Statler and Waldorf

Statler and Waldorf are a fictional pair of Muppet characters.

Role

They are two ornery, disagreeable old men who first appeared in the television series The Muppet Show heckling the rest of the cast (save the guest stars) from their balcony seats. They appeared in every episode of the show. In The Muppet Show, the two were always insulting Fozzie Bear's poor jokes, except for one occasion where Fozzie, with help from Bruce Forsyth, heckled them back. It is later revealed in the Muppet Family Christmas special that the two hecklers were friends with Fozzie's mother, Emily Bear. Despite constantly complaining about the show and how terrible some acts were, they would always be back the following week in the best seats in the house.

Statler and Waldorf are named after the New York City hotels, the Statler Hotel and the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.

Astoria

Waldorf's wife, Astoria, appeared in Episode 413 of The Muppet Show, with guest star Dizzy Gillespie. Astoria was played by the Statler puppet in women's clothing, but there is no mention in the episode that Astoria and Statler are related. When Statler was sick (of the show), Waldorf took Astoria to the theatre instead.

Performers

In the pilot episode of The Muppet Show, Statler and Waldorf were performed by Jerry Nelson and Jim Henson; subsequently they were performed by Richard Hunt and Jim Henson. Beginning with The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992), they were performed by Jerry Nelson and Dave Goelz. When Jerry Nelson left the Muppets to work for Sesame Street, muppeteer Steve Whitmire (also a puppeteer for Sesame Street) took over adding yet another new role to his credits; his first two were that of Kermit the Frog (Jim Henson) and Beaker (Richard Hunt).

Later appearances

In the film Labyrinth, two living door knockers are featured which have more than a passing facial resemblance to Statler and Waldorf.

In the 1996 series Muppets Tonight, based around a television show rather than a theatre, Statler and Waldorf were shown watching the show at a nursing home, but still making disparaging comments.

Statler and Waldorf also appeared (as adults) in the Saturday morning animated television series Jim Henson's Muppet Babies. Both characters were voiced by Dave Coulier. Unlike all other adults who visit the nursery in that series, Statler and Waldorf's faces are shown.

Both made an appearance in "Marvel Team-Up #74". In this issue, Spider-Man teams up with the cast of Saturday Night Live to battle the Silver Samurai. Statler and Waldorf appear in typical style as hecklers on a balcony.

They also made an appearance on the animated television show Family Guy. In the episode "Petergeist", they watch Lost with Peter and Lois from a balcony. After Peter comments on the great episode they just watched, Statler says "Well, at least the show's got the right name." Waldorf wraps up by saying "Yeah, I couldn't follow any of it!" and the two burst into laughter. Peter then remarks that "they don't care for most things."

A joke was made about the duo's nature in The Muppet Christmas Carol, where they played Jacob and Robert Marley. When Ebenezer Scrooge accuses them of always criticizing him, they reply "We were always heckling you." "It's good to be heckling again." "It's good to be doing anything again!"

A second joke about the duo's constant complaints was made on The Daily Show in the days before the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Jon Stewart played a clip of Prime Minister Tony Blair being "harumphed" in the Parliament of the United Kingdom by the opposition as Blair was trying to justify his government's support of the war. Stewart then remarked that the British tradition of harumphing was started in the 17th century by the Duke of Statler and the Earl of Waldorf. During an interview with Kermit the Frog, when the duo is mentioned, Jon Stewart points out that they are far too old to be in movies anymore, and is shocked that they aren't in a comatose state.

In one episode of The Muppet Show they started heckling the opening number before it even started. Kermit decided to cancel it when Waldorf (sarcastically) guessed what it was: a Chinese gorilla dancing ballet. They were then allowed to perform an opening number of their own. After performing it, they were suddenly sitting on their usual balcony as if they'd teleported back during the applause. Waldorf then asked "Why can't they do numbers like that?" When Kermit remarked that they just did, the duo started to criticize it.

The duo was parodied in a MADtv "Sesame Street" sketch involving Big Bird being infected with bird flu. They appear at the end of the sketch, when Statler says "We'll be getting letters on that one," to which Waldorf remarks "As if anyone who watches this show can write."

In the Teen Titans episode "Bunny Raven or How To Make A Titanimal Disappear", the thieving magician Mumbo creates two replicas of himself in his 'pocket dimension' which fulfill the same roles as Statler and Waldorf: satirically commenting the show.

Currently, the duo are featured characters in Disney's Jim Henson's Muppet*Vision 3D in Disney's Hollywood Studios and Disney's California Adventure Park.

They make a cameo appearance in Pixar's short film "Presto" at 2:38 (the exact middle of the film) they can be seen in their theatre box 2nd level right next to the stage. Statler seems to be talking to Waldorf.

From the Balcony

See: Statler and Waldorf: From the Balcony

References