News Archive - 2000

June 10, 2000 Online Pet Store's biggest seller is...a sock puppet

Online pet store pets.com is taking pre-orders for its commercial spokes-puppet, the cheeky, unnamed sock puppet that stars in its commercials. Unlike most commercial sock puppets, this one is sized for adult hands, and sells for about $20. Since the online store began offering it, it has proved to be the store's biggest selling item. Orders will begin shipping in mid-June. Interesting how the most popular item in the store is puppetry related. Perhaps the struggling pets.com should consider a merchandise switch and start selling sock puppets exclusively. Read the Reuters news story at the San Jose Mercury News online.

May 28, 2000 Announcing: a staged reading for Avenue Q

Announcing... a staged reading of AVENUE Q: CHILDREN'S TELEVISION FOR TWENTYSOMETHINGS A new musical tv project Created by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx (Winners of the 2000 Ed Kleban Award for Lyrics) A live performance featuring four Muppeteers from Sesame Street: Stephanie D'Abruzzo, Lara MacLean, John Tartaglia, and Rick Lyon. With Brian Yorkey, Ann Harada, and Amanda Green (as Gary Coleman). Pilot episode, plus a few more songs & scenes from future episodes. Approximately one hour. Open to the public. Admission is free. At the York Theatre (619 Lex at 54th St. in the basement of the Citicorp building). Seats must be reserved by calling 212-935-5820 ext. 24 7:30 pm performance is SOLD OUT. 9:00 pm is filling up fast. Call asap to guarantee seating. For more info. about AVENUE Q, see the new Playbill Online article at: http://www.AVENUEQ.com/playbill.html Also, some song clips and pictures of the puppets are posted at: http://www.AVENUEQ.com/ All the songs except two are written by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx. The pilot episode script is by Lopez/Marx, Craig Shemin, and Seth Goldstein. The reading is directed by Seth Goldstein. The puppets were designed and built by Rick Lyon.

May 28, 2000 Ronnie Burkett wins Chalmers Playwright award and four Dora Mavor Moore nominations

Ronnie Burkett's "Street of Blood" won a Chalmers Canadian Playwright Award on May 15. This is Burkett's second Chalmers, a prestigious award that is presented to outstanding Canadian playwrights and includes a cash prize. And the show also just received four Dora Mavor Moore Award nominations for the 1999/2000 Toronto Theater season for costumes, sound design, best production and best actor for Ronnie Burkett's performance. Burkett is up against Donald Sutherland in the best actor category and The Lion King in costume and sound design. The winners will be announced June 26. Good luck, Ronnie!

May 28, 2000 Puppet Mania 2000 appearance by Ray Harryhausen

Puppet Mania 2000, the Puppeteers of America Pacific Southwest Region puppet festival to be held at Cal State Los Angeles, July 20-23, 2000, has announced that stop-motion great and Hollywood film producer Ray Harryhausen will appear during a day long film festival saluting stop motion animation. Puppet Mania 2000's stop motion film festival will start Saturday morning, July 22, with screenings of Puppetoons hosted by Bob Baker, one of the last animators trained at George Pal Studios. Ray Harryhausen's appearance in the morning willl be followed by an afternoon screening of a 35mm print of Harryhausen's 1957 classic, "The 7th Voyage of Sinbad." Visit the festival website at www.puppetbuilder.com/puppetmania2000/ for details on registering. Don't delay! There are only a few more registration slots left!

May 21, 2000 Snapdragon Puppets wins Emmy

Congratulations to Roger Mara and Elizabeth Luce of Snapdragon Video Productions for winning an Emmy for "Best Children/Youth Program" last night, May 20. The San Francisco / Northern California Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences awarded a regional Emmy to producers Mara and Luce for their video "The Mousecracker" which appeared on Peninsula TV. You can take a look at this charming, award winning puppet interpretation of "The Nutcracker" at their website: http://www.snapdragonpuppets.com.

May 20, 2000 "Being John Malkovich" dvd

From Steve Abrams, president of Puppeteers of America The recently released DVD of the film, "Being John Malkovich," includes an additional feature with the title, "An Intimate Portrait of the Art of Puppetry." Phillip Huber's work is the focus of this segment and during an interview Mr. Huber gives a warm endorsement of the Puppeteers of America, which is followed by a graphic giving an address and phone number for Puppeteers of America . In answer to some inquiries, No, The Puppeteers of America was not involved in the production of this piece but we wish to thank Phil Huber and the producers of the segment for including a way to contact our organization. Membership Officers Joyce & Chuck Berty report that they have already received a number of calls including a call at 1 AM. Anyone interested in more information about Puppeteers of America may contact the organization through its web site at www.puppeteers.org or call the toll free number for membership information (888) 568-6235.

May 20, 2000 Vagabond Puppets spotlighted in Oakland

SFGate has an article on Blake Maxam, currently the lone member of Vagabond Puppets, one of the country's oldest puppet troupes. Vagabond recently received a small grant which will enable them to hire another puppeteer, good news for schools and libraries in the Oakland Bay Area.

May 20, 2000 Carol Green, ventriloquist, highlighted in Los Gatos paper

And the Los Gatos city paper highlights ventriloquist Carol Greene in an interesting article that attempts to educate readers on the art of ventriloquism.

