Brian Henson
Acting
Biography
Brian Henson (born November 3, 1963) is an American puppeteer, filmmaker, actor and the chairman of The Jim Henson Company. He is the son of puppeteers Jim and Jane Henson. Henson was born on November 3, 1963, in New York City, the third child of Jane Henson (née Nebel; 1934–2013) and Jim Henson (1936–1990). He has four siblings: Lisa (born 1960), Cheryl(born 1961), John (1965–2014) and Heather Henson (born 1970). As a child, Henson appeared in some of the filmed segments that his father produced for the PBS children's series Sesame Street. As a teenager, he built the first Muppet penguin puppet for the opening "Lullaby of Broadway" segment of a Season 3 episode of The Muppet Show. During his summer break from high school at the age of 17, Henson assisted in the production of The Great Muppet Caper (1981); skilled in the use of marionette puppets, he helped create and operate a special rigging device that allowed the Muppets to appear to ride bicycles. Several years later, after performing marionette work in The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984) in the scene in which rats cook food in a diner, he specialized in managing complicated special effects. Henson performed Jack Pumpkinhead in Return to Oz (1985), operated special effects for Santa Claus: The Movie (1985) and was a principal performer for the Audrey II puppet in Little Shop of Horrors (1986), controlling mouth movement while others performed the lips and vines. He also performed the voice of Hoggle, one of the main characters in his father's film Labyrinth(1986), and the dog in both versions of The Storyteller (1988 and 1990). In 1992, Henson directed The Muppet Christmas Carol and directed the next film in the franchise, Muppet Treasure Island, in 1996. He performed the role of Dr. Phil van Neuter, the Muppet mad scientist character he performed on Muppets Tonight, in Muppets from Space(1999). In 2018, he directed and produced The Happytime Murders, a puppet crime-comedy film for adult audiences. Henson was the executive producer for several television series: Dinosaurs (1991–94), Aliens in the Family (1996), Bear in the Big Blue House (1997–2006) and Farscape (1999–2003). In addition to assuming an executive producer role, Henson served as the head judge on the 2014 reality television show Jim Henson's Creature Shop Challenge. He performed the roles of Janice and Scooter in the 2002 television film It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie. Henson returned to perform Sal Minella, a character he created for Muppets Tonight, in Muppets Haunted Mansion (2021). Henson is the cocreator, producer and performer for the adult-themed puppet-based variety show Puppet Up! and has played various characters from the show on the British program That Puppet Game Show. For The Muppet Show Live in 2001, Henson performed his Muppet characters and one of his father's characters, The Newsman, for the first time. He reprised the role for the 2003 video game Muppets Party Cruise. Henson married Ellis Flyte, costume designer for the 1986 fantasy adventure film Labyrinth, in November 1990. They divorced in 2002. In 2010, Henson married actress Mia Sara. They have one child, a daughter born in 2005. Description above from the Wikipedia article Brian Henson, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For
Dinosaurs follows the life of a family of dinosaurs, living in a modern world. They have TV's, fridges, microwaves, and every modern convenience.
Dinosaurs
A freak accident during an experimental space mission catapults Astronaut John Crichton across a thousand galaxies to an alien battlefield.
Farscape
Join Buddy, a Tyrannosaurus Rex, and his adoptive Pteranodon family on a whimsical voyage through prehistoric jungles, swamps, volcanoes and oceans, as they unearth basic concepts in life science, natural history and paleontology.
Dinosaur Train
The series provides children with valuable tools for growth in key areas of music, social skill development, and cognitive learning through integrated programs combining music, movement, and exploration. With Bear and all his friends, learn about cooperation, teamwork and more.
Bear in the Big Blue House
Going Live! was a Saturday morning magazine show, broadcast on BBC1 between 1987 and 1993. It was presented by Phillip Schofield and Sarah Greene. Other presenters included Trevor and Simon, Peter Simon, Emma Forbes, and puppet Gordon the Gopher. The show was broadcast during the autumn to spring seasons, with other shows such as the 8:15 from Manchester and Parallel 9 taking over during the summer months. It was preceded by Saturday Superstore, and succeeded by Live & Kicking. In 1988, when the second series started, Greene was hurt in a helicopter crash with her then boyfriend, Mike Smith. Guest presenters stood in for her including T'Pau's Carol Decker. Similarly, in 1992-93 during the final series, Schofield was starring in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and was unable to present the show. A third presenter took his place. Originally, Neighbours actor Kristian Schmid took the role but soon left after problems with his work permit. Various other celebrities to stand in included Shane Richie and Robbie Williams during his Take That days.
