Beaker is a Muppet character from The Muppet Show. He is the shy long-suffering assistant of Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, and is likewise named for a piece of laboratory equipment, which he resembles in shape.
Contents |
Description and history
Before the second season of The Muppet Show, Bunsen Honeydew worked alone on The Muppet Show. In the second season and beyond, the company were accompanied by Beaker. He has googly eyes, a shock of red hair, and a drawbridge mouth. Beaker made his debut on The Muppet Show. He made no appearances before the show. He was originally voiced by Richard Hunt until Hunt's death in 1992.
A magnet for misfortune, Beaker would be blown up, electrocuted, eaten by large monsters, or lose body parts. Beaker communicates in a nervous, high-pitched squeak that sounds like "Mee-mee-mee mee!" [In books and merchandise, the sound is spelled "Meep", and in The Muppet Movie, at the end of a scene, he appeared to say something other than "mee" or "meep" (he "meeps" Honeydew's previous line "sadly temporary"). His tone or expression helps to communicate his meaning.
He rapidly became a favourite with audiences, who both sympathized with and enjoyed laughing at his humorous sufferings. Occasionally, Beaker was able to take revenge, particularly an episode in which he inadvertently made several copies of himself and spent the rest of the episode chasing Honeydew. In the 2008 TV special, A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa, Beaker is even more fortunate when he tests a wish machine and gets the company of model Petra Němcová, and not only refuses Honeydew's order to send her back, but then also successfully teleports away with her to apparently enjoy his first wish for the rest of the story.
Beaker has also appeared as a musical performer, singing "Danny Boy" with the Swedish Chef and Animal, and "Feelings" by himself. The former performance was marked by the Chef's singing in his trademark gibberish and Animal's inability to remember anything but the first three words. For the latter, Animal had to shush the increasingly unruly crowd (who abused the Muppets throughout the episode) so Beaker could finish: "QUIET!!...Thank you."[1]
The two scientists were later incorporated into the Muppet Babies animated series. Howie Mandel (during early seasons) and Dave Coulier voiced Bunsen, and Frank Welker provided Beaker's squeaky meeps. Following Richard Hunt's death in 1992, the role of Beaker was taken over by Steve Whitmire. Beaker was performed by Kevin Clash in The Muppet Show Live. An animated Beaker was also voiced by Richard Hunt, his usual performer during that period, when he appeared in the short lived Little Muppet Monsters series.
In popular culture
In a 2004 Internet poll sponsored by the BBC and the British Association for the Advancement of Science, Beaker and Dr. Bunsen Honeydew were voted Britain's favourite cinematic scientists. They beat Mr. Spock, their closest rival, by a margin of 2 to 1 and won 33 percent of the 43,000 votes cast.
In the 2005 Homestar Runner Halloween special, Marzipan dressed as Beaker.
In Disney Channel's Studio DC: Almost Live in 2008; Beaker accompanied Demi Lovato in her song "This Is Me".
Ricky Gervais has likened the appearance of his longtime comedy partner Stephen Merchant to that of Beaker's.
Swansea City footballer Alan Tate is nicknamed Beaker, presumably because he shares the character's shock of spiky hair and long, thin neck.
"Meeping" school controversies
Emulating Beaker's particular manner of speech has apparently become a way of rebelling against authority, and at least two school principals have outlawed "meeping" in their schools. A number of students at Danvers High School, in Danvers, Massachusetts, have been suspended for saying the word.[2][3]
See also
External links
Beaker on Muppet Wiki, an external wiki
References
- ^ Video of "Danny Boy" by Beaker
- ^ Netter, Sarah. Meep! Nonsense Word Goes Viral, Gets Students in Trouble. ABC World News (online). November 11, 2009.
- ^ Canwest News Service. "Meep bleeped from U.S. high school lexicon", Calgary Herald, 11 November 2009.
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
