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Brian Henson (born November 30, 1962) is an American puppeteer, director, producer, and technician. The son of puppeteers Jane and Jim Henson, Brian was born in New York City, New York. His sister Lisa is the CEO and he is chairman of the Jim Henson Company.

Early Life

Brian Henson was the third child of Jane and Jim Henson. As a child, he made several cameo appearances in some of the filmed segments his father produced for the PBS children's series Sesame Street, most notably in various segments of the "Number Song Series." As he got older, he built the very first Muppet penguin puppet for the opening "Lullaby of Broadway" segment of a season three episode of The Muppet Show guest starring Gilda Radner. During his summer break from high school in 1980, he assisted in the bicycle sequence from The Great Muppet Caper (1981). He helped create and operate a special rigging device that was created to allow the Muppets to ride bicycles, since he was skilled in the use of marionette puppets. A few years later, he similarly operated a marionette of Scooter riding a bicycle in The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984).

Career

1980s

During the 1980s, Henson wanted to make a name for himself and find work without his father's help. As a result, he 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. In addition, he also performed the role 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).

1990s

He briefly took over the Muppet roles of Scooter and Janice after the death of Richard Hunt in 1992.

He directed The Muppet Christmas Carol in 1992 and Muppet Treasure Island in 1996, the first Muppet films produced after Jim Henson's death.

He performed the role of Dr. Phil van Neuter, the Muppet mad scientist who tries to suck out Gonzo's brain, in Muppets from Space (1999).

He was the producer of the TV series Dinosaurs, Aliens in the Family, and Bear in the Big Blue House. His most visible recent project was the cult sci-fi series Farscape.

2000s

Henson is the co-creator, producer, and currently a performer in the Off-Broadway puppet-based variety show geared toward adults called Stuffed and Unstrung.

Filmography

Future Projects

Henson is co-producing The Power of the Dark Crystal and Fraggle Rock: The Movie. However, both projects are currently on hold.

References

1. http://www.henson.com/aboutus_content.php?content=brian Profile at Jim Henson Company
2. http://www.stuffedandunstrung.com/

External links

• Muppet Wiki: Brian Henson
• HDPS Wiki: Brian Henson
• Brian Henson at IMDb
• YouTube Interview

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