Kirk Thatcher | |
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 Thatcher at GalaxyCon Louisville in 2019 | |
| Born | Kirk R. Thatcher February 14, 1962[ citation needed ] |
| Occupation(s) | Writer, producer, director, production designer |
| Years active | 1985–present |
Kirk R. Thatcher (born February 14, 1962)[ citation needed ] is an American writer, producer, television and film director, an Internet video director, and a production designer. [1] [2]
Thatcher was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. While attending Harvard-Westlake Upper School he met Joe Johnston, a production designer for Star Wars . Johnston would later work with Thatcher on his first job in the industry, as a technical assistant on the ILM creature crew of Return of the Jedi .
Thatcher began his career at eighteen, leaving UCLA Film School to work at George Lucas' special effects facility, Industrial Light and Magic (ILM). Thatcher was the production designer on David Fincher's first music videos and spent over a year creating the look for a number of Rick Springfield and The Motels videos. [3] Subsequently, Thatcher was hired by Leonard Nimoy to associate produce Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home . He also portrayed "Punk on the Bus", a discourteous commuter loudly playing the song "I Hate You" on a boombox in the film. Thatcher wrote and performed the song, recording it with sound designer Mark Mangini. [4] Thatcher earns no additional money for the non-speaking role of "Punk" but does receive "like 8-cent residuals" for the song. [5]
Thatcher's first directorial effort was in 2002, with It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie for NBC, which drew more than 11 million viewers. [6] Thatcher has co-written several Muppet films including Muppet Treasure Island (1996) and directed three television movies, including A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa (2008) and The Muppets' Wizard of Oz (2005), which premiered at Robert De Niro's Tribeca Film Festival. [7]
In 2015, Thatcher directed Turkey Hollow , a Thanksgiving-themed TV movie for The Jim Henson Company which aired on Lifetime. [8] [9] Thatcher is also credited as one of the three writers of the film, alongside Jim Henson and Jerry Juhl. Kirk Thatcher makes a cameo appearance as "Punk Rock Guy" in the 2017 film Spider-Man: Homecoming , as a homage to his role as "Punk on Bus" in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.
In October 2021, Thatcher wrote and directed Muppets Haunted Mansion . [10]
Thatcher will appear in Inside Out 2 . [11]
Kirk Thatcher was a supervising producer on the Emmy Award-winning ABC series Muppets Tonight . [12]
Thatcher has also written episodes for the Cartoon Network series Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends , and directed episodes of Nickelodeon's series LazyTown , PBS' Sid the Science Kid , and Comedy Central's Crank Yankers .
In 2014, Thatcher was seen on the SyFy Network's series Jim Henson's Creature Shop Challenge , where he appeared in each episode as a judge for the competition.
Thatcher returned to the Star Trek franchise in 2019, narrating in the Star Trek: Short Treks episode Ephraim and Dot. In 2022 he reprised his "Punk on the Bus" role in the second season of Star Trek: Picard , this time playing an older and wiser version of the character from Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home . [13] That same year, he announced via his Instagram page that he would be writing for Mystery Science Theater 3000. [14]
Kirk Thatcher has also directed The Muppets' "Bohemian Rhapsody", which won the "Viral Video" category in the 14th Annual Webby Awards. [15] He has also directed 2015 Muppet Music videos "Jungle Boogie" and "Kodachrome."
James Maury Henson was an American puppeteer, animator, cartoonist, actor, inventor, 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).
The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an absurdist, burlesque, and self-referential style of variety-sketch comedy. Created by Jim Henson in 1955, they are the focus of a media franchise that encompasses television, film, music, and other media associated with the characters. Originally owned by the Jim Henson Company for nearly five decades, the franchise was purchased by the Walt Disney Company in 2004.
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home is a 1986 American science fiction film, the fourth installment in the Star Trek film franchise based on the television series Star Trek. The second film directed by Leonard Nimoy, it completes the story arc begun in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982), and continued in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984). Intent on returning home to Earth to face trial for their actions in the previous film, the former crew of the USS Enterprise finds the planet in grave danger from an alien probe attempting to contact now-extinct humpback whales. The crew travel to Earth's past to find whales who can answer the probe's call.
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.
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier is a 1989 American science fiction film directed by William Shatner and based on the television series Star Trek created by Gene Roddenberry. It is the fifth installment in the Star Trek film series, and takes place shortly after the events of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986). Its plot follows the crew of the USS Enterprise-A as they confront renegade Vulcan Sybok, who is searching for God at the center of the galaxy.
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock is a 1984 American science fiction film, written and produced by Harve Bennett, directed by Leonard Nimoy, and based on the television series Star Trek. It is the third film in the Star Trek franchise and is the second part of a three-film story arc that begins with Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982) and concludes with Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986). After the death of Spock (Nimoy), the crew of the USS Enterprise return to Earth. When James T. Kirk learns that Spock's spirit, or katra, is held in the mind of Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy, Kirk and company steal the decommissioned USS Enterprise to return Spock's body to his homeworld. The crew must also contend with hostile Klingons, led by Kruge, who are bent on stealing the secrets of the powerful terraforming device, Genesis.
