free to be bree.

If any of you have the opportunity to get yourselves into Astoria before March 4th, I highly recommend stopping by the Museum of the Moving Image to check out the Jim Henson Muppet exhibit. It is chock full of artifacts that document Jim Henson’s evolution of the Muppets.

From early sketches and single-panel comics that resemble Far Side comics to posters promoting on-campus events that Henson designed as a side-business in college to getting involved in the television side of marketing by writing and producing skits for commercials and the development of puppets for those commercials that paved the way for the Muppets.  Also, there’s explanation of inspiration for some of the Muppets. For example, Beaker & Honeydew were physically based on 2 men Henson knew, and there was an album cover featuring the 2 men alongside an image of Bunsen Honeydew & Beaker for physical comparison.

Projects involving Muppet workshop characters are explored, including Sesame Street, The Dark Crystal, and Fraggle Rock. There is also an area that goes into Henson’s short films (which were very trippy) and how the the bright and psychedelic graphics and imagery of the 1960s played greatly into his life and work (think Mahna Mahna.)

The rest of the museum is just as, if not more, interesting. It documents everything from the evolution of cameras, sound equipment, animation, and televisions to makeup, special effects prostheses, set design, costume design, and memorabilia. There’s even a small restro-arcade set up where you can play vintage arcade games.

If you do have the chance to do this, I would also suggest following up the visit to the museum by heading to Studio Square, a beer garden just around the corner. They have excellent food and a really decent beer selection, as well as a full bar.