May 20, 2000 Puppets in Court

The Howdy Doody custody battle between the Detroit Institute of the Arts and the family of the late puppeteer Rufus Rose continues. See the following stories: Globe article Detroit News article Court TV article And the Pets.com sock puppet and Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog are also slinging charges back and forth. Something to do with defamation of character and libel and intellectual property theft. And publicity. Yawn. SFGate article NY Daily News article

May 20, 2000 Julie Taymor's "Green Bird" on Broadway

Julie Taymor's Green Bird has debuted on Broadway. NY Times article Village Voice article (second part of article)

May 20, 2000 Expo 2000 includes puppetry

This email, which came from a friend of Nancy Staub, who got the information from a friend who lives in Germany, might be of interest to people attending the UNIMA festival in Magdeburg: (Rajeev Sethi) is the conceptualizer and designer of one of the pavilions at EXPO 2000, the official world's fair for Year 2000. It is brilliant, he is brilliant, and I am writing from Hannover Germany where it is being installed. It is on the theme of Basic Needs for the new millennium. 100s of folk artists from around the world have made exhibits for it, including Peter Schumann of Bread and Puppet Theater. His room-puppet theater is the finale of Rajeev's 70,000 sf exhibit, and Peter and his puppeteers have created an extraordinary space -- beautiful beyond my ability to describe it -- a Sistine chapel of painting and puppetry. So this room and the puppet shows in it will be reason enough to visit EXPO 2000 (and its 200 other pavilions) between June 1 and October 31 when EXPO closes. A good place to stay is their local YMCA at $60 per night. The CVJM City Hotel, Limburgstrasse 3, 30159 Hannover, Germany -- tel: 49-511-3607-0, fax 49-511-3607-177.

May 20, 2000 New Puppet Museum coming to Sweden, Festival in Finland

From Gustaf Kull Projektet: SandslŒns Dockteatermuseum (the Puppettheatre Museum of Kramfors) Pl 512, SE-872 96 BJ€RTR�. Sweden. tel. +46 (0)612 523 68, fax +46 (0)708 724 770 museum@btt.nu www.btt.nu/sandslan There is a small festival going on between 24th and 28th of May in the small city of Rovaniemi in the north of Finland. Yes, you are thinking quite right. This is the original home of Santa Claus! It is arranged by the "Baltic Region Network for Puppet Theatre". This is an organization connecting Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia, north of the 65¡. In spite of our living south of that border, the chief of culture in Kramfors and I are invited to tell the participants during the festival about the "Puppetry Museum in Kramfors" that we are working on.. I'll make a report from the festival at the homepage of the Museum at www.btt.nu/sandslan shortly after the festival.

May 20, 2000 Newsday article looks at puppetry

Newsday joins the ranks of newspapers that have suddenly discovered puppetry, thanks to the work of artists like Julie Taymor and Ronnie Burkett. Read the article by Karin Lipson.

May 20, 2000 Ronnie Burkett debuts "Happy"

Ronnie Burkett's play "Happy", featuring a cast of marionettes, has opened in Toronto. Read John Coulbourn's review in the Toronto Sun.

May 20, 2000 The Puppet Films of Jiri Trnka on DVD

Image Entertainment has released, "The Puppet Films of Jiri Trnka" (1945-65/$30). From their website: The Czech stop-motion puppet animation master Jiri Trnka directed some of the most acclaimed animated films ever made. In 1966, four years before his death, Newsday lauded him as "second to Chaplin as a film artist because his work inaugurated a new stage in a medium long dominated by Disney." Trnka continues to astound audiences to this day, particularly those discovering this amazing animation for the first time. This collection includes five of the master's shorts and his feature-length classic "The Emperor's Nightingale" based on Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale and narrated by Boris Karloff. Includes: The Emperor's Nightingale (1951, 67 min.), The Hand (18 min.), The Story of the Bass Cello (13 min.), A Merry Circus (11 min.), A Drop Too Much (14 min.), The Song of the Prairie (21 min.), Jiri Trnka: Puppet Animation Master documentary (12 min.).

May 20, 2000 Disney Marionettes, designed by Bob Baker, for sale

Disney has released a set of 5 mini marionettes, designed by puppeteer Bob Baker. This "Mickey through the Years" collection features Mickey in his most memorable roles: Steamboat Wail, the Brave Little Tailor, Vaudeville/Nifty 90's (yeah, we ALL remember that one!), Mouseketeer Band Leader and Sorcerer's Apprentice. They come with their own stand and look as if they are working marionettes. The remarkable thing is that both the Disney catalog and website give credit to the gifted Bob Baker for the designs. Perhaps the company is learning to give credit where credit is due. To view the puppets, go to www.disneystore.com and enter "marionette" in the search box. Steamboat Willie and Bandleader Mickey are especially charming.

February 22, 2000 German Company buys Jim Henson Productions

EM.TV & Merchandising has acquired 100% of the Jim Henson Co. in a cash and stock transaction valued at $680 million. The Munich based company, Europe's biggest supplier of family programming, is now the owner of Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Bear in the Big Blue House and 450 hours of popular TV series, movies and specials as well as global media (and Internet) rights to Henson's characters and brands. Henson Press Release The Jim Henson Production site also has a letter to all Henson employees from Brian Henson and Charlie Rivkin. It states, in part: "When the transaction is completed later this year, The Jim Henson Company will retain both our identity and our "personality." We will continue to produce television and film properties, develop and merchandise new characters, maintain our business relationships and pursue new business opportunities. And we will work closely with our partners at EM.TV to establish the combined enterprise as a major global player in the entertainment industry. "We want to emphasize that this transaction is driven by the growth opportunities it will create for EM.TV and for The Jim Henson Company. Neither we nor our new partners anticipate that there will be any jobs lost as a result of this transaction. For us, the primary significance of partnering with EM.TV is the benefits and opportunities it will create by making us an integral part of a very dynamic, very successful, highly growth-oriented global enterprise." Update 2/25: According to follow-up press reports, this deal does include the Muppet characters from Sesame Street, including Bert and Ernie, Cookie Monster, Oscar the Grouch, Big Bird, Grover and Elmo. We can only hope that this means that we in the US won't have to endure them shilling for K-Mart in tv commercials very much longer.

