The holidays are over, but that doesn't mean it's time to stop celebrating. After all, the traditional 12 days of Christmas is supposed to start on Christmas Day and continue the celebration until Jan. 6. Therefore, it's totally acceptable to continue watching Christmas movies until then, or even longer if you like, and there's no better Christmas movie to watch than The Muppet Christmas Carol. And while you undoubtedly have seen the movie a number of times, there are still probably some things you never noticed in Muppet Christmas Carol.
The film was originally released in 1992, meaning it celebrated its 25th anniversary this year. That's obviously a lot of time for people to have spent poring over every detail and memorizing them, especially for those of you who've watched it every year for the past 25 years, but there still may be some minor details that slipped under your radar. Maybe it's the voice of a character that's slightly altered, or an iconic scene that's missing and lost to time, or an apparent continuity error. Or maybe it's one of the many subtle references snuck into the background of the film. Whatever it may be, take a look below at these 14 details in The Muppet Christmas Carol that you might not recall seeing before.
1
There's Probably A Major Scene Missing
The scene featuring the song "When Love Is Gone" didn't appear in the theatrical release, but was included on several older home video releases. It's recently become harder to find, though, and the version of the film currently available to stream does not feature this critical scene.
2
Scrooge's Scarf Grows
When Beaker first gifts Scrooge his red scarf, it's, well, Muppet-sized. In the next scene, however, it has magically grown to a full-sized scarf fit for a human.
3
Fred's Wife Clara Is Absent From The End
While Fred gets a seat at Bob Cratchit's table at the end of the film, his wife Clara is nowhere to be seen. Poor Clara.
4
But The Creepy Spider Is There
The scary looking arachnid leader of London's criminal underworld, Old Joe, is at Bob Cratchit's house for dinner... for some reason. Strange that he would get an invitation but Clara would not. Poor Clara.
5
There's A Pub Called "Statler & Waldorf's"
The red pub seen in the background of several scenes, especially near the end when Scrooge and the townsfolk are running around town singing, is named after the wisecracking Muppets who appear in the film as the Marleys.
6
There's Also A Store Named After Michael Caine
Scrooge and his crew also pass by a store called Micklewhite's, which is Michael Caine's real surname.
7
The Electric Mayhem Go Acoustic
The band playing at Fozziwig's Christmas party is none other than Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, but with this being the 19th century and all, they are without their signature electric instruments.
8
Sprocket From 'Fraggle Rock' Cameos
The Fraggle Rock pooch can be seen as a background character in a few of the film's scenes.
9
As Does The Snowman From 'A Muppet Family Christmas'
The Muppet Snowman made his debut in 1987's A Muppet Family Christmas (which you should watch) and didn't appear again until his brief cameo here.
10
The Marleys Make A Meta Fozzie Reference
Statler and Waldorf routinely heckled Fozzie the Bear during his comedy routines on The Muppet Show, and they reference this fact in their roles as the Marleys when they tell Scrooge to "leave comedy to the bears."
11
Many Of Gonzo's Lines Are From The Book
Gonzo plays Charles Dickens in the movie, and as such, many of his lines are taken directly from the original story penned by Dickens, including the odd line: "Tiny Tim, who did NOT die."
12
Kermit Sounds A Little Different
The film was released in 1992, and was the first Muppet movie following the death of founder — and original Kermit — Jim Henson, who died in 1990. Therefore, it was the first time Henson didn't voice Kermit in a Muppet film, and the task went instead to Steve Whitmire.
13
There Are Both Real & Muppet Sheep In One Scene
At the conclusion of Scrooge's introduction song, both real sheep and Muppet sheep can be seen among the crowd as it disperses, which raises loads of questions about just what kind of world this is.
14
Two Muppets Swear (Maybe)
This is debatable, but it can be argued that the film contains two examples of Muppets cursing. One occurs when Gonzo attempts to run into Scrooge's house and runs into the door, at which point he yells out something that sounds an awful lot like "damn it!" The second and more controversial occurrence is when Scrooge kicks Bunsen and Beaker out of his office and Beaker appears to flip him off. It might be his index finger, but many out there believe the meek Muppet did indeed flip the bird.
There may be another 357 sleeps till Christmas, but that doesn't mean it's too early to watch this classic again in order to see all of the bits you missed the last time you saw it.
