Video of the Week - Buddy Rich vs. Animal Drum Battle Royale

When I was a kid I used to watch reruns of The Muppet Show religiously. For me this show was like watching a G-Rated version of Saturday Night Live, except often times the special guests were just as good as their late night counterparts at 30 Rockefeller Center. Especially the musical guests, which included legends like Shirley Bassey, Paul Simon, Debbie Harry, Loretta Lynn, Johnny Cash, Dizzy Gillespie, Elton John and Diana Ross.

While doing a little YouTube searching for old Muppet Show clips, I came across this little gem featuring a drum battle between Animal the Muppet and Buddy Rich (perhaps the greatest jazz drummer ever). The clip definitely reminds me of all the fun times I had watching The Muppet Show and also illustrates how talented Jim Henson and his puppet artists were at creating compelling kids' TV programming. I also wonder if anything this good is being made for kids today or if kids would even like something like this. My assumption is that The Muppet Show would be dismissed by today's TV executives for not being easily digestible for its target audience. All I know is that when I have kids I am definitely going to buy The Muppet Show DVD's so they can see what great kids' entertainment used to look like.