February 22, 2000 Hensons buy Chaplin's old studio

The five children of Muppets creator Jim Henson have bought Charlie Chaplin's historic studio and are leasing it to the Jim Henson Co. The Hensons bought the five-acre Hollywood site for $12.5 million and are renovating it to house the Los Angeles headquarters of their late father's company. The company, which now is based at the nearby Raleigh Studios, is expected to move into its new home by mid-April. "When we heard that the Chaplin lot was for sale we had to have it," said Brian Henson, president and chief executive of the Henson company. Taken from Associated Press

February 22, 2000 "Friends of Piggy" discussion list

A new email discussion list has appeared on the Internet. "Friends of Piggy" is being run by Danny Horn, the editor of the no longer published MuppetZine. Danny describes the list as follows: "Friends-of-Piggy: The fabulous mailing list for gay, lesbian, bi and trans Muppet fans and their friends. How does your orientation impact on your Muppet fandom? Are you out to your partner as a Muppet fan? And why do gay men like Miss Piggy so much? Come and meet the startlingly large community of GLBT Muppet fans. To subscribe, send a message to Friends-of-Piggy-subscribe@onelist.com. For more information, check out http://www.onelist.com/community/Friends-of-Piggy, or write to dannyjhorn@aol.com. WWPD*? Find out on the fantastic Friends-of-Piggy list." It's been my experience that email discussion lists tend to be more thoughtful, more passionate and more interesting than newsgroups devoted to a subject. The "Friends of Piggy" list already has a substantial membership, and discussions have ranged from puppeteering, to Frank Oz's movie "In & Out", to which Muppet do you identify with. It's an intelligent list, one that I'm sure Miss Piggy would approve of. *What Would Piggy Do?

February 22, 2000 Frank Oz interview

From the afore-mentioned "Friends of Piggy" list, I found out that Frank Oz, film director and Muppet performer, gave an interview to the new website, filmforce.ign.com. In the four part interview, Oz talks about his early days as a puppeteer, his puppeteering parents, his work with Jim Henson, his directing career, and his interest in directing the next Muppet movie.

February 22, 2000 Farscape Puppets to improve for the second season

The website space.com has an interview with Farscape puppet chief, Dave Elsey. In the interview, conducted by Stewart Taggert, Elsey says that the scifi series' puppets have been completely rebuilt during the series break. "You’re going to be seeing a better, even more believable set of puppets. The lip synching will look better, the cosmetics will be better, everything will be better."

February 22, 2000 SAG puppeteers organize to keep "on camera" status

There is a new film/tv industry proposal that will classify puppeteers as off-camera principal performers, making them subject to lower Screen Actors Guild (SAG) wages. SAG has recommended that puppeteers make a presentation regarding this at the February 27, 2000 meeting at the Hollywood Palladium. Email your address to Jim Boulden at jim@animalmakers.com with your ideas.

February 22, 2000 Millennium Punch & Judy Jamboree

A "Millennium Punch & Judy Jamboree and International Slapstick Symposium" will be held Sat. May 13th and Sun. May 14th 2000 at The Midlands Arts Centre, Cannon Hill Park, Birmingham, UK This will be a get-together of Punch Profs and enthusiasts in a weekend of shows, workshops and seminars hosted under the auspices of Old Red Nose.It will be a chance to see guest performers from the UK and overseas, to party with them and to celebrate the Punch tradition as it enters the 21st Century. Events also include FREE skills workshops and FREE entry to a range of Punch debates and seminars and a Millennium Photo-call for all Profs who bring their Punches. And of course there will be shows galore plus Giant Punch and Judy leading a String of Sausages Conga. Also featured are walkabout puppets, the Punchinello Fairground Organ, visual poetry, bubbles, the touring photographic exhibition Shoot The Puppet: Shoot The Puppeteer, the DaSilva Puppet Bookstall and The Mr. Punch Experience: answering everyone's questions about the Punch & Judy tradition. Events from 11 am to 5pm on each day. A detailed timetable will be posted in March 2000. The above taken from http://www.punch-and-judy.com/

February 22, 2000 Being John Malkovich earns 3 oscar Nominations

Being John Malkovich, the Spike Jonze film about a puppeteer who finds a portal to the actor John Malkovitch's brain earned 3 Oscar nominations: Supporting Actress - Catherine Keener, Screenplay (written directly for the screen) - Charlie Kaufman and Director - Spike Jonze. Hmmm, best director and best screenplay, but no best picture nod?

February 22, 2000 Russian "intellectuals" protest puppets

Russia Today reports that some St. Petersburg University professors have condemned the popular Russian TV show "Puppets", a satirical show which uses puppets that look like politicians. The academics wrote, "We are members of the initiative group, who nominated Vladimir Putin for president in Russia. We are deeply hurt by the two last episodes of Puppets, where the nation’s leading politicians, including Vladimir Putin, an alumnus of our University, were portrayed in a most inappropriate form." The professors seem to think that Putin needs protection from the puppets and the satire the puppets wield.

February 22, 2000 Bela Lugosi, puppetmaster, on DVD

Our friends at Image Entertainment keep bringing us obscure, and in this case rightfully obscure, movies with puppets. A new DVD of Ed Wood films brings us "Glen and Glenda", a film about a cross-dresser wading through a life crisis with the help of muddled dream sequences and a puppetmaster,played by Bela Lugosi. Bob Stephens in a San Francisco Examiner article fondly quotes some of Lugosi's lines in the film: "Pull de stringk! Dance to dat which one is created for. . ." Another reason to go right out and buy a DVD player.

February 21, 2000 Bob Clampett's Beany and Cecil on DVD

Image Entertainment has put out a DVD of vintage television "Bob Clampett's Beany and Cecil: The Special Edition". Bob Stephens writes in the San Francisco Examiner that Beany and Cecil first appeared as puppets in the early 1950's and then as cartoons a decade later. He writes "Image's DVD has 220 minutes of programming, including a dozen new transfers of the cartoons from the original camera negatives, four "Time for Beany" episodes that have not been seen for 50 years, a commentary by series creator Bob Clampett, Walker Edmiston and Stan Freberg, backstage footage, more than 500 stills and archival material from unreleased projects."

