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James Maury Henson was an American puppeteer, animator, actor, and filmmaker who achieved worldwide notability as the creator of the Muppets. Henson was also well known for creating Fraggle Rock (1983–1987) and as the director of The Dark Crystal (1982) and Labyrinth (1986).
Kermit the Frog is a Muppet character created in 1955 and originally performed by Jim Henson. Kermit is the pragmatic everyman protagonist of numerous Muppet productions, most notably as the showrunner and host of the sketch comedy television series The Muppet Show and a featured role on Sesame Street. He has appeared in other television series, feature films, specials, and public service announcements through the years. He also served as a mascot of The Jim Henson Company and appeared in various Henson projects until 2004.
The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an absurdist, surrealist, burlesque, and self-referential style of variety-sketch comedy. Created by Jim Henson in 1955, they have become a media franchise encompassing children's films, television, music, and other media associated with the characters. Owned by the Jim Henson Company for nearly five decades, the characters of the Muppets franchise were acquired by the Walt Disney Company in 2004.
Frank Oz is an American puppeteer, filmmaker, and actor. He is best known for his involvement with Jim Henson and George Lucas through The Muppets, Sesame Street, and Star Wars, as well as his directorial work in feature films and theater.
Fozzie Bear is a Muppet character from the sketch comedy television series The Muppet Show, best known as the insecure and comedically fruitless stand-up comic. Fozzie is an orange-brown bear who often wears a brown pork pie hat and a pink and white polka dot necktie. The character debuted on The Muppet Show, as the series' resident comedian, a role where he uses the catchphrase "Wocka wocka!" to indicate that he had completed a joke. He was often the target of ridicule, particularly from balcony hecklers Statler and Waldorf. Fozzie was performed by Frank Oz until 2001, after which Eric Jacobson became the character's principal performer.
John Lovelady is an American retired puppeteer who worked with the Muppets, including on the PBS series Sesame Street. Lovelady is originally from Oxford, Mississippi. He was one of the puppeteer troupe in the first season of The Muppet Show (1976–77).
Brian Henson is an American puppeteer, filmmaker, actor and the chairman of The Jim Henson Company. He is the son of puppeteers Jim and Jane Henson.
Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, or simply The Electric Mayhem, are an American Muppet rock group that debuted in 1975 on the pilot for the sketch comedy television series The Muppet Show. They are the house band for The Muppet Show, with personalities and appearances inspired by prominent real-life rock music and jazz performers. They subsequently appeared in various Muppet films and television specials and have also recorded album tracks and covered numerous songs. The Electric Mayhem consists of Dr. Teeth on vocals and keyboards, Animal on drums, Floyd Pepper on vocals and bass, Janice on vocals and lead guitar, Zoot on saxophone, and Lips on trumpet. The band's members were originally performed by Jim Henson, Frank Oz, Jerry Nelson, Richard Hunt, Dave Goelz, and Steve Whitmire, respectively; they are presently performed by Bill Barretta, Eric Jacobson, Matt Vogel, David Rudman, Goelz, and Peter Linz, respectively.
Steven Lawrence Whitmire is an American puppeteer, known primarily for his work on The Muppets and Sesame Street. Beginning his involvement with the Muppets in 1978, Whitmire inherited the roles of Ernie and Kermit the Frog after Jim Henson's death in 1990; he performed the characters until 2014 and 2016, respectively. As part of the Muppet cast, he has appeared in multiple feature films and television series, performing a variety of characters on The Muppet Show, Sesame Street, and Fraggle Rock and during such occupations has been employed by The Jim Henson Company, Sesame Workshop, and The Muppets Studio.
The Jim Henson Company, formerly known as Muppets, Inc., Henson Associates, Inc., and Jim Henson Productions, Inc., is an American entertainment company located in Los Angeles, California. The company is known for its innovations in the field of puppetry, particularly through the creation of Kermit the Frog and the Muppets characters.
David Charles Goelz is an American puppeteer and voice actor known for his work with the Muppets. He is best known for performing the characters Gonzo the Great, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Zoot, and Beauregard. Goelz joined Jim Henson's Muppet team in 1973 and has been a key performer in many Muppet productions, including The Muppet Show, Fraggle Rock, and various movies and television specials.
Eric Jacobson is an American puppeteer. He is best known for his involvement with the Muppets, performing Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, and Sam Eagle for The Muppets Studio, as well as Sesame Street characters Bert, Grover, Oscar the Grouch, and Guy Smiley—all roles that he inherited from the characters' original performers, Frank Oz, Caroll Spinney, and Jim Henson.
Jane Ann Henson was an American puppeteer and co-founder of Muppets, Inc. with her husband Jim Henson.
Bill Barretta is an American puppeteer, producer, writer, director and actor, best known for performing The Muppets characters Pepe the King Prawn, Bobo the Bear and Johnny Fiama. He originated the role of Louie, Elmo's dad, on Sesame Street. Barretta additionally inherited the roles of Rowlf the Dog, The Swedish Chef, and Dr. Teeth after the death of Jim Henson.
Victor Yerrid is an American actor and puppeteer for the Jim Henson Company and has performed Muppet characters in many films, television commercials and television shows. He is best known in the Muppet World for his work on the online series Statler and Waldorf: From the Balcony, in which he performed Waldorf along with an assortment of other characters.
Mike Quinn is an English puppeteer, animator, actor, director, producer, voice-over artist, puppet builder, composer and mentor. He is also known as Mike Quinby, Michael E. Quinn, and Michael Quinn.
Allan Trautman is an American puppeteer. He is best known for his work with The Jim Henson Company.
Gonzo is a Muppet character from the sketch comedy television series The Muppet Show, known for his eccentric passion for stunt performance. Aside from his trademark enthusiasm for performance art, another defining trait of Gonzo is the ambiguity of his species, which has become a running gag in the franchise. He has been considered to be of various origins, including a Frackle in his debut appearance in The Great Santa Claus Switch, an extraterrestrial in Muppets from Space or an avian creature.
Camille Bonora is a former Muppet performer. She currently serves on the board of BibleMesh online theological studies, as well as a member of the Kairos Journal editorial board.
References
- ↑ "See puppets in motion at Orlando museum today". The Orlando Sentinel. April 3, 2008. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
- ↑ Ehret, Michael (November 17, 1995). "Puppeteer returns and steals show". The Indianapolis Star. p. C3. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
- ↑ Sanders, Scott (2019-10-22). "Muppets Ahoy! • The Disney Cruise Line Blog". The Disney Cruise Line Blog. Retrieved 2024-07-16.
- ↑ Gamble, Harriet (2000). "Puppet Revolutionary: An Interview with John E. Kennedy". Arts & Activities. 127 (5): 38. ISSN 0004-3931.
- US 6540581,Kennedy, John Edward,"Puppet construction kit and method of making a personalized hand operated puppet",published 2003-04-01
