' is a television special starring Jim Henson's Muppets at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. The special aired on NBC as part of ''The Magical World of Disney'' on May 6, 1990, and turned out to ...

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Beauregard, Zoot *''

Muppet*Vision 3D ''Muppet*Vision 3D'' is a 3D film attraction located at Disney's Hollywood Studios. The attraction also formerly operated at Disney California Adventure. Directed by Jim Henson, the attraction consists of a pre-show which then leads into Kermit ...

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Zoot, Beauregard *''

Muppet Classic Theater ''Muppet Classic Theater'' (also known as ''Muppet Family Theater'' in the Republic of Ireland and ''Muppet Fairy Tales'' in the United Kingdom) is a direct-to-video musical comedy film featuring The Muppets. It is the first direct-to-video featur ...

'': Gonzo, Randy Pig, Waldorf, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Zoot *''

Muppets From Space ''Muppets from Space'' is a 1999 American science-fiction comedy film directed by Tim Hill (in his feature film directorial debut) and written by Jerry Juhl, Joseph Mazzarino, and Ken Kaufman. The sixth theatrical film in ''The Muppets'' fran ...

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Zoot, Waldorf, The Swedish Chef, Birdman *''

'': Humongous Chicken *''

Muppet RaceMania ''Muppet RaceMania'' is a PlayStation racing game that was developed by Traveller's Tales and released in 2000. The game includes the choice of 25 muppet characters driving 25 vehicles. They race on 34 tracks based on locations in ''Muppet'' film ...

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Waldorf, Beauregard, Zoot *''

Kermit's Swamp Years ''Kermit's Swamp Years'' is a 2002 American direct-to-video comedy film directed by David Gumpel. It is the second direct-to-video feature film in ''The Muppets'' franchise. The film follows a young Kermit the Frog and his best friends, Goggles ...

'': Waldorf *''

It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie ''It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie'' is a 2002 American musical fantasy comedy television film directed by Kirk R. Thatcher and written by Tom Martin and Jim Lewis. The film premiered November 29, 2002 on NBC and the first film to be ...

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Waldorf *''

Muppets Party Cruise ''Muppets Party Cruise'' is a party video game released in 2003 by Mass Media Inc. for the PlayStation 2 and GameCube consoles. The currency is party favors when unlocking additional party games from the menu, but during gameplay players use cruis ...

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Waldorf, Zoot, Digit, Randy Pig *'' Statler and Waldorf: From the Balcony'': Waldorf (ep. 1–8) *''Kermit: A Frog's Life'': Gonzo, Waldorf, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, (also archive footage as Statler and Waldorf) *''

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Waldorf, Zoot, Audience Member at Aunt Em's Diner (on-screen cameo) *''The Muppet Show: Season One'' (main menus): Waldorf *''The Muppets on Muppets'': Gonzo *''Disney Xtreme Digital'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Waldorf, Penguins, Singing Food, Beauregard *''Virmup'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Beauregard, Pumpkins, Rabbits *'' Studio DC: Almost Live'': Gonzo, Zoot, Waldorf, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Pancake the Water Buffalo *'' A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa'': Gonzo, Waldorf, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Zoot *''

The Muppets Kitchen with Cat Cora ''The Muppets Kitchen with Cat Cora'' is a cooking and comedy web series that starred chef Cat Cora and The Muppets, released in 2010. In September 2010, Cat Cora, alongside The Muppets characters Fozzie Bear, and Angelo appeared on the American ...

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Beauregard, Randy Pig *''

WWE Raw ''WWE Raw'', also known as ''Monday Night Raw'' or simply ''Raw'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that currently airs live every Monday at 8 p.m. ET on the USA Network in the United States. The show f ...

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Waldorf *''

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Zoot, Waldorf, Beauregard, Kermit Moopet *''

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Zoot, Waldorf, Beauregard, Baby, Penguin *''

'': Subconscious Guard Frank (voice) *''

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Waldorf, Zoot, Chip, Randy Pig *'' The Muppets Present...Great Moments in American History'': Gonzo (voice, theme park show at

Magic Kingdom Magic Kingdom Park, previously known as Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom (1971–1994) and The Magic Kingdom (1994–2017), is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, near Orlando, Florida. Owned and operated by The ...

) *''

Take the Bowl'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Zoot, Waldorf, Chip, Beauregard (Live show at the

Hollywood Bowl The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in America by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018. The Hollywood Bowl is known for its distin ...

, Sept. 8–10, 2017) *''

Take the O2'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Zoot, Waldorf, Chip, Beauregard (Live show at the O2, Jul. 13–14, 2018) *''

Ask the StoryBots Ask is the active verb for a direct question. Ask may also refer to: Places * Ask, Akershus, a village in Gjerdrum municipality, Viken county, Norway * Ask, Buskerud, a village in Ringerike municipality, Viken county, Norway * Ask, Vestland, a ...

'': Mr. Caterpillar *'' The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance'': Baffi *''Prop Culture'': Himself, Episode: "The Muppet Movie" *''

Muppets Now ''Muppets Now'' is an American television series produced by The Muppets Studio for the streaming service Disney+. Directed by Kirk Thatcher, the series is an improvisational comedy based on ''The Muppets'' franchise by Jim Henson. It premiere ...

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Waldorf, Chip, Beauregard, Zoot *''

Muppets Haunted Mansion ''Muppets Haunted Mansion'' is a 2021 American puppet supernatural comedy Halloween special based on the Disney properties The Muppets and The Haunted Mansion. It was released on October 8, 2021, via Disney+. It is the Muppets' first Halloween s ...

'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Waldorf, Beauregard, Randy Pig, Chip, Zoot *''The Muppets Christmas Caroling Coach'': Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Waldorf (voices, theme park show at

Disneyland Disneyland is a theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney initially envisio ...

during Disney Merriest Nights in 2021) *'' Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock'': Boober Fraggle, Uncle Traveling Matt, The World's Oldest Fraggle (voices only) *''Storybots: Answer Time'': Doink

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Goelz, Dave 1946 births Living people American male voice actors American puppeteers Art Center College of Design alumni Fraggle Rock performers Muppet performers Primetime Emmy Award winners Sesame Street Muppeteers