January 29, 2000 USA Today spotlights puppetry

USA Today has an article about the "resurgence" of puppetry in the USA in its January 26th edition. Puppeteers of America President Steve Abrams is quoted as saying "we find it annoying when people call it a lost art because we've always been here." And Bobby Box, the associate producer at Atlanta's Center for Puppetry Arts says that audiences are disenchanted with computer generated images. "People are taking a step back and saying, 'Hey, we want to be involved, too.' To me, a puppet has so much more soul that this computer-generated stuff."

January 29, 2000 Folkmanis Puppets contribute proceeds to Canine Companions for Independence

businesswire.com reports that Folkmanis Puppets will be selling a new dog puppet, a 30 inch long Golden Retriever. A portion of all proceeds from the sales of this puppet will be donated to Canine Companions for Independence (CCI), a non-profit organization that enhances the lives of people with disabilities by providing highly trained assistant dogs free of charge. Folkmanis' Golden Retriever is pictured center on the lap of Gabe Alberigi, along with his canine companion, Prairie. Folkmanis founders Judy and Atis Folkmanis and CCI executive Director Corey Hudson (top left) join Gabe. Recommended for ages 3 and up, the Golden Retriever has a suggested retail price of $60. I have a special interest in this news item, because I knew Kerry Knaus-Hardy, who used the first CCI trained dog, a lovable and charmingly ditzy black lab named Omar. It's a terrific organization that allows people to live more independent lives, and it can use your support, either through buying the puppet from Folkmanis or direct contributions to CCI.

January 23, 2000 Burkett's Street of Blood garners end of year applause

Ronnie Burkett's one man show, Street of Blood, has been heaped with praise by critics summing up the Toronto Theater season. Robert Cushman, the theater critic for the National Post wrapped up the 1999 theater year, saying "The year's most sinister development was the proliferation, in both commercial and subsidized theatres, of navel-gazing, one-person shows. Transcending this category, and most others, was Ronnie Burkett's Street of Blood: One extraordinary man with 40 puppets, all in the service of a genuine play whose reach only slightly exceeded its irresistible grasp. Entire National Post story Vit Wagner, writing for The Toronto Star (article no longer online) says that the 1999 Toronto theater season was "a thinner crop but one of quality." Wagner goes on to say "A Man Among Marionettes: Ronnie Burkett proves, yet again, that puppetry is not just for kids with his provocative, risk-taking and unexpectedly poignant Street Of Blood." Kate Taylor, in the December 27, 1999 edition of The Globe and Mail (article no longer online), calls Street of Blood "audacious" and writes: "Form and content have been necking in the recent work of Calgary puppeteer Burkett and, if the provocative results are occasionally uneven, they are also stupendously theatrical. Street of Blood is a baroque tale about showbiz vampires who visit a Prairie town called Turnip Corners where a little biddy called Edna Rural has seen Christ's face in her quilting. Edna and the vampires are puppets; Burkett himself played Christ." Mira Friedlander in the January 3-9 issue of VARIETY praises the show in a glowing review: "What may turn out to be the finest new play of the Toronto legit year is a puppet show, although calling what Ronnie Burkett does with marionettes mere puppetry is to seriously underrate not only his craftsmanship (he has created and manipulates some 40 of them), but also his breathtaking artistry. "It is not overpraising, either, to call Burkett a genius; "Street of Blood" is awesome in its weaving together a complex story, a huge castand a sense of magic that reminds one what theater ought to be - and rarely is. "On one level, it is impossible not to be awed by the dexterity and talent of the master puppeteer, as he works the strings from above with only the help of a stage manager to put things in position; on another level, there are huge stretches of the show where the characters are so alive, so convincing, that they seem to be acting on their own." And Glenn Sumi at now.com (article no longer online) picks out the 10 shows that showed him the magic of theater. "... the most audacious work of all turned out to be a puppet show. The only common link? Each of these could only exist on the stage, pounding with life and asking us to share in the magic. "Who'd have believed the year's most ambitious play would be a puppet show? Stringing together themes as diverse as AIDS, Hollywood, vampires, gay terrorists and prairie conservatives, puppeteer Ronnie Burkett -- OK, let's just call him a genius -- created a moving, funny work. Even if his script's reach occasionally exceeded his grasp, there was lots to enjoy and admire in this one-of-a-kind Angels In America meets Kiss Of The Spiderwoman opus." Ronnie Burkett Theatre of Marionettes

January 23, 2000 Jerry Juhl puts to rest a rumor about Bert and Ernie

Jerry Juhl, head writer for the Muppets for many years and author of their best movies and bits (and the only person I've ever sent a fan letter to) responded to a statement in San Francisco Chronicle writer Jon Carroll's column that Bert and Ernie were named for Bert the cop and Ernie the cabdriver in Frank Capra's ``It's a Wonderful Life.'' Jerry Juhl writes: ``I was the head writer for the Muppets for 36 years and one of the original writers on `Sesame Street.' The rumor about `It's a Wonderful Life' has persisted over the years. "I was not present at the naming, but I was always positive it was incorrect. Despite his many talents, Jim had no memory for details like this. He knew the movie, of course, but would not have remembered the cop and the cabdriver. I was not able to confirm this with Jim before he died, but shortly thereafter I spoke to Jon Stone, Sesame Street's first producer and head writer and a man largely responsible for the show's format. (Jon, sadly, is no longer with us either.) "He assured me that Ernie and Bert were named one day when he and Jim were studying the prototype puppets. They decided that one of them looked like an Ernie, and the other one looked like a Bert. The movie character names are purely coincidental. `"Do I get bonus points for this?: Oscar the Grouch got his name from a seafood restaurant called Oscar's on Lexington Avenue in NYC. Jim and Jon had lunch there once and had a really bad-tempered waiter." Jon Carroll's witty and thoughtful daily column is available online through the sfgate.com website and the above quote can be found there.

