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Jim Henson Biography (1936-1990)

Full name, James Maury Henson; born September 24, 1936, in Greenville, MS; died of streptococcus pneumonia, May 16, 1990, in New York, NY; son of Paul Ransom (an agronomist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture) and Elizabeth Marcella (Brown) Henson; married Jane Anne Nebel (a puppeteer and part-time consultant in Henson Associates), May 28, 1959; children: Lisa Marie, Cheryl Lee,Brian David, John Paul, Heather Beth.

Nationality

American

Gender

Male

Occupation

puppeteer, producer, director, writer

Birth Details

September 24, 1936

Greenville, Mississippi, United States

Death Details

May 16, 1990

New York, New York, United States

Famous Works

• Credits; Television Work; Series
• Producer, Sam and Friends (daily, five-minute series; also see below), WRC- TV (Washington, DC), 1955-61.
• Creator, executive producer (with David Lazer), and director, The Muppet Show (also see below), syndicated, 1976-81.
• Creator, executive producer, and episodic director (with Perry Rosemond,George Bloomfield, and Norman Campbell), Fraggle Rock, HBO, 1983-c. 1988, then TNT, also NBC (animated), 1987-88.
• Creator and producer (with Ron Richardson), Jim Henson's Muppet Babies (animated; also see below), CBS, 1984-90.
• Creator and executive producer, The Storyteller (also see below),NBC, 1987- 88.
• Creator, executive producer, and episodic director, The Jim Henson Hour (also known as Jim Henson Presents; also see below), NBC, 1989.
• Creator and executive producer, The Ghost of Faffner Hall (also see below), HBO, 1989.
• Creator, Jim Henson's Mother Goose, The Disney Channel, c. 1990.
• The Muppet Show has been broadcast in more than one hundred countries; Fraggle Rock has been broadcast in ninety countries; and Jim Henson's Muppet Babies has been broadcast in more than fifty countries.
• Credits; Television Work; Specials
• Producer and director, Hey! Cinderella, CBC, c. 1969, then ABC, 1970.
• Producer, Muppets on Puppets, NET-TV, c. 1970.
• Producer and director, Tales from Muppetland (also see below), ABC, 1970.
• Producer and director, Frog Prince (also see below), syndicated, 1971.
• Producer and director, Muppet Valentine Special, ABC, 1974.
• Producer, Out to Lunch, ABC, 1974.
• Producer and director, Emmett Otter's Jug-Band Christmas (based onthe book by Russell Hoban), ABC, 1980.
• Producer, The Muppets Go to the Movies (also see below), ABC, 1981.
• Producer and director, The Fantastic Miss Piggy Show, ABC, 1982.
• Producer, The Christmas Toy (also see below), ABC, 1986.
• Producer and director, The Tale of the Bunny Picnic, HBO, 1986.
• Executive producer, A Muppet Family Christmas (also known as Christmas at Home with the Muppets; also see below), ABC, 1987.
• Executive producer, Down at Fraggle Rock ... Behind the Scenes (documentary; also see below), HBO, 1987.
• Executive producer, Sesame Street ... 20 and Still Counting (alsosee below), NBC, 1989.
• Also worked on numerous other productions, including Christmas on Sesame Street, 1978; John Denver and the Muppets, 1979; The MuppetsGo Hollywood, c. 1981; Big Bird in China, NBC, 1983; Don't Eatthe Pictures, 1983; and Bells of Fraggle Rock Christmas Special,1984.
• Credits; Television Work; Episodic
• Producer, "Youth for '68" (documentary), Experiment in Television,NBC, 1968.
• Producer and director, "The Cube" (also see below), Experiment in Television, NBC, 1969.
• Executive producer, "Puppetman," CBS Summer Playhouse, CBS, 1987.
• Executive producer, "Fearnot," The Storyteller, NBC, 1987.
• Creator and executive producer, "Hans My Hedgehog," The Storyteller, NBC, 1987.
• Creator and executive producer, "A Story Short," The Storyteller,NBC, 1988.
• Executive producer, "The Luck Child," The Storyteller, NBC, 1988.
• Director, "Dog City," The Jim Henson Hour (also known as Jim Henson Presents), NBC, 1989.
• Executive producer, "The Muppets at Walt Disney World," Magical Worldof Disney (also see below), NBC, 1990.
• Credits; Television Appearances; Series; Puppeteer, Except As Noted
• Sam and Friends, WRC-TV (Washington, DC), 1955-61.
• (And voice of Rowlf the dog) The Jimmy Dean Show, ABC, 1963-66.
• (And voice of Rowlf the dog) Our Place, CBS, 1967.
• (And voices) Sesame Street, PBS, 1969-90.
• Saturday Night Live, NBC, 1975-76.
• (And voices of Kermit the Frog, Rowlf the dog, the Swedish Chef, CaptainLink Heartthrob, Dr. Teeth, and others) The Muppet Show, syndicated, 1976- 81.
• Voices, Jim Henson's Muppet Babies (animated), CBS, 1984-90.
