Download or read book Memoirs of a Muppets Writer written by Joseph A. Bailey and published by . This book was released on 2011-12-05 with total page 284 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In his 20 year affiliation with Jim Henson's Muppets Joseph A. Bailey was a staff writer on both Sesame Street and The Muppet Show. He also co-wrote the television specials Big Bird in China, Christmas Eve on Sesame Street and Rocky Mountain Holiday, starring John Denver and the Muppets on location in Aspen, Colorado. Additionally, Mr. Bailey wrote Sesame Street song lyrics, albums, five 90-minute Sesame Street Live! musicals, Muppet Business Meeting Films and special material for Big Bird's appearances in the White House and Carnegie Hall. The Muppet Show guest stars he wrote for include George Burns, Bob Hope, Steve Martin, Rudolf Nureyev, John Cleese, Milton Berle and Peter Sellers. For his writing, Mr. Bailey has garnered 5 Emmys, 3 Emmy nominations, a Writers Guild of America Award and a George Foster Peabody Award. Mr. Bailey lives in Manhattan with his wife, Gail. He indulges in occasional long-distance motorcycle trips and claims to speak French and play piano to the equal amusement of others.
Download or read book Jim Henson written by Brian Jay Jones and published by Ballantine Books. This book was released on 2013-09-24 with total page 434 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • For the first time ever—a comprehensive biography of one of the twentieth century’s most innovative creative artists: the incomparable, irreplaceable Jim Henson He was a gentle dreamer whose genial bearded visage was recognized around the world, but most people got to know him only through the iconic characters born of his fertile imagination: Kermit the Frog, Bert and Ernie, Miss Piggy, Big Bird. The Muppets made Jim Henson a household name, but they were just part of his remarkable story. This extraordinary biography—written with the generous cooperation of the Henson family—covers the full arc of Henson’s all-too-brief life: from his childhood in Leland, Mississippi, through the years of burgeoning fame in America, to the decade of international celebrity that preceded his untimely death at age fifty-three. Drawing on hundreds of hours of new interviews with Henson's family, friends, and closest collaborators, as well as unprecedented access to private family and company archives, Brian Jay Jones explores the creation of the Muppets, Henson’s contributions to Sesame Street and Saturday Night Live, and his nearly ten-year campaign to bring The Muppet Show to television. Jones provides the imaginative context for Henson’s non-Muppet projects, including the richly imagined worlds of The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth—as well as fascinating misfires like Henson’s dream of opening an inflatable psychedelic nightclub. An uncommonly intimate portrait, Jim Henson captures all the facets of this American original: the master craftsman who revolutionized the presentation of puppets on television, the savvy businessman whose dealmaking prowess won him a reputation as “the new Walt Disney,” and the creative team leader whose collaborative ethos earned him the undying loyalty of everyone who worked for him. Here also is insight into Henson’s intensely private personal life: his Christian Science upbringing, his love of fast cars and expensive art, and his weakness for women. Though an optimist by nature, Henson was haunted by the notion that he would not have time to do all the things he wanted to do in life—a fear that his heartbreaking final hours would prove all too well founded. An up-close look at the charmed life of a legend, Jim Henson gives the full measure to a man whose joyful genius transcended age, language, geography, and culture—and continues to beguile audiences worldwide. NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY BOOKPAGE “Jim Henson vibrantly delves into the magnificent man and his Muppet methods: It’s an absolute must-read!”—Neil Patrick Harris “An exhaustive work that is never exhausting, a credit both to Jones’s brisk style and to Henson’s exceptional life.”—The New York Times “[A] sweeping portrait that is a mix of humor, mirth and poignancy.”—Washington Independent Review of Books “A meticulously researched tome chock-full of gems about the Muppets and the most thorough portrait of their creator ever crafted.”—Associated Press
Download or read book My Life as a Furry Red Monster written by Kevin Clash and published by Harmony. This book was released on 2006-09-05 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hello, Everybody! The furry red monster known as Elmo has charmed his way into hearts and homes throughout the world with his unmistakable laugh, over-the-top enthusiasm, and boundless love. Elmo’s appeal is nothing short of magical. Kids adore him, and parents find him irresistible. What is it about this little monster? Meet Kevin Clash, the man behind the Muppet and the unassuming heart and soul of Elmo. At last, the puppeteer who has performed Elmo for nearly twenty years comes out from behind the stage to share his story. Weaving together his memories of growing up with the life lessons gained from his furry red alter ego, Kevin reveals himself to be as caring, and as eager to grow and learn and love, as the very special character he brings to life. You will discover how young Kevin honed his talent entertaining the kids in his mother’s home day care with puppets he made from slippers and coat liners; how, as a struggling young artist, he realized his dream to meet and then work for his idol, Muppet creator Jim Henson; and how each and every day of performing Elmo reinforces for him what is most important in life. As Kevin has been inspired by Elmo, now we can all learn from his furry red ways. Kevin’s (and Elmo’s) thoughts on love, creativity, friendship, and optimism remind us of life’s simple truths and ultimately encourage us all to be a little bit more like Elmo—to live with joy, to love more easily, and to laugh more often.
