EM.TV to sell 49.9% of Henson to Dean Valentine

[sarah_yzma]

hmm almost makes me think they aren't to be trusted.....just a question. what would happen in they were caught in a scandal like enron what would happen to the muppets? would Valentine get it if the whole 49.9% thing goes through, or would they disappear into obivion....just wondering!

 

[Luke]

Originally posted by frogboy4
Well, it's a fact that EMTV cooked the books, lied about it and hid them from their investors if you go by every article from the Associated Press etc. Now, about internal dealings with Henson - we don't really know any official info, but we know that they are pretty shady. (Thinks of the Nazi on Laugh In)

Two people at the top of the company, and a few executives were involved in that. The company was spread a lot more widely - into a lot of joint ventures with people like Kirch and they had some great people working for them with good intentions. Obviously things haven't looked good from how they've been reported publicly but from what i gather (unofficially of course ) they didn't bother Henson that much until towards the end. That said some of the dodgy financial dealing involved their financial projections for Henson so i guess that'll all be coming out in court. I agree with you they haven't been ideal - i'm just saying i don't think they (the company as a whole) set out to handle their ownership of JHC in this way, it's just how events went and the kind of people they had in charge. Sometimes (and i guess the media is to blame for working a stereotyped angle) it just sounds like some war movie's being played out - the dirty Germans and the yankie doodle dandies.

BTW Froggy, don't underestimate what we know - we are on one of those Muppet internet fan sites y'know ? Remember Kermit in the movie - we know all this kinda stuff !

 

[frogboy4]

LOL! I don't think the Muppets have anything to do with EMTV's shady dealings. They are not a factor IMHO. I just object to any such company involved in such swindling to be associated with the Muppets. Wish we could just "Snoop" them. I realize it's only a couple people who were guilty of shady practices, but it was the people running the company. Therefore we can paint the whole corporation that color. I actually know some good people who worked for Enron (I am from Houston and am there right now) but that doesn't mean they are a good or worthy company. So - I agree and disagree with you. It's 2 "crazy Germans" and not a whole company of them - but they did run the company so that's enough for me to write them off.

 

[beaker]

Originally posted by BoyRaisin2
I have never really thought of the Muppets as "nostalgia," I'd rather have the pre-1990 shows than the post-1990 shows.

And I think another thing that needs to be considered (I don't even understand what I'm about to say) is what people mean when they want more, oh what's the right term, "productivity" at Henson. I mean when people say Muppets, do they mean "The Muppets" or "The CLASSIC Muppets/Muppet Show Muppets," the "Muppets," as in well, Muppets, or just more stuff out of The Jim Henson Co. (which itself is sometimes referred to as the Muppets).

There is no mistaking it...the "Muppet Show" Muppets are the flagship property and cornerstone of JHC. In 50 years there have been 4 major brands: Muppet Show, Sesame Street, Fraggle Rock, and Bear in the Big Blue House.

Don't think for a moment since JHC doesnt 'own' Sesame anymore it is not Muppet or JHC related...that is all legal technicality, but I will always consider Sesame JHC...and disregard the EM.TV snafu invalid.

Sadly, a lot of people(not you! but others) are stuck in this idea
that the Muppets are hasbeens. You see em on here, but they are not real fans...since they are not looking towards the future.
Yes, the Muppets have not truly been in top form since the last great year of 1989...and ye si thas been a murky and uncertain last decade plus. But I think new times are a coming. But here is the amazing thing...a true testament to JHC and The Muppets.
They really got the ball rolling to relaunch the Muppet brand into the spotlight. It started reallyw ith Muppetfest, a kind of mecca summit if you will. And since then it's been a really big whirlwind campaign. Now then...what we want is the continual global revolution of evertything JHC.

Why Disney is now even using patend Creature Shop technology. Some of the biggest films of the last couple years have involved JHC creature shop. Like him or not Elmo remains one of the biggest sellers out there eclipsing even Barney. The Weezer thing really got the Muppet brand out to a larger more 'hip and young' market. Farscape, while cancelled by the sci fi gestapo, remains one of the greatest sci fi shows ever...it's dedicated following illustrates this(sadly not sure how many farscape fans are also hardcore muppet fans, but i digress) This year we saw so many things: LJS commercials, Mastercard, Dennys, Walk of Fame, Nascar, the takeover of Macy's Thanksgiving parade with the Muppets and Sesame, the NBC movie, the figures, etc.

