The ultimate gift for Muppet lovers everywhere, this extraordinary tribute celebrates 40 years of Henson's creative genius--from his best-known inventions to his lesser known but equally fascinating notions for everything from designs for futuristic nightclubs and homes to experimental films. 500 color illus.

At the time of his death in 1990, Jim Henson had created some of the world's most beloved characters, invigorated the demode art of puppeteering, and achieved in TV and films critical and commercial success unheard of since the heyday of Walt Disney.

This oversize, colorful volume, sure to delight Henson's many fans, traces his career from local TV in the mid-1950s through the triumphs of Sesame Street and The Muppet Show, his leap into movies (The Muppet Movie, The Dark Crystal, etc.), and late projects like Fraggle Rock. The book also covers Henson's little-known forays into experimental film and the contributions of his Creature Shop puppetmakers to non-Henson movies. The authorized nature of this project gave Finch access to fascinating archival materials, such as behind-the-scenes photos. Finch convincingly portrays Henson's visionary dedication to the craft of puppetry. The continuing popularity of Kermit, Big Bird, and Henson's other creations ensures that this showcase of them will be in demand for many years to come.

Hardcover : 268 pages

Jim Henson: The Works is a hard-cover coffee-table style examination of Jim Henson, focusing primarily on his career as a puppeteer and filmmaker, with occasional examinations of his personal life. Author Christopher Finch's previous book, Of Muppets and Men, focused on the making of The Muppet Show, only briefly touching on the history of the Muppets as a whole. The Works is a comprehensive follow-up volume, starting with Jim Henson's childhood and going all the way up through the most recent productions of the Henson Company after Jim's passing -- including the most recent production at the time, The Muppet Christmas Carol.

At the end of the book, Finch explains the book's genesis:

“This book has been more than a decade in the making. Jim Henson first discussed it with me in the early 1980s, when the Muppets were at the height of their success. He emphasized, however, that it was a long-term project. He felt his career had not yet reached a point that justified such a book, explaining that there were too many things he still wanted to do. But he added that I should expect a call one day.

He mentioned the project a couple of times over the next several years, but the call did not come until 1990. It arrived in the form of a telephone message that said, 'I think this is the right time to do the book we talked about. I hope you'll be available in the near future and that we can get together soon to talk about it.' Less than a week later, he was dead.”

Contents
Introductions by Frank Oz, Candice Bergen and Harry Belafonte
Before Chapter One - Jim's Childhood
Chapter One - The Early Years: Sam & Friends and Commercials
Chapter Two - Experimental Films: Time Piece and The Cube
Chapter Three - Sesame Street
Chapter Four - The Muppet Show
Chapter Five - Muppet Movies
Chapter Six - The Jim Henson Company
Chapter Seven - The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth
Chapter Eight - Fraggle Rock, Muppet Babies and the family showcase
Chapter Nine - The Jim Henson Hour, The StoryTeller and later works
Chapter Ten - Jim Henson's Legacy
Some Thoughts
Chronology
Acknowledgements

The book goes in chronological order, starting with Henson's childhood, his first TV show, Sam and Friends; his experimental films and other projects; Sesame Street; The Muppet Show; the Muppet Movies; the Dark Crystal and Labyrinth; The Storyteller; Muppet Vision 3D (which I saw in Disney World and loved!); Fraggle Rock, Muppet Babies, and more. It's fully illustrated, informative and gorgeous!

If you only get one Jim Henson book, this should be the one.

I have always loved the Muppets, and so I was partial to reading the book, but how could anyone not love this book?

"The Works" is a huge undertaking, covering the career of one of the most prolific artists since Walt Disney. It has large, thick, glossy pages full of vibrant colour and even texture, thanks to the many muppet faces peeking out of every page. It is just a pleasure to hold, to flip through, anything. Even Henson and his familiar bearded crew came to look like fuzzy muppets; as we got to know them and see them always surrounded by their creations, they all started to blend together.

The text takes us through Henson's fairytale career. From the early days as a cartoonist and puppeteer, making commercials and short films for TV; through the creation of Sesame Street and The Muppet Show, which has been seen in over 120 countries around the world, making it the most widely seen TV show in history; to the Hollywood days, making movies like "The Great Muppet Caper," "The Dark Crystal," and "Labyrinth," the book gives us a fascinating behind the scenes look at the work of this genius. A picture emerges of the two sides of Jim Henson: the creative man who always surrounded himself with talented people who saw him as the leader or director who could lend his vision to their creations, giving them shape; and the businessman who controlled a corporate empire based on a mega-marketing and merchandising phenomenon.

Peppered throughout the text are excerpts from interviews with Jim's friends and collaborators (generally one and the same) sharing their memories of working with him or knowing him, etc. I found this very effective, breaking up the strings of text, and imitating the collage of images in the pictures on each page, with a collage of narrative styles. It is more than biography, more than a tribute.

I had no idea of the extent of Jim Henson's success or genius until I read this book. I find I am fascinated by the stories of geniuses--in any field, but especially the arts. I just think these people function on another level, and it is really intriguing to get inside their heads. This book is all-around great and I recommend it equally to the die-hard Muppets fan and the "What the hell are Muppets?" person. If I didn't already have it, I would have loved to get this as a Christmas gift.

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