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The Muppets on Puppets: A Review
Oct. 3rd, 2008 09:57 amOn disk 4 of the 3rd season of the Muppet show is a treasure. The Muppets on Puppets is a piece that Jim did for the Adventure in the Arts series that was shown on NET back in 1968. This is before Sesame Street and everything else that followed and is a unique look at the beginnings of the Muppets as we know them now.
This program was about puppetry in general. It had Jim Henson, Jerry Juhl, and Frank Oz (before mustache) as the puppeteers and showed the work of Don Salhin who was Jim's main builder for the Muppets at the time. Early Muppet Monsters have a look that is attributed to Salhin's creation.
They covered a lot of material in only an hour. They went through types of puppets and the history of puppetry and put it in a worldview. They talked about Sicilian rod puppets, Punch and Judy, Indonesian puppets and Jim's form of puppet called a Muppet. The puppets were on loan from Bil Baird and Milton Halpern both giants in the field of puppetry. Jim even recommends Bil's book on the Art of Puppetry as one that kids should look at for more information.
They also demonstrated a variety of puppets and puppet techniques through out the piece. They showed how you could use just your hand to create a show with a few props. They did a very fractured version of Cinderella and then put the camera behind the playboard so that the audience could see how they did it. They showed how to make simple puppets and Don Salhin even showed the basics of making a Muppet. It is a treasure trove of how to and ideas that can launch other puppets. I was amazed at how much they crammed into the time they had.
Overall I found this fascinating and watched it more than once just to absorb all the information that I was being given. There are sections that I go back and watch just to see how something was build. Caroline loves the puppet shows and how the puppets were made for the puppet shows. One of her favorite pieces is when Jim and Frank are operating what they call a Whatnot, later called an anything Muppet, as Don changes the features on the puppet. It is a beautiful lesson in character creation.
I highly recommend this show if you have any interest in puppets. I know my local library has the Muppet Shows DVDs for loan so you might try there if you want to see a very fascinating early look at the Muppets and the career of Jim Henson.
I am grateful for all the ideas that this shows gave me about puppet building.
This program was about puppetry in general. It had Jim Henson, Jerry Juhl, and Frank Oz (before mustache) as the puppeteers and showed the work of Don Salhin who was Jim's main builder for the Muppets at the time. Early Muppet Monsters have a look that is attributed to Salhin's creation.
They covered a lot of material in only an hour. They went through types of puppets and the history of puppetry and put it in a worldview. They talked about Sicilian rod puppets, Punch and Judy, Indonesian puppets and Jim's form of puppet called a Muppet. The puppets were on loan from Bil Baird and Milton Halpern both giants in the field of puppetry. Jim even recommends Bil's book on the Art of Puppetry as one that kids should look at for more information.
They also demonstrated a variety of puppets and puppet techniques through out the piece. They showed how you could use just your hand to create a show with a few props. They did a very fractured version of Cinderella and then put the camera behind the playboard so that the audience could see how they did it. They showed how to make simple puppets and Don Salhin even showed the basics of making a Muppet. It is a treasure trove of how to and ideas that can launch other puppets. I was amazed at how much they crammed into the time they had.
Overall I found this fascinating and watched it more than once just to absorb all the information that I was being given. There are sections that I go back and watch just to see how something was build. Caroline loves the puppet shows and how the puppets were made for the puppet shows. One of her favorite pieces is when Jim and Frank are operating what they call a Whatnot, later called an anything Muppet, as Don changes the features on the puppet. It is a beautiful lesson in character creation.
I highly recommend this show if you have any interest in puppets. I know my local library has the Muppet Shows DVDs for loan so you might try there if you want to see a very fascinating early look at the Muppets and the career of Jim Henson.
I am grateful for all the ideas that this shows gave me about puppet building.