• Host, The Jim Henson Hour (also known as Jim Henson Presents), NBC, 1989.
• (And voices) The Ghost of Faffner Hall, HBO, 1989.
• Credits; Television Appearances; Specials; Puppeteer, With The Muppets, Except AsNoted
• (And voice of Kermit the Frog) Tales from Muppetland, ABC, 1970.
• (And voice of Kermit the Frog) Frog Prince, syndicated, 1971.
• Julie Andrews: One Step into Spring, CBS, 1978.
• The Muppets Go to the Movies, ABC, 1981.
• (And voice of Kermit the Frog) Christmas Toy, ABC, 1986.
• (And voices) Muppets--A Celebration of Thirty Years, CBS, 1986.
• Himself, The Television Academy Hall of Fame, NBC, 1986.
• Himself, Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, NBC, 1987.
• Himself, The Television Academy Hall of Fame, Fox, 1987.
• (And voices, and himself) A Muppet Family Christmas (also known asChristmas at Home with the Muppets), ABC, 1987.
• Host, Down at Fraggle Rock ... Behind the Scenes (documentary), HBO, 1987.
• (And voices), Free to Be ... a Family, ABC, 1988.
• (And voices), Sesame Street, Special, PBS, 1988.
• Himself, Memories Then and Now, CBS, 1988.
• Himself, Sesame Street ... 20 and Still Counting, NBC, 1989.
• (And voice of Kermit the Frog, and himself), The Forty-first Annual Emmy Awards (also see below), Fox, 1989.
• (And voice of Kermit the Frog, and himself), From the Heart ... The First International Very Special Arts Festival, NBC, 1989.
• Himself, The Third Annual American Comedy Awards, ABC, 1989.
• Himself, The Sixteenth Annual Daytime Emmy Awards, NBC, 1989.
• Himself, To Be Free: The National Literacy Honors from the White House, ABC, 1990.
• Himself, Time Warner Presents the Earth Day Special, ABC, 1990.
• Jim Henson and the Muppets have appeared on numerous other specials, including Pure Goldie, NBC, 1970; The Tom Jones Special, ABC, 1971;Perry Como's Winter Show, CBS, 1972; Julie on Sesame Street, ABC, 1973; Keep U.S. Beautiful, NBC, 1973; America Salutes the Queen, NBC, 1977; Texaco Presents the Bob Hope Christmas Special, NBC,1977; Happy Birthday, Bob, NBC, 1978; and Night of 100 Stars II(also see below), 1985.
• Credits; Television Appearances; Episodic; Puppeteer
• (And voice of Kermit the Frog), "San Francisco Ballet in Cinderella," Great Performances (also known as Dance in America), PBS, 1985.
• "Muppets at Walt Disney World," The Magical World of Disney, NBC,1990.
• Made major network television debut with Kermit the Frog on Steve Allen'sTonight Show, 1957. Also appeared on episodes of The Ed Sullivan Show, CBS, and The Perry Como Show. Also appeared as a guest on numerous other television series.
• Credits; Film Work
• Producer and director, Time Piece (short; also see below), Contemporary Films, 1965.
• Producer and director, Run, Run (short; also see below), Henson Associates, 1967.
• Producer and director, Organized Brain (short; also see below), Henson Associates, 1968.
• Producer and director, Final Speech (part of "Muppet Meeting Films" series; also see below), Henson Associates, 1975.
• Producer, The Muppet Movie (also see below), Associated Film Distribution, 1979.
• Director, The Great Muppet Caper (also see below), Universal, 1981.
• Producer (with Gary Kurtz), and director (with Frank Oz), The Dark Crystal (also see below), Universal, 1982.
• Executive producer, The Muppets Take Manhattan (also see below), TriStar, 1984.
• Director, Labyrinth (also see below), TriStar, 1986.
• Executive producer, The Witches, Warner Bros., 1990.
• Also worked on Sesame Street Presents: Follow That Bird (also seebelow), Warner Bros., 1985; producer and director of Hey, You're As FunnyAs Fozzie Bear! (also see below), 1988; director of Mother Goose Stories, 1988. Creator and animator of character of Yoda for George Lucas's film The Empire Strikes Back. Creator of short industrial films LiftOff, Break Through, Picker Upper, Breaker Upper, Give Me a Break, and The Splitter.
• Credits; Film Appearances; Puppeteer, Except As Noted
• Starring role, Time Piece (short), Contemporary Films, 1965.
• (And voices of Kermit the Frog, Rowlf the dog, Dr. Teeth, and Waldorf), The Muppet Movie, Associated Film Distribution, 1979.
• (And voices of Kermit the Frog, Rowlf the dog, Dr. Teeth, Waldorf, and the Swedish Chef), The Great Muppet Caper, Universal, 1981.
• Operator of Jen (with Stephen Garlick), and High Priest (with Jerry Nelson), The Dark Crystal, Universal, 1982.
• (And voices of Kermit the Frog, Rowlf the dog, Dr. Teeth, Waldorf, and the Swedish Chef), The Muppets Take Manhattan, TriStar, 1984.
