Topless Robot reveals an octet of Jim Henson’s best supporting Muppets (many of whom have been retired to the big Sesame Street in the sky). Today’s tame iterations of Oscar the Grouch and Cookie Monster are no match for fourth-place holder “Lefty,” a shady, trenchcoat-sporting dealer of numbers and letters, seen here trying to sell Ernie an 8 (clearly a gateway number):

Their number one pick bears a striking resemblance to my favorite supporting cast member of another classic show. Statler and Waldorf, move aside, Henson’s funky teacher Roosevelt Franklin is the best of the crop. And he seems to have inspired Franklin, Arrested Development’s recurring puppet guest star. Check out the following clips and bear witness to the progress made in televised race relations through puppeteering:

Sing it, Franklins!