The Jim Henson Hour

The Jim Henson Hour was developed as a showcase for the Jim Henson Company's various puppet creations, including the popular Muppet characters. This hour-long anthology series was hosted by Jim Henson and generally included two segments. The first segment,"Muppetelevision," included comedy skits starring the Muppets, as well as frequent guest appearances by popular entertainers. The second segment often featured rebroadcasts of original, Henson-created productions, such as episodes from Jim Henson's "The StoryTeller" anthology series.

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Seasons

1. Outer Space

Air Date: 1989-04-14

Part 1 (Muppetelevision): Kermit cancels the boring parts of the show when Digit discovers he can tune in cable channels from other worlds. Part 2 (The StoryTeller: The Heartless Giant): An imprisoned giant who terrorized the land tricks young prince Leo into freeing him. After rampaging the kingdom, Leo's older brothers attempt to recapture the giant but are never heard of again. Leo must use his gifts of kindness to save his brothers and free the kingdom from the giant's wrath. From an early German folk tale.

2. Oceans

Air Date: 1989-04-21

Part 1 (Muppetelevision): Kermit tries to run the show with several water-related issues interrupting. Part 2 (Lighthouse Island): A boy named Zeb Norman visits a strange small town to look for a gift for his fiancée Rosalie. He finds a pair of silver slippers in a local curio shop run by a witch who drags him to Hog Island to obtain a mysterious pearl once stolen from her rival.

3. Power

Air Date: 1989-04-28

Part 1 (Muppetelevision): Gonzo and Leon convince Kermit to take a vacation so that they can have a chance at running the show. Willard Scott, Jane Pauley, and The Nylons guest star. Part 2 (The Storyteller: The Soldier and Death): A soldier returns from 20 years of war with only t three biscuits in his sack. Soon he must outwit devils, save a kingdom, and try to outwit death. From an early Russian folk tale.

4. Dog City

Air Date: 1989-05-05

Part 1 (Muppetelevision): Kermit announces that it is "Muppet Night at the Movies" as they try to find the film to broadcast on the All Dog Network (ADN). Part 2 (Dog City): Rowlf the Dog hosts a 1930s gangster-type story in which a dog named Ace Yu travels to Dog City to investigate his uncle's murder. While there, he meets a homeless dog named Collien, and gets in trouble with a gangster named Bugsy Them.

5. First Show

Air Date: 1989-05-14

Part 1 (Muppetelevision). Kermit struggles to keep the ratings up. Meanwhile, Digit experiences several malfunctions. Part 2 (Miss Piggy's Hollywood): Miss Piggy hosts a tour of Hollywood, with help from Gonzo. However, Piggy quickly learns that Hollywood is not quite what she thought it would be. Meanwhile, Fozzie auditions at The Comedy Store and is heckled by Statler and Waldorf.

6. Monster Maker

Air Date: 1989-07-09

Teenager Matt Banting wants to work with a famous but eccentric creature/special effects man named Chancey Bellow. He gets more than he bargained for when one of the creatures, the giant dragon-like Ultragorgon, takes Matt under his wing. Matt is forced to confront his inner monsters while working out his issues with his father. Based on the novel by Nicholas Fisk.

7. Fitness

Air Date: 1989-07-16

Part 1 (Muppetelevision): Kermit wants the show to be all about being healthy and fit but does not have much luck with all the Muppets getting sick. Part 2 (The Song of the Cloud Forest): In this original story set in the rainforest, a golden toad named Milton worries that he may be the last of his species alive and may never find a mate. He eventually meets another golden toad named Ruth and has an encounter with the Uprights (the forest animals' term for humans) seeking to capture a golden toad.

8. Videotape

Air Date: 1989-07-23

Part 1 (Muppetelevision): In order to be in two places at once, Gonzo decides to prerecord himself. Part 2 (The StoryTeller: The True Bride): A girl is freed from a troll's enslavement by the help the mysterious white Thought Lion. When she falls in love, she's kept apart from her beloved by the troll's daughter.

9. Garbage

Air Date: 1989-07-30

Part 1 (Muppetelevision): The Muppet studio is overwhelmed with animated garbage bags and Kermit can't find a way to get rid of them. Part 2 (The StoryTeller: Sapsorrow): A princess flees when she's forced to marry her father. She poses as a ragged servant in another kingdom, and then falls in love with a haughty prince.

10. Secrets of the Muppets

Air Date: 1992-11-29

Jim Henson takes viewers on a behind the scenes look at the making of The Jim Henson Hour and many other Henson productions. Back at the control room, the Muppets all freak out that their secrets are being revealed.

11. Living with Dinosaurs

Air Date: 1993-08-07

A socially awkward boy named Dom tries to deal with a new school, an unemployed stepfather, a pregnant mother, and asthma. The boy finds comfort in his favorite stuffed toy, a dinosaur named Dog.

12. Food

Air Date:

Part 1 (Mupppetelevision). Kermit has trouble keeping the show running because the entire staff is waiting for their lunch to be delivered. Part 2 (The StoryTeller: The Three Ravens): When the queen dies, a witch ensnares the king with a magical spell. She curses the king's three sons by turning them into ravens. The king's daughter escapes and is warned by her brothers that she must not speak for 3 years, 3 months, 3 weeks, and 3 days in order to break the curse. After marrying a prince and discovering her stepmother has remarried to the prince's father, can the princess break the curse? From an early German folk tale.

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