Elliott: Hi, I'm Elliott and this is Mental Floss on YouTube and we're here at YouTube space L.A. Did you know that Kermit the Frog has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. And that is the first of many facts about the Muppets that I'm going to share with you today with the help of some very special guests, Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy.

Miss Piggy: (Laughs)

Kermit: Hi there Elliott. Hello everyone.

MP: Hello Elliott. And to all of moi's millions of fans out there watching, I love you all and am thrilled to be visiting with you personally via YouTube. OK, let's get a move on, I'm late for Pilates.

(Intro)

E: So let's start with a little Muppet history. The first newspaper ever to print the word "Muppet" was the Washington Post in 1955.

K: You know, that's right. A few of the Muppets, including myself, made our first ever appearances on this show called Sam and Friends and it was on WRC-TV in Washington, D.C. And I guess that was sort of between about, oh, 1955 and 1961.

E: In 1962 Rowlf starred in some Purina Dog Chow commercials. The next year he was cast as the sidekick on The Jimmy Dean Show making him the very first Muppet with a starring role on national TV.

K: True.

MP: A few years later in 1975 a group of Muppets called The Land of Gorch were part of the first season cast of Saturday Night Live.

K: Yeah.

MP: They were gone after a year but now moi and the other Muppets are frequent guest stars on the show. But they still haven't asked me to host!

E: I'm so sorry about that. And then in 1976 they got their own show The Muppet Show. Fun fact, the show was known for its awesome guest stars but none of them ever appeared more than once.

K: That's true. And a few years later in 1979 I guest-hosted The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson.

E: And in 1994 you guest-hosted Larry King Live where you interviewed Hulk Hogan. Was Hulk really nice, Kermit?

K: Oh sure. Hulk Hogan is very nice and I'll have you know I've almost fully recovered from his atomic leg drop.

MP: You know, Kermit's not the only one who's done fabulous guest appearances though Elliott.

E: Oh OK.

K: True.

MP: Moi was a judge on Project Runway: All Stars in 2012.

E: That is awesome Miss Piggy.

K: Yeah, yeah.

MP: Sure was.

E: Moving on. The Swedish Chef has a name but we just can't understand it. I know I definitely can't pronounce it. Hey, Statler and Waldorf, can you take a quick hiatus and just let us know the next fact?

Statler: Sure. We were both named after hotels in New York City, although the Statler Hotel is now called the Hotel Pennsylvania.

Waldorf: But the Waldorf Hotel is still the Waldorf. And my wife's name is Astoria.

S: You know, when we're with the Muppets she doesn't come around much.

W: Can you blame her?

S: No!

(Both laugh)

E: Thank you gentlemen. Actually, Kermit's famous song The Rainbow Connection was first featured in The Muppet Movie in 1979 but it has since been covered by tons of musicians including The Carpenters, Willie Nelson and even Justin Timberlake. The song was nominated for an Oscar though it lost to It Goes Like It Goes from the film Norma Rae.

MP: Ugh, you were robbed.

K: Oh, well thanks Piggy. You know, in 2006 I wrote a self-help book entitled Before You Leap: A Frog's-Eye View of Life's Greatest Lessons. Have you read that by chance?

E: Oh. It's, like, my favorite book, Kermit. How do you think I became the man I am today? Yeah.

K: No. Really? Oh well thank you. Thank you.

MP: Wait a second. I wrote a self-help book too. Yeah, Miss Piggy's Guide to Life. Have you read my book Elliott?

E: Um. You know, it's in my Amazon cart but I actually heard it's out of print.

MP: Oh, no worries. I've got a warehouse full in Secaucus. I'll get you a copy.

E: Thank you.

MP: Yeah. Yeah, sure.

E: Anyway, Kermit and Miss Piggy aren't the only Muppets who have contributed to culture. Fozzie Bear's catchphrase "Wocka Wocka" has come to mean any bad joke that, you know, maybe doesn't do as well as you might hope.

K: Yeah.

MP: Yeah. Like all of his jokes.

K: Yeah. Well, good old Fozzie, you know, he never gives up. Anyway, you know the first movie in which we all got to play characters other than ourselves was The Muppet Christmas Carol and that was in 1992. I played the role of Bob Cratchit.

MP: Yes, and I played Emily Cratchit, your loving wife.

K: Yes, I, I remember. Yes. Yeah.

(Miss Piggy kisses Kermit)

E: Even Animal actually made an appearance in that movie as the drummer at a party. By the way, Animal has pretty big biceps. They're actually four and a half inches both while flexing and while resting.

K: That's true, I think. Is that true Animal?

Animal: Bicep! Bicep! Bicep! Ahahaha!

K: Great. Great.

E: Great. That was really good. Very impressive.

K: Yeah. Yeah.

E: I didn't get a chance to measure but those are some good, good biceps.

K: Yeah. Yeah.

E: And in order to film the final scene of the 2011 movie The Muppets the crew had to shut down Hollywood Boulevard for two days.

K: True.

MP: As you know, Elliott, in that movie I was an editor at Vogue Paris, yes, which meant I got to wear custom Marc Jacobs. Yeah. And the next year when I went to the Oscars, I wore a Zac Posen dress, Christian Louboutin shoes and a 55-carat diamond necklace from Fred Leighton.

K: Wow.

MP: Isn't being a celebrity fun! (Laughs) Why am I asking you?

E: Yeah, I don't know. And finally, in the 1980s the Swedish Chef had a cereal brand known as Cröonchy Stars. I'm pretty sure I actually still have a box. It keeps forever.

K: Wow. Wow.

MP: Yuck!

E: Thank you for watching Mental Floss on YouTube which was made with the help of the Muppets and all of these nice people and don't forget to be awesome. Thanks guys.

K: Awesome.

MP: I'm always awesome.

E: You're awesome? I think you're awesome. I think you're fantastic.

MP: I don't forget to be awesome.

K: We should probably get some lunch.

E: You're awesome too Kermit. Yeah, are you gonna go? Alright.

K: Thank you. Thank you. Yeah. Lunch?

E: You wanna go? Great. Let's skip. Coffee? Yeah.

K: We'll bring you something back.

E: Great, yeah.

MP: What? Where are you going?

K: Lunch.

MP: Wait a minute. Lunch!