by Chey

Created on: June 15, 2007

The generations that have come about in the last three decades have all been under the influence of Jim Henson's mesmerizing talent in his pioneering field- the production of puppet and Muppet (an interesting infusion of marionette and puppet) characters to be used in major film/television projects as a method of participating imaginatively with real actors. Henson created a form of art and talent in its own, which takes skill, patience, and perseverance. In fact, an entire guild of people have made working behind and creating puppets in Hollywood a career.

James M. Henson was a slightly shy and quiet kid, born in Midwestern Mississippi late in September 1936. Jim's emphasis on simplicity as well as natural (natural looking, or natural in the way they lent to the performance of characters and expression) materials used in his unique form of puppets could have been developed through early influence of his fathers career as a land cultivator and agronomist. Henson's artistic situation changed during the fifth grade when his family moved north to the Maryland/Washington D.C. area- setting him up for success, and an environment he could thrive in with his creative talents.

Other distinct aspects of Henson's childhood influence his later career, including a childhood friend named Kermit who was the initial inspiration for the lovable green character. Eventually, Kermit's character developed from a green cloth hand puppet to the Muppet frog he is today (which possess the alter-ego personality of Henson himself, since Henson was the voice/actor for Kermit).

As his years of Muppeteering continued, Henson began to challenge himself to productions beyond children's/family television and commercials. He started dabbling into a more-adult fantasy world where he could express darker satire as well as plots centered around mature concepts of hardship, failure, and even threat of death. The most memorable of these darker productions are Dark Crystal and The Labyrinth- technological revolutions in their combination of puppets, people, machines, make-up, and special effects.

Though it is usually easy to define a person by their career alone, in Jim Henson's case it is important to define him as the person he was behind the scenes and beyond the set. It was his passions for life and happiness that led him to create and manipulate his ideas into what became his career. He didn't get into his field necessarily for the money. In fact, he only started puppeteering as a hobby in high school, creating a five minute blurb each week for the local stations Saturday morning line-up.

I honestly can say "I can't remember a time without Muppets and Jim's creatures in the media," and it will remain, as he has left living legacies and an unforgettable empire behind. In many ways, since his 1990 death, Henson hasn't left at all. Every Muppet, and every production he has participated in, is so well done, it is often timeless. It wouldn't even be going to far to say that Jim even pioneered in what inspired the development of the CGI many productions use today.

It's still an old and timeless art that takes more than just good acting or a decent voice. It isn't just like the animation of cartoons and the casting of voice characters. What Henson's creation has become, is an artistic venue in which a person can merge themselves wholly with a fantastic character and provide to it life, will, and personality.

Sources:

http://www.olemiss.edu/mwp/dir/h enson_jim/index.html The Mississippi Writers Page- a good source for further biographical information

http://www.henson.com/home.html The Jim Henson Company Main Page- a source that covers Henson's work as well as his legacy.

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