Jack’s Big Music Show

***Jack's Big Music Show*** is an American musical children's television series produced by Nickelodeon for its sister channel Noggin. It was created and executive produced by Muppet veteran Jerry Nelson through David Rudman's company Spiffy Pictures and The Jim Henson Company. The main character is a young puppet musician named Jack, voiced by David Rudman and puppeteered by Noel MacNeal, who has a musical clubhouse in his backyard. The premiere episode was simulcast on both Nickelodeon and Noggin on September 12, 2005. The show ran for two seasons and 26 episodes in total, which finished airing on April 1, 2008.

The popularity of the show made the idea of appearing on it attractive to musicians. An executive from Nick Jr. in 2006 said that they were "clamoring to get onto Jack's Big Music Show." In 2008, the show won a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Pre-School Children's Series.

## Plot

The series focuses on a 8-year-old music-loving Jack, his best friend Mary, his gibberish-speaking Venus flytrap named Sleezo, and his drum-playing dog Mel, all of whom are puppets. The show takes place in Jack's backyard clubhouse and centers on the characters' passion for music. The characters play music in every episode and are often accompanied by other puppets or human musicians. Most episodes start with Jack's mom calling him that he has to leave for an activity soon. They feature two music videos by children's musical artists and a performance by the Schwartzman Quartet about the episode's theme. At the end of each episode from the first season, a big "finale" song is played; this was absent in episode 7 and cut from the second season, to be replaced with the characters singing a different song depending on the episode and cracking jokes. In the episodes with Jack's mom in the opening, Jack leaves and tells her what they did today, while other times they continue to play music in the clubhouse. Mel (and sometimes Sleezo along with some squirrels) can be seen popping up during the credits.

## Characters

The main characters are Sleezo, Jack, Mary, Mel, Meowstein (not until episode 8 of season 2), and the Schwartzman Quartet.

### Main

* Sleezo (puppeteered by Tim Lagasse (Lisa Henson in "Mel's Super Swell Dance Party") and voiced by creator Jerry Nelson) – Jack's pet Venus flytrap. He is lime green, with jungle green arms and a jungle green mane, and kelly green hands. Unlike the other main characters, he has eyes just like some characters from *Sesame Street*. He also speaks fluent english (even being a talented singer), but for the most part communicates through growls, gibberish and snarls; only Mel can understand what he's saying through that. His name comes from a combination between Sleepy from *Snow White and the Seven Dwarves* and Gonzo from *The Muppets*.
* Jack (puppeteered by Noel MacNeal and voiced by David Rudman) – An 8-year-old young musician who has a backyard clubhouse full of musical instruments. He is blue with short green hair, and he wears an orange sweater with an asterisk on the front. Jack has a very busy schedule, and at the beginning of most episodes, his unseen mother mentions a new class or activity that he is attending. He is named after Jack Benny, the host of The Jack Benny Program.
* Mary (puppeteered by Stephanie D’Abruzzo and voiced by Alice Dinnean) – Jack's 9, later 10-year-old best friend, an accordionist. She is yellow with curly purple hair and wears a red sweater with a heart symbol on the front. She is smart, attentive, and likes to find music in unexpected places. Her catchphrase is "What a day!", which she says at the end of each episode. She is named after Mary Livingstone from The Jack Benny Program.
	+ In some episodes, Mary is both puppeteered and voiced by Alice Dinnean.
* Mel (puppeteered by John Kennedy in season 1, then Jim Kroupa for season 2 and voiced by Frank Welker) – Jack's 4-year-old drum-playing dog who is a gifted inventor. He is pink (later fuchsia) with green stripes and a green spot around his left eye. He created all of the contraptions in Jack's clubhouse, including the music video player, and operates them in each episode. In season 1, he only spoke through "ruff" noises; then in season 2, he spoke through a variety of dog sounds. Either way, Jack and the other characters understand him. He is also the only character who can understand Sleezo's gibberish. Mel is named after Mel Blanc from The Jack Benny Program.
	+ Mel's puppet looked like the Jack and Mary's puppets in season 1, and was later built off of the character Sprocket from *Fraggle Rock*.
* The Schwartzman Quartet (performed by various puppeteers) – A group of four brothers who visit Jack's clubhouse every day to sing a short song. They are all nearly identical to each other: turquoise with stringy red hair, freckles, and matching striped sweaters. They are named after the Sportsmen Quartet from The Jack Benny Program.
* Meowstein (voiced by Kermit Love) - a yellow cat who has had 11 different jobs in his appearances. He is very helpful to the other characters and is willing to join in on the fun if the activity is enjoying. He is also wise and will not shy away from calling out other characters if they say or do something stupid. Like Sleezo, he has eyes just like some characters from *Sesame Street*. At the end of "Jack's Big Orchestra," Meowstein was officially welcomed to Jack's house as his pet cat, but still worked multiple jobs over the last 6 episodes. Meowstein was orginally puppeteered by Kermit Love in season 1, but was replaced due to old age in season 2 with Lisa Henson and Peter Linz.

