Little Muppet Monsters

Did You Know?

• The three young Muppet monsters are Tug, Molly, and Boo.
• Nicky Napoleon and his Emperor Penguins serve as the music act.
• The basement show began after Scooter sent the monsters to the basement following a water polo incident in the living room.

Production

Three new live-action Muppet monster kids set up a basement TV station in the adult Muppets' house, broadcasting only to the upstairs televisions. Storyboard director Scott Shaw later called the concept neither simple nor well-developed. Their lineup included animated segments like "Pigs in Space: The Animated Series," "Kermit the Frog, Private Eye," "Muppet Sport Shorts" with Animal, "Gonzo's Freaky Facts and Oddball Achievements," and "Fozzie's Comedy Corner." Thirteen episodes were produced, but most were unfinished when the show was canceled. Only three episodes ever aired. According to performer Kathryn Mullen and Henson Company archives, Marvel Productions couldn't deliver the full season's animated segments on time. CBS filled the second half-hour with reruns of "Muppet Babies" while waiting for Marvel to finish. Those reruns got high ratings, so the network chose not to pick up the remaining "Little Muppet Monsters" episodes. The three completed episodes never aired again after their original broadcasts, and no official re-release has been planned. However, the show's theme song survived: an instrumental version became the closing theme for "Muppet Babies," lasting until that series ended in 1991. In that final "Muppet Babies" episode, titled "Eight Flags Over the Nursery," clips from the animated "Pigs in Space" and "Kermit the Frog, Private Eye" segments—originally from the second "Little Muppet Monsters" episode called "Space Cowboys"—were shown again.