Figuring out what I wanna be when I grow up.
Oop..I AM grown up...


Saturday, September 24, 2011

I Still Miss You Jim Henson

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Oh Jim Henson, if only you'd lived to see your 75th birthday.  How come all the good people in the world kick the can, and all the jerks live FOREVER???


Anyhow, I was a huge fan of The Muppet Show As a kid.


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I loved Pigs In Space
MEE MEE MEE MEE MEE!!  (image)



I watched every episode.  I thought it was fantastic.

And then, in 1982 something exciting was about to hit the silver screen:  "The Dark Crystal".  It was such a departure from the usual, snuggy, Sesame Street, Muppet Show world of Jim Henson.  It was dark, and serious and even scary in some parts.

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oooo...remember when the Skeksis sucked the VITAL ESSENCE out of the Gelflings???  HORRIFYING...and yet..not unlike what my kids do to me often....

From Wikipedia, "The Dark Crystal"

"The Dark Crystal is a 1982 British-American fantasy film directed by Jim Henson and Frank Oz. Although marketed as a family film, it was notably darker than previous material created by them. Characters for which they are famous do not appear, but some of the same performers are used. The animatronics used in the film were considered groundbreaking. The primary concept artist was the fantasy illustrator Brian Froud, famous for his distinctive faerie and dwarf designs. Froud also collaborated with Henson and Oz for their next project, the 1986 film Labyrinth, which was notably more light-hearted than The Dark Crystal"


Still, when I thought of Jim Henson, I thought of "The Muppet Show." and the Muppet movies (does anyone remember Kermit the Frog RIDING A BIKE?  I freaked out over that as a kid!), and that lovable Kermit The Frog voice.


"The Muppet Show featured Kermit as host, and a variety of other memorable characters, notably Miss Piggy, Gonzo the Great, and Fozzie Bear. Kermit's role on The Muppet Show was often compared by his co-workers to Henson's role in Muppet Productions: a shy, gentle boss with "a whim of steel"[14] who "[ran] things as firmly as it is possible to run an explosion in a mattress factory."[17] 


Caroll Spinney, the puppeteer of Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch, remembered that Henson "would never say he didn't like something. He would just go 'Hmm.' That was famous. And if he liked it, he would say, 'Lovely!' "[3] Henson himself recognized Kermit as an alter-ego, though he thought that Kermit was bolder than his creator; he once said of Kermit, "He can say things I hold back."[18]"  


...Henson died on the morning of May 16, 1990 at the age of 53...On May 21, a public memorial service was held in New York City at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Another one was held on July 2 at St. Paul's Cathedral in London. As per Henson's wishes, no one in attendance wore black, and a Dixieland jazz band finished the service by performing "When the Saints Go Marching In". Harry Belafonte sang "Turn the World Around," a song he had debuted on The Muppet Show, as each member of the congregation waved, with a puppeteer's rod, an individual, brightly-colored foam butterfly.[30][31] Later, Big Bird (performed by Caroll Spinney) walked out onto the stage and sang Kermit the Frog's signature song, "Bein' Green"...


...In the final minutes of the two-and-a-half hour service, six of the core Muppet performers sang, in their characters' voices, a medley of Jim Henson's favorite songs, culminating in a performance of "Just One Person" that began with Richard Hunt singing alone, as Scooter. "As each verse progressed," Henson employee Chris Barry recalled, "each Muppeteer joined in with their own Muppets until the stage was filled with all the Muppet performers and their beloved characters."[32] The funeral was later described by LIFE as "an epic and almost unbearably moving event."

-Wikipedia: "Jim Henson"


Why did we love Jim Henson so much?  Why do we still feel so much fondness when we think of his work today, or if we hear "The Rainbow Connection"?  Is it because there's something so wonderful about anyone who is able to create so much magic and joy?

Perhaps that's it.









 

31 comments:

  1. i liked the muppet show too. one of the few shows that my whole family seemed to appreciate when i was a kid.

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  2. Sorry to burst in on your sentimental memories...but I gagged at the muppets and still do, for the exception of Beaker. His mouth still intrigues me.

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  3. The happiness and pure family fun is undeniable - but a true fan of the series? Nah, just John Denver (stop laughing lady, how many men can actually sing today anyway, huh?!
    I did love certain character interactions, Kermit and Piggy, and the crazy drummer dude - what was his name? Rainbow connection hits everyone, like it or not - but no idea why my friend : )

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  4. I never missed an episode of the muppets when I was a kid.