Brian Henson is an American puppeteer, director, producer, voice actor and the chairman of The Jim Henson Company. He is the son of puppeteers Jim and Jane Henson.
Jim Henson's Muppet Babies, commonly known by the shortened title Muppet Babies, is an American animated television series produced by Marvel Productions and Henson Associates. The show portrays toddler versions of the Muppets living together in a nursery under the care of a woman known as Nanny, involving the concepts of the power of imagination and creative problem-solving. The show's main target group is for children aged 2–5. The idea of presenting the Muppets as children appeared in a dream sequence in The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984), released two months before Muppet Babies debuted. The idea was a success, and it transformed into a spin-off.
The Jim Henson Company 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.
The Muppet Movie is a 1979 musical road comedy film directed by James Frawley, produced by Jim Henson, and the first theatrical film to feature the Muppets. A co-production between the United Kingdom and the United States, the film was written by The Muppet Show writers Jerry Juhl and Jack Burns. Produced between the first and second half of The Muppet Show's third season, the film tells the origin story of the Muppets, as Kermit the Frog embarks on a cross-country trip to Los Angeles, encountering several of the Muppets—who all share the same ambition of finding success in professional show business—along the way while being pursued by Doc Hopper, a greedy restaurateur with intentions of employing Kermit as a spokesperson for his frog legs business.
The Muppets Take Manhattan is a 1984 American musical comedy-drama film directed by Frank Oz and the third theatrical film featuring the Muppets. The film stars Muppet performers Jim Henson, Oz, Dave Goelz, Steve Whitmire, Richard Hunt, Jerry Nelson, as well as special appearances by Art Carney, James Coco, Dabney Coleman, Gregory Hines, Linda Lavin and Joan Rivers. Filmed in New York City during the prior summer, it was released theatrically on July 13, 1984, by TriStar Pictures. A fantasy sequence in the film introduced the Muppet Babies, toddler versions of the lead Muppet characters.
The Great Muppet Caper is a 1981 musical heist comedy film directed by Jim Henson and the second theatrical film featuring the Muppets. The film stars Muppet performers Henson, Frank Oz, Dave Goelz, Jerry Nelson, Richard Hunt, and Steve Whitmire, as well as Charles Grodin and Diana Rigg with special cameo appearances by John Cleese, Robert Morley, Peter Ustinov, and Jack Warden. The film was produced by ITC Entertainment and The Jim Henson Company and distributed by Universal Pictures. In the plot, the Muppets are caught up in a jewel heist while investigating a robbery in London.
Muppet Treasure Island is a 1996 American musical swashbuckler comedy film directed by Brian Henson and the fifth theatrical film featuring the Muppets. Adapted from the 1883 novel Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson, similarly to its predecessor The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992), the key roles were played by live-action actors, with the Muppets in supporting roles. The film stars Muppet performers Dave Goelz, Steve Whitmire, Jerry Nelson, Kevin Clash, Bill Barretta, and Frank Oz in various roles, as well as Tim Curry as Long John Silver and introduces Kevin Bishop as Jim Hawkins.
The Muppets' Wizard of Oz is a 2005 musical fantasy television film directed by Kirk R. Thatcher, and the third television film featuring the Muppets. The film stars Ashanti, Jeffrey Tambor, Quentin Tarantino, David Alan Grier, Queen Latifah, as well as Muppet performers Steve Whitmire, Dave Goelz, Bill Barretta, and Eric Jacobson. A contemporary adaptation of the 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, the story follows young Dorothy Gale, who works in her Aunt Em's diner, but dreams of becoming a singer somewhere beyond her small Kansas town. Swept up by a tornado, in her trailer home with pet prawn Toto, she lands in Oz and embarks on a journey to meet the Wizard who can help make her dreams come true.
Kathryn Mullen is an American puppeteer, actress, and voice actress most closely associated with Jim Henson projects.
The Muppets Studio, LLC is an American entertainment production company and subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, that owns and produces media content for The Muppets franchise. The division was previously formed as The Muppets Holding Company, LLC in 2004 through Disney's acquisition of The Muppets and Bear in the Big Blue House intellectual properties from The Jim Henson Company.
Gonzo, also known as The Great 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; extraterrestrial in Muppets from Space; or avian creature.
Jim Henson's Creature Shop Challenge is an American reality television game show on the Syfy cable network. It premiered on March 25, 2014, and ended on May 13, 2014.
Jim Henson's Turkey Hollow is a 2015 Thanksgiving television film created by The Jim Henson Company and aired on Lifetime on November 21, 2015. The film is directed by Kirk R. Thatcher, adapted by Tim Burns and Christopher Baldi from a story by Jim Henson, Jerry Juhl, and Kirk Thatcher, narrated by Ludacris, and starring Mary Steenburgen, Jay Harrington, Graham Verchere, Genevieve Buechner, Reese Alexander, Gabe Khouth, Peter New, and Linden Banks.
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