U basketball star Luke Nevill has reportedly been missing for four days since the 7-foot-1 center discovered his twin brother from whom he was separated at birth.
Through a DNA test last week, renowned U scientist and Nobel laureate Mario Capecchi confirmed that Beaker from Jim Henson’s Muppets is indeed Nevill’s identical twin.
“The DNA match was conclusive,” Capecchi said.
A source close to Beaker said he is relieved by the news.
Nevill was last seen in his room by teammate Luka Drca, who dropped by his apartment Friday afternoon.
“He had some bags all packed and laid out in his room,” Drca said. “I thought he was just going back to Australia or something — he wouldn’t say. I think he’s taking this Beaker thing pretty tough, though.”
Nevill’s family members in Perth, Australia, have not heard from him and said he hasn’t returned numerous calls.
“I hope he knows that we still love him, and we didn’t mean for him to find out about Beaker that way,” said Nevill’s father, Peter, who is made of foam like both of his sons.
Nevill recently wrapped up another season as one of the Mountain West Conference’s elite players. Last week, the MWC second-teamer made an appearance on the talk show “Maury” under the impression that the host, Maury Povich, would be talking about basketball.
Instead, Povich — who is famous for determining the fathers of illegitimate babies with paternity tests — broke the DNA results to Nevill.
“Luke took it harder than most of my guests on this show do,” Povich later told The Daily Utah Chronicle. “I mean, it’s not every day you find out you’re related to a Muppet. I hope he’s safe and they find him soon.”
The moment Povich revealed the shocking test results, the doors on the set opened behind Nevill, and Beaker walked out to take his seat next to Nevill.
The basketball star looked perplexed as he stared at his long-lost twin and then turned to Povich.
“What the (expletive) is this?” Nevill said. “He’s a (expletive) puppet!”
“Actually, Luke, they prefer not to be called that,” Maury responded. “The correct term is ‘Muppet.’ Beaker has feelings, too.”
Beaker nodded his head in approval and uttered a few unintelligible “meeps.”
Nevill’s eyes welled up with tears, and he promptly stormed off the stage, tossing his chair and his 2-foot-1 brother into the studio audience.
It remains to be determined whether Nevill’s disappearance is connected with the news that he is the first human to be genetically related to a Muppet.
Beaker’s longtime lab assistant, Bunsen Honeydew, promised to begin solving the Nevill family’s genetic anomaly immediately.
“I didn’t think it was physically possible,” Honeydew said. “I have invented the gorilla detector and the electric banana sharpener, but this will certainly be a challenge.”
The rest of the Muppet community has made repeated efforts to reach out to the big Australian.
“Hm. Weird,” said Kermit the Frog upon hearing the news. “Regardless, we welcome Luke to the family. I’m sure he’ll be heaps of fun on our road trips.”
Warning: This article should only be read in the context of April Fool’s Day.
Maury PobichUte fans have not seen basketball star Luke Nevill since his appearance on Maury. During the show it was reviled to Nevill that Beaker from the Muppets was his twin brother.