The Great Muppet Caper 1981

In a bizarre sequence of events, Kermit the Frog and Fozzie Bear, investigative reporters extraordinaire for the Daily Chronicle, find themselves at the center of a comedic maelstrom. Their seemingly endless string of misadventures begins when they’re summarily dismissed from their newspaper gig after botching a major jewel heist story. In a last-ditch effort to redeem themselves, Kermit approaches his editor, Mr. Tarkanian, with a proposal: travel to London to investigate the very same robbery and interview its victim, the renowned fashion designer Lady Holiday. The only catch? They’re operating on a shoestring budget of $12, forcing them to take drastic measures to secure their transportation.

Enter Gonzo the Great, their trusty photographer sidekick, who helps them squeeze into an airplane’s cargo hold for the long haul across the Atlantic. As they soar above Britain, Kermit and Fozzie find themselves literally ejected from the plane as it passes over the British countryside. Upon landing, they take up residence at the dilapidated but free Happiness Hotel, where they’re joined by a motley crew of Muppet characters, including Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, Scooter, the Swedish Chef, and a host of other colorful personalities.

The next morning, Kermit pays a visit to Lady Holiday’s office, only to mistake her alluring receptionist, Miss Piggy (in her natural state), for the fashion designer herself. Enchanted by the little green reporter, Miss Piggy poses as Lady Holiday and agrees to meet Kermit for dinner at the Dubonnet Club. As part of the charade, she allows him to assume that she resides at a posh address – much to the surprise of the actual upper-class British residents who unwittingly become entangled in their whimsical web of deception.

As the velvet curtains parted at the nightclub, the true Lady Holiday’s exquisite necklace was brazenly pilfered by her duplicitous brother Nicky and his cohorts Carla, Marla, and Darla, three fashion models who had previously been taken advantage of by the cunning performer. The theft was merely a precursor to Miss Piggy’s elaborate ruse being exposed and her hasty retreat from the scene, leaving Kermit behind to confront the aftermath. Gonzo’s keen eye had captured photographic evidence of the thieves, but alas, his film was later inadvertently ruined, rendering it useless in securing justice. The following day, a chance encounter between Kermit and Miss Piggy in a lush park served as a catalyst for their reconciliation, which was short-lived due to Nicky’s instant attraction to the charismatic performer. However, this newfound fixation only fueled his and his accomplices’ malicious intent to frame Miss Piggy for the necklace theft during Lady Holiday’s fashion show. Their plan, however, was unwittingly foiled by Gonzo’s keen ear, which picked up their sinister scheme to pilfer an even more valuable prize: Lady Holiday’s most prized possession, the resplendent Baseball Diamond, now on display at the Mallory Gallery.

As fate would have it, the Muppets, led by Kermit and Fozzie, decided to intercept the thieves and apprehend them red-handed in order to clear Miss Piggy’s name. In a daring operation, they infiltrated the gallery, with Dr. Bunsen Honeydew ingeniously disabling the alarm system while simultaneously electrocuting Beaker in his signature manner. As the Muppets attempted to outmaneuver the thieves and protect the diamond through a game of cat-and-mouse, Nicky ultimately secured the gem and took Kermit hostage at gunpoint.

Meanwhile, Miss Piggy had managed to escape from prison and was racing against time to reach the gallery, where she fortuitously stumbled upon a motorcycle that had fallen off a truck in front of her. With reckless abandon, she crashed through the gallery’s window on the powerful vehicle, swiftly dispatching Nicky and his accomplices with a flurry of swift karate chops. As the authorities arrived on the scene, all charges against Miss Piggy were promptly dropped, and Nicky and his cohorts were apprehended.

As the dust settled, the Muppets returned to their homeland via the same unconventional method they had departed, finding themselves unceremoniously ejected from a cargo hold and parachuting back onto solid ground. Before the curtain closed on this thrilling adventure, Gonzo seized one final opportunity to capture a lasting image – this time, of the very audience that had been captivated by his antics throughout the film. With a mischievous grin, he vowed to send each member of the audience a copy of the photograph as a memento of their shared experience.