Brian Jay Jones

Jim Henson was, and still is, my hero. He created a world that I loved: the Fraggles, Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Big Bird, and all the rest of his creations. It was a world that I felt at home in, when it was so hard find people that thought and talked like me. But the Muppets? they did. And the people surrounding them did as well. I remember when Jim passed away, and I remember the show they did a year latter to help explain his passing, using his beloved creations to make us laugh and show more hope. Brian starts the book off by talking about a moment on Sesame Street where Jim, as Kermit, and a young girl are doing a scene about saying the ABC's. And the little girl keeps throwing "Cookie Monster" in randomly and Kermit says "Well next time you can do it with him!" and starts walking away. And the little girl says "I love you" and Kermit comes back and says "I love you to." And in those few pages at the beginning Brian captures everything I know, and love, about Jim Henson.

This isn't a book about the characters of Sesame Street or of the Muppets, you can find other books if you want those. This book is about the man that created them. The man that enchanted millions, children and adults alike. Brian, not only did research at the company archives, he also talked to family and friends and collaborators to bring Jim back to life, even if it was just for a short time period. He gives us insight into how it all began, his successes, his failures, his misfires, and even the dark spots in Jim's life, such as his love of fast cars and women. But we walk away with a full picture and a great understanding of the man that Jim Henson was.

If you grew up watching Sesame Street or the Muppets, you can't help but want to read this book. To bring Jim back to life, just for a little while, and experience the magic of the Muppets once more. I give the book 4 out of 5 stars. show less

My children grew up watching Sesame Street, The Muppet Show and Fraggle Rock. Call the parent police if you must, but occasionally those shows were wonderful “babysitters” allowing me to get chores done and meals prepared. We once took my daughters to a presentation of a behind the scenes look at Fraggle Rock, where my eldest was kissed by a Fraggle – I think it was the highlight of her life up to that point. The chart toppers of the 1980’s are a blur to me (I call them my mommy show more years) by I can still hum the opening theme to Sesame Street and The Muppet show. To this day if we are confronted with an odd assortment of items one, two of all three of us will break out into “One of These Things is Not Like the Other”. For all that I owe Mr. Henson a debt of gratitude.

* Nothing to do with this book but honorable mention must go The Elephant Show and Skinnamarink as far as memorable, hummable theme songs from children’s shows go.

Having read an excellent book a while back called “Street Gang” by Michael Davis describing the beginnings and the theories behind children’s educational programming but only scraping the surface of Mr. Henson’s life, when I came across this title I knew I had to read it. This book does more than scrape the surface. Mr. Jones’ research is diligent. He gives us a glimpse into both Mr. Henson’s heritage and his life starting with his great-grandparents right through to his untimely death. Mr. Jones describes Mr. Henson’s life, his genius, his compulsions and his family life and he does so admirably yet without sugar coating anything. He shares Mr. Henson’s flaws, foibles and faults along with everything else and that is what made this book such an exceptionally good biography. I find biographies are usually either “tell-alls” or works of gushing admiration. This one is an enjoyable journey through Mr. Henson’s life and career. I even learned a few things I didn’t know along the way.

By the end of this book I liked Jim Henson. When it came time to read about his death and funeral it was written with so much respect and poignancy that I am not ashamed to say I had to reach for the tissue box several times.

If you can still hum the theme song to Sesame Street, ever owned a Kermit puppet, know who Fozzie Bear is, remember the “hand scene” from The Labyrinth or enjoyed The Dark Crystal – you HAVE TO read this book. show less

Very engaging and even-handed biography of the man responsible for several generations' earliest memories of reading. I read another Geisel biography at least twenty years ago that clearly had Audrey Geisel's oversight; this one did a much more complete job of showing you the positive and negative aspects of a complex human being. While he wasn't a saint (by any means - and Jones treats the darkest aspects of Geisel's story very sensitively, and with care), I came away with a fair amount of show more respect for someone who developed into a real perfectionist and something of a philosopher, finding true success at writing for children - whom he empathized with, but didn't actually like very much - well into his forties. If nothing else, the biography really made me want to read the early Dr. Seuss books I didn't recognize, such as Scrambled Eggs Super and On Beyond Zebra, many of which have turned out to be just as charming as the more famous Cat in the Hat, Grinch, and Lorax. show less

This has got to be THE biography about Jim Henson. The damn thing is 490 pages, not counting the countless pages of notes and the freaking index. It is comprehensive and detailed, almost too much so. I don't need to know all of the countries Jim flew to in one week.

Still, it's a great read. The interviews with his entire family and dozens of staffers (including Frank Oz) help paint a realistic picture of who this man was. Unfortunately, thanks to all that information, he's not a man I show more really like any more. Yes, I love his work and yes, he was a rare creative genius. But I don't really have time for adulterers.

Don't learn about your heroes, I suppose. show less