Rizzo the Rat "Midnight Cowboy". Steve Whitmire created the character, based on rats he had previously made out of bottles. Rizzo first appeared in episode 418 of "The Muppet Show", as one of many rats following Christopher Reeve backstage. He can be seen mugging and reacting to practically every line of dialogue. He remained a scene-stealing background figure through the final season, occasionally performing with Dr. Teeth and The Electric Mayhem. By the time of "The Muppets Christmas Carol", Whitmire had been performing Rizzo for around 12 years. After the series, he appeared in "The Great Muppet Caper" as a bellboy in a
Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show and Cummings played and sang a few songs, Francis hopped up and danced on the mogul's desk. This meeting secured the band their first record deal. Subsequently, the band went on to international success over the next twelve years, with Haffkine as the group's manager, as well as producer of all the Dr. Hook recordings. Silverstein and Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show became a great combination. Haffkine, having a knack for picking songs, quickly became Dr. Hook’s #1 A&R man, as well as their producer and manager. Silverstein wrote all the songs for their self-titled debut album, released in