Between 1936 and 1955, Elizabeth L. Haines' puppet play, "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court," went through many revisions, dependent on whether she and her husband, Frank D. Haines, were performing before adult audiences or school groups in the Philadelphia area.
The adult version focused on a love triangle between Bob, a wealthy antique gun and armour collector, and two women, Sandy and Fay, set in a New York City hotel lobby. Fay accidentally shoots Bob with one of his antique guns after demanding him to get rid of his antique armour collection before their marriage. He falls in a concussion-induced dream state into deep sleep and finds himself transported back to the 6th-century world of Camelot.
In both the adult and children's version, Bob faces being burned at the stake for being seen as a foreigner but ultimately manages to outwit his rival, Merlin the Magician, escaping back to the 20th century. In the adult version, Bob ends up proposing to old friend, Sandy, and following her to Europe, likely a reference to a recently produced 1927 Broadway musical written by Richard Rodgers and Lorentz Hart.
The puppet play called for an elaborate set of 20 stage props, many collapsible for portability, a backdrop, and 9 marionettes. It bore little resemblance to the original 1889 novel published by humorist, Mark Twain, - a satire of 19th century romance of medieval heraldry and class divisions, causes he believed led to the Civil War.
Twain's time travel story - which spawned the work of many 20th century science fiction writers and movie producers - focused on the adventures of a wealthy Connecticut gun manufacturer, Hank Morgan, who falls into a dream state after suffering a concussion when beaten by a disgruntled laborer. On becoming a the trusted advisor to King Arthur after spurning Merlin's magical tricks, Hank introduces late 19th century technology and social structure in order to solve problems he witnesses in medieval England, including slavery, lack of sanitation, overbearance of the Catholic church, and popular superstition.
Between 1936 and 1955, Elizabeth L. Haines' puppet play, "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court," went through many revisions, dependent on whether she and her husband, Frank D. Haines, were performing before adult audiences or school groups in the Philadelphia area.
The adult version focused on a love triangle between Bob, a wealthy antique gun and armour collector, and two women, Sandy and Fay, set in a New York City hotel lobby. Fay accidentally shoots Bob with one of his antique guns after demanding him to get rid of his antique armour collection before their marriage. He falls in a concussion-induced dream state into deep sleep and finds himself transported back to the 6th-century world of Camelot.
In both the adult and children's version, Bob faces being burned at the stake for being seen as a foreigner but ultimately manages to outwit his rival, Merlin the Magician, escaping back to the 20th century. In the adult version, Bob ends up proposing to old friend, Sandy, and following her to Europe, likely a reference to a recently produced 1927 Broadway musical written by Richard Rodgers and Lorentz Hart.
The puppet play called for an elaborate set of 20 stage props, many collapsible for portability, a backdrop, and 9 marionettes. It bore little resemblance to the original 1889 novel published by humorist, Mark Twain, - a satire of 19th century romance of medieval heraldry and class divisions, causes he believed led to the Civil War.
Twain's time travel story - which spawned the work of many 20th century science fiction writers and movie producers - focused on the adventures of a wealthy Connecticut gun manufacturer, Hank Morgan, who falls into a dream state after suffering a concussion when beaten by a disgruntled laborer. On becoming a the trusted advisor to King Arthur after spurning Merlin's magical tricks, Hank introduces late 19th century technology and social structure in order to solve problems he witnesses in medieval England, including slavery, lack of sanitation, overbearance of the Catholic church, and popular superstition.
Miss Piggy is a hand-rod puppet originally performed by Frank Oz and currently performed by Eric Jacobson. In a hand-rod puppet, like Miss Piggy, the performer’s dominant hand goes into the puppet’s head and operates the mouth and sometimes other facial features. The less dominant hand controls the arm rods, which are thin rods connected to the puppet’s hands. Miss Piggy is a diva pig who believes she is a superstar. She is madly in love with Kermit the Frog and is an expert in karate. Miss Piggy began as “Piggy Lee” on The Tonight Show in 1974 and eventually the “Lee” was dropped so as not to upset Peggy Lee. Miss Piggy then became a major character on The Muppet Show. This specific puppet was created for display at the National Museum of American History in 2016.
Originally a marionette, this puppet was reworked as a One of five puppets, #2004.0005.12-.16, used in James Henry Slover's play, "Mrs. Berrysnobe's Hotel." In a letter to her cousin, Joyce Larson, March 12, 1977, Florence King wrote: "Did you see 'Roots' on T.V.? ...I knew all that history of course. Some of our 'kinfolks' in Kentucky or Ohio used to have a 'station' on what they called the underground railroad helping runaway slaves escape to the north. Papa [Alvin Slover] told about it but I couldn't remember the details and who or where so never included it in the book." (p. 4)
One of five puppets, #2004.0005.12-.16, used in James Henry Slover's play, "Mrs. Berrysnobe's Hotel." Star character of the play James Henry Slover wrote and used to entertain the Union troops when he served at Ft. Snelling in Minnesota in 1862. Following the war, James Slover billed himself as "Arkansas Jim" in a traveling show modeled after the show of his friend, Bill Cody's, "Buffalo Bill Show." His two sons, Alvin and Billy, later joined the troupe. By the end of his career, he and his grown sons, their wives, and children, including Florence and her sister, traveled together in a medicine show to small towns in the midwest. By 1976, when Joyce, Willard and their daughter, Mary, the donor, inherited and began using the Slover puppet collection to entertain audiences in the basement of their LaCrosse, Wisconsin home, the original Mrs. Berrysnobe had disappeared though her name lived on.
One of five hand puppets, #2004.0005.12-.16, used in James Henry Slover's play, "Mrs. Berrysnobe's Hotel." This is an original puppet made by Henry Slover and refurbished by his grandaughterdevil iFlorence Slover King.
Henry Slover served in 1the Army in 1862 at Ft. Snelling, Minnesota. It is said by family members that he carved his first wooden puppets to entertain the Union troops though the donor believes this puppet was carved earlier and that the marionettes he made in the French tradition of his grandfather, Pierre Ravelle,
The Swedish Chef is one of the best-loved Muppet characters, appearing in numerous film and television productions since his debut in 1975. The Swedish Chef speaks in a mock Swedish language which parodies the characteristic sounds of Scandinavian languages and occasionally includes an English word to help the viewer understand what he is attempting to do on screen. The Swedish Chef first appeared in The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence which aired on ABC in 1975 and was one of two pilot episodes for The Muppet Show, where the Swedish Chef was a regular. Swedish Chef puppets like this one require two performers to operate. One person (originally Jim Henson) operates the head and performs the Chef's voice while another (originally Frank Oz) operates the two arms, with the performer's hands visible rather than inside puppet felt gloves as with other live hand puppets. This Swedish Chef puppet came to the museum with felt hands, suggesting that it may have been used for display or photography.