Ken Plume

NEW EPISODE!

In JUST A FEW THINGS, I welcome a special guest who shares favorite items from their personal collections.

For this ep, I'm joined by writer/performer Emily Fleming of GOOD MYTHICAL MORNING, FREE WITH ADS, MYTHICAL KITCHEN, and more!

youtu.be/EZNbmlrmCw8

Yeah, my generation had a lot of mixed messages (and catchy earworms) about food...

Listen, I know the message was well-intentioned, but it's nearly 50 years later and I'm still unpacking the emotional fallout this ad had on me as a kid...

Beyond letters & numbers, it was always impactful when SESAME STREET would take a beat to impart some emotional lessons, & acknowledge & address that children had big, esoteric thoughts floating about in their heads. Here’s another Jeff Moss song that burrowed deep into my heart.

Every so often, usually at my lowest, this song will pop into my head. What’s so lovely about this sequence, & why it still resonates with me, is that it’s played utterly sincere. There are no gags - Just the emotion of these friends separating, & how painful it is for them to have to do so…

The songs for MUPPETS TAKE MANHATTAN were written by Jeff Moss - who had long worked on SESAME STREET as a songwriter, having penned the iconic “Rubber Duckie” & many more, & had also been the show's head writer for a few years early on. Here’s Moss performing “Saying Goodbye” from MANHATTAN…

It’s been nearly 45 years since I first saw it on an RCA SelectaVision VideioDisc (which I transferred these clips from), and I still can’t get this song out of my head...

Walt Disney’s “Coyote’s Lament”...

We need to put fragrances back into objects, but make them practical things we use as adults - Like a stapler that smells like strawberries, or a cellphone that smells like bananas.

The was hours of fun. HOURS. And much better than the clown head with the water-spraying whips for hair.

Further proof that my generation was largely parented by objects, entertainment, and absence.

I’m sorry, I’ve failed you.

Again.

…

I’ll see myself out.

MISS YA, FRIEND

WE ARE ALL NOTHING BUT BITS IN A CELESTIAL SOUP

Here's Craig Ferguson's DOCTOR WHO cold open from waaaaaaay back in 2011, which feels like several lifetimes (and regenerations) ago...

I’m not sure any talk show host had as much fun doing his own thing in the dead of night on network television as Craig Ferguson…

Have you heard the full version of The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson theme? Because it’s perfect for cranking as loud as possible in the middle of a sleepless night…

NEW EPISODE!

In JUST A FEW THINGS, I welcome a special guest who shares favorite items from their personal collections.

For this ep, I'm joined by writer/performer Emily Fleming of GOOD MYTHICAL MORNING, FREE WITH ADS, MYTHICAL KITCHEN, and more!

youtu.be/EZNbmlrmCw8

A Michael Nesmith performance I hadn’t seen before, from a David Frost appearance in October 1971…

This captures the vibe of how I feel trying to get through most days...

Simple sincerity from a chorus of Muppet voices joining a guest committed to that sincerity, for a simple song with a straightforward message. The alchemy of The Muppets, when it works, is magical in its skillful simplicity.

Speaking of great production design, TALES OF THE TINKERDEE also had a rather unique, and fun, end credit sequence that very much brings to mind later doorway sequences from GET SMART and MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000...

The opening of Jim Henson’s unsold TALES OF THE TINKERDEE pilot from 1962. Kermit is still very much in his formative stages, but nearly there, and King Goshposh & Taminella Grinderfall would later return in the TALES FROM MUPPETLAND specials. I love the production design...

And then the reveal of Jim, Jerry, & Frank, allowing the audience to see how the magic is made. I always note how forthcoming Jim is, again & again, about giving credit to his collaborators, so the public knows it wasn’t just him behind The Muppets.

Once the number fully kicks into gear, you can feel Jim, Jerry, & Frank really start to bounce off each other & groove. Remember - Not only are they performing the puppets, but they’re also singing live while being wholly in the moment...

The Country Trio were a trio of puppets designed to look like their performers - Jim Henson, Jerry Nelson, & Frank Oz. The exuberance of this performance from THE DICK CAVETT SHOW is infectious...

It’s the seamless & un-self-conscious transition between the material & the meta which really defined Jim Henson’s approach to the characters & craft of The Muppets. Post-Jim, both The Jim Henson Company & then Disney have hidden the performer & the magic of performance. A shame.

This is the very first appearance of Dr. Teeth, on March 18, 1975, promoting the upcoming MUPPET SHOW: SEX & VIOLENCE special. It’s remarkable to see how comfortable Jim Henson was both performing & improvising this brand new character, & just how fully-formed he already was...

Sometimes, it feels like my childhood was either a fever dream or an elaborate practical joke.

The only way to get social media on your phone in 1978.

Watching these two shows back-to-back is one of my core childhood memories...