Your Thoughts: Letters to Santa Writers' Interview

[Phillip Chapman]

On December 17, Muppet fans will receive one of their best Christmas gifts in years. The Muppets return to prime time on NBC with the new special, “A Muppets Christmas – Letters to Santa”. The television special was written by three newcomers to the Muppet scene Andrew Samson, Hugh Fink and Scott Ganz along with Muppet veteran Paul Williams.

Disney has hired the trio to write for the Muppets so it's likely we'll be seeing more projects from Andrew, Hugh and Scott in the future. They have been collaborating together for years. We had a chance to chat with these gentlemen to find out their thoughts on “Letters to Santa” and what it's like to write for the Muppets.

Read the interview and let us know your thoughts...

http://www.muppetcentral.com/article...to_santa.shtml

[frogboy4]

Woah! This group appears to know what they're doing. This sort of trio-logic reminds me of the Kermit-Fozzie-Gonzo dynamic. Early reviews indicate this is going to be good. I hope it is and also that the characters have found a stable voice. A voice that isn't too kiddie or snarky, but one that walks that sharp-witted line like only the Muppets can.

Most other projects since Jim have been hollow or had "something missing" for longtime fans. The bits I've seen here make this speciall appear "full" by way of characters and heart. They really seem to have the Muppets down. And maybe rushing through this is the best way to do it. That's how it was done in the Muppet Show days.

Also, thank frog for the absence of dated humor. I am very glad that's been addressed. No crock-hunter or J-Lo jokes. The Muppets are better than that. The only question is - what's up with Segel's screenplay?

[Erine81981]

Yes they do Jamie. They are in it for the fun of it not to make money off these beloved characters. This i think is going to be a wonderful special with the Muppets. Like i read on what's their facebook page. Chirstmas time is a good time for the Muppets.

[theprawncracker]

...I'm stunned. Those three reeally seem to know what their doing. This special is going to BLOW me away--and they're ALREADY working on more projects! YES! MAN I hope they get their way and get more scenes on the DVD... how AWESOME is it that they want a DVD?

[Ilikemuppets]

Oh wow! This was a truly amazing interview into the insight of the writers and this special and what's going on with Muppet studios! Love their take on how they went about writing this. And it's amazing that the characters are so layered and have so much depth to them that they pretty much write themselves. It’s almost as if the characters are writing for them.

[TheJimHensonHour]

Wow that was so nice, the bit at the end made me tear up just a little bit.

[MWoO]

I like what Andrew said about the celeb cameo's. It is really funny seeing celebrities serve muppets. Thats whats great about them, the muppets are treated as being bigger than the celebs in their movies.

[Dobie]

I've already got Tivo set to record this, and if Santa gets my letter I should have a DVD burner to preserve it, but does anyone know if this will be available to buy before Christmas? I'm thinking they'll probably wait until next year for the release, but maybe if we all believe hard enough, they'll offer it for sale right after it airs!

[TML]

Personally, I am a huge fan of the Very Merry Muppet... movie. It seemed the most "Muppety" thing to have been done in years. I just re-watched it the other night and I love it. I don't know if this new hour long special can top it. The preview bit with the Muppets in the mail room seems kinda Zack and Cody to me. A little childish and over done, but not in a good way. The VMMC movie has them in the old backstage and uses Scooter well and puns every Christmas classic. And all the celebrities play characters too.

[redBoobergurl]

Just finally read this article and it's got me even more excited about the special, as if that was possible! I'm just sad I have to watch it after the fact due to a caroling event with my choir. But I will watch it and I know it's going to be just outstanding! This article just confirmed that for me. These writers are amazing and I commend them for their work!

[uppitymuppity]

This show is already getting bad reviews:

http://www.freep.com/article/20081216/ENT03/812160365

[frogboy4]

Originally Posted by uppitymuppity

This show is already getting bad reviews:

http://www.freep.com/article/20081216/ENT03/812160365

This is one bad review, not "reviews" as stated. EW gave it an A-. Not that I trust reviews anyway. As the guy said "the Muppets deserve better", but by way of a quality critic that knows his stuff. Every piece of entertainment is bound to have a few contrarians bent on being disagreeable for the sake of it. I still don’t get what this guy wanted in a 45 minute Muppet special. The clips I’ve seen already have more than enough to keep this fan happy.

I have never heard of this reviewer and they don't appear to know much about Muppet movies or specials. They liked the music, but not the numbers? The 5 minute sneak peek musical number tells otherwise. Also, star cameos should be brief. They're best that way and Jim's movies reflected that.

This guy also believes Kermit and the gang flying in first class is as Muppety as hanging on for dear life? Have they even seen Muppet Caper? This seems to be just another Joe-Viewer that doesn't know a Gonzo from a Grover.

[Vic Romano]

I've been really excited since we first heard the news about this because of the positive direction the Muppets have been heading lately, and this interview just reinforced that excitement. These guys seem to understand what makes the Muppets great and the fact that they also seem to regard the characters with such respect and love should really help make the magic happen.

What I'm most thrilled about was the writers willingness and enthusiasm for input from the veteran performers. They're not just paying us lip service; they really seem to want to make a classic Muppet special.

And I know he's probably very busy, but was there ever a conversation, one way or the other, to involve Jason Segel in any way on this to get his feet wet for the upcoming movie?

[theprawncracker]

Originally Posted by frogboy4

This is one bad review, not "reviews" as stated. EW gave it an A-. Not that I trust reviews anyway. As the guy said "the Muppets deserve better", but by way of a quality critic that knows his stuff. Every piece of entertainment is bound to have a few contrarians bent on being disagreeable for the sake of it. I still don’t get what this guy wanted in a 45 minute Muppet special. The clips I’ve seen already have more than enough to keep this fan happy.

I have never heard of this reviewer and they don't appear to know much about Muppet movies or specials. They liked the music, but not the numbers? The 5 minute sneak peek musical number tells otherwise. Also, star cameos should be brief. They're best that way and Jim's movies reflected that.

This guy also believes Kermit and the gang flying in first class is as Muppety as hanging on for dear life? Have they even seen Muppet Caper? This seems to be just another Joe-Viewer that doesn't know a Gonzo from a Grover.

Agreed on all parts, Jamie. How they could possibly go the whole review without mentioning the HUGE cast of Muppets is beyond me... At this point, there's no way I can possibly be disappointed by LtS.

[uppitymuppity]

I guess we'll all know tomorrow!

I laughed really hard at the outtakes when Piggy said she was doing it for the money and then she fake laughed. That was the hilarious!

http://blog.wired.com/geekdad/2008/1...ws-of-let.html