Download or read book Street Gang written by Michael Davis and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2008-12-26 with total page 404 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Now an acclaimed documentary from Screen Media, the New York Times bestselling account of the story behind one of the most influential, durable, and beloved shows in the history of television: Sesame Street. “Davis tracks down every Sesame anecdote and every Sesame personality in his book . . . Finally, we get to touch Big Bird's feathers.” —The New York Times Book Review Sesame Street is the longest-running-and arguably most beloved- children's television program ever created. Today, it reaches some six million preschoolers weekly in the United States and countless others in 140 countries around the world. Street Gang is the compelling, comical, and inspiring story of a media masterpiece and pop-culture landmark. Television reporter and columnist Michael Davis-with the complete participation of Joan Ganz Cooney, one of the show's founders-unveils the idealistic personalities, decades of social and cultural change, stories of compassion and personal sacrifice, and miraculous efforts of writers, producers, directors, and puppeteers that together transformed an empty soundstage into the most recognizable block of real estate in television history.
Download or read book Before You Leap written by Kermit the Frog and published by Meredith Books. This book was released on 2006 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Kermit the Frog shares the behind-the-scenes story of his climb from swamp to Hollywood, and offers advice on attaining dreams, finding love, overcoming obstacles, and other topics.
Download or read book Sunny Days written by David Kamp and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2021-05-18 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "David Kamp takes readers behind the scenes to show how ... programs [such as Mister Rogers' Neighboorhood, Sesame Street, and Schoolhouse Rock] made it on air, ... [explaining] how ... like-minded individuals found their way into television, not as fame- or money-hungry would-be auteurs and stars, but as people who wanted to use TV to help children ... [The book] captures a period in children's television where enlightened progressivism prevailed, and shows how this period changed the lives of millions"--
Download or read book Jim Henson written by Deanne Durrett and published by Kidhaven. This book was released on 2002 with total page 54 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Discusses the life of Jim Henson, creator of the Muppets, including his early life and influences, the development of the Muppets and their increasing success, his early death, and his legacy.
Download or read book Where Did I Go Right written by Bernie Brillstein and published by Phoenix Books. This book was released on 2008-01-01 with total page 485 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Beginning in the William Morris mail room in 1955, Bernie Brillstein wanted only three things: “to walk into a restaurant and have people know who I am…to be the guy who gets the phone calls and doesn’t have to make them…to represent the one performer people must have.” Throughout his long career at the top of the entertainment industry––as TV and movie producer, agent and brilliant personal manager––Brillstein has accomplished it all. Where Did I Go Right? is Brillstein’s street-smart, funny, and thoroughly human story of a life in show business. With his trademark wit and candor, he speaks out for the first time about his feud with Mike Ovitz, and how it felt to pass the leadership of his company to his partner, Brad Grey, and “no longer be the king.” He describes his close relationship with John Belushi and what it was like being alone with Belushi’s body as it lay “stretched out across two cramped seats in a tiny jet, wrapped up in a body bag” on the way to his funeral. He shares stories about Jim Hensen and Gilda Radner, about Lorne Michaels and the early days of Saturday Night Live. He takes us behind the scenes at such hits as The Blues Brothers, Ghostbusters, and The Muppet Show. Brillstein also reveals his secrets about how to survive and prosper in Hollywood, the real meaning of “the art of the deal,” the difference between “hot” and “good,” and why instinct is so crucial to the future of the entertainment industry. “Becoming successful is the most fun of all. I’m not talking about being successful or staying successful. I mean the getting there, the instant you arrive, and for the first time you think, ‘Where did I go right?’” After eight years, Phoenix Books is re-releasing this bestseller, with an updated epilogue from Bernie Brillstein entitled, “Still going right.”