### Guests

* Earl the Squirrel (appears in "Mel's Super Swell Dance Party," "Silly Show," "Snow Day," and "Jack's Big Orchestra"; puppeteered by Tim Lagasse and voiced by Tom Kenny)
* Little Bad Wolf (appears in the episode of the same name, "Phil the Coo-Coo Bird," "Jack's Big Orchestra" and "Jack and the Beanstalk"; puppeteered by Eric Jacobson and voiced by Tom Kenny)
* Big Bad Wolf (appears in the same episodes as his little brother; puppeteered by Noel MacNeal and voiced by Burt Reynolds, with vocal effects by Frank Welker)
* The Bongo Birds (appear in the episode of the same name and "Jack's Big Orchestra")
	+ Baby Bongo Bird (puppeteered by Stephanie D'Abruzzo and voiced by Alice Dinnean Vernon)
	+ Momma Bongo Bird (performed by Pam Arciero)
* The Bugs (appear in "Bug Love" and "Jack's Big Orchestra"; all puppeteered by Tim Lagasse)
	+ Orange Bug (voiced by Carlos Alazraqui)
	+ Green Bug (voiced by Mr. Lawrence)
	+ Purple Bug (voiced by Frank Welker)
* Arthur (appears in "Grow Daddio", "Leonard the Country Squirrel", "Scat Cat", "Groundhog Day", and "Jack and the Beanstalk"; puppeteered by Leslie Carrara-Rudolph)
* Sheldon the Squirrel (appears in "The Grumpy Squirrel" and "Jack's Big Orchestra"; puppeteered by John Kennedy and voiced by David Rudman)
* Henry the Monster (appears in the "Music Monster" and "Jack's Big Orchestra"; puppeteered by Joey Mazzarino and voiced by Jerry Nelson, with vocal effects by Frank Welker)
* Royal Messenger Marvin (appears in "King of Swing"; performed by Anthony Asbury)
* Penguins (appear in "Snow Day"; puppeteered by John Kennedy, Tim Lagasse and Vicki Veenstra and voiced by Frank Welker)
* Leonard the Country Squirrel (appears in the episode of the same name; performed by Matt Vogel)
	+ Leonard's Mother (appears in "Leonard the Country Squirrel"; performed by Cheryl Blaylock)
* Spunky the Alien (appears in the episode of the same name; puppeteered by Joey Mazzarino and voiced by Frank Welker)
	+ Spunky's Parents (appear in "Spunky the Alien")
		- Spunky's Father (also voiced by Frank Welker, but puppeteered by Tim Lagasse)
		- Spunky's Mother (performed by Fran Brill)
	+ Spunky's Band (appears in "Spunky the Alien")
		- Red alien (puppeteered by Frankie Cordero and voiced by Tom Kenny)
		- Yellow alien (puppeteered by Jim Kroupa and voiced by Rob Paulsen)
		- Blue Alien (performed by Judy Sladky)
* Bugle Bunny (appears in "Jack Bunny"; puppeteered by Matt Vogel and voiced by Billy West)
* Phil the Coo-Coo Bird (appears in the episode of the same name; puppeteered by Eric Jacobson and voiced by Chris Rock)
* Scat Cat (appears in the episode of the same name; puppeteered by Kevin Clash and voiced by Eartha Kitt, with vocal effects by Tress MacNeille)
* Gertrude the groundhog (appears in "Groundhog Day"; performed by Stephanie D'Abruzzo)
* Little gollie dog (appears in "Jack's Super Swell Sing-along"; puppeteered by John Tartaglia and voiced by Frank Welker)
* Little Lamb (appears in "Jack's Super Swell Sing-along"; performed by Jennifer Barnhart)
* M.C. Turtle (appears in "Jack's Super Swell Sing-along", puppeteered by Tim Lagasse and voiced by Frank Welker)
* Alligators (appear in " Jack's Super Swell Sing-along"; puppeteered by various puppeteers and voiced by Frank Welker)
* Animals (appear in "Laurie's Big Song")
	+ Bird (puppeteered by Stephanie D'Abruzzo and voiced by Kath Soucie)
	+ Sheep (performed by Alice Dinnean)
	+ Monkeys (puppeteered by various puppeteers and voiced by Dee Bradley Baker, Tom Kenny, and Frank Welker)
	+ Elephant (performed by Dan Meers, puppeteered by Brian Henson and voiced by Frank Welker)
* Goose (appears in "Jack and the Beanstalk"; puppeteered by Matt Vogel and voiced by David Rudman)
* Mother Goose (appears in "Jack and the Beanstalk"; puppeteered by Tim Lagasse and voiced by Frank Welker)

