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In 1957, Jim Henson was approached by a Washington, D.C. coffee company to produce commercials for Wilkins Coffee. The local stations only had ten seconds for station identification, so the Muppet commercials had to be lightning-fast -- essentially, eight seconds for the commercial pitch and a two-second shot of the product.

From 1957 to 1961, Henson made 179 commercials for Wilkins Coffee and other Wilkins products, including Community Coffee and Wilkins Tea. The ads were so successful and well-liked that they sparked a series of remakes for companies in other local markets throughout the 1960s.

The ads starred the cheerful Wilkins, who liked Wilkins Coffee, and the grumpy Wontkins, who hated it. Wilkins would often do serious harm to Wontkins in the ads -- blowing him up, stabbing him with a knife, and smashing him with a club, among many other violent acts.

Wilkins and Wontkins were generally the only characters in the commercials, though on rare occasions, such critters as a Muppet whale or baby birds would appear. Company owner Mr. Wilkins was also invoked more than once.

The characters proved so popular that in October 1958, the company offered vinyl puppets of Wilkins and Wontkins through the mail for $1.00 and a coffee can label. The offer on the can said, "Hey Kids! I'm Wilkins -- he's Wontkins -- you see us on TV!" Obviously, Wilkins Coffee and Henson knew that the Muppet characters had kid appeal, although this doesn't seem to have had any effect on the use of violence and terror in the ads.

Public appeal

The Wilkins Coffee ads stood out from the usual commercial fare. In a press release issued February 19, 1959, Senator John Marshall Butler (R-MD) strongly criticized the quality of broadcast television, but praised the Wilkins ads: "The Maryland Senator, an opponent of pay television, called on the networks and individual stations to re-examine their programming and advertising policies at once to provide the public with better television fare. He said that the Senate Commerce Committee, of which he is a member, will explore the entire situation... As to advertising, it insults the intelligence of the viewer. It is geared at know-nothings. As far as I am concerned, if I hear 'a thinking-man's filter and a smoking-man's taste,' I promptly switch to another channel. About the only clever advertising on the air today is 'Wilkins and Wontkins'. It pleases rather than irritates television audiences, and I am happy to learn that this series is bringing increased sales to the sponsor."

The Senator's approval was echoed in a 1965 article in the Washington, D.C. Evening Star, which reported the findings of a poll in the D.C. area about television commercials: "John H. Wilkins, Jr., of the Wilkins Coffee Company, can be proud of the overwhelming endorsement of Washington area viewers of his Muppet TV spots. The Wilkins commercials, which he conceived, are easily the favorite of voters in this area." ^[1]

Franchise

Following the success of the Wilkins Coffee commercials in the Washington, D.C. market, Jim Henson sold the concept to coffee companies in other local markets around the US. The same ads were reshot, with the only difference being the name of the coffee company.

The other companies included:

• Community Coffee: Thirty-seven 10-second ads for Community Coffee, a Louisiana-based company, from 1959 to 1969.
• Donovan Coffee: Thirteen 10-second ads for the Donovan Coffee Company, an Alabama-based company that produces Red Diamond Coffee. Six spots were produced in 1961, and a further seven spots in 1966.
• La Touraine Coffee: Fifteen 10-second ads for La Touraine Coffee, a Boston-based company, from 1958 to 1962.
• Martinson Coffee: Fifteen 10-second ads for Martinson Coffee, a New York City-based company, from 1958 to 1962.
• Nash's Coffee: Twenty 10-second ads for Nash's Coffee, a Minnesota based company, from 1958 to 1961. ^[2]

Commercials

These are Henson's official titles for the commercials. ^[2]

$65	80 Days with Wilkins	Airplane	Bad Guy Machine
Balloon	Band Wagon	Baseball	Bell
Blow Up	Boston Tea Party	Brand X	Cannibal Scene
Cannon	Cheep Cheep	Climbing Tree	Close Shave
Club	Coffee Break	Communist Store	Convincing Machine
Crystal Ball	Cut Up	Desert Island	Did You Call?
En Garde	Espionage	Fair Damsel	Five Aces
Foot Down	Get a Lift	Ghost to Ghost	Ginger Ale
Give 'Im the Eggs	Good, Better, Best	Guillotine	Hammer
Hand of Fate	Hidden Persuaders	House is Not a Home	How Instant
How Low Can You Get	How Shocking	Howdy Stranger	Human Cannonball
I'd Give a Million Bucks	Jack in the Box	Just Checking	Just Kidding
Knife Thrower	Lets Everyone Sleep	Lost My Head	Man Overboard
Mountain Climbing	Noah's Ark	Nobody Beats Wilkins	Nowhere
Old Man Wilkins	On the Ball	Parachute	Quiz Show
Rocket Ship	Romeo and Juliet	Santa Claus	Shortcake
Sleeping Beauty	Soggy Romance	Stagecoach	Steamroller
Swimming Pool	Tar and Feathers	Tree	TV Anti-Violence League
TV Set	Washington Monument	Water with Dinner	Whale of a Coffee
What Kind of Coffee Do You Sell	Why Not	William Tell	Yum Yum

Other titles:

Releases

The "TV Anti-Violence League" spot was released on a commercial DVD by Madacy Home Video.

Awards

The "TV Anti-Violence League" spot from 1960 was recognized by the Clio awards, as runner-up in the category of best television/cinema spot.

Credits

Client: Wilkins Coffee, Belmont Ver Standig, Washington DC

Agency Producer: James W. Young

Cinematographer: Del Ankers

Copywriters: James Henson, James Young

Performer/Voice: Wilkins & Wontkins (puppets), Jim Henson (voice)

Production Company: Rodel, Washington DC

Animation & Art: Jane & James Henson

Sources

1. ↑ "Weekly Poll: Voters Feel Strongly on TV Commercials", Harold Stern and Jack Boyle, The Evening Star, March 22, 1965.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Karen Falk, the Jim Henson Company Archives.