My last business trip was to Jackson, MS where local tipped me off to a Jim Henson exhibit happening at the Mississippi Museum of Art. Being a Muppet fan for as long as I can remember, I knew I had to see it. Naturally, I was thrilled to see Kermit and the Mahna Mahna puppets, but there were some Jim Henson rarities on display: early sketches, psychadelic 60s experimental films, and photos of him playing dress-up as a child. I've always thought of Kermit the Frog as a total dreamboat; he's sweet and sincere, plays banjo, rides a bike, and loves hanging out on logs. But the playfulness, weird humor, and dreamy qualities present in Jim Henson's entire body of work was enough to make me want to add "find Jim Henson; get lawfully wed" to my growing "time travel to-do" list. It doesn't hurt that he's sort of a babe in that "bearded freak" way.
The exhibit also put Jim Henson on another growing list of mine: "Soul Brothers/Soul Sisters."
The idea behind the list is simple and very 6th grade: people in the public eye that I feel a certain bond or connection with. It's romantic in the way that I'd like to assume that I could BFFs with any of these folks (even though I'm basing this assumption entirely off a public body of work... whatever). Here's some other folks on the list:
Dick VanDyke - I often state that I want to be in a polyamorous marriage with Dick VanDyke and Mary Tyler Moore. When people realize that I'm serious, it becomes more creepy than cute, but doesn't make it any less true. This man does what matters: sings (with animated characters) and dances (with animated characters). He's goofy in an irrestible way. My aunt sometimes waits on his old-man self in her restaurant and she said he whistles to himself and skips. She thinks he's nuts, but I think he's perfect.
Neko Case - second Neko shout-0ut on this blog! Neko is like an older, wiser sister who keeps shit hella real with you. She's a badass with a soft side; a self-proclaimed tomboy who can still take sexy pictures. She's a public female who offers a more complex idea of femininity. She's a lady pilot and an animal lover with a golden voice. I'll sing myself hoarse belting her songs in my car. "The next time you say forever, I will punch you in your face." I LOVE HER!
Nicholas Gurewitch - not a household name, but the genius (GENIUS!) behind my favorite comic strip of all time, The Perry Bible Fellowship. We're all familiar with the "sense of humor" cliche, but I would gladly go for an arranged marriage with this man based just off his now-defunct comic strip, which can be absurd, midly cruel, and hideously clever. Plus, he put together an entire soundtrack for a fake Wes Anderson movie. DREAMBOAT!
Lisa Hanawalt - Lisa's also a new addition, but once I found out that she was the brilliant lady behind this masterpiece, I knew she was on the list. After flying through her entire online portfolio, I promptly ordered a copy of Stay Away From Other People. When it arrived, I was having an awful stomach ache and it was better than an entire roll of Tums. She wrote about buying a pair of short overalls from the thrift store (see? Soul sister!), but they were labeled "Teen Bibs." A few pages later, she wrote about her dream wedding, which included "Bride wears white teen bibs." I die, I die.
Lotta Crabtree - "a true San Francisco character," (whole) Lotta Crabtree became famous in Gold Rush times for her singing, dancing, banjo-picking, and cigar-smoking. A hermit in her later years, she died unmarried, and left her fortune to animals, aging actors, and arts programs.I know I'm forgetting many, many people, but who are your soul brothers/soul sisters?
