Many of Jim’s summers included the intense demands of producing a television series or a feature film, but consistently, it also meant attending puppetry festivals and spending vacation time with family and friends. In 1971, with The Muppet Show and movies still in the future, Jim had pretty much the whole month of July available to travel with his family. At the end of June, the Henson’s loaded into their station wagon for what Jim described in his journal as a “big drive West vacation.” They met up with Jerry Juhl and his wife Susan for a week of camping and horseback riding in Colorado and continued on to Albuquerque where Jim’s dad Paul was living. Back on the road, they stopped in Las Vegas and Needles, CA. No trip to southern California was complete without a visit to Disneyland where the Hensons spent two days. The final stop was a visit to the Juhls’ home in Cambria up the coast. Turning east, Jim and family began the long drive home. The next time Jim took such an extensive road trip, it was as Kermit in The Muppet Movie.
Jim’s sketches from the Colorado portion of his family road trip, 1971.
Jim’s sketches from the Colorado portion of his family road trip, 1971.
Jim’s sketches from the Colorado portion of his family road trip, 1971.
