- Title: UNITED KINGDOM: THE MUPPET SHOW IS TO RETURN
- Date: 21st September 1994
- Summary: SHEPPERTON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (RECENT) (RTV) FILMING OF "MUPPET TREASURE ISLAND" CLAPPER BOARD FOZZIE BEAR AT WHEEL OF PIRATE SHIP DIRECTOR BRIAN HENSON LOOKING AT MONITOR HENSON SAYING THE SHOT IS FUNNY (ENGLISH)
- Embargoed: 6th October 1994 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
- Country: United Kingdom
- Topics: Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVAVR9NB2HY399N1IX8VXESHBUX
- Story Text: The Muppets are back. Nearly two decades after "The Muppet Show" shot Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy to superstardom, a new series is to be made in the United States.
A fifth Muppet movie, titled "Muppet Treasure Island", is also in production, and Jim Henson Productions is reported to be on the verge of a major new partnership with Sony.
The deals mark the resurgence of Jim Henson Productions, the firm many thought would collapse after the death of the Muppets' creator five years ago.
The Muppet Show first aired in 1976, the antics of Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzy Bear and their theatre full of characters delighting audiences for five years. Broadcast in more than 100 countries and 50 languages, the British-made series drew an estimated weekly audience of 235 million people.
In the new series, the Muppets have taken over a small local television station, K-MUP. Once a week, a switch is thrown and the chaotic crew ends up live on a national network.
The programme, to be made in Los Angeles, has been sold to the American Broadcasting Corporation. Negotiations are also underway to screen the series in Britain and Europe.
Filming "Muppet Treasure Island" at London's Shepparton Studios, company president Brian Henson said he was looking forward to the new series.
He said the show would appeal to many of the original Muppet Show fans, now in their thirties, as well as a new generation.
A huge galleon and a desert island have been constructed in at Shepparton Studios for the film, directed by Henson.
Kermit stars as Captain Smollett in a very different adaptation of Robert Louis Stephenson's classic tale. Human stars include Tim Curry as Long John Silver, and newcomer Kevin Bishop as Jim Hawkins.
Henson, himself an accomplished puppeteer, says the secret of the film is having fun on set, a philisophy which flows through the company.
Brian Henson took control of the company in 1990, aged 27, following the sudden death of his father, Jim.
At the time, the company was in the throes of a takeover by Walt Disney. Legal battles ensued before the Henson family secured control of the production company.
Part of its subsequent success lies with Henson's Creature Shop. Based in London and New York, the unit has developed many of the special "animatronic" effects used widely in the industry.
The Creature Shop has been contracted to produce intricate mechanical monsters, animals and other creatures for a variety of movies, including "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" Industry sources expect Henson Productions to unveil a deal with Sony soon. Newspaper reports have said it will be a distribution agreement, with Sony investing up to 75 million U.S.
dollars.
"Muppet Treasure Island" is scheduled for release by Disney in Europe in summer 1996. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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