muppet
Rooster
PERFORMER Jerry Nelson
DEBUT 1972
DESIGN Michael Frith designer
  Don Sahlin, John Lovelady, Caroly Wilcox builders[1]
T.R. on display at the Center for Puppetry Arts.

T.R. on display at the Center for Puppetry Arts.

T.R. is a rooster who first appeared in The Muppet Musicians of Bremen. His big solo number is "Cock a Doodle Blues," sung with a bevy of hens. Although his real name is never given, he offers several meanings for what his initials stand for, including "Tuckered Rooster", "Terrified Rooster," "Travellin' Rooster", "Tender-Hearted Rooster" and "Tough Rooster." He escapes from the clutches of his master Lardpork, who vows to make him into a stew for not crowing on time.

T.R.'s appearance in The Muppet Musicians of Bremen is also notable for being the only time where he has expressive eyes. This was done by changing the puppet's eyelid placement in different shots to have T.R. appear tired, scared, or angry. In two early confrontations with Lardpork, T.R. rapidly changes emotions—from neutral to frightened. In these instances, one of T.R.'s eyelids is placed higher than the other, achieving the effect of a sudden shock just by turning his head. In T.R.'s later appearances on The Muppet Show and other specials, the puppet has static, open eyelids.

Since 2015, the puppet and marionette versions of T.R. are displayed periodically at the Center for Puppetry Arts as part of their permanent Worlds of Puppetry exhibit.

Filmography

Book appearances

Sources

  1. ↑ Center for Puppetry Arts

See also