Richard Hunt (puppeteer)
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Richard Hunt | |
---|---|
Born | [1] | August 17, 1951
Died | January 7, 1992 Manhattan, New York City, U.S. | (aged 40)
Cause of death | AIDS |
Occupation | Puppeteer[2] |
Years active | 1969–1992 |
Richard Hunt (August 17, 1951[1] – January 7, 1992) was an American puppeteer, best known as a Muppet performer. Hunt's Muppet roles included Scooter, Statler, Janice, Beaker and Sweetums.
Early life
Hunt was born in The Bronx, New York City on August 17, 1951, the second of five children. The family eventually moved to Closter, New Jersey some years later.
Because everyone in his family had worked in show business at some point, Hunt always felt he would end up in entertainment as well. While in middle school and high school, he put on puppet shows for local children, and he was a fan of the then-fledgling Muppets from a young age. After high school graduation and a four-month stint of doing weather reports at a local radio station, Hunt pursued a meeting with Jim Henson.[3]
Career
After being hired to work on Sesame Street, Hunt mostly performed background characters in early specials. One of his first major performances was as Taminella Grinderfall in The Frog Prince, puppeteering the character while Jerry Juhl performed the voice.[4]
He also did Scooter and shared Miss Piggy with Frank Oz until the final quarter of the first season of The Muppet Show. Hunt performed many characters on Sesame Street, including Forgetful Jones, Placido Flamingo, Don Music, Gladys the Cow, Sully, and an early version of Elmo. On Fraggle Rock, Hunt's main role was the performing the facial expressions and voice of Junior Gorg, but he also performed Gunge (one of the Trash Heap's barkers), and several one-shot or minor characters.
He has also directed several home videos such as Sing-Along, Dance-Along, Do-Along and Elmo's Sing-Along Guessing Game, as well as an episode of Fraggle Rock.
Hunt was good friends with fellow puppeteer Jerry Nelson. A lot of their characters were paired together such as Nelson's Floyd Pepper with Hunt's Janice; the Two-Headed Monster; and Nelson's Pa Gorg to Hunt's Junior Gorg on Fraggle Rock. Also on that show, Hunt's characters were often paired with those performed by Steve Whitmire.
Personal life
Hunt was openly gay.[5] When Rudolf Nureyev, who was also openly gay, made a guest appearance on The Muppet Show, Nureyev rather bluntly flirted with Hunt.[6] Hunt was close friends with Star Wars actor Mark Hamill.
Death
On January 7, 1992, Hunt died of AIDS related complications, in the Cabrini Hospice, Manhattan, at the age of 40.[7] Episode 3136 of Sesame Street, as well as The Muppet Christmas Carol were dedicated to his memory.
Following his death, his roles were taken over by David Rudman, Steve Whitmire, Matt Vogel, and Jerry Nelson.
Filmography
Film | |||
---|---|---|---|
Year | Film | Role | Notes |
1979 | The Muppet Movie | Scooter, Beaker, Sweetums, various | Puppeteer/voice |
1981 | The Great Muppet Caper | Beaker, Scooter, Sweetums, various | Puppeeter/voice |
1983 | Trading Places | Wilson | |
1984 | The Muppets Take Manhattan | Beaker, Scooter, various | Puppeteer/voice |
1984 | Oxford Blues | Larry | |
1985 | Sesame Street Presents Follow That Bird | Gladys the Cow, Turkey | Puppeteer/voice |
1987 | A Muppet Family Christmas | Scooter, Beaker, Sweetums, Placido Flamingo, Don Music, Gladys the Cow, various | Puppeteer/voice |
1990 | The Muppets at Walt Disney World | Beaker, Scooter, various | Puppeteer/voice |
1990 | The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson | Scooter, Janice | Puppeteer/voice |
1991 | Muppet*Vision 3D | Beaker, Scooter, Sweetums, various | Puppeteer/voice; Theme park attraction |
Television | |||
---|---|---|---|
Years | Title | Role | Notes |
1969–1992 | Sesame Street | Placido Flamingo, Don Music, Gladys the Cow, Forgetful Jones, various | |
1976–1981 | The Muppet Show | Statler, Beaker, Scooter, Sweetums, Janice, various | |
1983–1987 | Fraggle Rock | Gunge, Junior Gorg, Beige Fraggle, Firechief Fraggle, Flex Doozer, Gillis Fraggle, Lambo, Herkimer Fraggle, Mean Genie, Mudwell the Mudbunny, The Odd Old Man, various | |
1990 | The Cosby Show | Statler and Disagreeable Sandwich |
References
- ^ a b Interview, Jessica Max Stein, August 17, 2011
- ^ "Richard Hunt; Puppeteer for 'Sesame Street,' 'Muppet Show'". Los Angeles Times. January 11, 1992. Retrieved 2010-12-19.
- ^ Finch, Christopher (1993), Jim Henson: The Works, Random House, ISBN 0-679-41203-4
- ^ Ask Henson, question 60, archived from the original on 3 October 2000
- ^ Stein, Jessica Max (2011). "The Rainbow Connection: Richard Hunt, Gay Muppeteer". Retrieved 20 July 2012.
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suggested) (help) - ^ Kaiser, Charles (1997), The Gay Metropolis: The Landmark History of Gay Life in America, Grove Press, ISBN 978-0-395-65781-2
- ^ "Richard Hunt; Puppeteer, 40". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 April 2013.
External links
- 1951 births
- 1992 deaths
- 20th-century American male actors
- AIDS-related deaths in New York
- American film directors
- American television directors
- American male voice actors
- American puppeteers
- Fraggle Rock performers
- Gay actors
- LGBT entertainers from the United States
- LGBT people from New York
- Muppet performers
- People from Closter, New Jersey
- People from the Bronx
- Sesame Street Muppeteers
- Primetime Emmy Award winners