January 23, 2000 Satirical online magazine spoofs puppetry in schools

The Onion, an online satirical magazine, has an article about puppets being pelted by crayons during a classroom performance. This piece has been quoted in some trade publications as though it really happened. It didn't. It's a spoof, and a cathartic read for any puppeteer who has faced a surly school audience. The Onion article

January 23, 2000 Pets.com to auction off sock puppet

businesswire.com writes that the online pet company, pets.com, is auctioning off an authentic pets.com sock puppet on amazon.com. Direct from Pets.com's recent Super Bowl commercial shoot, the spokesock is available for bidding through February 3. All proceeds from the sale of the sock puppet will go to Pets.commitment, Pets.com's philanthropic program. Coincidentally, the auction marks the debut of sock puppet themed merchandise available on the Pets.com site. While you can't buy a replica of the cheesy and cheeky puppet , you can buy clothing, hats, watches, and pet products with the sock puppet image. (While the original puppet used in commercials was a genuine sock, the current version is a cute terrycloth creation with a very short sleeve so you can always see the puppeteer's arm.) "People seem to love the Pets.com Sock Puppet, and we've received lots of requests from people who want a sock puppet of their own," said Julie Wainwright, Pets.com CEO. "Auctioning an authentic Pets.com Sock Puppet on Amazon.com Auctions enables one lucky person to have the only authentic puppet available to the public, while the rest of the Sock Puppet's fans can enjoy his humor with the new Sock Puppet-themed merchandise." As of January 23rd at 3 pm, the current bid for the sock puppet on amazon.com was $14,600. Whether the bidding is for real or is a joke, we'll find out on Feb. 3, 2000.

January 23, 2000 Greg the Bunny profiled in TV Guide Online

TV Guide Online's John Aboud wrote an article about Greg, the Bunny, a ratty rabbit puppet that used to be on New York cable access and now hosts movies on the Independent Film Channel. Greg, performed by Dan Milano, and created by Milano, Spencer Chinoy and Sean Baker, doesn't want to be thought of as a children's entertainment.. "People assume because I'm a puppet that I know how to relate to children," he explains. "The fact of the matter is, I don't understand the little guys any better than you do. I mean, I enjoy making kids laugh, but you can pretty much make any kid crack up by falling on your a-- or punching an adult in the face. That makes them crazy. I think the real trick is to make jaded adults laugh." I think it's interesting in these days of high-tech animatronic puppetry, where realistic, overproduced creations are the Holy Grail, that two puppets who have recently captured people's imagination are hand puppets that scream "I am a puppet!" Both the pets.com sock puppet and Greg the Bunny once again illustrate that you pack a lot of character and energy into simple looking, underpolished puppets.

December 31, 1999 Puppet pieces top year's best lists

In the flurry of the end of the year "best" lists, San Francisco reviewers have highlighted several puppetry pieces: Mabou Mines company's Peter and Wendy, part of the Berkeley Repertory's season, topped everyone's "Best Theater in the Bay Area" lists. Steven Winn, Chronicle Theater Critic said in his review "The Mabou Mines company's adaptation of J.M. Barrie's classic tale was the most transformative show of the year, a swirl of actors, puppets, projections and a Celtic-Caribbean score that conjured pure guileless delight." San Francisco Chronicle movie critics also picked "Being John Malkovich" as one of their top 10 films. And Basil Twist, creator of Symphonie Fantastique, made it into Sam Whiting's Year in Review, Pictures. The picture of Basil is not to be missed.

December 31, 1999 Spitting Image puppets up for sale

800 puppets used in the satirical British television puppet show, Spittin Image, will be auctioned at The Whitechapel Gallery in east London. The collection is being sold on behalf of one of the series' creators, Roger Law. He and business partner Peter Fluck created infamous caricatures during the 1980's of political figures, royalty and other public figures. The series was canceled by ITV in 1996 and a year afterwards Law closed down his production studio before setting off traveling around Australia. He is now artist in residence at the National Art School in Sydney. Law was quoted as saying: "As I am trying not to fill my life with work and deadlines, funds at times can be a trifle thin. In an effort to reduce expenditure, I applied for pensioner status, only to be told I was too young, so I have become a student instead." BBC Online story

December 31, 1999 Puppets designed for New Year bash in New York

An AP Press story by Cristine Gonzalex describes Oregon artist Michael Curry's New Year's puppets, designed for the New York TImes Square Millennium party. At his workshop in Oregon, Curry and a crew of 57 painters, engineers and craftspeople are making 160 oversized puppets to celebrate the world's cultures, time zone by time zone, in an unprecedented, 24-hour countdown to the millennium. ``I didn't want this to be a National Geographic survey of each culture,'' said Curry, 41. ``I wanted to do justice to the richness of the world's cultures, to show the vastness of these cultures with artistry.'' To prepare for a production of such magnitude, creative producer Geoff Puckett began recruiting designers years ago. ``The advantage of using human-manipulated puppetry is that it allows the imagination to fill in the blanks,'' said Puckett, founder of EffectDesign Inc., based in San Francisco. ``Seeing the people who manipulate these figures gives the audience opportunity to imagine themselves as being part of the entire procession.''

December 31, 1999 Punchline now open!

*Punchee! Punchee! Punchee! There's a new tool for all of Punch & Judy's friends worldwide who have internet access. Dave Riley (aka Professor Ratbagy) of Brisbane, Australia, has set up a discussion list for everything to do with Punch & Judy -- lore, tradition, technique... you name it -- anything and everything to do with Punchology can be raised on this list. It's called PUNCHLINE and it costs nothing to subscribe! Linking professors and supporters everywhere the list is open to all via a simple joining process: You can write to Punch.Judy-subscribe@listbot.com , and you will be sent a verification message! You can either visit Listbot to join -- http://www.listbot.com -- OR visit the Punchlines home page at : http://www.ozemail.com.au/~dhell/punch.htm. To post to the list, introduce your subject header with a "PUNCHLINE" tag. PUNCHLINE is set up under the auspices of The Worldwide Friends of Punch and Judy.

