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Eric Jacobson

For other people with the same name, see Eric Jacobsen (disambiguation).
Eric Jacobson
Jacobson at San Diego Comic-Con in 2015
Born (1971-01-15) January 15, 1971 (age 53)
Fort Worth, Texas, U.S.
Alma materNYU Tisch School of the Arts (BFA)
OccupationPuppeteer
Years active1994–present
SpouseMary Jacobson
Children1

Eric Jacobson (born January 15, 1971)[1] is an American puppeteer. He is best known for his involvement with the Muppets, performing Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, and Sam Eagle for The Muppets Studio, as well as Sesame Street characters Bert, Grover, Oscar the Grouch, and Guy Smiley—all roles that he inherited from the characters' original performers, Frank Oz, Caroll Spinney, and Jim Henson.[2][3]

Since 1994, Jacobson has been a regular performer for Sesame Street, where he has received Daytime Emmy Award and Primetime Emmy Award nominations. Since 2001, Jacobson has appeared as part of the Muppets cast in several feature films and television series, including The Muppets' Wizard of Oz (2005), The Muppets (2011), Muppets Most Wanted (2014), the ABC primetime television series, The Muppets (2015), and the Disney+ series, The Muppets Mayhem (2023).[4]

Career

Jacobson was born in Fort Worth, Texas. He was inspired to enter the field of puppeteering after the death of Jim Henson.[1][5] In 1992, while attending New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, he interned at the Jim Henson Company, working in the archival library.[2][5][6] Jacobson earned his BFA from Tisch the following year.

Jacobson began his career as a puppeteer on Sesame Street in 1994, where he worked alongside Frank Oz,[7] often performing the roles of Grover and Bert when Oz wasn't available.[8][9] Following Oz's retirement from the roles, Jacobson became the characters' primary performer.[10] Since 2005, he has performed Guy Smiley, a role previously performed by Henson.[11] Following Caroll Spinney's retirement in 2018, Jacobson became the full-time performer of Oscar the Grouch.[3]

For his work on Sesame Street, Jacobson has been nominated for both a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in Children's Programming and a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance in 2011 and 2019, respectively.[8][12]

For the Muppets, Jacobson began performing Miss Piggy in 2001, debuting at the "MuppetFest" fan convention.[13] The following year, he began performing Fozzie Bear and Animal, debuting in the roles in It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie. In 2005, he also began performing Sam Eagle beginning in The Muppets' Wizard of Oz. The aforementioned characters were also previously performed by Oz, whom Jacobson consulted with to accurately portray the proper characterization, physicality, and voice for the characters.[9]

Other works

Beyond his work with Henson, Jacobson has contributed to several other children's television shows, including The Puzzle Place and Jack's Big Music Show. He has also performed live puppet theater with Basil Twist, The Puppet Company, The Cosmic Bicycle Theater, and The Swedish Cottage Marionette Theater in Central Park.[14]

For Disney, Jacobson performed Harry the Duck on Bear in the Big Blue House and puppeteered Piglet on The Book of Pooh.[14] In 2007, he served as both puppeteer and writer on Playhouse Disney's Bunnytown.[15][16]

In 2013, Jacobson served as puppeteer for Shaggy Rogers for the DVD movie Scooby Doo! Adventures: The Mystery Map, with Matthew Lillard providing Shaggy's voice.

Personal life

Jacobson is married to Mary Jacobson, whom he met during her time as a production assistant on Sesame Street.[9]

Filmography

Film

Year Production Role Notes
1999 The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland Bert Assistant performer
2002 It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, Yoda Performer; Television film
2005 The Muppets' Wizard of Oz Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, Sam Eagle
2008 Abby in Wonderland Grover, Bert Performer; Direct-to-DVD film
A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, Sam Eagle Performer
2011 The Muppets Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, Sam Eagle, Marvin Suggs Performer
2013 Scooby-Doo! Adventures: The Mystery Map Shaggy Rogers Performer (puppetry only); Direct-to-DVD film
2014 Muppets Most Wanted Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Sam Eagle, Animal Performer
2021 Muppets Haunted Mansion Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Sam Eagle, Animal Performer; Halloween special for Disney+

