Episode 105: First Show

The Jim Henson Hour
Air Date	May 14, 1989
Director	Peter Harris

A title card was added when aired as a special on the Odyssey Network.

Jim Henson and Miss Piggy in a promotional photo for Miss Piggy's Hollywood

Plot Outline

Jim Henson's Intro

Jim Henson talks about the second half hour, Miss Piggy's Hollywood. (In the half-hour version, Jim says that Bobby McFerrin can make anything into music, and that maybe he can make the Lion a musician.)

MuppeTelevision

• Guest Stars: Bobby McFerrin, Marc Weiner

Kermit struggles to keep the show's ratings up, while Digit experiences various malfunctions.

Sketches:

• Bobby McFerrin and the Graffiti Muppets.
• A documentary about the tranquility of nature turns into a war film, as caterpillars and butterflies try to destroy each other
• Hurting Something, a yuppie drama from another planet
• Gorilla Television: Ubu, Chip and Zondra interrupt the MuppeTelevision broadcast to feature Marc Weiner and his puppet Rocko
• Bobby McFerrin reads the musical news, with the Muppet Newsman providing interpretation for the totally unhip
• Link Hogthrob is at the mercy of the Response-o-Matic, a machine which changes the genre of the show based on what the audience wants to see
• Bean Bunny and the cast sing "La Bamba."

Features the first Hurting Something sketch, as well as the first appearances of Zondra, Ubu and Chip.

Intro

Jim Henson and the lion put on sunglasses, because they are going to Hollywood, as they introduce the second half.

Miss Piggy's Hollywood

Miss Piggy presents a tour of Hollywood, assisted by Gonzo. She tries to interview "the family of stars," but none of them want to talk to her.

Closing

Jim Henson demonstrates a dog Graffiti Muppet and introduces it to The Thought Lion.

Notes

• As can be told by the title, this was the first episode produced, although it aired as the fifth episode. The second half of this episode was originally going to feature The Heartless Giant. As a result, Jim Henson's intro was retaped to accomodate the change.
• Despite none of his characters appearing, Jerry Nelson can be seen in the MuppeTelevision portion as Mr. Harry Stapleton, representing a key demographic of one.
• According to the May 17, 1989 issue of Star-News, this episode was the lowest rated TV program among the major three networks the week it aired (72nd out of 77 shows among all four networks) with a 5.2 household rating (viewed in about 4.7 million households).
• This episode premiered on Mother's Day 1989, and was also the first episode to air in a Sunday night slot. Jim makes note of both of these events in his intro.
• Judging from an airing taped in Nova Scotia, Canadian broadcasts of this episode featured a different shot of Jim Henson walking down the stairs to greet the viewers. He pets the lion much more affectionately. This appears to be an "international" version of the intro, as Jim does not mention "Mother's Day."
• Four different intros with Jim Henson aired for the Bobby McFerrin episode. The "Jim Henson Hour" episode aired with and without mentioning "Mother's Day," while the half-hour "Jim Henson Show" featured both "Ratings" and "Miss Piggy's Hollywood." There was also an unaired intro in the pilot version where Jim introduced "The Heartless Giant."

Cast

Muppets

Kermit the Frog, Bean Bunny, Vicki, Waldo C. Graphic, Gonzo, Leon, Miss Piggy, Graffiti Muppets, Statler and Waldorf, Zondra, Ubu, Chip, Anthony, Fern, Link Hogthrob, Bob, Bruno

Background Muppets

Lew Zealand, Marvin Suggs

Muppet Performers

• Jim Henson - Kermit the Frog, Link Hogthrob, Waldorf, The Newsman
• Camille Bonora as Fern
• Fran Brill as Vicki, Zondra
• Kevin Clash as Leon, Bob the Game Show Host
• Dave Goelz as Digit, Gonzo
• Richard Hunt as Statler
• Frank Oz as Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear
• Dan Redican as Anthony
• Gord Robertson as Lindbergh and Chip
• Bob Stutt as Ubu
• Steve Whitmire as Bean Bunny, Waldo C. Graphic
• Sandra Shamas

Human Cast

• Chris Langham
• Jerry Nelson as Mr. Harry Stapleton

Sources

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