Latest news with #Muppets
Geek Tyrant
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Geek Tyrant
Kermit the Frog Delivers Heartfelt and Inspiring Commencement Speech at University of Maryland — GeekTyrant
Kermit the Frog took the stage at the University of Maryland's 2025 commencement ceremony and gave the graduating class a moment to remember, one that was as heartfelt and inspiring. With that familiar green face and humble wisdom, Kermit reminded the grads that life, like The Muppet Show , is best when shared with the people who truly get you. Why did Kermit give the commencement speech at Maryland? Jim Henson, Kermit's legendary creator, and his wife Jane were both proud University of Maryland alumni—and fans of the Maryland Terrapins. So for Kermit, this wasn't just another speech. It was a homecoming. Kermit told the students: 'Now there is no guarantee that the show is always good or that it'll go off without a hitch or it doesn't have its hecklers. But the show must go on and if you're with your people then you won't have to do it alone. Because life is not a solo act. 'No it's not. It's a big messy delightful ensemble piece especially when you're with your people. These are friends that you might have for your whole life and there will be many others to collect along the way.' He went on to urge kindness and connection over cutthroat competition: 'So as you prepare to take this big leap into real life here's a little advice if you're willing to listen to a frog. Rather than jumping over someone to get what you want consider reaching out your hand and taking the leap side by side because life is better when we leap together … 'Because if I know anything it's important to stay connected to your loved ones, stay connected to your friends, and most of all stay connected to your dreams. No matter how big, no matter how impossible they seem, the truth is dreams are how we figure out where we want to go.' In an age when so many commencement speeches blur together with corporate jargon and polished clichés, Kermit's words felt personal and sincere. That's the Muppet magic. Underneath the felt and googly eyes is a philosophy that's never gone out of style… community matters, dreams matter, and even in the mess, the show must go on. For a graduating class standing on the edge of uncertainty, it turns out one of the most reassuring voices they could hear wasn't a billionaire or politician, it was a frog reminding them to leap together.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Woman Accused of 'Smacking' Boy Who Called Her 'Fat' at Airport Faces Felony Child Abuse Charges
A woman was arrested and now faces felony child abuse charges after reportedly "smacking" a child on an airplane The child reported called Kristy Crampton "fat" and referred to her as "Miss Piggy" before she allegedly began to hit him "The woman was not correcting the child; she was abusing him,' a witness to the alleged crime said in the police reportKristy Crampton was arrested and charged with felony child abuse after reportedly "smacking" a child on a flight departing Sanford-Orlando International Airport in Sanford, Fla. According to the arrest report from the Sanford Airport Police, which was examined by WFTV, Sanford was detained by police after an alleged outburst that occurred on an Allegiant Airlines flight that was headed for Hagerstown, Md. on Monday, May 26. She reportedly struck out after the child called her "fat" and "Miss Piggy," the latter being a reference to the Muppets character of the same name. In the report, Crampton accused him of being "very rude" and "disrespectful" to her during their time together. She allegedly told police that she took away his phone but resorted to physical violence after he continued to misbehave. According to witnesses, she used her fist and a water bottle to strike the child. Crampton also allegedly "slammed" his head into the window. During the attack, he reportedly attempted to protect himself from her blows by covering his head. "The woman was not correcting the child; she was abusing him," a witness told police. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. On Tuesday, May 27, Crampton was released on a $10,000 bond after a hearing in front of a Seminole County judge. She was reportedly ordered not to reach out to the child for the time being. Per WFTV, the child's family did not provide police with a statement at the time of the arrest. It is not immediately clear how old the boy was or the specifics of his relationship with Crampton. However, the outlet reported that they were part of the same group that was in Florida to visit Disney World. PEOPLE reached out to the Sanford Airport Police and Sanford-Orlando International Airport for additional comment, but they did not immediately respond. If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages. Read the original article on People
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Woman Accused of 'Smacking' Boy Who Called Her 'Fat' at Airport Faces Felony Child Abuse Charges
A woman was arrested and now faces felony child abuse charges after reportedly "smacking" a child on an airplane The child reported called Kristy Crampton "fat" and referred to her as "Miss Piggy" before she allegedly began to hit him "The woman was not correcting the child; she was abusing him,' a witness to the alleged crime said in the police reportKristy Crampton was arrested and charged with felony child abuse after reportedly "smacking" a child on a flight departing Sanford-Orlando International Airport in Sanford, Fla. According to the arrest report from the Sanford Airport Police, which was examined by WFTV, Sanford was detained by police after an alleged outburst that occurred on an Allegiant Airlines flight that was headed for Hagerstown, Md. on Monday, May 26. She reportedly struck out after the child called her "fat" and "Miss Piggy," the latter being a reference to the Muppets character of the same name. In the report, Crampton accused him of being "very rude" and "disrespectful" to her during their time together. She allegedly told police that she took away his phone but resorted to physical violence after he continued to misbehave. According to witnesses, she used her fist and a water bottle to strike the child. Crampton also allegedly "slammed" his head into the window. During the attack, he reportedly attempted to protect himself from her blows by covering his head. "The woman was not correcting the child; she was abusing him," a witness told police. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. On Tuesday, May 27, Crampton was released on a $10,000 bond after a hearing in front of a Seminole County judge. She was reportedly ordered not to reach out to the child for the time being. Per WFTV, the child's family did not provide police with a statement at the time of the arrest. It is not immediately clear how old the boy was or the specifics of his relationship with Crampton. However, the outlet reported that they were part of the same group that was in Florida to visit Disney World. PEOPLE reached out to the Sanford Airport Police and Sanford-Orlando International Airport for additional comment, but they did not immediately respond. If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages. Read the original article on People
