Sam and Friends presentation at the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry, UConn, Storrs, CT.

As part of the 2023 Spring Puppet Forum Series, the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry (BIMP) hosted Jim Henson Legacy President Craig Shemin in a discussion of his book, Sam and Friends: The Story of Jim Henson’s First Television Show. Educational programs at BIMP are supported by annual grants from The Jane Henson Foundation. Their museum collection includes Jim Henson’s Wizard of Id puppet, a gift from the Henson family, and an Anything Muppet dressed in ancient Egyptian style from Sesame Street. Learn more about BIMP here: Home | Ballard Institute and Museum (uconn.edu)

The Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry at University of Connecticut holds examples of a wide range of puppets including The Wizard of Id from 1968, created for Jim Henson’s television pilot based on the comic strip by Brant Parker and Johnny Hart. Courtesy The Jim Henson Company.

John Bell, left, discusses Sam and Friends with Craig Shemin and Stoph Scheer at the Ballard Museum at UConn.