Well, the sea of change is upon us, and we have some great news. As it seems Muppets performer Matt Vogel has been selected to replace Steve Whitmire (a former Kermit voice who is retiring after 27 years), as we managed to find out thanks to Muppets fan site Tough Pigs and the Hollywood Reporter.
Those who are a die-hard fan of the Muppets know that Whitmire took on the role in 1990 after Muppets creator Jim Henson died, and now, after 27 years, a new voice will be representing everyone’s favorite green frog and that honor will go to Matt Vogel. Vogel’s first official appearance as Kermit will be next week in a video called “Muppets Thought of the Week.” According to Kansas City puppeteer Paul Mesner, the first role that Vogel had was the role of Victor Frankenstein in Paul Mesner Puppets’ “Frankenstein” in 1993. Mesner stated that Vogel is “a great guy,” and added, “He left Kansas City several months after “Frankenstein” for New York. I tried to coax him to stay. He was a great performer then and would have been a great asset to our company, but he was determined and focused”.
This is, of course, a natural next step for Vogel since he is one of those kids who grew up watching “Sesame Street” and “The Muppet Show.” Sometime in the 9th grade, he started acting classes at Kansas City’s Theatre for Young America, and after that, he moved to St. Louis where he attended Webster University’s Conservatory of Theatre Arts. Vogel had some other gigs after coming to NY, and they included a role as the Coca-Cola polar bear, the Count on “Sesame Street” and several Muppet characters, including Sgt. Floyd Pepper, Robin the Frog, Lew Zealand, Crazy Harry, Uncle Deadly, Pops, Dr. Julius Strangepork, and Camilla.
After some poking around Vogel’s official Facebook page, we manage to find some interesting images that feature celebrities like Ricky Gervais, Dave Matthews, Seth Meyers and others but there is also info that says that Vogel is currently living just outside NY with his wife and five children. Well, good luck to Vogel and let him be as best Kermit as Whitmire was if not even better.
