There’s never been a creative artist quite like Jim Henson. The Mississippi-born Henson was arguably the world’s most famous puppeteer, but he was much more than that. A cartoonist, actor, inventor, animator, writer and filmmaker, Henson was in a class by himself, whether his work appeared in films or on television. In addition, Henson founded the enormously successful Jim Henson Company, an entertainment mainstay that has lived on to produce family entertainment long after Henson’s untimely death in 1990.
After Henson got his start at age 18 creating puppets for a local station in Washington, D.C., he was approached by the Children’s Television Workshop to help develop a new series for PBS, “Sesame Street.” Soon kids around the world were marveling at the antics of Big Bird and his friends, and the show’s success led Henson to expand his Muppet empire with such further successful series as “Fraggle Rock” and “The Muppet Show,” which earned four Primetime Emmy Awards from 21 nominations.
Though Henson directed two successful non-Muppet feature films (1982’s “The Dark Crystal” and 1986’s “Labyrinth” with David Bowie), it is those lovable cloth-covered creatures that has cemented Henson’s shiny legacy through eight feature films, from “The Muppet Movie” in 1979 to 2014’s “Muppets Most Wanted.” From their films and TV shows, such beloved Muppet characters as Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie, Bert and Ernie, Oscar and Cookie Monster have graced the covers of newspapers and become cultural touchstones all over the world.
But which one is the best? You’ll probably get as many answers as there are Muppet fans out there, but in honor of their creator, tour our photo gallery of the 25 best Muppets as we rank and count them down from worst to best.
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25. COUNT VON COUNT
Image Credit: Courtesy of PBS Count von Count doesn’t vant to drink your blood. On “Sesame Street,” he just vants to teach you how to count. And a good teacher The Caped One is too, because, despite all those bats flying around his head, the lovable Count is determined that we learn our numbers. And we did, too.
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24. CAMILLA THE CHICKEN
Image Credit: Sony Pictures Releasing Although she is Gonzo’s beloved, Camilla makes it clear that she is an independent bird, as she maintains her own nest at her home, “Camilla’s Place.” But when this strong-willed fowl’s clucking turns to song, try and keep your heart from melting.
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23. DR. TEETH
Image Credit: Courtesy of Disney+ As the leader of the “The Muppet Show’s” house band, Electric Mayhem, Dr. Teeth always made a memorable impression, even if we suspect that he was often zonked out on something. Yet he was never at a loss for words, even though the words he often chose made little to no sense.
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22. SNUFFLEUPAGUS
Image Credit: Courtesy of PBS He of the long trunk and the big sad eyes, Snuffleupagus was Big Bird’s best friend who, despite being huge in size, was invisible to the human residents of Sesame Street. Still the bond between the two friends remained both strong (and platonic) and served as a model for kids everywhere.
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21. PEPE THE KING PRAWN
Image Credit: Sony Pictures Releasing Pepe is a king prawn (not a shrimp, as he will firmly tell you) with a bit of an ego. Despite his diminutive size and having four arms, Pepe is convinced that he is destined to be a Hollywood star, and not even the other Muppets, whose names he regularly mangles, will keep him from fulfilling his destiny.
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20. SCOOTER
Image Credit: Courtesy of Disney+ Thanks largely to his family connections, young eager-to-please Scooter is the go-fer at the Muppet Theater, ready to do anything for anyone backstage, even if it means at times helping Miss Piggy get Kermit’s attention romantically. Still, even if his help goes awry, he’s always there for the next show.
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19. BEAKER
Image Credit: Courtesy of ITV Though there are fans of noble scientist Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, my loyalty is firmly to his hapless assistant Beaker, who has served as the trusty victim of all of Dr, Honeydew’s failed experiments. Still after being punched, zapped and blown up countless times, Beaker, like any loyal assistant, still stands proudly by his boss’ side.
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18. JANICE
Image Credit: Courtesy of Disney+ The ever-cool Janice is the epitome of Muppet Chill-ness. On stage, Janice rocks as a key band member of Electric Mayhem, but off-stage, she just goes with the flow. In a male-dominated Muppet world, Janice is one of the few women who has truly made her mark, ya dig?
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17. SWEETUMS
Image Credit: Associated Film Distribution A large hulking presence in both the Muppet films and TV shows, the wooly looking Sweetums may look ferocious when you first encounter him, but once you get to know him, he’s absolutely adorable. All we wants is to be welcomed as part of the gang.
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16. SAM THE EAGLE
Image Credit: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Sam takes his responsibility of being the symbolic symbol of America very seriously. While clearly less than happy at having to work with these Muppet “weirdos,” Sam feels that he must persevere, if only to keep the Muppet shows and movies up to the high moral standards that patriotic viewers deserve.
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15. OSCAR THE GROUCH
Image Credit: Courtesy of PBS Despite his demeanor, Oscar has been one of “Sesame Street’s” most beloved characters for decades. Ensconced in his trash can, Oscar has zero patience for anyone who comes calling (except for his worm buddy Slimey), but the fact that everyone on Sesame Street still loves him teaches a valuable lesson in acceptance for young viewers.
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14. THE SWEDISH CHEF
Image Credit: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures If you hear the first musical sounds of “Børk! Børk! Børk!”, you know that The Swedish Chef is nearby, and chaos will follow. Though regularly he uses common kitchen tools as whisks and cleavers, he’s not above utilizing a nearby tennis racket in a pinch. The Swedish Chef is the only Muppet character who has uncovered human hands.
