The Muppet Movie a Florida swamp, strumming his banjo and singing "The Rainbow Connection", when he is approached by a Hollywood talent agent named Bernie (Dom DeLuise) who encourages Kermit to pursue a career in show business. Inspired by the idea of "making millions of people happy", Kermit sets off on a cross-country trip to Los Angeles, but is soon pursued by entrepreneur Doc Hopper (Charles Durning) and his shy assistant Max (Austin Pendleton) in an attempt to convince Kermit to be the new spokesman of Hopper's struggling French-fried frog legs restaurant franchise, to Kermit's disgust. As Kermit continuously declines his offers, Hopper
The Muppet Movie resorts to increasingly vicious means of persuasion. Meeting Fozzie Bear, who works as a hapless comedian in the El Sleezo Cafe, Kermit invites Fozzie to accompany him. The two set out in a 1951 Studebaker loaned to Fozzie by his hibernating uncle. The duo's journey includes misadventures which introduce them to a variety of eccentric human and Muppet characters, including Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem and their manager Scooter, who receives a copy of the script from the pair (one of a number of self-references) at an old Presbyterian church; Gonzo, who works as a plumber, and his girlfriend