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It has often been said that Jim Henson didn't like to talk much about past productions, but then I wodner about the various early sketches he did that often got repeated, or song sthat he has performed more than once.
During the early years, many of the sketches that the Muppets performed on various variety shows got remade, at least untill The Muppet Show, where most sketches were remade for probably the last time. Of course, back then, there weren't VCRs, and it wasn't common for home audiences to record and rewatch old programs again and again. Plus, The Muppets didn't have a regular series (besides Sam and Friends, which was usually only televised live) to show reruns of in syndication. I know that Jim Henson also used the same scripts for variosu commercials around the country, possibly so that, since most companies were local in their areas, most of the country could see the basic gags that Jim Henson came up with.
Still, I wonder what Hensons thoughts on this were, or if he even cared about talking about past productions back then (when he was getting started). Also, a lot of the same songs have been performed by the muppets many times. I wonder how Henson usually felt whenever an old song would be performed again, especially if he already performed the songs earlier. I wonder how he felt about rerecording songs that he originally performed on Sesame Street for various Sesame Street records (it seems like most of the early albums featured newly recorded songs, or rerecorded versions of songs that originated on the show, often with the same characters). I don't know if The Muppet Show albums featured song recordings without the laugh tracks or if the entire contents were rerecorded (for most of those songs, I think they sound exactly the same as on television, only without a laugh track. For Mahna Mahna, the only differerence I can tell is the lack of Kermit's dialogue). But some of the most famous Muppet songs, like Bein' Green and The Rainbow Connection, were performed many times, often by Jim Hensons characters.
Also, I wonder, if Henson didn't really want to talk much about earlier productions, then I wodner why he allowed so many productiosn that reused old material. I've read an article about the Henson Film Festival from 2004, where it was said that for these productions, Henson would like the new footage but not the old clips. I don't know if Henson had much controll over the 1980s Sesame Street videos (he probably had to approve of the productions, but with the exception of Big Bird's Story Time, he didn't have any actual invovlement). Jim Henson also made a lot of behind-the-scenes specials, featuring past clips, but I guess that would be different. I think he liked revealing how things were made, though that would be talking about past productions.
Speaking of this, I wonder how often Jim Henson actually watched Sesame Street, which repeated sketches in every episode. Heck, I wonder how often he watched his own productions on TV.
During the early years, many of the sketches that the Muppets performed on various variety shows got remade, at least untill The Muppet Show, where most sketches were remade for probably the last time. Of course, back then, there weren't VCRs, and it wasn't common for home audiences to record and rewatch old programs again and again. Plus, The Muppets didn't have a regular series (besides Sam and Friends, which was usually only televised live) to show reruns of in syndication. I know that Jim Henson also used the same scripts for variosu commercials around the country, possibly so that, since most companies were local in their areas, most of the country could see the basic gags that Jim Henson came up with.
Still, I wonder what Hensons thoughts on this were, or if he even cared about talking about past productions back then (when he was getting started). Also, a lot of the same songs have been performed by the muppets many times. I wonder how Henson usually felt whenever an old song would be performed again, especially if he already performed the songs earlier. I wonder how he felt about rerecording songs that he originally performed on Sesame Street for various Sesame Street records (it seems like most of the early albums featured newly recorded songs, or rerecorded versions of songs that originated on the show, often with the same characters). I don't know if The Muppet Show albums featured song recordings without the laugh tracks or if the entire contents were rerecorded (for most of those songs, I think they sound exactly the same as on television, only without a laugh track. For Mahna Mahna, the only differerence I can tell is the lack of Kermit's dialogue). But some of the most famous Muppet songs, like Bein' Green and The Rainbow Connection, were performed many times, often by Jim Hensons characters.
Also, I wonder, if Henson didn't really want to talk much about earlier productions, then I wodner why he allowed so many productiosn that reused old material. I've read an article about the Henson Film Festival from 2004, where it was said that for these productions, Henson would like the new footage but not the old clips. I don't know if Henson had much controll over the 1980s Sesame Street videos (he probably had to approve of the productions, but with the exception of Big Bird's Story Time, he didn't have any actual invovlement). Jim Henson also made a lot of behind-the-scenes specials, featuring past clips, but I guess that would be different. I think he liked revealing how things were made, though that would be talking about past productions.
Speaking of this, I wonder how often Jim Henson actually watched Sesame Street, which repeated sketches in every episode. Heck, I wonder how often he watched his own productions on TV.