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
Female passenger slams boy's head against window after he called her 'fat Miss Piggy' on flight home from Disney
A female plane passenger has been charged with child abuse after attacking a kid who called her 'Miss Piggy' on a flight home from Disney World, according to police. Kristy Crampton was part of a group returning home to Maryland from the resort in Florida on Monday when she was arrested at Sanford-Orlando International Airport. She had been on board the Allegiant Air flight when she is said to have attacked a child that called her 'fat' and referred to her as 'Miss Piggy', the Muppets character. In an arrest report seen by Crampton is said to have started throwing punches at the child just before takeoff after he allegedly said she was too fat to sit in a seat. Witnesses told officers that she punched the unknown boy and then hit him with a water bottle before slamming his head into an airplane window, the report said. It remains unclear at this time what the relationship between Crampton and the boy are. The family declined to provide statements to officers. One witness told cops that the child 'did nothing wrong' and that 'the woman was not correcting, she was abusing [redacted], whipping the s*** out of the kid.' Officers on the scene say they spoke with a Jeffrey Crampton, who informed them that the unknown boy was 'having behavioral issues' on the flight and at Disney. The pilot of the flight, destined for Hagerstown in Maryland, called police onto the flight for help where she was then taken into custody at the gate. When questioned, officers say Crampton told them the child was 'very rude' and 'disrespectful' during their trip to Disney. After the comment about her weight, Crampton told officers that she took the phone of the child away and started 'smacking' him. That was only after the youth shoved her arm of her armrest, she told officers. According to the police report the argument over the phone had started after the boy had refused to download Uber on his phone. The boy had questioned why they needed it on the plane and couldn't wait until they landed which resulted in the argument. Officers said: 'It was determined that Kristy went beyond typical disciplinary actions with multiple strikes to the head as well as pushing [his] head into the window. 'As a result, Kristy was placed under arrest for domestic violence/child abuse. Kristy was transported to the Seminole County Jail and turned over to corrections deputies.' The pilot of the flight, destined for Hagerstown in Maryland, called police onto the flight for help where she was then taken into custody at the gate WFTV reported that was charged with felony child abuse and appeared in Seminole County court on Tuesday where she was released on a $10,000 bond. The outlet said that she was ordered to not have any contact with the child. Due to the incident happening on an aircraft the FBI have been informed and are expected to file their own report on the case.
Times
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Times
Adam Buxton: ‘I met Johnny Cash on the beach and introduced him to my mum'
First film I saw at the cinema Disney's The Rescuers, quite an odd film about a United Nations-style organisation run by mice, who go on a mission to rescue a human girl kidnapped in the bayou. I remember an incredibly exciting boat chase involving a dragonfly. First cinema event Star Wars. We were living in south Wales, but my mum drove us all the way to London to see it. I remember stumbling out, dazed, desperate to buy merch. My mum bought me the soundtrack on cassette, and I was initially gutted that it was just the music and not the actors' voices too. First TV obsession I remember being so excited about The Muppet Show. In a pre-VCR age, I wanted a record of it. Borrowing my dad's Dictaphone [he was a travel journalist], I would lie right in front of the TV, recording as close to the speaker as I could. I would shush anyone who came in: 'No talking during the Muppets!' I liked Gonzo best, because he was hapless but funny. First single I owned Kraftwerk's The Model. When I was nine, I was shipped off to boarding school. On Thursdays, seniors were allowed to stay up to watch Top of the Pops. With few exceptions, I loved it all, but particularly synth-pop, so, Gary Numan, Landscape, who had a hit with Einstein a Go-Go, Ultravox and Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark. First concert I went to My first memory of live music was seeing a reggae band in Jamaica or Barbados during one of my dad's travel trips. It wasn't a tourist gig but something we had been taken to by a local PR. I was quite young and found it gut-quakingly loud. My dad asked the PR if they could ask the band to turn the music down. She laughed, then realised he was serious. The first band I saw for myself was Prefab Sprout at the Hammersmith Palais, along with my comedy wife Joe Cornish [the screenwriter and director]. • Joe Cornish: 'I turned down every franchise out there' Buxton met Johnny Cash on holiday as a child JACK VARTOOGIAN/GETTY IMAGES First famous person I met Possibly on that same Caribbean trip, while playing in the sea I got talking to a man with a boy about the same age as me. This dad, who was nice and gentle, asked me what I liked doing. I said: 'Drawing robots and watching TV.' The boy liked TV too. 'Come and meet my mum,' I said. Afterwards she said: 'Do you know who that was? He's very famous. He's called Johnny Cash.' First break While at art school, I sent a videotape into a Channel 4 public access show called Takeover TV. I'd recorded a comedy song over a Velvet Underground instrumental about a pretentious performance artist called Randy Tartt. The guy who ran the production company, Fenton Bailey, loved the video, and also felt it was a sign that he had a partner called Randy and a band called The Fabulous Pop Tarts. That led to The Adam and Joe Show. First podcast I enjoyed We took over from the Ricky Gervais show on XFM when he and Stephen Merchant went off to film the second series of The Office. They already had a hit podcast of that show, so we were offered that option too. I was quite insecure and soon discovered it was nice to have the opportunity to craft something, rather than just stumbling live on air. First moment I felt I'd made it A recent notch was having Paul McCartney on The Adam Buxton Podcast. In the days when it was less offensive to do so, I used to joke that my Native American name would have to be Stumbles at Hurdles, because at any point in my career when the pressure was on, I'd f*** it up. I was nervous McCartney would be another one of those challenges. But I think it was really good, and people liked it. I Love You, Byeee by Adam Buxton is out now (Mudlark £22 pp320). To order a copy go to Free UK standard P&P on orders over £25. Special discount available for Times+ members
