Bette Midler Plays Mother Earth & Robin Williams Reps The Crappy Consumers
The Earth Day Special aired on ABC on April 22, 1990. Sponsored by Time Warner, the two-hour special featured an all-star cast addressing concerns about global warming, deforestation, and other environmental ills. The episodic narrative, consisting of several individual skits threaded together, focused on an ailing Mother Earth (played by Bette Midler), who falls from the sky and faints, and is rushed to the hospital (attended by Neil Patrick Harris as Doogie Howser, James Brolin, and Dana Delany). Several cut-aways are made to famous fictional characters watching events unfold, and discussing what can be done to save the planet.
One such skit featured the Muppets; Kermit the Frog and Robin, surrounded by other frogs and animals in a devastated swamp, watch the broadcast and discuss how the polluting ways of mankind harm animal life and lead to extinction. Puppeteers included Jim Henson (Kermit), Jerry Nelson (Robin), Dave Goelz (as an elderly frog), Kevin Clash (as an alligator), and David Rudman (as an iguana). The segment was personally directed by Jim Henson and written by Jerry Juhl and Bill Prady.
In 1990 Warner made an awesome TV movie all about saving our Earth. Not only was everyone from the Warner world who was famous at the time but it also showed us our favorite characters continuing the act; like how Doc Brown helps save the day and Doogie Howser is Mother Earth’s doctor. It has like everyone in it…
Robin Williams, Bette Midler, Danny DeVito, Rhea Perlman, Dan Aykroyd, Cheers cast, Candice Bergen as Murphy Brown, Mayim Bialik, Jonathan Brandis, Chevy Chase, Bill Cosby, Kevin Costner, Rodney Dangerfield, Geena Davis, The Bundys and Marcy, Jane Fonda, Morgan Freeman, Neil Patrick Harris as Doogie, Dustin Hoffman, Dom Irrera, Carl Sagan, Michael Keaton, Jack Lemmon, Alex Trebek, Christopher Lloyd as Doc Brown, Rick Moranis, Ed O’Neill, Edward James Olmos, Harold Ramis as Egon, Dennis Miller, Pat Riley, Downtown Julie Brown, Magic Johnson, Meryl Streep, The Cosby’s, The Golden Girls, Michael Douglas, Jim Henson by way of Kermit the Frog and then Jeff Bergman on Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig, Tweety too. Plus Melody by Heavy D, Isaac Hayes, Ice-T, Kid ‘n Play, Queen Latifah, Tone L?c, Fresh Prince, Barbra Streisand, Donna Summer. I left some people out.
