George the Janitor

George the Janitor is the crotchety old custodian of The Muppet Theatre whose most prominent appearances were on the first season of The Muppet Show.

George appeared in The Muppets Valentine Show, the 1974 pilot for The Muppet Show. In the special, George grumbles as he cleans up after the Muppets, who are trying to define "love". George insists that he doesn't "go for that valentines and love stuff," but guest star Mia Farrow realizes that George does love something -- his mop. "Aw, that's crazy," George says. "I don't love this mop. It's a good mop... it's useful. It's... cute." In the end, George proudly proclaims his love for his mop.

On The Muppet Show, George was primarily featured in the backstage plots, but he made occasional onstage appearances, most frequently in "At the Dance" sketches, where he danced almost exclusively with Mildred Huxtetter. George was credited with discovering an act called the Raggmopps, a group of singing and dancing mops who performed "Rag Mop" in episode 111. George approvingly referred to the group as "my kinda act."

In episode 106, George revealed that he had been working at the Muppet Theater since before J. P. Grosse owned it, perhaps implying that he is the theater's oldest employee.

In the second season of The Muppet Show, George made a handful of background appearances, most notably in "Cigarettes and Whiskey" in episode 219 and "For What It's Worth" in episode 221. However, he was no longer seen backstage as the janitor. By the third season, George had been replaced entirely by Beauregard, the theater's new resident janitor.

Although George made no further appearances on The Muppet Show, he continued to appear in the show's opening sequences throughout its run, and made cameos in several Muppet movies, including The Muppet Christmas Carol, where he was again portrayed by Frank Oz (using a slightly different voice) in the song about Ebenezer Scrooge. Like J. P. Grosse and other Muppet Show alums, George's identity had become increasingly transient at this point, functioning more as a utility puppet than a distinct character.

George appeared in the premiere of Muppets Tonight as Benjamin Franklin, with a different voice. However, in the next episode, for George's final appearance to date, he returned to his custodial roots, as he was shown sweeping the KMUP studio.

George returns in the background of the first issue of the Muppet Show Comic Book, where he and Beauregard give each other a surprised stare, referencing the fact that both first appeared 2 years apart from each other. He also pops up in Issue 4, when Madame Rhonda reads his palm.

Filmography

 * The Muppets Valentine Show
 * The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence
 * Des O'Connor Entertains
 * The Muppet Show
 * "The Muppet Show Theme" (Seasons 2 - 5)
 * Episode 101: Juliet Prowse (At the Dance)
 * Episode 102: Connie Stevens (At the Dance)
 * Episode 103: Joel Grey
 * Episode 104: Ruth Buzzi
 * Episode 105: Rita Moreno
 * Episode 106: Jim Nabors
 * Episode 107: Florence Henderson
 * Episode 108: Paul Williams (At the Dance, "Sad Song")
 * Episode 109: Charles Aznavour
 * Episode 110: Harvey Korman (At the Dance)
 * Episode 111: Lena Horne ("I Got a Name," At the Dance)
 * Episode 112: Peter Ustinov ("(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song")
 * Episode 113: Bruce Forsyth (At the Dance)
 * Episode 114: Sandy Duncan ("Try to Remember")
 * Episode 115: Candice Bergen (At the Dance)
 * Episode 116: Avery Schreiber
 * Episode 117: Ben Vereen ("Mr. Cellophane," Veterinarian's Hospital)
 * Episode 118: Phyllis Diller
 * Episode 119: Vincent Price (At the Dance)
 * Episode 120: Valerie Harper
 * Episode 121: Twiggy
 * Episode 122: Ethel Merman
 * Episode 123: Kaye Ballard
 * Episode 124: Mummenschanz (At the Dance)
 * Episode 208: Steve Martin
 * Episode 219: Peter Sellers ("Cigarettes and Whiskey")
 * Episode 220: Petula Clark (At the Dance)
 * Episode 221: Bob Hope ("For What It's Worth")
 * Episode 308: Loretta Lynn (The opening credits)
 * The Muppet Movie ("The Rainbow Connection" Finale)
 * The Muppets Take Manhattan (Wedding Finale)
 * The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years
 * The Muppet Christmas Carol
 * Muppet Treasure Island
 * Muppets Tonight
 * Episode 101: Michelle Pfeiffer
 * Episode 102: Garth Brooks

Book appearances

 * The Muppet Show Annual 1977
 * The Muppet Show Book
 * The Muppet Show Comic Book
 * Issue #1 - "Kermit's Story"
 * Issue #4 - "Miss Piggy's Story"
 * Muppet Robin Hood issue #3
 * The Muppets Character Encyclopedia