History Creator / FrankOz

* He voiced Fungus in ''WesternAnimation/MonstersInc'' and Subconscious Guard Dave in ''WesternAnimation/InsideOut'' and ''WesternAnimation/InsideOut2''.

* He voiced Fungus in ''WesternAnimation/MonstersInc'' and Subconscious Guard Dave in ''WesternAnimation/InsideOut''.

* LargeHam: He tends to ham up the performance of many of his Muppet characters, and [[JustForPun not just Miss Piggy]], but Fozzie Bear, Animal, Sam the Eagle, Bert, Grover and Cookie Monster all have had ''many'' hammy moments.

Frank Oz (born Frank Richard Oznowicz; May 25, 1944) is an American film director, actor, voice actor and puppeteer born in Hereford, England. Next to Creator/JimHenson, Oz is considered one of the greatest puppeteers in modern history, and was instrumental in the development of Henson's [[Franchise/TheMuppets Muppets]], especially when it came to their comedic style.

After moving to America with his family as a child, Oz grew up surrounded by puppetry. His parents were both puppeteers (his father Mike Oznowicz even served a term as the president of Puppeteers of America), and he performed in puppet shows as a teen at the Children's Fairyland amusement park in UsefulNotes/{{Oakland}}. After befriending Henson, Oz became one of the original Creator/MuppetPerformers in 1963 (he retired from regular Muppet performing in 2001, but continued to perform on an annual basis until 2012).

After moving to America with his family as a child, he grew up surrounded by puppetry. His parents were both puppeteers (his father Mike Oznowicz even served a term as the president of Puppeteers of America), and he performed in puppet shows as a teen at the Children's Fairyland amusement park in UsefulNotes/{{Oakland}}. After befriending Jim Henson he became one of the original Creator/MuppetPerformers in 1963 and is still technically involved with the organization (though he retired from regular performing in 2001).

He is most famous for his puppetry and voice work in ''Franchise/TheMuppets'' and ''Series/SesameStreet'', and as [[Characters/StarWarsYoda Yoda]] in the ''Franchise/StarWars'' franchise. He has also had success as a film director.

* He played Yoda in the ''Franchise/StarWars'' films, puppeteering him in ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'', ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'' and ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'' [[note]]it was replaced by a CGI Yoda in later home video releases[[/note]] and voicing him in ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'' and ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith''. He also had a vocal cameo in ''Film/TheForceAwakens''. He reprised the role in ''Film/TheLastJedi'', in which Yoda is a puppet again, and had another voice cameo in ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker''.
* He's had small roles in a bunch of Creator/JohnLandis movies. In ''Film/TheBluesBrothers'', he's the prison guard in charge of the prisoner's personal effects; in ''Film/BluesBrothers2000'' he plays a prison warden who is presumably the same character. He's a representative from the US Embassy in ''Film/AnAmericanWerewolfInLondon'', a corrupt cop in ''Film/TradingPlaces'', a test monitor in ''Film/SpiesLikeUs'', and a pathologist in ''Film/InnocentBlood''. Landis in turn plays a theatrical producer in ''Film/TheMuppetsTakeManhattan''.
* He's the lawyer of a BigScrewedUpFamily fighting over their patriarch's heritage in Creator/RianJohnson's ''Film/KnivesOut''.
* He co-directed ''Film/TheDarkCrystal'' along with Creator/JimHenson and performed two characters, Aughra and the Chamberlain (he didn't voice either of them, however).

* Films he directed, in chronological order:

* He performed Grover, Bert, Cookie Monster and many other characters on ''Series/SesameStreet'' from 1969 until 2001, when he stopped being a full-time performer so he could focus on his directing career. Bert and Grover are now performed by Eric Jacobson, and Cookie Monster is performed by David Rudman. Until about 2012, he would return to perform them in some miscellaneous sketches.
* He originated the roles of Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, Sam the Eagle and Marvin Suggs on ''Series/TheMuppetShow'', and performed them in numerous other Muppet productions until 2000, when he left to focus on his career as a director. His characters are now played by Eric Jacobson.

* He voiced Fungus in ''WesternAnimation/MonstersInc'' and Subconscious Guard Dave in ''WesternAnimation/InsideOut''.

* LargeHam: He tends to ham up the performance of many of his Muppet characters, and [[JustForPun not just Miss Piggy]], but Fozzie Bear, Animal, Sam the Eagle, Bert, Grover and Cookie Monster all have had ''many'' hammy moments.

* ThoseTwoGuys: Arguably, with Jim Henson. Whether it was as Ernie and Bert, Kermit and Miss Piggy, or Kermit and Fozzie, Henson and Oz provided the Muppet legacy with some of their funniest moments of all-time.