Here's something I just found out about today.
It's Jim Henson's test pilot for a series based on The Wizard of Id. And of course that's his unmistakable voice as the Wizard himself.Now it must be said that most of the jokes here don't really land. For that it's possible to blame the source. While Id could be fitfully amusing, Johnny Hart's best work before his fundamentalist breakdown was in B.C.. Still, while Henson and his compatriots can't make this hilarious, his innate craft shows. The simple, illustrative set, the business with the moving placards. This was a puppet show as it was meant to be presented. He just had to keep looking for his ideal project.
2 comments:
The puppets were already genuine muppet quality, weren't they? It was great hearing Jim Henson as the Wizard himself too - but you're right that it wasn't yet the perfect combination. That came later to the joy of us all.
It's interesting that he was not always planning to be a puppeteer, that it's something he sort of happened into. Obviously there was a lot of pent-up creative force there. He gradually found his way to channel it.
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