Cool Jim Henson video

Posted by Dominic von Riedemann May 25, 2007

Yeah, I always suspected that Jim Henson and Company had enjoyed the Age of Aquarius a little more than most people. Not that it's necessarily a bad thing (Ooops, external voice! Don't Do Drugs, Kids!), since the freewheeling nature of the late 1960's and early 70's kicked out many of the rules of animation, and what was acceptable for network television.

Take for instance, the Muppeteers' performance on none other than The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, where they performed Limbo: The Organized Mind, a multi-media piece that combined puppetry, electronica and collage images to take the viewer through the mind of an individual named Nobody. The soundtrack was composed by acclaimed electronic composer Raymond Scott (1908 - 1994), who did a lot of soundtrack work with Henson.

This dates all the way back to 1974 and is obviously before The Muppet Show made Henson and his creations a household name (gotta love Johnny Carson initially introducing him as "Jim Jenson," and the way he quietly corrects himself post-performance!).

This is definitely not for the straight-laced viewer, but if you love the more psychedelic side of Jim Henson's genius the way I do, you owe it to yourself to take five minutes and check this out.

P.S. - The Muppet Show Season 2, due August 7th. You know you want to . . .