Brian Henson
American filmmaker and puppeteer (born 1963)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Brian David Henson (born November 3, 1963)[1] is an American puppeteer, filmmaker, and the chairman of The Jim Henson Company.[2] He is the son of puppeteers Jim and Jane Henson.
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- Puppeteer
- filmmaker
Brian Henson | |
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Henson in 1982 | |
| Born | November 3, 1963[1] New York City, U.S. |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1979–present |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 1 |
| Parents | |
| Relatives |
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Early life
Henson was born on November 3, 1963[1] 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.[1]
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.[3] 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.[4][5] 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.[6]
Career
Film
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.
Television
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), Farscape (1999–2003) and The Hoobs (2001–2003). 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).
Other ventures
Henson is the cocreator, producer and performer for the adult-themed puppet-based variety show Puppet Up!,[7] 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 own 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.
Personal life
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | The Great Muppet Caper | Muppet performer | Also made a cameo appearance |
| 1984 | The Muppets Take Manhattan | Uncredited | |
| 1985 | Return to Oz | Jack Pumpkinhead (voice actor)[11] | Puppeteer of head and hands |
| Santa Claus: The Movie | Animatronic puppeteer | ||
| 1986 | Little Shop of Horrors | Principal puppeteer | |
| Labyrinth | Hoggle/Goblin (voice actor)[12] | ||
| 1987 | Jim Henson Presents Mother Goose Stories | Co-director | |
| 1990 | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles | Second unit director/Chief puppeteer | |
| The Witches | Puppeteer | ||
| Basil Hears a Noise | Puppeteer Executive producer |
Uncredited | |
| 1992 | The Muppet Christmas Carol | Director/Producer | |
| 1996 | Muppet Treasure Island | ||
| 1997 | Buddy | Executive producer | |
| 1999 | Muppets from Space | Dr. Phil Van Neuter/Sal Minella/Talking Sandwich (as a Muppet performer) Producer |
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| The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland | Executive producer | ||
| 2017 | The Star | ||
| 2018 | The Happytime Murders | Crab/on-screen cameo (photograph) Director; producer |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | The Christmas Toy | Cruiser | TV movie |
| 1988–1991 | The Storyteller | Storyteller's Dog/Devil/Griffin | |
| 1989–1990 | The Jim Henson Hour | Storyteller's Dog/Dog the Dinosaur/ Head of the Ultragorgon | |
| 1990 | Basil Hears a Noise | Puppeteer Executive producer |
TV movie |
| 1991–1994 | Dinosaurs | Grandma Ethyl Phillips/Arthur Rizzic Executive producer |
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| 1992–1994 | Dog City | Executive producer | |
| 1996 | Aliens in the Family | ||
| Gulliver's Travels | Co-executive producer | ||
| 1996–1998 | Muppets Tonight | Sal Minella/Dr. Phil Van Neuter/Seymour/Nigel Writer |
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| 1997–2003 | Bear in the Big Blue House | Executive producer | |
| 1999 | Alice in Wonderland | TV movie | |
| 1999–2003 | Farscape | ||
| 2001 | Jack and the Beanstalk: The Real Story | Director and writer | TV movie |
| 2002 | It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie | Scooter/Sal Minella/Janice Executive producer | |
| 2004 | Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars | Director/Executive producer | |
| 2005 | The Muppets' Wizard of Oz | Sal Minella Executive producer |
TV movie |
| 2008 | Jim Henson's Pajanimals | Executive producer | |
| 2008–2009 | Sid the Science Kid | ||
| 2009–2011 | Dinosaur Train | ||
| 2010 | Hot Dog TV | Voice Director |
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| 2013 | That Puppet Game Show | Various | |
| 2014 | Jim Henson's Creature Shop Challenge | Executive producer and Head Judge | |
| 2020 | Prop Culture | Himself | Episode: "The Muppet Movie" |
| Earth to Ned | Vincent | Episode: "I've Got a Ned Feeling About This"; Also executive producer[13] | |
| 2021 | Muppets Haunted Mansion | Sal Minella | Halloween special for Disney+ |
Video games
| Year | Title | Roles | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Muppet RaceMania | Sal Minella/Dr. Phil Van Neuter | Voice[14] |
| 2003 | Muppets Party Cruise | Scooter/Sal Minella/Janice/The Muppet Newsman |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Association | Nominated work | Category | Result | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Gulliver's Travels | Outstanding Miniseries | Won | |
| Muppets Tonight | Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series | Nominated | |||
| 1997 | The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss | Outstanding Children's Program | Nominated | ||
| 1997 | Satellite Awards | Muppet Treasure Island | Best Animated or Mixed Media Film | Nominated | |
| 1998 | Primetime Emmy Awards | The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss | Outstanding Children's Program | Nominated | |
| Muppets Tonight | Won | ||||
| 2019 | Golden Raspberry Awards | The Happytime Murders | Worst Picture | Nominated | |
| Worst Director | |||||