• (And voices of Kermit the Frog and Ernie; and cameo appearance), Sesame Street Presents: Follow That Bird, Warner Bros., 1985.
• Cameo appearance, Into the Night, Universal, 1985.
• Credits; Stage Work
• Creator of the live stage show "Here Come the Muppets," performed at theDisney-MGM Studios Theme Park, Orlando, FL, beginning c. 1990.
• Credits; Stage Appearances
• Appeared with the Muppets in Night of 100 Stars II, 1985.
• Recordings; Albums
• Sesame Street, Columbia Records, 1970.
• Sesame Street 2, Warner Bros., 1971.
• The Muppet Alphabet Album, Columbia, 1973.
• Sesame Street Live, Columbia, 1973.
• The Muppet Show, Arista, 1977.
• The Muppet Show II, Arista, 1978.
• The Muppet Movie, Atlantic, 1979.
• A Christmas Together, RCA, 1979.
• Big Bird's Birdtime Stories, Sesame Street, c. 1980.
• Christmas Eve on Sesame Street, Sesame Street, c. 1980.
• Love, Sesame Street, c. 1980.
• The People in Your Neighborhood, Sesame Street, c. 1980.
• Big Bird Discovers the Orchestra, Sesame Street, c. 1981.
• Sesame Country, Sesame Street, 1981.
• The Great Muppet Caper, Atlantic, 1981.
• A Rocky Mountain Holiday, RCA, 1983.
• The Muppets Take Manhattan, Warner, 1984.
• Silly Songs, IJE, 1984.
• Follow That Bird (original motion picture soundtrack), RCA, 1985.
• Presenting Fraggle Rock, CBS Records, 1987.
• Also performed on other recordings with the Muppets, including RubberDuckie, c. 1970; and The Alphabet, c. 1986.
• Credits; Adaptations
• Henson's Muppet characters have appeared in several traveling stage shows, including Sesame Street Live, first produced at Madison Square Garden, 1984, The Muppet Show on Tour, and Where's Animal? The Muppets have been the basis for hundreds of books for children, and have been featured in a variety of computer software products, including Muppet LearningKeys, Koala Technologies, 1985, Sesame St. Letter, CBS Software,1985, and Go-Round Big Bird's Funhouse, CBS Software, 1985. Muppet memorabilia, artifacts, and fantasy creations from Henson's films have been featured in traveling art shows, including "The Art of the Muppets," "The World of Jim Henson--Art and Animatronics," and "Miss Piggy's Art Masterpieces: Treasures from the Kermitage Collection." The Muppets have also appeared on lunchboxes, bedsheets, calendars, clothes, and telephones, and as toys. The Muppets are featured in the film attraction Muppetvision 3-D at the Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park in Orlando, FL, beginning in 1990; and in the film A Muppet Christmas Carol, released in 1992.
• Credits; Television Scripts
• (Cowriter) "The Cube," Experiment in Television, NBC, 1969.
• Frog Prince (special), syndicated, 1971.
• (With Jerry Juhl, David Obell, Don Hinckley, Marc London, Jack Burns, andPhilip Bailey), The Muppet Show (series), syndicated, 1976-81.
• The Jim Henson Hour (series; also known as Jim Henson Presents), NBC, 1989.
• Credits; Film Scripts
• Time Piece (short), Contemporary Films, 1965.
• Run, Run (short), Henson Associates, 1967.
• Organized Brain (short), Henson Associates, 1968.
• Final Speech (short; part of "Muppet Meeting Films" series), Henson Associates, 1975.
• Also author of the screenplay for Hey, You're As Funny As Fozzie Bear!, 1988.
• Credits; Stories Used As Basis For Screenplays
• The Dark Crystal, Universal, 1982.
• (With Dennis Less) Labyrinth, by Terry Jones, TriStar, 1986.
• Credits; Other
• The Muppet Show Book, Abrams, 1978.
• Also author of the original story idea for the television series Dinosaurs, ABC, 1991--.
• Other Works
• Adaptations: Henson's Muppet characters have appeared in several traveling stage shows, including Sesame Street Live, first produced at MadisonSquare Garden, 1984, The Muppet Show on Tour, and Where's Animal? The Muppets have been the basis for hundreds of books for children, and have been featured in a variety of computer software products, including Muppet Learning Keys, Koala Technologies, 1985, Sesame St. Letter, CBS Software, 1985, and Go- Round Big Bird's Funhouse, CBS Software, 1985. Muppet memorabilia, artifacts, and fantasy creations from Henson's filmshave been featured in traveling art shows, including "The Art of the Muppets," "The World of Jim Henson--Art and Animatronics," and "Miss Piggy's Art Masterpieces: Treasures from The Kermitage Collection." The Muppets have also appeared on lunch boxes, bedsheets, calendars, clothes, and telephones, and as toys. The Muppets are featured in the film attraction Muppetvision 3-Dat the Disney- MGM Studios Theme Park in Orlando, FL, beginning in 1990; andin the film A Muppet Christmas Carol, released in 1992.

