Regular readers of this blog know I have been very outspoken about my love for “The City Too Busy To Hate.” I got my first taste of Atlanta, Georgia in 1996 when I moved there to cover the Summer Olympic Games, and as the saying goes, the rest is history. From the people (expect for some drivers who got upset with me for driving too slow on the Perimeter—I was going 82 m.p.h.) to the parks, the museums to the food, the zoos, and all of the other family friendly attractions, Hotlanta is hard to beat.
If you have never visited… what are you waiting for? All kidding aside, I have just come up with yet another reason why you should travel to Atlanta—especially if you (or your kids) are fans of the Muppets.
It seems even Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy couldn’t resist the chance to travel down south. According to the family of Muppet creator Jim Henson, the Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta is set to become the definitive Jim Henson museum with everything from original puppets to sketches from his personal collection.
By 2012, the now 29-year-old center will house between 500 and 700 Henson pieces in a new wing named for the beloved puppeteer. But that doesn’t mean you have to wait five years to immerse yourself in Henson’s historic collection. Kermit the Frog is already on display at the center, and a series of smaller exhibits from the larger collection will rotate through the center until the new space opens. In addition, by the end of the summer the center will get Rowlf (one of my favorite Muppet characters—he’s that piano playing dog—I had a puppet of him growing up), Swedish Chef and Dr. Teeth puppets as part of an exhibit highlighting the characters that Henson operated himself.
But that’s not all. The center will also display characters from the popular television show “Fraggle Rock” (remember: “Down in Fraggle Rock…) and from popular classics such as “The Dark Crystal” and “Labyrinth.” The center’s new addition will also include props from “Sesame Street” and the “The Muppet Show,” which aired from 1976 to 1982. In addition, the puppets, which starred in such movies as “The Muppet Movie,” “The Great Muppet Caper” and “The Muppets Take Manhattan” will also be on display.
Henson and Kermit cut the ceremonial ribbon when the center opened in 1978. The duo visited again for its 10-year anniversary. Henson died suddenly in 1990 at the age of 53 from pneumonia and a strep infection. But his legacy lives on at the center.