Jim Henson is one of the greatest influences in entertainment history. With such talents including being a director, producer, screenwriter, artist, and inventor, he was a man with many gifts and was a great talent that the world lost way too soon. Henson is most famous for his puppetry work, spawning a remarkable franchise of lovable characters known as "The Muppets." The wacky, lovable puppet troupe is led by the wise and charismatic Kermit the Frog, serving as the main character, and who was performed by Jim Henson himself until his death.
Henson spent most of his childhood being raised down in Greenville, Mississippi. His Southern roots provided him with a good work ethic, which would later serve as a great foundation later on in his life. His family later relocated to Hyattsville, Maryland, and it is there he was introduced to television. From that moment on, Henson knew that’s what he wanted to do with his life and would do anything possible to break into the TV industry. While in high school, Jim found work at a local television station serving as a puppet builder and performer for a local series.
Jim continued many years to work TV gigs with his newfound puppet characters, which he coined “Muppets,” including several television spots during the 1950s and ‘60s. He also wrote and performed on a local TV show called "Sam and Friends," which starred a speechless man named Sam and a host of background characters; among those in the cast was an early Kermit, who’d yet to take on his "frog" persona. During his "Sam and Friends" days, Jim would meet and perform alongside his future wife, Jane Nebel Henson (1934-2013). Throughout the 1960s, Henson would work the talk show circuit, including multiple appearances on the legendary "Ed Sullivan Show" and "The Jimmy Dean Show," the latter of which is where the world was introduced to Jim’s next big creation, Rowlf, an anthropomorphic, piano-playing dog with a gruff voice who’d sing many songs. While this may seem like the peak of Henson’s early career, his next project would be one that would change the face of children’s television forever.
In 1966, television producer Joan Ganz Cooney was looking to create a children’s show, dubbed an “experiment” that would help prepare young children for school with educational content, as well as entertainment. Two years of research was done on this experiment, and the Children’s Television Workshop was ready to produce pilots for their experimental show. Cooney would reach out to Jim Henson to create puppet characters for this show, and Henson at first seemed hesitant, fearing he would forever be trapped in child’s entertainment, and strongly advocated for his Muppet characters to not be seen as just kiddy entertainment. Still, Henson saw great value in the project and agreed to sign on, realizing the potential success would open new doors of opportunity for him. The project’s success would be an understatement; the “experiment” conceived in 1966 would be "Sesame Street," the iconic children’s show that first premiered on November 10, 1969, and is still going strong today.
In 1976, Henson launched his next great project, debuting "The Muppet Show," which would go on to be a global success around the world, introducing such lovable characters like The Great Gonzo, The Swedish Chef, Dr. Teeth & the Electric Mayhem, and the diva herself, Miss Piggy. She was portrayed by legendary puppeteer and director, Frank Oz, who was Henson’s closest collaborator and the man responsible for many of the most iconic Muppet and Sesame characters, including Cookie Monster, Grover, Bert, Fozzie Bear, Animal, and many more. The success of the Muppet Show led to multiple movies, including "The Muppet Movie" (1979), "The Great Muppet Caper" (1981), and "The Muppets Take Manhattan" (1984). Many television specials were also made, and even a Saturday morning cartoon show, titled "Muppet Babies," which ran from 1984-1991.
Henson, being the visionary that he was, didn’t just stop with his Muppet franchise. Looking to always push the boundaries, Jim would eventually turn to more fantasy projects, including the masterpieces "The Dark Crystal" (1982) and "Labyrinth" (1986). While both films were not initially successful upon their original release, the films have since become cult classics and a true testament to the artist Jim was, and how far ahead of his time he appeared to be. Wanting to always be new and innovative, Henson always made it a goal to see that his dreams became a reality.
On May 16, 1990, the world would lose the great Jim Henson after dying of a bacterial infection, which doctors say would have successfully been treated if Jim had only come in an hour or so earlier. Since his death, Jim’s creations have continued to live on. The "Sesame Street" characters are now owned by Sesame Workshop (formerly Children’s Television Workshop), and The Muppet characters have now found a home at The Walt Disney Company. Both franchises continue to thrive, with "Sesame Street" prepping it’s 46th season, and the Muppets prepping for a new primetime show on ABC, appropriately titled, “The Muppets.” Henson has inspired a whole generation of people to go for their dreams, including this person writing this article, and is a prime example of the joyful wonders that life has to offer if we all love and respect one another, and treat others the way we want to be treated.
To best emphasize what Jim means to me, and his inspiration, here’s a quote featured in The Muppet Movie:
Life's like a movie, write your own ending
Keep believing, keep pretending
We've done just what we set out to do.
Thanks to the lovers, the dreamers, and you.
And we thank you, Jim.
