A Visionary.
A Creative Pioneer. An Artist.
Jim Henson walked into a meeting of executives and financial bankers
declaring he wanted to create a kid’s show that brought about world peace. Simple
and sweet, and I love reading his story again and again. The meeting was a
pitch meeting for Fraggle
Rock (a personal favorite, show based on diversity). Few people can't
say things like this without sounding naive, but he had a way of making people
believe anything was possible. I know he made me feel that way -and continues
to. Helps me to continue reaching for my dreams.
As a kid who grew up obsessed with the Muppets and
anything with Henson’s name attached it’d be an understatement to say I’ve been
influenced by his work. A saying that comes to mind “I understand the Muppets on a much deeper
level than you.” Yeah, it’s silly, but I’ve felt like that. The cool thing is I
know I’m not alone. He had the ability to create art that left kids feeling
like it was made just for them. I felt like that and still do.
The thing about The Muppets that I loved and still love is they’re
a group of weirdos and chickens and monsters and things all trying to figure
life out. Kermit is at the center of it all attempting to put on a show, to
bring them together and to stay sane in the process. They’re a beautiful and
almost functional family.
This will sound strangely morbid, but did you know you
can watch Jim Henson’s funeral on YouTube? One day I found myself watching it.
Yeah . . . I know, but I promise you – it’s not as weird as you’d think. Sure
it’s sad (it is a funeral, after all,) but watching it left me inspired
to create, to unite, to bring joy and to live a life that would one day result
in a celebration like that.
Here’s a line in The Muppet Movie:
Kermit: Yeah, well, I’ve got a dream too – but it’s about singing and dancing
and making people happy. That’s the kind of dream that gets better the more
people you share it with. And, well, I’ve found a whole bunch of friends who
have the same dream. And, well, it kind of makes us like a family.
Twenty-three years ago, Jim Henson passed, leaving behind him a
legacy of creativity, imagination and love. He promised a show that would bring
about world peace. It might not have happened- but I do believe he did give us
a glimpse, in his way, of what that might look like.
Quoted from Frank Oz, "Jim was able to bring out the best in us, and then we brought out the best out in ourselves."I want to be a person that brings out the best in others, as Jim Henson did...
