Comments on: Jim Henson

Jim Henson

puny human — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 19:47:35 -0800

The World of Jim Henson: 1 :: 2 :: 3 :: 4 :: 5 :: 6 :: 7 :: 8 :: 9 :: "An excellent biography of the Muppet master, this 85-minute film from the PBS show Great Performances mixes the history of Henson's projects with plenty of sketches that any fan age 6 and older should enjoy. The film shows the incredible range of Henson's creations, starting in 1955 with "Sam and Friends" then moving on to Sesame Street, The Muppet Show, Fraggle Rock, and beyond. It illustrates the breadth of his genius, from creating entirely new worlds in film (The Dark Crystal) to pithy '60s TV commercials that achieved branding and a laugh in less than six seconds. There's footage that most fans haven't seen in years, or at all: a regular bit from The Jimmy Dean Show; tantalizing bits of his 1965 Oscar-nominated short, Time Piece; appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show and The Tonight Show; his explanation of Wall Street on Nightline; and Miss Piggy's hilarious deconstruction of Morley Safer on 60 Minutes."

By: zarq

zarq — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 19:48:03 -0800

Well, there goes my evening. :) Thanks!

By: Melismata

Melismata — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 19:58:34 -0800

What zarq said.

By: smirkette

smirkette — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 20:00:43 -0800

*schmoopy nerd alert* Jim Henson always makes me think of the Peter S. Beagle quote from his foreward to LotR: "We are raised to honor all the wrong explorers and discoverers--thieves planting flags, murderers carrying crosses. Let us at last praise the colonizers of dreams." Henson gave much to us, and with a slighly baudy laugh, no less.

By: Curious Artificer

Curious Artificer — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 20:05:52 -0800

That man must have the strongest shoulders ever.

By: jason's_planet

jason's_planet — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 20:06:51 -0800

which of these sequences has the early stuff -- the stuff from Sam & Friends, the D.C. years. More specifically -- which one has the Hot Shots commercial?

By: PhoBWanKenobi

PhoBWanKenobi — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 20:16:14 -0800

Must. Not. Watch. Until I finish revisions for the evening. But thanks!

By: nushustu

nushustu — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 20:35:49 -0800

I read somewhere (probably on metafilter) that except for the fact that it's in English, The Dark Crystal is the only Hollywood film ever made that doesn't have some connection to Earth: there just isn't anything else that doesn't include humans and/or earth animals. It was mentioned in the same article that originally, Henson et al wanted the film to use a made-up language, which truly would have made it the only completely alien film made, but the execs said no.

By: schmod

schmod — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 20:58:07 -0800

I just got to the part where they show this song from Sesame Street that features cameos from every celebrity ever. In a song about a rubber duck. Damnit, Jim. Why weren't you immortal? Every second of footage from this documentary is timeless (in stark contrast to the documentary footage itself). How many artists can you say that about?

By: tomswift

tomswift — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 20:58:42 -0800

Let's make a list: Jim Henson Mr. Rogers Captain Kangaroo We're done now, right? Thanks for the links!

By: bicyclefish

bicyclefish — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 21:15:34 -0800

we was robbed.

By: ShutterBun

ShutterBun — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 21:45:06 -0800

I've still never tried Wilkin's coffee, but I surely would if I could.

By: Ambrosia Voyeur

Ambrosia Voyeur — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 23:50:40 -0800

I know it's all too much, but if I had a son, I would name him for this man.

By: loquacious

loquacious — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 01:43:31 -0800

I totally forgot about this: Put Down the Duckie.

By: lucien_reeve

lucien_reeve — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 03:18:44 -0800

Thank you so much. What a lovely, sweet, creative man.

By: DigDoug

DigDoug — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 03:39:39 -0800

In my short list of people who deserve the hype, Jim Henson heads it up. Thanks for this.

By: warreng

warreng — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 05:17:15 -0800

If you never got to see The STORYTELLER, Jim Henson's Emmy Award winning set of obscure folk tales, they are wonderful ...and the whole series can be streamed from netflix.

By: cottoncandybeard

cottoncandybeard — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 05:49:16 -0800

Let's make a list: Jim Henson Mr. Rogers Captain Kangaroo We're done now, right? I think cases could be made for Walt Disney (or at least his staff), Charles Schulz, Hayao Miyazaki, Jay Ward, Roald Dahl, and at least a few others.

By: bquarters

bquarters — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 06:09:09 -0800

Hello, can you guys slow down? I'm still only on episode 12 of Arrested Development Season 1 from previous post!!! I've got two more whole seasons, then the wire, then back to the muppets. Phew!

By: schmod

schmod — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 07:55:25 -0800

cottoncandybeard: "I think cases could be made for Walt Disney (or at least his staff), Charles Schulz, Hayao Miyazaki, Jay Ward, Roald Dahl, and at least a few others." Strike that entire list. Substitute Bill Watterson. Disney, Schultz, and Dahl were all great artists, but people like Henson, Rogers, and Watterson actually lived what they preached. They're childhood heroes that are every bit as awesome as you expected them to be. There's something to be said for this.

By: filthy light thief

filthy light thief — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 15:17:43 -0800

If you want to delve deeply into the history of the Muppets, including bunches on Jim Henson, I heartily recommend Street Gang, The Complete History of Sesame Street. Some of the writing gets a bit sappy, but there are some great interviews and first-hand anecdotes.

By: filthy light thief

filthy light thief — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 15:19:21 -0800

And schmod, you best be adding Hayao Miyazaki back to the list. I don't want to fight you, but I will if I have to.

By: filthy light thief

filthy light thief — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 15:24:19 -0800

Last late comment: here's a playlist with the 9 clips (and more), for ease of viewing.

By: BigHeartedGuy

BigHeartedGuy — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 17:04:18 -0800

OK, the videos will have to wait until after work, but this post makes me think of one of my favorite film moments ever: The scene in the original Muppet Movie where Dom Delouise (Bernie the Hollywood agent) tells Kermit he should reconsider leaving the swamp for Hollywood, because "you could make millions of people happy." The delivery that Jim Henson then uses for Kermit when he reflects upon the idea and says to himself "millions of people happy" just kills me every time I see it. (And yes, I've watched this with my kids many, many times). I always smile and think, "you did it Jim, you really, really did it!"