December 31, 1999 New England Marionette Opera closes for good

It is with great sadness that I report the following, from Ted Leach, founder of the new England Marionette Opera: On January 1, 1999, at 12:22 p.m., a fire totally destroyed the New England Marionette Opera. Consumed by the fire were more than 200 handcrafted marionettes, all sets from nine complete operatic productions, all sound, and light and office devices. Only the two large travelling bridges survived the six-hour inferno. On November 4, 1999, the decision was made to not try to reopen the theatre. On December 31, 1999, at 11:59 p.m., the New England Marionette Opera will legally terminate. We have, however, decided to leave behind this web site to show visitors the professionalism, the grandeur and the magic that was The New England Marionette Opera. Our web site appears exactly as it did on the day of our last performance, December 20, 1998 with the single exception of one new page devoted to the fire. You may still contact us at the email link on the site and our guestbook is still open. To everyone on both sides of the proscenium who was a part of our magnificent seven-year run we say - addio. Ted Leach Founder, New England Marionette Opera

December 31, 1999 Stravinsky's The History of a Soldier to be done with puppets in San Francisco Bay Area

According to the SFBAPG newsletter, San Francisco Bay Area puppetmaster Lewis Mahlmann in collaboration with The Puppet Company's Randal Metz will be working the San Francisco Chamber Orchestra to present a live puppet performance of Igor Stravinksy's L'histoire du Soldat (The History of a Soldier). There will be two performances: Friday January 28, 2000, 8:00 pm at St. John's Presbyterian, Berkeley and Sunday January 30, 2000, 3:00 pm at the Martin Myer Sanctuary, San Francisco. Tickets can be bought at the door. This will be the third time that Lewis Mahlmann has presented this production. The first time, he received a telegram from Igor Stravinsky congratulating him on the puppet telling of Stravinsky's musical work. This is a Lilliputian Players Production, directed by Mahlmann and with puppets designed by WIlliam Stewart Jones. Mahlmann will perform the soldier and Randal Metz will perform the Devil, who plays a game of wits for the soldier's soul.

December 31, 1999 Jim Henson Company joins forces with AcmeCity

Jim Henson Company announced a multimedia deal with AcmeCity, an Internet entertainment home page community. The new official home for Henson fans of The Muppet Show, Jim Henson's Muppet Babies and Fraggle Rock will be found in a special Jim Henson area of home pages within the AcmeCity community. http://www.acmecity.com The Jim Henson Company home page community will allow fans of Kermit, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Rizzo, Animal and the Fraggle Rock characters to build fan pages to the Henson stable of characters. In addition, the community will feature special multimedia entertainment, video clips from Henson's leading shows and news of The Jim Henson Company's latest activities. In making the announcement, Craig Allen, V.P. and General Manager of The Jim Henson Company stated, ``Our deal with AcmeCity empowers our fan base to deepen their relationships with Henson characters, while enabling our company to preserve our intellectual property rights on the Web. We're excited about this new relationship as Warner Bros. has been very aggressive online and they meet the needs of new media audiences, while addressing the digital concerns of established entertainment companies such as our own.'' It is unclear if the above statement means that the Jim Henson Company will start to actively discourage fan pages not located at AcmeCity. Time will tell. More information can be found at the Jim Henson Company site.

