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Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas is a 1977 Christmas special created by Jim Henson, based on a book by Russell and Lillian Hoban. The special originally aired on HBO.
While it uses Muppets, it does not feature any of the major Muppet characters except for Kermit the Frog, who introduces the story. (Due to legal issues, he does not show up in all releases, particularly the Hit Entertainment DVD; in some releases, he also shows up toward the end, and in certain edited releases he narrates to replace trimmed parts of the story.) It features songs composed by Paul Williams and performed by veteran voice talents Jerry Nelson (Emmet), Marilyn Sokol (Ma), and Frank Oz (Chuck).
A recent 2005 release of the DVD leaves out Kermit, but adds a lengthy 'making of' video. With 2005 interviews with Paul Williams, Marilyn Sokol, Jerry Nelson, and Jim Henson's daughter, it adds more detail to the songs and the back story. It includes a 'bloopers' section as well.
The story
The story tells of Emmet Otter and his Ma, a widow who scrapes by on the small amount of money she gets from doing laundry and that Emmet gets from doing odd jobs around their home of Frogtown Hollow. As Christmas approaches, they hear of a talent contest in the nearby town of Waterville, and separately decide to enter to buy nice presents for each other -- a nice guitar for Emmet, or a piano for Ma. However, in a twist on The Gift of the Magi, they must sacrifice each other's livelihood for the talent contest -- Ma hocks Emmet's tools for dress fabric, while Emmet turns Ma's washtub into a washtub bass for a jug band.
Emmet and Ma each do an excellent job, only to be defeated at the last minute by a rock and roll band called The Nightmare, which is comprised of a hoodlum gang from the fairly distant town of River Bottom. However, as Ma and Emmet's jug band sing a song together on the way home, they are overheard by Doc Bullfrog, owner of a local restaurant, who hires them to sing for his customers, thus granting them the bigger prize.
External links
"Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas"