MoMI’s Jim Henson Kickstarter Shatters First Goal, Dreams Bigger

 

 

Calling all fans of The Muppets! Museum of the Moving Image has launched an already-successful Kickstarter campaign to raise $40,000 for The Jim Henson Exhibition, scheduled to open later in 2017. At the time of publishing this article, the campaign has already shattered their goal and are currently sitting at about $67,000 raised.

Now that the initial goal has been reached, MoMI introduced a new goal: $100,000 to restore even more puppets for the already-fantastic collection. From the Kickstarter page:

“We are so grateful for the outpouring of support from the community of Jim Henson fans! Your generosity has enabled us to meet our goal of $40,000 to preserve and install the puppets in The Jim Henson Exhibition in just two days!

We hope you will continue to support us and help us spread the word about this campaign, as we extend our efforts to preserve Jim’s legacy: we are setting a new goal of $100,000, which will help us restore more puppets in the Museum’s Jim Henson collection. The Jim Henson Exhibition at MoMI and its traveling version, The Jim Henson Exhibition: Imagination Unlimited, will feature many of Jim’s unique puppets, but there are many more “waiting in the wings” for their turn! As The Jim Henson Exhibition is a permanent exhibition at the Museum, the puppets in the original installation will rotate off at times for routine conservation, and it is imperative that other puppets be ready to take their place!

The Museum’s Jim Henson collection includes puppets from all of Jim’s work for film and television. To name just a few: 

• Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Scooter, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Rowlf, Beaker, Gonzo, Zoot, the Swedish Chef, the Koozebanians, and Camilla from The Muppet Show; 
• Big Bird, Elmo, Count von Count, Grover, Cookie Monster, Prairie Dawn, Ernie and Bert from Sesame Street; 
• Junior Gorg, Doozers, and all the Fraggles from Fraggle Rock; 
• Jen, Kira, Aughra, Pod people and a Skeksis and Mystic from The Dark Crystal; 
• Rare puppets from Jim’s television commercials and other early work in the 1950s and 1960s, including Yorick from Sam and Friends, the LaChoy Dragon, Wilkins and Wontkins, Sir Linit, Taminella Grinderfall, the “Java” puppets, and the Tastee Freeze Boss; 
• Puppets from Emmet Otter’s Jugband Christmas, The Muppet Musicians of Bremen, Faffner Hall, and much more! 

We cannot thank you enough for your overwhelming support. We are thrilled to be working with you all to preserve this unique and important collection for generations to come.”

If you feel so inclined to contribute to this sensational, inspirational, celebrational, muppetational cause, donate today!