Further Reference

Books

• Contemporary Authors, Volume 124, Gale, 1988, pp. 208-11.
• Finch, Christopher, Of Muppets and Men: The Making of the Muppet Show, Knopf, 1981.
• Henson Associates, The Art of the Muppets: A Retrospective Look at Twenty- Five Years of Muppet Magic, Bantam, 1980.
• Newsmakers, 1989 Cumulation, Gale, 1990, pp. 187-90.
• Something about the Author, Volume 43, Gale, 1986, pp. 112-31.

Periodicals

• Advertising Age, October 17, 1983.
• American Cinema, December, 1982.
• Animation Magazine, winter/spring, 1990, pp. 29-31.
• Channels, March, 1988.
• Chicago Tribune, January 17, 1986; June 30, 1986.
• Cue, December 9, 1974.
• Films in Review, January, 1983.
• Fortune, February 4, 1985.
• Newsweek, December 27, 1982.
• New York Times, December 17, 1982; July 13, 1984; September 15, 1985; June 27, 1986; October 25, 1987, pp. H31, H44; August 29, 1989, pp. D1, D6; May 17, 1990, pp. A1, D29.
• New York Times Magazine, June 10, 1979.
• People, January 17, 1983; February 6, 1986; February 2, 1987.
• Time, December 25, 1978; January 3, 1984; July 7, 1986.
• Variety, May 23, 1990, p. 83.
• Washington Post, January 25, 1977.