So despite the uncertainty and financial turmoil of JHC...the Muppet brand and JHC franchises astonishingly continues to flourish. This has hands down been the most productive post 1990 year for The Muppets...and finally I do believe next year will mark their glorious return. For those that balk at Pepe as not a 'real' classic Muppet, or think the Muppets have had their time...I say stay in the past...as the real Muppet fans, while
reflecting ont he glorious past, are moving on toward the bright future.

Originally posted by Luke

BTW Froggy, don't underestimate what we know - we are on one of those Muppet internet fan sites y'know ?

Err, and some of us fans know more than we should *whoops*

Originally posted by sarah_yzma
I think we should just be happy that the Muppets are still around! The company could have just dissapated (ooh i doubt that's spelled right) when Henson died. I try not to complain, though i do sometimes, I just remember that we are lucky to still have the Muppets in our lives!-Sarah

GOOD POINT! That actually is the crux of it all...sure the 12 years since 1990 has been mired in financial crisis and uncertainty...but through it all, half a century later the Muppets are here, and coming back stronger than they have been in a long time.
So yes, for those that write off the Muppets as nostalgic pop culture fodder or kiddy stuff...then they truly have lost sight of the vision, imagination, and wonder.

 

[sarah_yzma]

aww i almost beg to differ....other caracters other than the main ones have come through in the past 10-12 years...(especially pepe hehe) we've seen other caracters and develop in great ways! golly i am in a really good mood today all i've done is be nice i think well i don't really know what i think!!!!!!!!!! just happy thoughts!

 

[Bean Bunnysan]

I really hope your right.
Because its sad to see the muppets get little if any PR, unlike Disney or Hello Kitty gets

 

[Luke]

Originally posted by frogboy4
LOL! I don't think the Muppets have anything to do with EMTV's shady dealings. They are not a factor IMHO.

The Henson projections which enabled EMTV to make such a high offer for the company were named as one of those those that Haffa was (allegedly) fiddling, and continued to (allegedly) fiddle back in Germany after the sale. I'm not suggesting Henson people were part of it but it'll all definitely get brought up in court. You haven't heard of the investor meeting where Haffa held up the JHC financial projections for 2002/3 for like 0.23 seconds and then practically wet himself when asked to give people a better look ?

 

[Chilly Down]

I don't know what to make of Valentine. One minute he's saying the NBC movie was a good start and he wants to relaunch the franchise; the next he's saying he wants to make Muppet programs because people who grew up with the Muppets "have kids of their own now." In other words, he wants to make the stuff for the kids. Why can no one grasp the concept of FAMILY entertainment anymore? Stuff that's truly for adults and kids? He's also re-emphasizing the direct-to-video stuff. I shudder again. Well, we'll just have to wait and see. Nothing's set in stone yet.

Taking a cue from Jamie, it's all "very interesting...but schtupid!"

Regarding the earlier question about Muppet "brands" (I think I can answer this): They may (and should) continue to expand the Muppet universe with new productions like BITBBH. However, that side of the company (with other productions like Hoobs and Mopatop's Shop) has been doing very well anyway. When Valentine talks about needing to revive the "dormant" brand of the Muppets, he's talking about the classic TMS family. We should be seeing more of them in the coming year...and if that's the case, more power to him!

 

[Fozzie Bear]

Hiya!

Well, I think that the new NBC Christmas movie had humor in it that was alot like TMS humor...but without the laugh tracks! If he bases his ideas on how The Muppets should be run on that movie, and even moreso on TMS, he'll be going in the right direction.

Like I've always said, they need to all sit back, study and investigate what they did in the past, find out what it was that DID make them famous and entertaining, learn from that and those who were there in the early days, and begin again with a modern approach. THEN I think we'll be okay.

FOZ

 

[Zack the Dog]

Like I've always said, they need to all sit back, study and investigate what they did in the past, find out what it was that DID make them famous and entertaining, learn from that and those who were there in the early days, and begin again with a modern approach. THEN I think we'll be okay.

I agree! i don't know what to make of this either...so what? EM TV own"s the rights to fraggle rock and Valentines Day (joke) owns he muppet show? is it like that? and and then we got Disney with BITBBH and CTW with SS but it was always like that.

I have dreams of a giant Kermit head popping out of the ground and then a Jim henson land popping out under it with all the rights belonging to one company with the extra MFC song rights too. then this giant theme park becomes bigger then Disney and the Muppets are the big name then....oh and also the Jim Henson land is on a floating island and travels all over the world so everyone can go to it and....hmmm, i think i got unrealistic when i got to the giant kermit head, either that or the " bigger then Disney part";-)

Zack)Rowlf the, hey, it could never happen,Dog.