Franz "Faz" Fazakas (April 5, 1918 – September 28, 2013) was an American puppeteer, engineer, and special effects designer, best known for his work with The Muppets.^[1][2] He is the namesake for Fozzie Bear for whom he created the puppet's ear-wiggling effects.^[3] Fazakas was the director of electronic and mechanical design for the television show Fraggle Rock.^[4]

Muppet technology

He helped design a radio control system to move the Muppets so they would not all have to be manipulated by hand.^[1] This control system was used on movies such as Dark Crystal and Labyrinth. This system, called the Henson Performance Control System, won the 1992 Scientific and Engineering Academy Award.^[5] Versions of this system were what allowed Kermit the Frog to ride a bike and Emmet Otter to row a boat.^[6][7] Jim Henson called Fazakas “one of the true geniuses of the world.”^[6] His mechanical work on the eyes and facial movements of longtime Muppets such as Big Bird and Sweetums gave both characters more emotional range.^[8]

Early life

Fazakas was born in 1918 to Arpard and Donelda Fazakas.^[9] He did not complete high school. He was a Private in the Army during World War II.^[10] He worked as an organ builder in Orange, New Jersey before joining Berkeley Marionettes in New York, occasionally performing on Broadway.^[11] He joined up with Jim Henson to work with the Muppets in 1972.^[4] He was married to Eleanor Louise Jewett and the couple had two children. He is the great uncle of musician Tanya Donelly.^[12]

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