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  5. My kids watch these shows on road trips. Love them! m.

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  6. Yeah Sherilin--watched it faithfully!

    They're not the same now with a new kermit voice and all...

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  7. MELISSA YOU ARE DEAD TO ME...

    ha ha, I kid. Aw, come on! The Muppets were RIGHT ON!

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  8. Christina, that crazy drummer was Animal :) Hey, I have NO problem with John Denver. If he took those glasses off, he could have hung out in my bed singing Sunshine On My Shoulders ANY TIME.

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  9. do you have vintage episodes of the Muppet Show on dvd, Mark? I'd love to show that to my kids. I bet they'd love it.

    That's it. Now I have to find it. I think Jack would dig it--especially with the musical numbers.

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  10. my friends kids found some new muppet show shorts on youtube, one is the swedish chef with pumpkins, and the other is beaker singing'ode to joy', i think you will lurv it!

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  11. I loved the Muppet Show and so remember watching it at your house with Peter!!!!

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  12. Did you check out GOOGLE yesterday?? Sam had so much fun playing with characters!

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  13. Well you will just have to univite me off your blog!

    I hate all puppets. You know how people hate clowns? I hate puppets, even Sesame Street....I just could not feel the fake, weird, non-people concept.

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  14. My whole family LOVED the Muppet Show...it was a big deal in our house to watch it. As it turns out, Ben likes it too...it started out, he looking on youtube for Kenny Rogers "the Gambler" adn guess what popped up first...Kenny Rogers ont eh Muppet show singing the Gambler...it was love at first show. I must find the Muppet Show on DVD! I do have many Muppet CDs to sing slong to! Movin Right Along is a family favorite!

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  15. I still love Muppets. We watch them on youtube. When Cee Lo Green had Muppets on the Grammys this year I was yelling and the kids thought I was nuts.

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  16. Thanks Ms. H--how thoughtful of you. The Ode To Joy one would especially flip Jack's lid--and Ella, well, Ella likes everything.

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  17. Ha--Paula, that ode to joy one is super cute!

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  18. Pam, I did check out that cute google thing. I read online that people were confused that it made no sound, and figured it wasn't working properly.

    You watched the muppets with Peter? Wow, who knew!

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  19. hrm, there is something to be said for fake, non people Melissa, because other than the Muppets, I hate puppet/ventriloquist dummy stuff.

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  20. Steph, one of my dark secrets is that one of my most fave Christmas cd's is the Muppet Christmas with John Denver.

    Ssh, don't tell anyone. Yeah, I remember a lot of the fun guest star appearances too. Must hunt this down...

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  21. yeah, Lisa, I think for the most part people remember the Muppets fondly from their childhood.

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  22. I would like to find the one with Alice Cooper....what a combo! hahaha!

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  23. Nice tribute. We've had that on CTS before and may bring it back before long. Afterall, we are now featuring 'Alf'!

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  24. Steph, I think I remember that one! I would think each dvd would contain entire seasons, right???

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  25. Matt! PUT IN A RECOMMENDATION! PLEASE! PLEASE! I think my kids would love it.

    BTW, my sister has been watching Little House faithfully on CTS. I'm trying to get her to write a guest post about her nerdish love for that show. It's hilarious.

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  26. Well, you and her could always 'like' the CTS Facebook fan page and could wax eloquently about Little House, Alf, and yes, even demand the return of Muppets!

    You carry more weight than me, after all, what do finance people know about programming?

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  27. Oh Matt, dear, dear Matt--your boundless optimism, and all around cunning are so endearing. "Like" the Christian television station on facebook? Moi? Super heathen? Surely you know where this is going :) :) :) :) I have a reputation of crustiness and a certain spiritual bankruptcy to uphold you know.

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  28. Oh, please. You are actually feeling a threat from a Like button on CTS' fan page for Little House, etc.? I didn't know it could be perceived as so dangerous....

    You gotta rest from being on guard so much, or you're going to crack.

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  29. ain't no CRACKS HERE YET!!! I'm SOLID AS A ROCK! Or something like that. Actually, there are cracks, but the kids made them.

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  30. To not be a fan of the Muppets? Fine. But when someone writes a blog in honour of the late Jim Henson who DIED tragically and to have someone "gag" over the Muppets? A bit harsh. And melodramatic.

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