Kermit D. Frog was a seasoned veteren of the television business, having appeared on several variety shows through the fifties and sixties before landing a gig as the reporter on "Sesame Street News Flash" and a creative consultant for the show. Kermit was the level head that kept some of the crazier antics in check and is credited for much of "Street"'s early success. But he felt unfulfilled on "Sesame Street" and dreamed of creating a new variety show that would appeal to both children and adults alike, and feature Muppets almost exclusively.

There was a palpable buzz on the Sesame Street set in 1976 as rumours floated around about who might be chosen to star in the new show. "It kind of created a lot of tension," says Grover. "Bert wanted to go, but Ernie's first love was 'Sesame' and he had no intentions of leaving. Cookie did not care as long as he was being well-fed, and others like the Count and Forgetful Jones knew their chances were pretty slim." It was no secret where Grover wanted to be though: he felt he had earned his stripes through 7 years of "Sesame Street" and was ready for bigger and better things. "It is not that I do not love the little children," said Grover at the time, "but an artist has got to grow or he dies."

But what Grover & the rest of the "Street" players couldn't have seen coming was that Kermit was going to get an all-new cast for the show: all-new, that is, except for himself, who would be the star and host. "It hurt," says Grover. "It hurt a lot. Hell, it still hurts. We had all proved out mettle and here was that high-and-mighty frog deciding none of us were good enough for his new little project. I had to read the cast list for 'The Muppet Show' 3 times before I could believe it." The worst sting of all for Grover was that his old buddy from the sixties, Fozzie Bear, had been given a plumb spot on the show, a stand-up routine, and didn't even call to tell him. To his shock, he also found his calls to Fozzie went unreturned. "I used to share my last scrap of bread with that bear, and now that he was hob-knobbing with the likes of John Denver and Vincent Price he was too good for his old pal Grover. And he was not even that funny!"

"The Muppet Show" was to go on to become hugely popular throughout the world and catapult Kermit as well as previous unknowns such as Miss Piggy and Gonzo into the public spotlight. This sent Grover into a downward spiral of booze, pills and self-pity. "Every night after wrapping on 'Street' Ernie and I would hit the local bar for Shirley Temples and ice cream. What Ernie did not realize was that my Shirley Temples were spiked with whiskey and I was chasing that ice cream with barbituates. And when he went home, I stayed out- sometimes all night."