ConeyLighthouse
Brooklyn Boy
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2015
http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/kermit-frog-puppeteer-fired-disney-article-1.3324605
It's not easy being green — but it's even less easy being fired.
Voice actor and puppeteer Steve Whitmire, who has provided the pipes for Kermit the Frog for the last 27 years, revealed Thursday that he was unceremoniously fired over the phone by Disney.
Whitmire — who has been part of the Muppets universe since 1978 — is set to be replaced by Matt Vogel, and though news broke Wednesday, Whitmire says the move has been set since October.
"As I am sure you can imagine, I have experienced every possible emotion since October 2016, when I received a phone call from the Muppets Studio's executives to say they were recasting," he wrote in a blog post on his website.
Whitmire explained that the executives brought up two previously unknown "issues" during their conversation, though he did not identify what the problems were.
He also claimed that he had attempted to remedy the situation, and offered solutions for the issues at hand multiple times over the past few months to no avail.
Jim Henson, the creator of The Muppets, Sesame Street and Fraggle Rock and he would have been 77 today (Sept. 24), yet Henson's legacy continues to delight children around the world.
"I wish that we could have sat down, looked each other in the eye, and discussed what was on their minds before they took such a drastic action," he wrote. "I have remained silent the last nine months in hopes that the Disney company might reverse their course."
With Whitmire officially ousted, he expressed his devastation at losing the gig that he calls not just a job or career, but "a calling, an urgent, undeniable, impossible to resist way of life."
"I would never consider abandoning Kermit or any of the others because to do so would be to forsake the assignment entrusted to me by Jim Henson, my friend and mentor, but even more, my hero," Whitmire wrote. "I just want you all to know that I am sorry if I have disappointed any of you at any point throughout our journey, and to let everyone know that I am devastated to have failed in my duty to my hero."
The Muppets Studio declined comment on Whitmire's post, but did thank the actor for being an important component of the Muppet family.
"The Muppets Studio thanks Steve for his tremendous contributions to Kermit the Frog and The Muppets franchise," a spokesperson told the Daily News in a statement. "We wish him well in his future endeavors."
Vogel, Whitmire's successor, has previously voiced Big Bird, Robin the Frog and the Count, but appeared as Kermit doppelganger/career criminal Constantine the 2014 movie "Muppets Most Wanted."
It's not easy being green — but it's even less easy being fired.
Voice actor and puppeteer Steve Whitmire, who has provided the pipes for Kermit the Frog for the last 27 years, revealed Thursday that he was unceremoniously fired over the phone by Disney.
Whitmire — who has been part of the Muppets universe since 1978 — is set to be replaced by Matt Vogel, and though news broke Wednesday, Whitmire says the move has been set since October.
"As I am sure you can imagine, I have experienced every possible emotion since October 2016, when I received a phone call from the Muppets Studio's executives to say they were recasting," he wrote in a blog post on his website.
Whitmire explained that the executives brought up two previously unknown "issues" during their conversation, though he did not identify what the problems were.
He also claimed that he had attempted to remedy the situation, and offered solutions for the issues at hand multiple times over the past few months to no avail.
Jim Henson, the creator of The Muppets, Sesame Street and Fraggle Rock and he would have been 77 today (Sept. 24), yet Henson's legacy continues to delight children around the world.
"I wish that we could have sat down, looked each other in the eye, and discussed what was on their minds before they took such a drastic action," he wrote. "I have remained silent the last nine months in hopes that the Disney company might reverse their course."
With Whitmire officially ousted, he expressed his devastation at losing the gig that he calls not just a job or career, but "a calling, an urgent, undeniable, impossible to resist way of life."
"I would never consider abandoning Kermit or any of the others because to do so would be to forsake the assignment entrusted to me by Jim Henson, my friend and mentor, but even more, my hero," Whitmire wrote. "I just want you all to know that I am sorry if I have disappointed any of you at any point throughout our journey, and to let everyone know that I am devastated to have failed in my duty to my hero."
The Muppets Studio declined comment on Whitmire's post, but did thank the actor for being an important component of the Muppet family.
"The Muppets Studio thanks Steve for his tremendous contributions to Kermit the Frog and The Muppets franchise," a spokesperson told the Daily News in a statement. "We wish him well in his future endeavors."
Vogel, Whitmire's successor, has previously voiced Big Bird, Robin the Frog and the Count, but appeared as Kermit doppelganger/career criminal Constantine the 2014 movie "Muppets Most Wanted."
Good thing my DD has outgrown Sesame Street...
The other anchor looked kind of embarrassed to answer the question.
