Remembering Jim Henson

Good for you!

Chapter 16

May 21st, 1990 (around 12:00p.m.)

Sunny was now alone as he sat by the edge of the Fraggle pond. He now knew that his friends did leave. He looked at the pond, but to his disappointment, it was only his reflection. He missed Mokey and Boober, but he didn’t see Wembley much. He visited the fraggle only every few days. Now he imagined him as a light green fraggle with such funny-looking eyes and yellow hair. He also knew he wore a banana tree t-shirt. The only time he giggled was whenever Wembley was wembling to him. The good thing was that Sunny didn’t laugh so he could embarrass his friend. Feeling so denied and not going with his friends made him much worse. With nothing else he could do, the only thing left that made him feel a little bit better was to sing.

On my own
Pretending she's beside me
All alone
I walk with her till evening
Without her
I feel her arms around me
And when I lose my way I close my eyes
And he has found me

In the rain the ground shines like diamonds
All the sunlights are misty in the pond
In the darkness, the trees are full of starlight
And all I see is she and I forever and forever
And I know it's only in my mind
That I'm talking to myself and not to her
And although I know that she is not blind
Still I say there's a way for us

I love her
But when the day is over
She is gone
The pond’s just a pond
Without her
The world around me changes
The trees are bare and everywhere
The places are full of strange creatures

I love her
But every day I'm learning
All my life
I've only been pretending
Without me
Her world would go on turning
A world that's full of happiness
That I have never known

I love her
I love her
I love her
But only on my own

“I miss Mokey!” Sunny said, sniffling. “She was like a mother to me long ago, but now she is my friend. It’s not fair! I hope my friends come back.”

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Floyd and Janice finally got to St. John’s Memorial for Mr. Henson after they got a taxi ride. Like that was all they could really afford.

“Like Wow!” Janice thought. “There are like lots of people here that rully know Jim.”

The church pipe organ started playing the Sesame Street theme song. The Sesame Street characters and the people were the first ones to start crying. They knew that when the idea all started with a frog and Jim. Beth was also crying into Amy’s shoulder. She loved that show! It taught her numbers, manners, the important meals of the day and so on.

“Poor Kermit,” Beth thought. “I know how it feels to lose a loved one even it is a leader of his.”

When the organ music stopped, the Dirty Brass Band played a somber New Orleans style number, which was led by the Henson family, the Muppet performers, and several of its clergy. Trish looked at the program, and the song was “A Closer Walk with Thee.” She softly sang the chorus as long as her friends didn’t hear her.

Just a closer walk with thee,
Grant it, Jesus, is my plea,
Daily walking close to thee:
Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.

Even she was a Christian, no doubt about it that God did have a plan for Jim on Earth to accomplish great things. He was not only funny, but he was clean, quiet, and worked very hard. She can tell he definitely got an illness since he forgot to wear winter clothes. He never cared about how much anything cost. Dignity was the best word to describe what he really wanted in his life.

Finally, the service begins with lots of silence for a moment. Richard Hunt, now a veteran Muppeteer can imagine that probably his Muppets are already at the service. He knows in real life the only friend he brought with him was Scooter Groose. He went to the stage and started reading letters from the children that grew up watching Sesame Street. That “word” Sesame Street clicked into Piggy’s mind. She knew the frog started a show before he did his own show called, “The Muppet Show.” To end his speech, he said, “We would laugh … and cry today, but only if we could breathe in Jim’s air…one last time.”

Jerry Juhl came to the stage next, and talked about how working with Jim and Kermit was a great experience.

Gobo meanwhile was getting confused. There were two Jerrys? How can you tell which one you became friends with first? His voice sounded nice, but still which “silly creature” named Jerry did he really get to know more?

After Juhl was done talking. Jerry Nelson and Louise Gold came to the stage as the pianist started to play. The song was supposed to be called, “When the River Meets the Sea.”



Jerry Nelson: When the mountain touches the valley
All the clouds are taught to fly
As our souls will leave this land most peacefully
Though our minds be filled with questions
In our hearts we'll understand
When the river meets the sea

Like a flower that has blossomed
In this dry and barren sand
We are born and born again most gracefully
Plus the winds of time will take us
With a sure and steady hand

When the river meets the sea
Louise Gold: (When the river meets the sea)

Jerry & Louise: Patience my brothers
And patience my son
In that sweet and final hour
Truth and justice will be done

Louise Gold: Like a baby when it is sleeping
In its mother's loving arms
What a newborn baby dreams is a mystery

But this life will find a purpose
And in time we'll understand
When the river meets the sea

Jerry & Louise: When the river meets the almighty sea

The Muppet fans in the church could probably tell that Jerry’s singing sounded more like Gobo’s, but for Louise her singing was definitely from the character Alice Otter or was it Ma Otter.