Television

Year(s) Production Role Notes
1994–present Sesame Street Bert (1997–present), Grover (1998–present), Guy Smiley (2005–present), Oscar the Grouch (2015–present) Performer
1996–1998 Once Upon a Tree Billy-Bob the Bobcat Performer
1998 The Puzzle Place Leon MacNeal, Blue Piece Police Puppeteer (season 3)
1997–2006 Bear in the Big Blue House Harry the Duck, Tucker Tutter Performer
2001 Between the Lions Bert Performer, Episode: "Tweet! Tweet!"
2001–2003 The Book of Pooh Piglet Performer (puppetry only)
2002–2007 Play with Me Sesame Bert, Grover Performer
2005, 2012 Jimmy Kimmel Live! Grover, Fozzie Bear, Animal Performer; 3 episodes
2005 The Tony Danza Show Miss Piggy Performer; 3 episodes
2005, 2007 The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear Performer; 2 episodes
2005–2007 Jack's Big Music Show Little Bad Wolf, Phil the Coo-Coo Bird Performer
2005, 2011, 2014 Live Miss Piggy Performer, 3 episodes
2005 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition Miss Piggy, Fozzie, Animal Performer
2006–2011 Pinky Dinky Doo Additional voices
2007–2008 Bunnytown Super Bunny, Green Cave Bunny, Royal Assistant Marvin, Captain Dan, Melvin Performer (also writer)[16]
2008 Studio DC: Almost Live Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, Sam Eagle Performer
2011 So Random! Miss Piggy Performer, Episode: "Miss Piggy"
Take Two with Phineas and Ferb Miss Piggy Performer, Episode: "Miss Piggy"
Saturday Night Live Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear Performer, Episode: "Jason Segal/Florence + The Machine"
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno Miss Piggy Performer; 1 episode
2011, 2012 WWE Raw Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal Performer, 2 episodes
2011, 2012 WWE Tribute to the Troops Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Sam Eagle Performer; Television special
2013 Good Luck Charlie Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal Performer, Episode: "Duncan Dream House"
Lady Gaga and the Muppets Holiday Spectacular Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, Sam Eagle Performer; Television special
2015–2016 The Muppets Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, Sam Eagle, Marvin Suggs
2019 Drop the Mic Miss Piggy Performer; 1 episode
Big City Greens Dr. Enamel Voice role, Episode: "Hurty Tooth"

Credited as Fozzie Bear; Jacobson credited as Fozzie Bear's "personal handyman"

2020 The Not-Too-Late Show with Elmo Bert, Grover, Oscar the Grouch, Two-Headed Monster (left head) Performer[17]
Muppets Now Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Sam Eagle, Animal Performer
The Power of We: A Sesame Street Special Oscar the Grouch Performer; Television special
2022 The Masked Singer Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal Performer; Episode: "Muppets Night"
2023 The Muppets Mayhem Animal Performer

Video games

Year(s) Title Role Notes
2001 Sesame Street Sports Grover Voice role[18][19]
2003 Muppets Party Cruise Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear
2011 Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster Grover
Sesame Street: Ready, Set, Grover!
2012 Kinect Sesame Street TV Bert, Grover, Guy Smiley

Other appearances

Year(s) Production Role Notes
2003 Sesame Street 4-D Movie Magic Grover, Bert Performer, theme park film
2008–2009 Muppet YouTube Shorts Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, Sam Eagle Performer
2010 The Muppets Kitchen with Cat Cora Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear Performer, web series
Disney's Honorary VoluntEars Cavalcade Miss Piggy Voice, theme park parade
2013–2014 Muppisodes Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear Performer, web shorts[20]
2014 Nerdy Nummies Miss Piggy Performer
2016–2019 The Muppets Present...Great Moments in American History Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Sam Eagle Voice, theme park show
2017 The Muppets Take the Bowl Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, Sam Eagle, Newsman Performer, live show at the Hollywood Bowl, Sept. 8–10[21]
2018 The Muppets Take the O2 Performer, live show at the O2, Jul. 13–14[22]
2019 Muppet Babies Play Date Miss Piggy (baby), Fozzie Bear (baby), Animal (baby) Performer (puppetry only), web shorts[23]
2021 The Muppets' Christmas Caroling Coach Fozzie Bear, Miss Piggy, Sam Eagle Voice, theme park show[22]

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Work Result Refs
2011 Daytime Emmy Awards Outstanding Performer in a Children's Series Sesame Street Nominated
2019 Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance When You Wish Upon a Pickle: A Sesame Street Special Nominated
2021 Daytime Emmy Awards Outstanding Performer in a Preschool Animated Program The Monster at the End of This Story Nominated
2023 Children's and Family Emmy Awards Outstanding Puppeteer Performance The Muppets Mayhem Nominated [24]
Sesame Street Nominated