Download or read book A Few Kind Words and a Loaded Gun written by Razor Smith and published by Chicago Review Press. This book was released on 2012-04 with total page 503 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Brutal and violent, this tell-all is a personal account of the life of Razor Smith and the world in which he lived, where ruthlessness, viciousness, and savagery are prized and admired. In prison more than half of his life for assaults and armed robberies, Smith became confined in a peculiar kind of hell from which his only route of escape was to master the art of writing. His book shows us a face of crime not often encountered in run-of-the-mill true-crime books: a face as tender and intimate as a lover's, yet as frightening as a killer's. Powerfully written from beginning to end, this is an extraordinarily vivid account of how a kid from South London became a career criminal, a blistering indictment of a system that brutalized young offenders, and an unsentimental acknowledgment of the adrenaline-fueled thrills of the criminal life. Shocking, fascinating, and horrifying, it also reveals Smith as one of the most talented writers of his generation.
Download or read book Just the Funny Parts written by Nell Scovell and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2018-03-20 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Just the Funny Parts is a juicy and scathingly funny insider look at how pop culture gets made. For more than thirty years, writer, producer and director Nell Scovell worked behind the scenes of iconic TV shows, including The Simpsons, Late Night with David Letterman, Murphy Brown,NCIS,The Muppets, and Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, which she created and executive produced. In 2009, Scovell gave up her behind-the-scenes status when the David Letterman sex scandal broke. Only the second woman ever to write for his show, Scovell used the moment to publicly call out the lack of gender diversity in late-night TV writers’ rooms. “One of the boys” came out hard for “all of the girls.” Her criticisms fueled a cultural debate. Two years later, Scovell was collaborating with Sheryl Sandberg on speeches and later on Lean In, which resulted in a worldwide movement. Now Scovell is opening up with this fun, honest, and often shocking account. Scovell knows what it’s like to put words in the mouths of President Barack Obama, Mark Harmon, Candice Bergen, Bob Newhart, Conan O’Brien, Alyssa Milano, and Kermit the Frog, among many others. Through her eyes, you’ll sit in the Simpson writers’ room… stand on the Oscar red carpet… pin a tail on Miss Piggy…bond with Star Trek’s Leonard Nimoy… and experience a Stephen King-like encounter with Stephen King. Just the Funny Parts is a fast-paced account of a nerdy girl from New England who fought her way to the top of the highly-competitive, male-dominated entertainment field. The book delivers invaluable insights into the creative process and tricks for navigating a difficult workplace. It's part memoir, part how-to, and part survival story. Or, as Scovell puts it, “It’s like Unbroken, but funnier and with slightly less torture.”
Download or read book The Year We Disappeared written by Cylin Busby and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2011-04-10 with total page 347 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When Cylin Busby was nine years old, she was obsessed with Izod clothing, the Muppets, and a box turtle she kept in a shoebox. Then everything changed overnight. Her police officer father, John, was driving to his shift when someone leveled a shotgun at his window. The blasts that followed left John's jaw on the passenger seat of his car-literally. While clinging to life, he managed to write down the name of the only person he thought could have pulled the trigger. The suspect? A local ex-con with rumored mob connections. The motive? Officer Busby was scheduled to testify against the suspect's family in an upcoming trial. Overnight, the Busbys went from being the "family next door" to one under 24-hour armed guard, with police escorts to school, and no contact with friends. Worse, the shooter was still on the loose, and it seemed only a matter of time before he'd come after John-or someone else in the family-again. With few choices left to them, the Busby family went into hiding, severing all ties to the only life they had known.
Download or read book What I Was Doing While You Were Breeding written by Kristin Newman and published by Crown. This book was released on 2014-05-20 with total page 337 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A “truly hilarious” (Glamour), sexy, and ultimately poignant memoir about mastering the art of the “vacationship” from a writer and co-executive producer of Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building—now with a new afterword “What I Was Doing While You Were Breeding is kind of like if Eat, Pray, Love were written by your funniest friend.”—Rachel Dratch Kristin Newman spent much of her twenties and thirties buying dresses to wear to her friends’ weddings and baby showers. Not ready to settle down and in need of an escape from her fast-paced job as a sitcom writer, Kristin instead traveled the world, often alone, for several weeks each year. In addition to falling madly in love with the planet, Kristin fell for many attractive locals, men who could provide the emotional connection she wanted without costing her the freedom she desperately needed. Kristin introduces readers to the Israeli bartenders, Finnish poker players, sexy Bedouins, and Argentinean priests who helped her transform into “Kristin-Adjacent” on the road–a slower, softer, and, yes, sluttier version of herself at home. Equal parts laugh-out-loud storytelling, candid reflection, and wanderlust-inspiring travel tales, What I Was Doing While You Were Breeding is a compelling debut that will have readers rushing to renew their passports.
