The crew on Stage 9 at Babelsberg Studio, near Berlin, erupted in a din of professional efficacy, preparing for the next shot, while Hanks returned to his chair to sip coffee from an NPR cup.
Some, including his Muppets and Fraggles, appeared in both television shows and movies, among them the 1984 film "The Muppets Take Manhattan, " which depicted the fuzzy crew striving to stage a Broadway musical.