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13. BIG BIRD
Image Credit: Courtesy of PBS The 8’2″ tall symbol of all things “Sesame Street,” Big Bird, known for radiating the sweet innocence of a small child, became one of the first Muppet superstars. As of-yet undetermined age and species, the lovable avian has occasionally left Sesame Street to star in several Muppet-centric projects, including his own feature film, 1985’s “Follow That Bird.”
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12. STATLER & WALDORF
Image Credit: Sony Pictures Releasing Whenever anything goes wrong on “The Muppet Show” (as it inevitably does), you can count on some major shade coming from those two old cranks in the balcony, Statler and Waldorf. Though they have disdain for all of the acts, especially Fozzie Bear, there’s something I can’t quite figure out — if they think the show is so terrible, why do they come back week after week? I don’t think we’ll ever know, but we’re glad they do.
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11. GROVER
Image Credit: Sony Pictures Releasing We all know a Grover in our lives. You know, the kind of good-natured guy who’s always willing to lend a hand, even if he’s not very good at it. You can’t help but love “Sesame Street’s” Grover, who, in addition to being Kermit’s best buddy, always wants to make things right, even, if annoyingly, he never uses contractions when he speaks.
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10. BERT & ERNIE
Image Credit: Courtesy of PBS On “Sesame Street,” the bond between Ernie, who likes to get into trouble, and Bert, who puts up with him, shows viewers the valuable lesson that two people can be different but still be best friends. And they are not gay, as maintained by “Sesame Street” and alleged by right-wing politicians in their efforts to defund PBS. Side note: Ernie’s recording of his favorite song, “Rubber Duckie,” was a hit, reaching #16 on the Billboard pop chart in 1970.
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9. ANIMAL
Image Credit: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures For such a wild creature as Animal, the crazed drummer for Electric Mayhem, the phrase “out of control” doesn’t begin to suffice. He is a creature of many noises but few words, except for the phrase “BEAT DRUMS!” which he often repeats over and over. Besides the drums, Animal’s main passion is food, which he often confuses with drums whenever he tries to eat them. One of a kind.
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8. RIZZO THE RAT
Image Credit: Sony Pictures Releasing Hailing from the streets of New Jersey, Rizzo is one tough rat with nary a kind word to say about anyone, at least at first. But as Rizzo gets to know the Muppets better, his tough exterior begins to melt when he becomes friends with Gonzo and Pepe, and the three buddies regularly give the Muppet productions a welcome touch of wiseacre snark.
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7. COOKIE MONSTER
Image Credit: Courtesy of PBS True to his name, Cookie Monster has a voracious appetite for that particular snack treat, but if he’s hungry and there’s no cookies around, he’s not above chomping on office equipment or musical instruments. Whatever’s available. In recent years, however, he was refined his monster palate, urging kids to eat their fruits and vegetables. And yes, cookies.
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6. ROWLF THE DOG
Image Credit: Associated Film Distribution Rowlf became the first Muppet to become a household name after becoming the ukelele-playing sidekick on “The Jimmy Dean Show” in 1962, and his presence there may have helped to sell PBS on taking a chance with “Sesame Street” several years later. On “The Muppet Show,” the versatile canine became a key player as the show’s ever-present piano accompanist.
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5. ELMO
Image Credit: Courtesy of PBS Elmo is an adorable three-and-a-half year-old Muppet who first appeared on “Sesame Street” as a supporting character but soon became a fan favorite, particularly among the show’s pre-school viewers that quickly led to his own regular segment, “Elmo’s World.” Elmo loves wasabi, hates Brussels sprouts and refers to himself exclusively in the third person. He even starred in his own feature film, 1999’s “The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland.”
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4. GONZO THE GREAT
Image Credit: Sony Pictures Releasing Gonzo is the great artiste of the Muppet World, at least so he thinks. A performance artist at heart, Gonzo, a creature of undetermined origin, is willing to try anything…I mean anything…to please an audience, from defusing a bomb (not well) to eating a tire to the tune of “Flight of the Bumblebees.” Gonzo is said to like everything, except insurance agents.
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3. FOZZIE BEAR
Image Credit: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures On “The Muppet Show,” Fozzie Bear serves as the second banana to Kermit the Frog and the show’s comedian. Rather than laughs, however, most of Fozzie’s pun-filled jokes induce groans from the audience and barbs from the balcony from Statler and Waldorf. However, Fozzie is never fazed by any failure, with his career always taking second place to the bond with he has with his best friend, Kermit.
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2. MISS PIGGY
Image Credit: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Miss Piggy is the superstar of the Muppet Universe, as she would be the first to tell you, as this seductive swine has elbowed her way past movie star guests on “The Muppet Show” just to claim her moment in the spotlight. This porcine powerhouse packs a punch to anyone who doubts her, anyone except, of course, her beloved “Kermie,” whom she believes simply adores her.
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1. KERMIT THE FROG
Image Credit: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Kermit the Frog is the glue that holds the Muppet Universe together. As a celebrated member of the “Sesame Street” cast and the host of “The Muppet Show,” Kermit has became an icon around the world as a symbol of all that is good. From his face appearing on a U.S. postage stamp to singing his Oscar-nominated “Rainbow Connection” at the 52nd Academy Awards, Kermit has been celebrated for his luminous work, which will live on and be enjoyed by children of all ages for many generations to come.