Download or read book Elmo Says Sesame Street written by Sarah Albee and published by Random House Books for Young Readers. This book was released on 2013-12-18 with total page 24 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Elmo and his friends play a variation of everyone’ s favorite game, “Simon Says.” “Elmo Says,” is just like the original, except that here, our favorite furry little red monster leads the action. Toddlers and adults can read and join in the play—they just have to be careful to listen for those magic words: Elmo says!
Download or read book Miss Piggy s Guide to Life written by Henry Beard and published by Alfred a Knopf Incorporated. This book was released on 1981-01-01 with total page 113 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This eclectic spoof of self-help books has the popular Miss Piggy offering advice on beauty, etiquette, finances, love, career planning, cooking, travel, and psychological therapy
Download or read book A Field Guide to Awkward Silences written by Alexandra Petri and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2015-06-02 with total page 322 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Washington Post columnist Alexandra Petri turns her satirical eye on her own life in this hilarious new memoir... Most twentysomethings spend a lot of time avoiding awkwardness. Not Alexandra Petri. Afraid of rejection? Alexandra Petri has auditioned for America’s Next Top Model. Afraid of looking like an idiot? Alexandra Petri lost Jeopardy! by answering “Who is that dude?” on national TV. Afraid of bad jokes? Alexandra Petri won an international pun championship. Petri has been a debutante, reenacted the Civil War, and fended off suitors at a Star Wars convention while wearing a Jabba the Hutt suit. One time, she let some cult members she met on the street baptize her, just to be polite. She’s a connoisseur of the kind of awkwardness that most people spend whole lifetimes trying to avoid. If John Hodgman and Amy Sedaris had a baby…they would never let Petri babysit it. But Petri is here to tell you: Everything you fear is not so bad. Trust her. She’s tried it. And in the course of her misadventures, she’s learned that there are worse things out there than awkwardness—and that interesting things start to happen when you stop caring what people think.
Download or read book Emmet Otter s Jug Band Christmas written by Russell Hoban and published by Doubleday Books for Young Readers. This book was released on 2017-10-24 with total page 50 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Celebrate Christmas with the inspiration for the beloved Jim Henson film — in print after over 40 years. In 1977, when Jim Henson debuted the now-classic film Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas, few knew it was based on a story written and illustrated by Russell and Lillian Hoban, creators of Bread and Jam for Frances and other treasured children's books. With an enduring score by the great Paul Williams, the movie remains a holiday tradition in homes across America. Now the book that started it all is back in print, in a beautiful gift edition that will thrill Muppets fans young and old. Inspired by the classic tale "The Gift of the Magi," the story begins in a poor country cottage, as Emmet Otter dreams of buying Ma a piano for Christmas, while Ma dreams of buying Emmet a guitar. When a village talent contest is announced, both imagine their dreams coming true. But what they don't imagine finding is their real reward — the power of love, family, and hope in hard times. It is a story that reaches into a reader's heart and reminds us all that fortune favors the brave. A Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Book of the Year "[A] welcome reissue of the Hobans' 1971 story . . . Colorful illustrations of the close-knit animal community contain plenty of warmth." —The Horn Book
Download or read book The Wisdom of Big Bird and the Dark Genius of Oscar the Grouch written by Caroll Spinney and published by Villard. This book was released on 2007-12-18 with total page 171 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An inspiring message for all ages: Find your inner bird. If you’re looking for wisdom and joy in your life, go straight to Sesame Street and heed the words of its most beloved and profound resident, Caroll Spinney, who has spent the past thirty-four years in a bird costume (and a trash can) as Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch. Three decades inside a giant puppet have taught Spinney a valuable and surprising lesson: Being a bird can make you a better person. In The Wisdom of Big Bird, the living legend of Sesame Street describes how we can all find our inner bird (or grouch). Each chapter illustrates a piece of useful wisdom Spinney has gleaned from a career in feathers. The lessons Big Bird teaches children every day on Sesame Street are the same ones that have brought Spinney success and satisfaction in his own life. Warm, witty, and affirming, Caroll Spinney’s memoir proves that being a bird can make you a better and happier person. “Every day on Sesame Street, we strive to give our innocent young audience the basis of a lifelong education. It is no accident that spending the past thirty-four years in the Bird suit teaching these lessons to others has taught me a few things, too.”—from The Wisdom of Big Bird (and the Dark Genius of Oscar the Grouch)
