Hi Boys And Girls!
It is time for my Legend of the Week….and in honour of the brilliant and fantastic new Muppets movie coming out in the UK soon, I have chosen Jim Henson.
James Maury "Jim" Henson (September 24, 1936 – May 16, 1990)
The creator of The Muppets, this man was the genius that gave us Kermit The Frog and his great green skin, Miss Piggy and her incredible sense of fashion, Frozzie Bear and his awful jokes, and of course Animal and his brilliant drums amongst many many other characters.
Kermit and Miss Piggy on their Wedding Day!
Originally born in the small town of Greenville in Mississipi, Jim went on to create shows, characters and films that would change people’s lives forever.
Where Jim got inspiration for Kermit!
Celebrity friends of The Muppets are far and wide, and some are surprising to say the least……!
Ozzy Osbourne Tried to Bite Kermit!
Jim though didn’t just create The Muppets, he also experimented with much more adult material such as the experimental film Labyrinth starring David Bowie and Jennifer Connelly, which has now become a cult classic.
Jennifer Connelly and David Bowie starred in Labyrinth...created by Jim Henson himself!
7 Facts You Probably Didn’t Know About Jim Henson and The Muppets
1. The earliest version of Kermit was created using a turquoise ladies’ coat Henson’s mother had discarded. Two ping pong balls were used for the eyes.
2. Jim was six feet tall, and was often described as the “The Gentle Giant”, known for never yelling at colleagues and co-workers.
3. The first film Jim ever saw was The Wizard of Oz, and Jim remained petrified of the MGM lion throughout his life.
4. Kermit goes by several different names around the world. In Portugal, he’s Cocas. In Latin America, René. In Spain, he goes by the name Gustavo.
5. In 1966, Jim Henson was nominated for an Academy Award for his short experimental film Time Piece.
6. Jim Henson died unexpectedly on May 16th, 1990, at the age of 53.
7. Mourners were requested not to wear black at his funeral service, which featured a Dixieland jazz band, a performance by Harry Belafonte, and an appearance by Big Bird.
5 Jim Henson Quotes
Life’s like a movie, write your own ending. Keep believing, keep pretending.
Jim Henson
My hope still is to leave the world a bit better than when I got here.
Jim Henson
The most sophisticated people I know – inside they are all children.
Jim Henson
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and it may be necessary from time to time to give a stupid or misinformed beholder a black eye.
Jim Henson
If you care about what you do and work hard at it, there isn’t anything you can’t do if you want to.
Jim Henson
Hugs and Kisses
Derek x
derek@ineligibleforgreatness.com
twitter.com/ineligiblederek
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