puppet

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At Prague Zoo, Staff Puppeteers Become Vulture Parents

Mama and papa lesser yellow-headed vulture weren't ready to take care of their chick

(Newser) - Zookeepers in Prague sometimes have to become puppeteers to save newborn birds rejected by their parents. This was the case for a lesser yellow-headed vulture chick hatched three weeks ago. Bird keeper Antonin Vaidl said Thursday that when a dummy egg disappeared from the nest, it signaled to keepers that...

Zoo Is Raising a King Vulture Chick —With a Puppet

Feeding technique at Bronx Zoo is designed to avoid human imprinting

(Newser) - A king vulture chick is being nursed by employees of the Bronx Zoo, though it will hopefully never know it. The chick, at risk of identifying with its human handlers, is being fed by a black-gloved human hand topped with a puppet handmade by zoo artists to resemble an adult...

Say Goodbye to Chuck E. Cheese's Animatronic Bands

It's part of the chain's 'most aggressive transformation' yet, per CEO David McKillips

(Newser) - The animatronic band that breaks out in song at Chuck E. Cheese locations around the US has been described as everything from "endearing" and "nostalgia-inducing" to "slightly creepy," but thanks to what CEO David McKillips calls the chain's "most aggressive transformation" yet, the band...

Breaking News! Grover Has a New Job
Breaking News!
Grover Has a New Job
Feb 14, 2024 8:26 AM CST

Breaking News! Grover Has a New Job

Muppet is now a roving reporter, apparently, and other reporters are offering their takes

(Newser) - Grover usually spends his time online pumping up fans , singing to friends , and even trying his hand at self-portraits . But the fuzzy blue Muppet from Sesame Street apparently has a real new job that keeps him busy, too—at least according to his own admission on social media this week....

Traveling 12-Foot Puppet Aims to Stir Empathy in US

'Little Amal,' puppet of Syrian refugee, will trek from Boston to San Diego to raise migration awareness

(Newser) - Little Amal, a 12-foot puppet of a Syrian refugee, will journey across the United States this fall, visiting key places in America's history to raise awareness about immigration and migration. The puppet of the 10-year-old girl will visit the US Capitol, Boston Common, Joshua Tree National Park, and the...

Like That Rudolph TV Special? This Auction Might Be for You

Assuming you've got a quarter-million to spare

(Newser) - Rudolph and his still-shiny nose are getting a new home, and it's bound to be a lot nicer than the Island of Misfit Toys. The soaring reindeer and Santa Claus figures who starred in the perennially beloved stop-motion animation Christmas special Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer are going up...

Sesame Street Puppeteer Dead at 85
Sesame Street
Puppeteer Dead at 85
obituary
Dec 8, 2019 2:00 PM CST

Sesame Street Puppeteer Dead at 85

Caroll Spinney was the force behind Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch

(Newser) - Caroll Spinney, who gave Big Bird his warmth and Oscar the Grouch his growl for nearly 50 years on Sesame Street, died Sunday at the age of 85 at his home in Connecticut, according to the Sesame Workshop. The Sesame Workshop said in a statement that the legendary puppeteer lived...

Sesame Street Sues Over Film With 'Ejaculating Puppets'

Trailer suggests Sesame's endorsement, suit claims

(Newser) - The first trailer for an R-rated movie starring Melissa McCarthy and a bunch of drug-sniffing, sex-crazed puppets notes it's "No Sesame. All Street." But the makers of Sesame Street aren't sure viewers will get the message. Sesame Workshop, which produces the kids show, is suing STX...

Toddlers' Sense of Justice Surprises Researchers

They're more interested in making things right than punishing wrongdoers

(Newser) - Preschool justice may be more developed than previously thought. So finds new research published in the journal Current Biology , where 3- and 5-year-olds observed two of four different scenes involving puppets, toys, and cookies. It turns out that not only did the kids sort out pretty quickly whether the "...

Ahead of RNC, Tampa Bans ... Puppets?

Protesters outraged

(Newser) - Political puppets are a time-honored tradition, and protesters gearing up for the Republican National Convention are dutifully creating some. There's just one problem: The city of Tampa has effectively banned puppets inside the event area. Well, technically, they've banned sticks, strings, and masks, the Tampa Bay Times reports,...

Singing Frog Helps Arizona Governor Sell Law
 Singing Frog Helps 
 Sell Arizona Law 
governor's new video
May 22, 2010 4:08 PM CDT

Singing Frog Helps Sell Arizona Law

Mocks foes of immigration measure who haven't read it

(Newser) - Arizona Governor Jan Brewer is teaming up with a singing frog against critics of the immigration law. At securetheborder.org , a site funded by the governor, the puppet sings about how "reading is really super swell" and pokes fun at opponents of the law who haven't actually read it....

Colo. Town Censors Busty Avenue Q Puppet

Billboard firm decides puppet cleavage too racy for Colorado Springs

(Newser) - Avenue Q puppet Lucy the Slut is too slutty for the fine people of Colorado Springs, according to a local billboard company. The firm decided that a bus stop ad for the risque Broadway show which featured Lucy in a top revealing plenty of puppet cleavage "wasn't appropriate for...

Meet the Man Behind Elmo
 Meet the Man 
 Behind Elmo 
Nov 10, 2009 12:37 PM CST

Meet the Man Behind Elmo

No, he didn't always have that voice, and more from behind-the-scenes

(Newser) - When Kevin Clash does a live Sesame Street event, the kids “don’t know me from a hole in the wall and they don’t care to,” he tells Time . “I’m the guy holding their friend.” That friend would be Elmo, the furry red monster...

Ventriloquists Speak Up for Themselves

Well, maybe not. But the form is seeing more success these days

(Newser) - Ventriloquism has been on the outs since the '70s, but its fortunes are starting to turn, the Wall Street Journal reports. Symbolizing the resurgence of the vaudeville favorite is Terry Fator, a winner of NBC’s America’s Got Talent competition, who recently picked up a yearlong headlining gig at...

Puppet Kills Bush on Hamas Kids' Show

Prez punished for helping Israel

(Newser) - In its newest anti-American educational video, a Hamas children's show broadcast in Gaza shows a puppet of a young Palestinian boy killing President Bush. The boy stabs the president with "the sword of Islam" to punish him for helping Israel, the Daily Telegraph reports. "You and the criminal...

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