Harry Belafonte, whom was a guest star on the “Muppet Show”, did his speech. Some of the people understood it and others didn’t, but when he told them that Jim would say, “Let’s do it,” the phrase perked everyone. So, he was the “boss.” Scooter forgot that Kermit the Frog was not the only boss around the theatre after all.

When Harry Belafonte was singing, “Turn the World Around” with his backup group, everyone took out their butterfly rods and waved them.

Miss Piggy felt so sad that she wasn’t with Kermie that day when Harry was a guest star. It was either Frank was busy or she wasn’t scheduled to be on the set that day. She was angry at that time and Kermit did apologize for not letting her in the theatre when they had the guest star coming. Even Jim! He probably forgot about the pig too. Frank convinced that he couldn’t bring both Fozzie and Piggy in at the same day. It just would not work that way.

She would never karate chop “Frankie”, but sometimes she would yell at him and he could hear her. Goodness knows if anybody wanted to hear her yell at “Frankie.” Otherwise, she hated Floyd after that incident he caused to make her mad and sometimes Fozzie, but not to Jerry, Richard, or even Jim. Never ever to Kermit’s friend!

After the song was over, Frank Oz was next to the stage. He even told about the Saturday Night Live days when Jim did a terrible and silly thing at the same time. When his speech was over, he left the stage with tears rolling down from his cheeks.



“The Rainbow Connection”, Kermit’s signature’s song filled the whole church with Jim’s voice as the frog. The stage was empty! The butterfly rods started to flutter again and everyone including the Muppets, Fraggles, and Sesame Street gang cried. If Jim was dead, a part of the frog died too.

Once the song ended, John Stone, the director and writer came on the stage and made a speech that was heartfelt, short, and sweet to the point. He even said that Jim was a good friend.

Gobo couldn’t believe this. So this “Jim” had so many friends. They all cared about him and he was even called a “fearless leader.” He felt like he was a fearless Fraggle himself.

After John Stone left the stage, then the soft sounds coming from a piano were the first notes from the song, “(It’s Not Easy) Bein’ Green.” When Big Bird sang that song and kind of struggled from that meaningful song, everyone cried. Once the song was done, he looked up from the sky and said, “Thank you, Kermit!” Then, he left the stage.


Next there were more speakers including: Bernie Brillstein, which was Jim, Kermit, and Miss Piggy’s manager or agent and Michael Frith, the head designer for the Fraggles that made them a great home as much as possible. Next Jerry Nelson came to the stage and thanks to his hip man named Floyd, wanted to read a poem for his old friend Jim.

Fearless Leader
Doctor Dog
Toothsome piano man
Playing your joyous song of
Is, was, and will be
Remembering always the fun silly
“Poke, poke poke, Bert, hee, hee, hee”

Fearless Leader
Mister hands open wide
Sharing insights of joy and love
Here! Will you sip? Will you feast?
There is plenty for all

Fearless leader
Whim of steel
You’ve convinced me, Convincing John
Cantus, I hear your magic flute
Whispering and echoing through the caves of my imagination

Fearless leader
Green flippered gentleness
Fill my dreams with your visions
Of unexplored possibilities
Shine on, shine on
Eternally bright in your hearts
And minds
Fearless Leader

Then, Jerry Nelson left the stage before the priests came to the podium by reading the scriptures from different religions requested from the Henson family.

One the sculptures were read, the Henson family came to the podium. There was their mother, Jane, and the children Brian, Cheryl, John, Lisa, and Heather. Cheryl and Brian read the letters that their father, Jim, wrote four years back before his unfortunate death. The words they read were:

“I’m not at all afraid of the thought of death and look forward to it. I suggest you first have a friendly little service of some kind; it would lovely if there was a song or two…and someone said some nice, happy words about me. … This may all sound silly to you guys, but what the hey, I’m gone – and who can argue with me?”

If those were his wishes to his Muppet and Fraggle friends including Kermit, then that was what he wanted. His legacy will never ever be forgotten in years or by decades in the future.

Finally, Richard came to the podium to introduce their special music also known as, “Jim’s Favorite Songs.”



One the songs were done, Hunt gave out the eulogy to everyone even for those that never heard of Jim much, but loved the Muppets.


Now, Gobo had a feeling of that message that said, "Please watch out for each other and love and forgive everybody. It's a good life, enjoy it.” What did that mean? Then, he was thinking about Cantus. If all Fraggles have songs, then "everybody" including silly creatures have songs too.”

Wow that was great!