![]() Beckman said he hasn’t heard of the other car’s whereabouts. ![]() There were actually two Studebaker Commanders used for filming - one for long shots where puppeteers weren’t needed and this one, to show the Muppets driving on the road (well, with a puppeteer hidden below the dashboard). The Studebaker National Museum in South Bend wants to restore this 1951 Studebaker Commander to the color scheme from its role in the 1979 film "The Muppet Movie," seen here with Muppet Gonzo's jalopy resting on top. And the car was among various props from “The Muppet Movie” that were featured in a 2020 episode of the show “Prop Culture,” also on Disney+. The museum has wanted to restore the car since 2004, but it's a priority now, Beckman said, because there has been renewed interest in the Muppets and the car itself.Ī “Muppets Now” series debuted on the Disney+ channel in 2020. “What, trade in my uncle’s Studebaker?” Fozzie protests, just before they meet a sleazy salesman played by Milton Berle. Fozzie pulls into a used parking lot at Kermit’s urging, who suggests they could swap these cars for a better jalopy. Gonzo’s car ends up upside down on top of Fozzie’s vehicle. Then Fozzie says, “Ah, a bear in his natural habitat, a Studebaker.”Īt another point, the car runs into another old beater car headed straight toward Fozzie and Kermit, driven by the Muppet Gonzo. Kermit and Fozzie sing the song “Movin’ Right Along” inside of the yet-to-be-painted car as we see several shots of it cruising across America. Muppets creator Jim Henson had brought his furry creations to “Sesame Street” in 1969 and to “The Muppet Show" from 1976 to 1981, but this marked their movie debut while introducing effects like a bear driving a car and Muppets walking on their own feet. This Studebaker played a key role in Kermit and Fozzie’s road trip across the United States, on their way to Hollywood to chase dreams of making it big in show business, meeting a menagerie of Muppet characters and human stars along the way. It has seen only some light cleaning, stabilizing and replaced headlights since it moved to South Bend, though it has been on public display at the museum most of the time - one of the most popular exhibits, even in recent weeks. Archivist Andrew Beckman said the car is in “pretty rough shape.” It had been sitting for several years in a studio’s outdoor lot when, in 2004, the museum acquired it as a gift from the Studebaker Drivers Club’s Orange Empire Chapter in California.
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