Vintage Jim Henson on YouTube:

Jim Henson is best known for his wacky, far-out puppetry. Some have falsely asserted that Jim was little more than an over grown hippie. What few people realize is just how shrewd a business man he was. His professionalism and serious-mindedness is perhaps his best kept secret:



(I really like the new use the puppeteers found for their puppets at about 1:54. Yes, those are Schlitz cans.)

It is no wonder that Jim, or "Mr. Henson" as he preferred, was so successful in the commercial field. Although the end product most Americans saw on their television sets was full of vim and vigor (not to mention bright colors and explosions), Mr. Henson took great care in pitching his small group of well=groomed puppeteers to prospective employers. If you didn't know better, you might think that the following video was made by a studious engineer of farm tractors and combines, rather than a man who learned how to stitch from his grandmother:



(The "number of hilarious acts" starting at 2:05 is particularly conservative and business-like.)

Videos courtesy of Batman1971.