Weston Long - I have been a Muppet fanatic and collector for all of my life, but unfortunately when I was a young, stupid child I managed to give away or sell some of my coolest items simply for having some extra cash in my pocket or the fact that they take up too much room (Four-foot-tall Kermit and Piggy, I hardly knew ye). However, these items I am about to show you have stood the test of time. Most of these are Sesame Street items. I was an avid Sesame Street fan when I was young, with my favorite character being Big Bird. This led to an exchange of letters and then a very close friendship with Caroll Spinney. I am very lucky to know him. Because of this, the basis of my collection is Bird or Sesame-based.
Photo 1 (DVDs): Here is my DVD collection, with a few glaring absences. What I have here though is TMS seasons 1 and 2, The Muppet Movie, The Muppets Take Manhattan, A Muppet Christmas Carol, Muppet Treasure Island, Muppets from Space, both DVD releases of It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie, Henson's Place, both DVD releases of Follow that Bird (signed by Caroll Spinney), A Special Sesame Street Christmas, Elmo's Christmas Countdown, Christmas Eve on Sesame Street, A Sesame Street Musical Celebration (signed by Caroll Spinney), Sesame Street Old School Volume 1 (signed by Caroll Spinney), Sesame Street 20 Years and Counting, Sesame Street 40 Years of Sunny Days, Elmo Saves Christmas, Friends to the Rescue (signed by Caroll Spinney), and A Sesame Street Christmas Carol. I lent my copies of Being Elmo and The Muppets to my friend 11 months ago and never got them back... I should replace them at this point.
Photo 2 (Books): My book collection is largely Sesame Street. Here I have Big Bird's Baby Book (signed by Caroll Spinney), My Day on Sesame Street (signed by Caroll Spinney), I Can't Wait Until Christmas (signed by Caroll Spinney), Big Bird's Ticklish Christmas (signed by Caroll Spinney), It's Not Easy Being Green, I'll Miss You Mr. Hooper (signed by Caroll Spinney), Susan and Gordon Adopt a Baby, Sesame Street Unpaved (signed by Caroll Spinney), The Sesame Street Dictionary (signed by Caroll Spinney), Miss Piggy's Guide to Life, Christmas Eve on Sesame Street (signed by Caroll Spinney), Who Was Jim Henson?, Jim Henson The Works, My Life as a Furry Red Monster, Street Gang(signed by Caroll Spinney and Michael Davis) , Street Gang audio-book, The Wisdom of Big Bird (signed by Caroll Spinney), Sesame Street: A Celebration of 40 Years of Life on the Street (signed by Caroll Spinney, Kevin Clash, David Rudman, Leslie Carrara, Joey Mazzarino, Carmen Osbahr, Emilio Delgado, Nitya Vidyasagar, and others), and Big Bird in China.
Photo 3 (Magazines): Here are two magazines that I like very much. The first one is a 2011 Yankee Magazine with a nice piece about Caroll Spinney, and the second is a 1970 TIME Magazine with Big Bird on the cover, signed by Caroll Spinney.
Photo 4 (Feather): A really cool addition to my collection (forever immortalized in a handmade childhood scrapbook, a la Big Bird Sings!) is a feather from the Big Bird puppet. It's old and has begun to shed, but I am still happy I have it.
Photo 5 (Frame, CD, tie): Here are some miscellaneous stuff. I have a neat Oscar frame that I have yet to find a nice picture for, The Muppets CD (I had many more CDs besides this one, but alas they have been lost to history), and a Sesame Street tie that I wore to my preschool graduation. I bawled when I found out that my graduation gown would cover it, so it was sticking out of my gown during the ceremony.
Photo 6 (Star Wars): Here is one of my few remaining "toys." My cousin went on a trip to Disney World and was kind enough to bring this back for me. I am forever indebted, as it is really freaking awesome.
Photo 7 (Suitcases): The majority of my Caroll Spinney memorabilia is stored in these two nifty suitcases that I have had since childhood. Both are signed.
That's my collection! I hope you have enjoyed it!
The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, muppetmindset@gmail.com