References

  1. ^ a b "Eric Jacobson and Muppet Trivia 2! | The Barretta Brothers". June 24, 2024. Archived from the original on June 24, 2024. Retrieved June 24, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  2. ^ a b Setoodeh, Ramin (March 11, 2014). "How Kermit and the Muppets Got Their Mojo Back". Variety. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  3. ^ a b Cordero, Rosy (December 8, 2019). "Sesame Street legend Caroll Spinney, who played Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch, dies at 85". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on June 2, 2020. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  4. ^ Porter, Rick (November 21, 2023). "'Muppets Mayhem' Canceled at Disney+". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on December 18, 2023. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  5. ^ a b "A Conversation with characters from Sesame Street live from NerdHQ 2014". YouTube.com. Nerd HQ. July 26, 2014. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
  6. ^ Gikow, Louise; Loredo, Betsy (2009). 123 Sesame Street: a celebration: 40 years of life on the street. New York, NY: Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers. ISBN 978-1-57912-638-4.
  7. ^ "Muppet Central Help - Frequently Asked Questions - Muppets". December 8, 2003. Archived from the original on December 8, 2003. Retrieved June 30, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  8. ^ a b Schaffstall, Katherine (August 30, 2019). "Emmys: 46 of This Year's First-Time Nominees". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on July 10, 2024. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  9. ^ a b c Spitznagel, Eric (September 30, 2011). "Sesame Street puppeteer Eric Jacobson reveals shocking news that Sesame Street is not a real place". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on September 24, 2022. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
  10. ^ Spitznagel, Eric (September 30, 2011). "Sesame Street puppeteer Eric Jacobson reveals shocking news that Sesame Street is not a real place". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on September 24, 2022. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
  11. ^ Hipes, Patrick (October 17, 2018). "Caroll Spinney, 'Sesame Street's Big Bird For 50 Years, Is Retiring". Deadline.com. Archived from the original on November 11, 2020. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  12. ^ "Sesame Street's Big Bird puppeteer retires". bbc.com. October 17, 2018. Archived from the original on November 12, 2020. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  13. ^ Lloyd, Robert (May 16, 2015). "If Harry Shearer leaves 'The Simpsons,' what will happen? Just ask Bugs Bunny". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on May 7, 2019. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  14. ^ a b "Disney Channel MediaNet". September 26, 2008. Archived from the original on September 26, 2008. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
  15. ^ 2007-11-01T08:33:07.82+00:00. "Bunnytown". Broadcast. Archived from the original on August 6, 2012. Retrieved July 1, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  16. ^ a b Emily, Wicks (September 22, 2021). "Spiffy Pictures: Adventures in Television Animation | Ballard Institute and Museum". Archived from the original on July 2, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  17. ^ Adams, Erik (May 19, 2020). "The Not-Too-Late Show With Elmo is the next best thing to a streaming Muppet Show". The AV Club. Archived from the original on June 1, 2020. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
  18. ^ "Sesame Street Sports (2001)". MobyGames. Archived from the original on July 2, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  19. ^ "Muppet Central Articles - Reviews: Muppets Party Cruise (PlayStation2)". muppetcentral.com. Archived from the original on July 2, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  20. ^ Graser, Marc (December 6, 2013). "Watch: The Muppets Star in New Series of 'Muppisodes'". Variety. Archived from the original on December 10, 2013. Retrieved December 8, 2013.
  21. ^ Itzkoff, Dave (July 28, 2020). "It's Time to Re-Re-Re-Meet the Muppets". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 10, 2024. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  22. ^ a b Itzkoff, Dave (July 28, 2020). "It's Time to Re-Re-Re-Meet the Muppets". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 10, 2024. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  23. ^ "They're not just animated anymore! See the new Muppet Babies as actual Muppets". EW.com. Archived from the original on October 15, 2023. Retrieved July 8, 2024.
  24. ^ Coates, Tyler (November 2, 2023). "Children's & Family Emmy Awards: Disney Dominates Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on November 6, 2023. Retrieved November 7, 2023.
Preceded by Performer of Bert
1997 – present 		Succeeded by
None
Preceded by Performer of Grover
1998 – present 		Succeeded by
None
Preceded by Performer of Miss Piggy
2001 – present 		Succeeded by
None
Preceded by Performer of Fozzie Bear
2002 – present 		Succeeded by
None
Preceded by Performer of Animal
2002 – present 		Succeeded by
None
Preceded by Performer of Sam Eagle
2005 – present 		Succeeded by
None
Preceded by
Don Reardon
 Performer of Guy Smiley
2005 – present 		Succeeded by
None
Preceded by Performer of Marvin Suggs
2011 – present 		Succeeded by
None
Preceded by Performer of Two-Headed Monster (left head)
2016 – present 		Succeeded by
None
Preceded by Performer of Oscar the Grouch
2015 – present 		Succeeded by
None
Preceded by Performer of The Muppet Newsman
2017 – present 		Succeeded by
None
Preceded by Performer of Harvey Kneeslapper
2019 – present 		Succeeded by
None
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