The Rainbow Connection.
28/11/2011I’ve been thinking about Jim Henson a lot lately. It started with a Speech assignment: we had to speak to inform. One suggestion was to inform the class about someone famous, and Jim instantly jumped to mind. He’s one of my heroes — long before I ever knew it.
This is what I said in my speech:
A giant, yellow, flightless bird. A creature who looks like a banana with a unibrow. An amphibian with a collar, and the pig who loves him. These are just a few of the Muppets created by one of my heroes, Jim Henson. Some of my earliest memories are of Jim Henson’s handiwork: from Sesame Street to the Muppet Show, my childhood was filled the images and sounds of dozens of Jim’s endearing creations. As an adult, I continue to marvel at both his Muppets and his general outlook on life. Jim Henson was an accomplished and critically acclaimed artist and performer, and although he died relatively young, his vision lives. Today, I’d like to tell you a little about Jim –his career’s early beginnings, several decades of successful TV programs and movies, and how his legacy is carried on today.
Jim was born on September 24, 1936 in Mississippi. His family moved to Maryland in the 1940’s, where he would attend high school and later, college. Jim’s first experience with puppeteering came in high school when he began operating puppets on a Washington DC Saturday morning television program. In 1955, while he was still in college, he was given a twice-daily 5 minute show called “Sam and Friends”, which aired for six years on NBC affiliate WRC-TV. One of the main characters on the show was a lizard-like creature who would later become Kermit the Frog. Not only did he gain an Emmy Award for this show, but his assistant puppeteer on Sam and Friends, Jane Nebel, would one day become his wife and mother to their 5 children.
After the success of Sam and Friends, Jim’s progress in the entertainment world slowed for a few years but never stopped. Jim and his Muppets appeared on a variety of television programs such as the Ed Sullivan Show and Jimmy Dean Show, and Muppets began to pop up in dozens of commercials. Jim’s big break came in the late 60’s, when he was approached to create Muppets for a new television show called Sesame Street. The show’s iconic characters such as Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch and Bert & Ernie, helped to make the program a fantastic success and led to numerous more Emmys and other awards for Jim and his company, Muppets, Inc. Despite these accomplishments, Jim couldn’t find financial backing in the US for his new show – The Muppet Show – so in 1975 he moved his creative team to England, where he had financial support. Filming began in 1976. With Kermit the Frog as the host and a support cast of dozens of other unforgettable Muppets such as Miss Piggy, Fozzy Bear and Beaker, The Muppet Show enjoyed 5 wonderful seasons and ended in 1981.
During the time the Muppet Show was still being produced, Jim entered the world of movie-making. Several very successful Muppet movies were made, and Jim collaborated with George Lucas to create Yoda for The Empire Strikes Back. In 1982, Jim co-wrote, co-directed and performed in The Dark Crystal, which wasn’t a huge financial or critical success, but showed a progression in Jim’s work with the medium. Jim said of the movie, “With The Dark Crystal, instead of puppetry we’re trying to go toward a sense of realism - toward a reality of creatures that are actually alive.” In 1986, Jim’s movie Labyrinth opened, and while it was also not successful at the time, it later grew to become a cult classic. In between movies and up until his last days, Jim continued to work in television, creating several programs such as Fraggle Rock, Muppet Babies and The Storyteller, which were all well received by both audiences and critics.
In 1990, at the age of 53, Jim Henson died suddenly from complications of bacterial pneumonia. Thousands attended his funeral, including many of his Muppet characters. No one was allowed to wear black, and the service featured numerous upbeat musical performances – even the theme to Sesame Street, “Sunny Day.” But even after Jim’s death, his work went on. Additional Muppet specials were produced over the years, and the full-length movie Muppets from Space was released in 1999. Innovative new series are still being developed by The Jim Henson Company. Sesame Street continues to thrive and the characters from the Muppet Show refuse to step out of the spotlight. To that end, this Thanksgiving we will get to see our dear Muppet friends on the big screen once again with the release of Disney’s “The Muppets.”
Jim’s career as a puppeteer began early and blossomed over more than three decades of television and movies. Even after his death, his characters live on. He led an extraordinary and all-too-brief life – he was a visionary artist whose accomplishments were well-loved by audiences and critics and left a lasting legacy for us all. Jim once said, “When I was young, my ambition was to be one of the people who made a difference in this world. My hope is to leave the world a little better for having been there.” As we look back on his life and career, I think it’s safe to say he reached that ambition.
It’s an ok speech; it didn’t really capture what Muppets mean to me - the conclusion isn’t strong and in general, it’s just not my best (though I’ll get my grade on Tuesday, so who knows?!). My job was to inform, not to gush over Jim Henson & the Muppets; I don’t know if I swayed one way or another. I just know I really, really appreciate Jim, and I’m pretty sure that didn’t come out (in its entirety) through my speech. I…don’t know how to express it. I think we’ve all had this feeling before, about one thing or another.
…
Anyway…
On Saturday, we (the kids & I, along with some friends) went to see the new Disney-fangled Muppet Movie. It was Jim’s intention to sell the rights to the Muppets shortly (uh — days!) before his death, so I do understand this transition…but…but…it’s Disney…<insert seed of doubt>…
But they got it. They Got It. I obviously never knew Jim, and don’t know much about him as a person other than his characters and what wikipedia and henson.com have presented. Yet I was delighted at how this new movie captured the feel of the Muppets. I cried. A lot. I missed my childhood and the simplicity of joy the Muppet Show brought me when I wasn’t even old enough to know much of anything.
I don’t know if the Muppets will ever have the same kind of meaning for my kids or others in their generation. That’s ok. I’m just happy they still make me laugh, and that my kids can sing “Mahna Mahna” with the best of them. Thanks, Jim.