Jim Henson Biography

Jim Henson created the lovable Muppets, a troupe of fuzzy, goggle-eyed puppets who starred in TV shows and films beginning in the 1950s. Jim Henson’s puppets began appearing on local television in Maryland in 1954, growing slowly in popularity for the next 15 years. The Muppets were part of the original cast of the children’s TV show Sesame Street, launched in 1969; the show made stars of Henson creations like Kermit the Frog, Bert and Ernie, and Big Bird. Henson’s own syndicated TV series, The Muppet Show, was a major hit from 1976-81. Filled with silly jokes, bouncy musical numbers and famous guest stars, the show introduced the popular character Miss Piggy and led to movies including The Muppet Movie (1979, with cameos by Bob Hope, Orson Welles and others) and The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984). Jim Henson made a deal to sell his company to the Walt Disney corporation in 1989; the deal fell through the next year, when Henson died suddenly of organ failure after an infection turned into fast-moving toxic shock syndrome. Jim Henson’s family eventually did sell the rights to the Muppet characters to the Disney company, in 2004.