JIM LEWIS ANSWERS – February 24, 2011
From Gonzo’s Hobbit…
I have another one for you Jim if you can answer it (or want to)
What are the chances we could convince Disney to get the Muppets to do a version of "We are the World?"
As they say, that decision is above my pay grade. But I’m thinking “not likely.” Perhaps for a good cause…and in conjunction with a raft of celebrities, like the original, which was shot in the A&M recording studio on what is now the Henson Lot in Hollywood. Small world.
From Beauregard…
Oooh! Ji Jim. Just popped by to say that I LOVED Statler and Waldorf: From the Balcony! Even though it's often overlooked. It had some great moments and I do sometimes wonder what the sage of twosome would have to say about some of the latest productions...Avatar, for example. Shame that series ended…
Oh, that’s so nice to hear. It was a fun small thing to do, and a great chance to see Statler & Waldorf on their own gig. I’ve always felt those two guys were under-appreciated, but that’s probably because I’m becoming such an old curmudgeon myself.
From minor muppetz…
Considering "Miss Piggy's Hollywood" was originally half of an episode of "The Jim Henson Hour", do you recall if there was ever any intention for the special to include any of the characters created for the show, or was it alwasy intended to have a small cast of Muppets?
It was always meant to have a small cast of Muppets. The Jim Henson Hour was shot in Toronto. And “Miss Piggy’s Hollywood” was shot in L.A., so the idea was to keep it small and shootable. It was Jim, Frank and Dave – what could be better!
From dwmckim…
Regarding Boom!'s Muppet comics, since you've provided feedback to their writers to double check that everything is indeed Muppety and true to the characters and since you have extensive experience writing for Muppets in both live-action and print, would you consider writing an issue yourself?
I have great respect for writing comics (or graphic novelizations or whatever you want to call them). Heck, I’m at Earth 2 Comics in Sherman Oaks every Wednesday when the new books arrive. Honest. As such, I know that getting it just right – the mix of verbiage and visual – takes a special talent. Those who do it best are like jugglers with several sharp objects always in midair. I could try. But I’d rather see it done right.
From BobthePizzaBoy…
Hey, remember JoeTheArmadillo.com? I have to ask: I recently went onto an archived version of the site and saw that just about everything seemed to be "Under Construction" besides the home page. Was this website meant to become something bigger than it actually was or was this just meant to be a "home page" and nothing more?
Oh yes, I loved and still love Joe the Armadillo. And I must admit it was always meant to be a never-gets-made site. The whole genesis of Joe, from the real armadillo who runs across the road in “Swamp Years’ to Joey Mazzarino’s manic performance in the dvd extras was pure kismet. We thought it would be fun to imagine Joe as this whole multi-tier entertainment mogul, when he was just a goofy armadillo. Yeah, if he’d caught on big, I’d be CEO of Joe Armadillo Land! Ah, but all we got was a never-built website.
From minor muppetz…
When working on a series do you or other people in the crew (particularly the producers and other writers) worry about fan reactions to any big changes that happen to the shows? I don't know off-hand how many shows you've been on staff for besides The Animal Show (which doesn't seem to have had many changes) and Muppets Tonight... But I would guess it's often a "screwed if you do, screwed if you don't" feeling when it comes to doing what the fans would and wouldn't expect out of their favorite shows and franchises.
I was the crew for The Animal Show. Well, Jocelyn Stevenson and me. We wrote those all in a matter of weeks and shot ‘em quicker than quick. There was no time to consider anything, even sleeping. We followed what we found funny—and what the footage would support and the performers would perform. If you liked any of it, we’re thrilled. It was a helluva fun show to do.
As for “Muppets Tonight” – Oh, that’s such a bigger kettle of fish. (Why a kettle of fish, I’ve never quite figured out that figure of speech. And why a figure of speech, why not a sketch of speech…..Sorry, got off track there). With a network show like that, there are considerations of everything from the color of the drapes to the cut of the jib. You try to please the largest audience possible – and in the spirit of Jim Henson – you try to make yourselves laugh. Sometimes it happens, sometimes not as much.
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