Going Live!
The Storyteller, aided by his cynical dog, narrates classic folk tales, fables, and legends.
The Storyteller
An in-depth look at the history and pop cultural significance of horror films.
Eli Roth's History of Horror
Muppets Tonight is a live-action/puppet television series created by Jim Henson Productions and featuring The Muppets. Much like the "MuppeTelevision" segment of The Jim Henson Hour, Muppets Tonight was a continuation of The Muppet Show, set in a television studio, rather than a theater. It ran on ABC from 1996 to 1998 and reruns ran on Disney Channel from 1997 to 2002. As of 2013, it is the last television series to star The Muppets characters.
Muppets Tonight
Frustrated with babysitting on yet another weekend night, Sarah, a teenager with an active imagination, summons the Goblins to take her baby stepbrother away. When little Toby actually disappears, Sarah must follow him into a fantastical world to rescue him from the Goblin King. Guarding his castle is the labyrinth itself, a twisted maze of deception, populated with outrageous characters and unknown dangers.
Labyrinth
An anthology series based on the works of Stephen King.
Nightmares & Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King
The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss is an American live-action/puppet television series based on characters created by Dr. Seuss, produced by Jim Henson Productions. It aired for two seasons on the Nick Jr. Block on Nickelodeon. For the first few episodes, the show aired during Sunday night prime time, immediately before Nick News. It also premiered on PBS from January 12, 1998 until May 25, 2002. It is notable for its use of live puppets with digitally animated backgrounds, and in its first season, for refashioning characters and themes from the original Dr. Seuss books into new stories that often retained much of the flavor of Dr. Seuss's own works. It derives its name from wubble, a type of unicycle mentioned in the Dr. Seuss book I Had Trouble in Getting to Solla Sollew.
The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss
Sid is an "inquisitive youngster" who uses comedy to tackle questions kids have about basic scientific principles and why things work the way they do.
Sid the Science Kid
The show was hosted by Jake, a jovial polar bear, and Stinky, his skunk friend. Other main characters included Armstrong the Chicken Hawk, Ollie the Tapir, Bunnie Bear, Tizzy the Bee, Yves St. La Roache, Rhonda Rat, and Dullard the Aardvark. Structured as a talk show, the hosts interviewed two guest animals in each episode. The animals talked about themselves and showed clips of their real-life counterparts.
Jim Henson's Animal Show with Stinky and Jake
This animated-live action puppet series follows the adventures of Ace Hart, a canine PI, and Eliot Shag, his 'real-life' German Shepherd animator.
Dog City
Wealthy developer Jack Robinson is stunned when a gigantic human skeleton is discovered on his building site. According to a mysterious woman, it is part of a curse that has dogged his family for years. To lift the jinx placed upon him, Jack will need to visit the land in the sky - by climbing up a very tall beanstalk.
Jack and the Beanstalk: The Real Story
The Hoobs is a BAFTA-winning television programme created and produced by The Jim Henson Company and Sesame Workshop. Join Iver, Tula, Groove, and Roma on a friendly, fun-filled, journey as they investigate different worlds and search for answers to everything Hoobs could ever want to know about the universe. “The Hoobs” embraces the power of the question and uses a delightful mix of puppetry, animation, and live-action to help young audiences learn about the world we live in.
The Hoobs
An hour-long anthology series hosted by Jim Henson and generally included two segments. The first, MuppeTelevision, features comedy skits starring the Muppets, as well as frequent guest appearances by popular entertainers. The second often rebroadcasts original productions, primarily The StoryTeller.
The Jim Henson Hour
Dr. Gulliver has returned from his journey to his family after a long absence - and tells them the story of his travels.
Gulliver's Travels
A small but brave donkey and his animal friends become the unsung heroes of the greatest story ever told: the first Christmas.
The Star
A human single father is abducted by a spaceship and fall in love with an alien single mother. They return to Earth to marry and raise their blended family.