## Special Guests

Throughout each episode, a number of celebrities will make an appearance in the show, sometimes playing a character. Those guests are, in order of debut:

* Cathy Richardson
* Anne Harris (plays Prudence the Music Genie; appears in "The Music Genie", "Snow Day", and "Jack Bunny.")
* Don Adams (plays Crazy Clarence of Musical News; appears in "The Bongo Bird." This was his final performance as a character before his death.)
* Tracey Ellert (plays Dancy Nancy; appears in "Mel's Super Swell Dance Party.")
* Richard Simmons
* Red Fraggle (performed by Karen Prell)
* Yolanda Adams
* Rick Moranis (plays Plant Store Owner; appears in "Grow Daddio")
* Oscar the Grouch (puppeteered by Eric Jacobson and voiced by Caroll Spinney)
* Buddy Guy (plays the King of Swing; appears in the episode of the same name)
* Andrew Bird (plays Dr. Stringz; appears in "Jack's Big... OOPS!")
* John Stewart (plays Brunk Stinegrouber, Groundhog News Network; appears in "Groundhog Day.")
* Rebekah Jordan
* Justin Roberts
* Elizabeth Daily (plays Susdy Bubblestein; appears in "Mel's Bath Day.")
* Samuel E. Wright (plays the Giant; appears in "Jack and the Beanstalk.")

## Credits

* **Puppeteers:** Pam Arciero, Anthony Asbury, Heather Asch, Don Austen, Jennifer Barnhart, Bill Barretta, Cheryl Blaylock, Wim Booth, Fran Brill, Leslie Carrara-Rudolph, Kevin Clash, Frankie Cordero, Stephanie D'Abruzzo, Jessica DiCicco, Alice Dinnean Vernon, Todd Doldersum, John Eccleston, Brian and Lisa Henson, Brian Herring, Eric Jacobson, Mark Jefferis, Stephanie Johnson, John Kennedy, Jim Kroupa, Tim Lagasse, Bruce Lanoil, Peter Linz, Rick Lyon, Noel MacNeal, Joey Mazzarino, Dan Meers, Rebecca Nagan, Karen Prell, Gillie Robic, Brook Jenell Slack, Judy Sladky, John Tartaglia, Vicki Veenstra, Matt Vogel, Myf Warhurst, Megan Washington, Melanie Zanetti
* **Voice Talent:** Carlos Alazraqui, Dee Bradley Baker, Tom Kenny, Eartha Kitt, Maurice LaMarche, Mr. Lawrence, Willy Michaels, Tress MacNeille, Jerry Nelson, Fred Newman, Rob Paulsen, Burt Reynolds, Chris Rock, David Rudman, Kath Soucie, Caroll Spinney, Billy West
* **Schwartzman Quartet Singers:** Robert Bowker, Danny Cooksey, Greg Ferguson, Paul Langford, Jeffery W. Morrow, John Negus, Jerry Nelson, Johnny N. Rutlege
* **Dog Gone Singers:** Christopher Cerf, Lena Hall, Jess Harnell, Jerry Nelson, Ozzy Osbourne
* **Jack's Mom:** Kathryn Mullen
* **Special Vocal Effects:** Frank Welker
* **Director:** Kathryn Mullen
* **Music Composition and Arrangement:** Ed Welch
* **Songwriters:** Laurie Berkner, Christopher Cerf, Jerry Nelson, Ozzy Osbourne, Ed Welch
* **Director of Photograpgy:** Mark Kluiszo
* **Executive Producers/Showrunners:** Lisa Henson, Willy Michaels (season 2), Jerry Nelson
* **Co-executive Producers:** Kevin Clash, Michael K. Frith, Brian Henson, Rick Moranis, Kathryn Mullen, Adam Rudman, David Rudman
* **Editors:** Ed Pickart, Maeve Price
* **Puppet Design & Construction:** Pam Arciero, Cheryl Blaylock, Kevin Clash, Michael K. Frith, Rollie Krewson, Jim Kroupa, Tim Lagasse, Joey Mazzarino, Willy Michaels, Kathryn Mullen, Adam Rudman, David Rudman
* **Casting:** Kathryn Mullen and Jerry Nelson
* **Additional Casting:** Charlie Adler, Hank Azaria, Collette Sunderman and Kris Zimmerman
* **Performance & Voice Recording Director:** Kermit Love
* **Executives in Charge of Production:** Ralph Bakshi and Jane Henson