November 20, 1999 Thanksgiving... As I leave for a vacation in New Jersey, I'm going to celebrate the American Thanksgiving Holiday by saying thank you to some special puppetry people. Technically, this is more of a shameless namedropping column than a news item, but, hey, it's my page, and this year I have a lot to be thankful for. Thank you to Puppeteers of America Board of Trustees, for awarding me the Vice-President's award for Innovation in Puppetry at the 1999 National Puppetry Festival in Seattle. The award came as a surprise, since Board member and good friend Lynne Jennings and my fiance Nick Barone discussed telling me about it before hand and decided that I would be a nervous wreck the whole festival if I knew about it. (I also think Nick didn't want to hear me rehearsing an acceptance speech 20 times a day!) On the last night of the Festival, I was stunned to hear my name being called by Lynne. I gave some blithering, incoherent thank you about how the art of puppetry had given me so much, including the man I love, and I was happy to give something back. (I think the audience was divided into people who rolled their eyes at the sappiness of that and others who thought it was sweet. What can I say, I'm a woman in love with a puppeteer whom I never would have met if it hadn't been for a Regional Festival.) I was genuinely overwhelmed by the applause and the congratulations afterwards. And overwhelmed to be in the company of artists like Lewis Mahlmann, who also accepted an award that night. It was an extraordinary experience for me. Plus, I got a spiffy medal that I threatened to wear around the house for weeks afterwards. Thank you to the Board for the recognition. It means a lot to me. Thank you to Lynne Jennings for putting on the Regional Festival where Nick and I met, for being a true and dear friend, for listening to all my trials and successes with a kind heart and open mind, and for working so hard for the art form without asking for a single thing back. Thank you to Stephen and Chris Carter, for putting on a KILLER Puppeteers of America National festival, one that will be talked about for years. Thank you to Gayle Schluter for all her years of work as the Puppeteers of America Membership Officer, for all the lovely handwritten notes in my membership packets and for being one of the classiest and most delightful ladies around. Thank you to George Latshaw for the Puppetry Journal, a magazine that really opened up my eyes to the possibilities of puppets. And to Paul Eide, who took over the reigns of the Journal after George's retirement this year, and whose first issue is a treat for the eyes and for the mind. Thank you to Ted Leach, of the New England Marionette Theater and Jonathan Edward Cross, of The ClockWorks Experimental Puppetry Theatre, for their examples of grace and humor while facing tough times. They both dealt with losing their theaters this year and did it in ways I found inspirational. Their examples helped me get past a tough spot in my life this year, and I want to say a sincere thank you to them both. May the year 2000 bring you both the theaters of your dreams! Thank you to Pix Smith for all his technical advice (check out http://www.anybrowser.org/campaign/ and http://www.opera.com/index.html), for his sound and helpful PofA consulting advice, and for the most delightful emails. Thank you to Ronnie Burkett, for being an old friend who I just met. Ronnie alerted me to the answer to my problem of students looking for the history of puppetry to steal for their papers. Here it is, along with some stern admonishments about the evils inherent to the art form. Thank you to Phil and Robin and David for the hysterical trip to visit Mr. Sneedle this summer. We have a pact not to talk about this, ever. But I didn't use last names... Thank you to Randel & Marsha McGee, for all their hard work in our region and nationally, and for being fun and charming people. Thank you to the UNIMA-USA Electronic Media committee, for being such a festive, intelligent crowd to work with. Thank you to Sarah Hochstetler, UNIMA-USA goddess, for making sure that I always have the latest information for the UNIMA-USA page, for bending over backwards and sidewise and every which way to get me the most accurate information for the UNIMA-USA Touring directory, for her always delightful sense of humor and sense of perspective, and for being worried about the killer bees coming to California. Thank you to Vania Reckard for The Puppetry Lounge, a great place to spend some quality puppetry Web time (with a cool recent redesign that looks very spiffy). The Puppetry Lounge is getting worldwide recognition in books and on other web sites and deservedly so. I got to meet Vania this summer at the Festival, and she is as intelligent and fun as her site. Thank you to Lettie Schubert, for her warmth, good humor and advice this last year. Plus for her book on Hand Puppet Manipulation that taught me more in 15 pages than other books have in 150. Thank you to Alan Cook, for the wondrous exhibits he conjures from his collection, and for telling the best stories. Thank you to Mike Oznowicz, Kitty Adams and Arlyn Coad for all they gave to puppetry. They were all members of the SFBAPG who left us this year. Each in their own way, they were devoted to the art and practice of puppetry. Arlyn, along with Luman, taught the first puppetry class I ever attended (do I start at the top, or what?) and opened my eyes to the kind of talent, skill and dedication that the art of puppetry demands. Kitty taught a workshop at one of my first Guild meetings, and showed me the side of puppetry that works with children, determined to give them a gentle and entertaining experience. And Mike, a cantankerous charmer who had a passion for puppetry, people and good times, was someone who insisted on the best from the art form. I miss him terribly. My life is richer for having known each of them, and I'm thankful that I got the experience. Thank you to Steve Nelson, for being a PERL god and helping me straighten out my statistics, for not letting me whine about being a terrible programmer, and for always being willing to come over and watch bad videos at our house. Thank you to Danny Horn, for not burning down my house over our competing Miss Piggy collections (did YOU get the Franklin Mint Millennium Miss Piggy Porcelain Doll, Danny? Did you? Huh?) Thank you to Ken Davidian, who had the idea for the Puppetry Home Page, started the first one and then entrusted it to me. This site is what sucked me right into the world of puppetry and puppeteers, and I'm so grateful for Ken and his trust and guidance. Thank you to westhost, the new hosting company I'm moving this site to which is going to save me lots of money and enable me to keep The Puppetry Home Page advertising free (except for this one-time plug). Thank you to my family, both the old one (the Switzers) and the new one (the Barones) and to my friends, the family I've assembled over the years (parts not included). Your support means everything. I love you guys! Thank you to Nick Barone "the man I love" who contributes to this page and to my life in so many ways that I can't begin to list them. Thank you to all the artists whose shows have enthralled me this last year: from Basil Twist's Symphonie Fantastique to Christopher and Mayfield Piper's stunning and fresh retelling of Cinderella (which I saw 2 years ago, but I'm including it because I really, really liked it) to Berkeley Rep's exquisite Peter and Wendy to David Simpich's Pilgrim's Progress to the Huber Marionettes and to all the extraordinary performances at the 1999 Puppeteers of America Festival. You've all reaffirmed my excitement for this unique form of theater, and I thank you. Thank you to all the readers and contributors of The Puppetry Home Page who encourage my efforts and send in items, write articles (thank you Leo Brodie!), reviews (thank you Donald Devet!) and suggestions. You're the reason I keep doing the page, and I thank you one and all. Now, go out and see "Being John Malkovich" if you can find it and be sure to go with friends so you can argue about it afterwards. Happy and safe holidays to all, Rose Sage drawing by Nick Barone

November 20, 1999 Mum Puppettheatre Airport Exhibit

From Robert Smythe, Mum Puppettheatre: Mum Puppettheatre is proud to announce that the Philadelphia International Airport, as part of its continuing "Art in the Airport" series, will open an exhibition of Mum Puppettheatre's work Friday, November 19. The museum-quality exhibition will feature puppets and video and will be located between Terminals A and B, opposite the foodcourt, a destination for over 60% of the airport's travellers. Lea Douglas, Director of Exhibitions, estimates that over 4 million international visitors will see Mum Puppettheatre's puppets and masks by the time the show closes in June 2000. The exhibition features puppets and masks from Mum Puppettheatre's productions of "From the Ashes" and "When the War is Over," as well as hand puppets from Robert Smythe's 1991 collaboration with the Wilma Theatre for "The Puppetmaster of Lodz." Continuously running video accompanying the exhibit features segments from "Friends, Fables and Fun," "From the Ashes," and "The Velveteen Rabbit." We are thrilled that the exhibit opens just in time for Thanksgiving, the busiest travel week of the year. This coincides with the opening of the sixth year of "The Velveteen Rabbit," November 26 1999 at our new theatre, 115 Arch Street, Philadelphia. If you're passing through town you still have time to see us! Robert Smythe Artistic Director Mum Puppettheatre 115 Arch Street Philadelphia, PA 19106

November 20, 1999 Oakland Christmas Revels to feature puppets by Ralph Lee

The Christmas Revels, held in Oakland, California at the Scottish Rite Theatre features "monumental puppets designed by one of the world's foremost puppetry artists, Ralph Lee of the Mettawee River Theater Company in New York. Incorporating music, dance and drama, Revels productions build on universal and timeless themes drawn from the myth and ritual of varied cultures to celebrate the Solstice Season." Their website, which has dates and times of the shows is at http://home.earthlink.net/~calrevels. As of today, the website had no mention of Mr. Lee's puppets, but their printed material emphasizes them.

