Jim Henson: The Biography

Jim Henson: The Biography is a biographical account of Jim Henson's life and career written by Brian Jay Jones. The 672-page hardcover was released on September 24, 2013 (Henson's 77th birthday) by Random House / Ballantine Books. A digital e-book edition, and an audiobook, narrated by Kirby Heyborne, were released on the same day.
==Development==
It was first reported in July 2010 that Brian Jay Jones had sold a biography of Jim Henson to Ballantine Books. Jones worked on the project with the blessing of the Henson family and the Jim Henson Legacy. From 2010 to 2012, he spent time combing through the Henson Archives with the assistance of Karen Falk.Author's blog October 8, 2010 Jones also spent time interviewing many of Henson's colleagues for the book — including Jane Henson, Frank Oz, Steve Whitmire, Dave Goelz, Jerry Nelson, and Henson's children, among others.Author's blog April 3, 2013Author's blog August 23, 2011Author's blog August 24, 2012 Jones delivered the first draft of the manuscript to his editor in June 2012; the draft was 700-pages long.Author's blog January 19, 2012 After being typeset and laid out, the final book was 592-pages.Author's blog May 7, 2013
==Official Description==
==Audio Book==
An unabridged audio book was released on September 24, 2013 by Random House Audio. Narrated by Kirby Heyborne, it runs 15 hours long.Jim Henson: The Biography (Audiobook, Unabridged) The audio book was released on both audio CD and as a digital download.
JimHenson-BiographyAudio.jpg|Audiobook Cover
==Events & Publicity==
* Brian Jay Jones and Dave Goelz appeared on The Diane Rehm Show on September 25, 2013 to discuss the book. (audio)
* The Museum of the Moving Image hosted a special panel, moderated by Craig Shemin, on October 1, 2013 about the book. The panel featured Brian Jay Jones, Karen Falk, Bonnie Erickson, Fran Brill, Museum of the Moving Image curator Barbara Miller, and Smithsonian entertainment exhibits curator Dwight Bowers.
* Jones appeared on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart on October 10, 2013 to discuss the book.archived link to source; media unavailable
* New York Comic Con hosted "Jim Henson: The Biography: The Panel," moderated by Joe Hennes and Ryan Roe of toughpigs.com, on October 11, 2013. The panel featured Brian Jay Jones, Karen Falk, Michael K. Frith, Bonnie Erickson, and Fran Brill (with Prairie Dawn). A full video of the panel was posted to YouTube by the Nerdist Channel in November 2013.previously YouTube ID 4uvKK4GOzIQ 
* Jones and Frank Oz appeared in a segment about the book on The Today Show on October 15, 2013.
* Jones appeared on the October 18, 2013 episode of the A Bit of a Chat with Ken Plume podcast to discuss the book. (audio)
* Jones appeared on The Tavis Smiley Show to discuss the book on October 18, 2013.
*Jones sat down for an interview at the local PBS station in Albuquerque, NM for a 15-minute segment on New Mexico In Focus. Larry Ahrens interviewed Jones on the air about Henson and creating the book. An additional 8-minute segment with Jones was posted as a "web extra" to the station's YouTube channel as well. 
* Jones was interviewed by Newstalk ZB's Chris Lynch on New Zealand radio on November 5, 2013.archived link to source; media unavailable
* Jones was interviewed by Oline Eaton for New Books In Biography. The hour-long interview was posted on December 6, 2013.archived link to source; media unavailable
==Reviews==
==Errata==
* Page 138 incorrectly states that a Cinderella series was pitched to CBS. It was actually a series based on Snow White that was pitched to CBS. The fairy tale was changed from Snow White to Cinderella after it was pitched to ABC.
* Page 177 incorrectly lists Featherstone among a group of characters who first appeared in Tales of the Tinkerdee, which the character did not appear in.
* Page 429 incorrectly says that two episodes of The Jim Henson Hour didn't air during the show's original NBC run. Actually, it was three episodes - Episode 110: Secrets of the Muppets, Episode 111: Living with Dinosaurs, and Episode 112: Food.
* Page 429 also refers to Episode 105: First Show as "The Ratings Game". "The Ratings Game" was one of many episode titles made up for an episode guide in MuppetZine that found its way to various websites and were the titles listed on Muppet Wiki until early 2013 when the official titles for the MuppeTelevision segments were found.See Category talk: Jim Henson Hour Episodes
==Sources==
==See also==
* Jim Henson biographies
==External links==
*Jones's Jim Henson Journal
*Audiobook sample
*ToughPigs.com review
*Wall Street Journal review
*New York Times review
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Category:Non-fiction Books
Category:Jim Henson Books