“The most sensational, inspirational…”

Together with Walt Disney, George Lucas and the chap from Fingerbobs, Jim Henson was one of the great, versatile, over-imaginative, creative geniuses of the Twentieth Century. But before achieving his popular success with the Muppets, Sesame Street and (of course) Fraggle Rock, Henson started out in the early sixties creating puppets for advertising (in the golden age of character-sponsored products).

Here’s a smashing comedy short (from 1965) that lampoons the ad-making process with the kind of sharp but warm humour that made the 8 year-old me laugh out loud every Saturday night. Watch out in particular for a young Frank Oz and the violent death of a proto-kermit. What more could you ask for on a sunny Friday morning?…