November 18, 1999 Sock puppet makes it big...

Businesswire.com reports that Internet pet store Pets.com will sponsor a 36 foot tall balloon for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. The balloon (or falloon, a combination of a float and a balloon) will be in the likeness of Pets.com spokesdog, a sock puppet. "We are very excited that the Pets.com puppet can bring his energy and love of pets to Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade," said Julie Wainwright, CEO of Pets.com. "The parade is a fun part of the Thanksgiving Day holiday for millions of American families. Having our spokespuppet as part of the parade is a wonderful reminder of the great companions that pets make and the important role that they play in our families."

November 16, 1999 Israeli-Palestinian Sesame Street Politically Charged

A November 9, 1999 article by Lee Hockstader in the Washington Post details the rough road traveled by the Israeli-Palestinian co-production of Sesame Street ("Rechov Sumsum" as the show is known in Hebrew and "Sharaa Simsim" as it is known in Arabic). Hockstader states "In unmistakable ways, the currents of discord and mutual suspicion surrounding the show have mirrored the ups and downs of peacemaking in the region."

November 11, 1999 The ClockWorks experimental puppetry theatre closes its doors

from jonnyclockworks@hotmail.com Dear Friends, Supporters, and Other curious OnLookers, The Inevitable has finally come to pass. On, Friday, October 29th, 1999 The ClockWorks, experimental puppetry theatre, was EVICTED from our home of nearly 5 years, at #508 East 12th Street, NYC. For over the last 3 years we have been embroiled in legal discourse with our LandLords over a variety of concerns, ranging from flooding to financial problems. Since spring, the frequency of these cases increased, never quite allowing us to plan any events too far in advance, {much to our chagrin}. Last week, we were informed that we lost our most recent case, and could expect to be evicted. As I still received rental notices thru this week, it was assumed that we would receive a final notice before our immanent dismissal from my home, workshop, and oftime theatre. Unfortunately, this was not to be.The building super knocked upon my door this afternoon and informed me that the Marshall was on his way, and he felt terribly, as the LandLords had instructed him not to "warn me in advance". Fortunately I was home at that time, for the LandLord had arranged for a truck to cart away our "garbage" immediately following the serving of notice of eviction. Thanks to the wranglings of the super, I was able to scramble and rescue our puppets, sets, my clothes, and the kitties { Mr.Hironimous J.Peeps and Mr.Alchemy } and get them shoved tightly {VERY VERY TIGHTLY} into our storage space next door. This was accomplished ONLY with the outstanding support of my dear neighbors and friends. Our Home was gone, our theatre closed, however on Sunday Evening, October 31st, All Hallows Eve, around 300 neighbors and friends joined with us outside The Old Devil Moon Restaurant, for our fourth annual All Souls Bash, Including Our Final Performance on 12th Street, our Burning Of The StrawMan Ritual. Slightly before midnight, the Grim Sweeper and Bone Collector arrived with their cart coming down the street. They Proceeded to remove the Sun and Moon that had adorned our theatre since it's opening. As they reached up to remove the winged Wheel that hung over the door, the crowd began to scream out in protest. I struck up a deal with the pair and made the sacrificial exchange the StrawMan. The StrawMan, who normally provides an incendiary spectacle, refused to burn, no matter how long the Grim Sweeper held his burning broom to it. Despite the initial strange magic, he was finally charred and broken upon the pavement. We then conjured up a 13 foot tall Pumpkin Headed Beast which proceeded to chase the deathly couple away and down the street. Then removing the Wheel, I snuck away down the opposite direction, to the teary cries of the neighborhood. Run away, run away, pechance to fight another day. Please keep us in mind when you encounter real estate, as we hope to find either another storefront,OR More Likely, a live/work loft space which will allow us to continue our works. I cannot emphasize enough how difficult it has been in this city for an artistic group such as ours that requires space to build create and rehearse our pieces. The city wide real estate blitz has pushed struggling new theaters such as ours aside,in favor of more lucrative incomes. When we arrived on 12th Street,we were the first non-drug front on the block, {after Old Devil Moon of course}, and now the artists job of Gentrification is done, time to move along. Please let us know if you know where we should go.{Our LandLords suggested we go to Hell. I hope you have a nicer suggestion} We had hopes to premiere two new works this year; "The Crazy Locomotive" by S.I.Witkiewitz, a full scale work for a large ensemble of actors puppets and automata, and "ASSEMBLAGE of Souls at La Circ DaDa" a solo work evoking the circus and the mysteries behind the puppet freakshow arcade. With faith and will,we shall accomplish this increasingly daunting task. Thanx for everyone who has helped us over these last 4 years and 8 months. Please Keep us in your thoughts. PEACE. Sincerely, Jonathan Edward Cross A.K.A. JonnyClockWorks

November 11, 1999 National Puppetry Conference, June 10-18, 2000

The following are the collaborative workshops for the conference: Acclaimed Guest Artists Ann and David Powell of "PUPPETMONGERS" will create an ensemble production. Another guest artist will be announced shortly. Emerging Artists Projects, an opportunity to create your own performance pieces with the support of puppet artists Pam Arciero, Bart Roccoberton, Jr and resident playwright Annie Evans. Puppet Anarchy with Martin Robinson, a highly experimental workshop, exploring beyond the boundaries of traditional puppetry form and function. An intensive Playwriting Workshop, taught by Annie Evans and Lenny Pinna, designed specifically for people who wish to write new puppetry pieces to be presented during the conference. Marionette Workshop, instructed by Jim Rose and Fred Thompson. Participants will learn the Rose style of marionette construction and manipulation. Application deadline: April 1, 2000 For More Information: Bobbie Nidzgorski, General Manager THE NATIONAL PUPPETRY CONFERENCE 41 White Birch Circle Niantic, CT 06357 National Puppetry Conference Web information email: bnidz@aol.com

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Last updated December 31 1999