Pepe the King Prawn Pepe the King Prawn , whose full name is Pepino Rodrigo Serrano Gonzales , started life in Madrid , Spain . He worked as a chef , before moving to Hollywood and following his true calling in show business . In a TVGuide . com chat in 1999 , he remarked , " There were one too many close calls in the kitchen . I was mistaken for an appetizer , okay . " The four - armed Pepe is very proud of being a " king " prawn and takes great offense if anyone refers to him as a shrimp ( " I am not a shrimp ! I am a king prawn , okay ? " ) . He speaks with a heavy Spanish accent , often punctuating his sentences with " . . . okay ? " Puppeteer Bill Barretta , who created the character , based the accent on his wife ' s aunt , who is known in the family as " Maria Teresa Okay " . Due to his sometimes impenetrable accent , Pepe calls the Muppets " Muffins " or " Muppens " , and he regularly calls Kermit " Kermin " , Fozzie Bear " Fotzie " , Rizzo " Ritzo , " and Scooter " Scooper . " He doesn ' t even pronounce Walter correctly , and instead calls him " Howard . " He also calls Sam the Eagle " Stan " as shown at the 2009 D23 Expo . Pepe is in love with Hollywood and expects he will earn several Oscar nominations ( for good looks , acting and choreography . And foley . ) . His influences include Dick van Dyke , Marlon Brando , Ruth Buzzi , Topo Gigio , and Mighty Mouse . He has also referred to Ricky Martin on at least two separate occasions . In his TVGuide . com chat , he challenged the pop star to a sing - off , and in " It ' s a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie " , he was invited to shake his " bon bons " at Ricky Martin ' s South Beach Christmas party . Pepe is the author of the book " It ' s Hard Out Here for a Shrimp " . " Muppets Tonight " . Pepe ' s first appearance was on " Muppets Tonight " in 1996 , as a companion to Seymour the Elephant . The pair worked at the KMUP studios , as elevator operators in the first season and as commissary chefs in the second season , but they always aspired to onscreen singing stardom . These dreams never came true , however , because their performances were dire . They would always sing the same song , with slightly altered lyrics : " I ' m Seymour . . . ' I ' m Pepe . . . ' We ' re two of a kind . ' I ' m a little bit forward , ' And I ' ve got a big behind . " The pair only appeared on stage twice - - in the Pierce Brosnan episode , when they were taken hostage by an army of lobsters in a bid to take over the studio , and in the Sandra Bullock episode , when Clifford and Rizzo were desperate for an act to keep the show ' s ratings above 50 . When " Muppets Tonight " went off the air , Pepe ditched his partner ; Seymour has never appeared again . At MuppetFest , Bill Barretta explained that originally , Pepe was going to be a mouse , but " We decided an elephant and a mouse was too easy . " Pepe goes solo . Pepe established himself as a " solo act " in the 1999 film " Muppets from Space " , in which he connives with Rizzo to convince Gonzo that the aliens want him to build a jacuzzi . In 2002 , he became the official spokesprawn for Long John Silver ' s , starring in several commercials and appearing on their website . These commercials brought Pepe nationwide attention , and Long John Silver ' s was deluged with e - mails asking for Pepe merchandise , especially plush dolls . Pepe served as a correspondent in the early installments of the web series " Statler & Waldorf : From the Balcony " , where - among other things - he interviewed Jodie Foster and other actors on the red carpet of " Flightplan " . He was performed by Drew Massey for the " test pilot " of the show . Pepe ' s popularity and irreverence , along with Bill Barretta ' s improvisational skills , have resulted in Pepe ' s becoming a frequent host of DVD extra features . Pepe hosts much of the behind - the - scenes material on the DVDs for " It ' s A Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie " ( " Inside Pepe ' s Studio " ) , " The Muppets ' Wizard of Oz " ( " Pepe ' s Exclusive Making Of " and " an interview with Quentin Tarantino " ) , and " Studio DC : Almost Live ! " ( " " ) ; while " Pepe ' s Profiles " of various Muppet characters were featured on the ' Kermit ' s 50th Anniversary Edition ' releases of " The Muppet Movie " , " The Great Muppet Caper " , " The Muppet Christmas Carol " and " Muppet Treasure Island " . Pepe has a brief speaking cameo in the 2011 film , " The Muppets " , rehearsing a dance number with Miss Piggy . Pepe has a larger presence in 2014 ' s " Muppets Most Wanted " , appearing in a cameo with Sean Combs ( Puff Daddy ) , and as a backup singer during the song " Something So Right . " He also had a solo in the " El Muppet Show " version of " The Muppet Show Theme " ; though the solo was deleted from the film , it still appears on the soundtrack . He was also featured on Scooter ' s performance of " Moves Like Jagger . " Barretta reflected on the change in Pepe ' s character after " Muppets Tonight " , saying : Romances . Pepe has always had an attraction to the ladies and developed into a smooth - talking crustacean Casanova — flirting with such women as Rachel Bitterman , Ashanti , Jodie Foster , Bonnie Hunt , Joy , Whoopi Goldberg , and Lady Gaga . His efforts are sometimes less than successful , as exemplified by Rachel Bitterman ' s treatment of him in " It ' s a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie " . In a 2008 interview , Pepe announced that he is a father ; sharing that he and his long - time girlfriend , Christine , have a 2 - year - old baby . In a later television appearance on CBS ' s " The Late Late Show " with Craig Ferguson , Pepe revealed that he and Christina have since become engaged , and stated that he has a total of about 1 , 300 children all over the world . When asked what he looks for in a fiancé , Pepe responded : " breasts . " In a 2012 Ask Pepe video , Pepe said he usually likes to make the first move with a woman , but with co - star Amy Adams , it was hard for her not to make the first move on him . In a 2013 appearance on ABC ' s " The View " , Pepe proposed to Whoopi Goldberg ( with Goldberg claiming the two have been a couple for " twenty some odd years " ) ; Pepe appeared in a tux and presented Goldberg with an engagement ring ( saying " if you like it , you better put a ring on it " ) to which Whoopi enthusiastically said " yes ! " His interest isn ' t solely in humans ; has dated at least one catfish . Pepe ' s Tutu . Pepe has an affinity to cross - dressing — often wearing a pink tutu . Pepe was first caught wearing his tutu in " Muppets from Space " ; Pepe is caught off - guard when Muppet Lab ' s invisibility spray wears off and he becomes visible while wearing the tutu and dancing ballet . He wore the tutu again in a 2008 Muppets . com video performing " Prawn Lake " and on " Late Night with Jimmy Fallon " singing the " nine ladies dancing " line of " The Twelve Days of Christmas . " Additionally , Pepe wore a sequined dress as Seymour ' s assistant in of " Muppets Tonight " , donned a " see - through nighty " in a V - Chip commercial , and put on a blonde wig to impersonate Miss Piggy in of " Muppets Tonight " . Sources . _ _ NOWYSIWYG _ _