Jim henson biography death
Jim Henson
Jim Henson
American puppeteer (1936–1990)
This article is about the puppeteer. For the company he co-founded, see The Jim Henson Company. For the man who escaped slavery, see Jim Henson (memorialist).
James Maury Henson (September 24, 1936 – May 16, 1990) was an American puppeteer, animator, actor, and filmmaker who achieved worldwide notability as the creator of the Muppets. Henson was also well known for creating Fraggle Rock (1983–1987) and as the director of The Dark Crystal (1982) and Labyrinth (1986).
Born in Greenville, Mississippi, and raised in both Leland, Mississippi, and University Park, Maryland, Henson began developing puppets in high school. He created Sam and Friends (1955–1961), a short-form comedy television program on WRC-TV, while he was a freshman at the University of Maryland, College Park, in collaboration with fellow student Jane Nebel. Henson and Nebel co-founded Muppets, Inc. – now The Jim Henson Company – in 1958, and married less than a year later in 1959. Henson graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in home economics.
In 1969, Henson joined the children's educational television program Sesame Street (1969–present) where he helped to develop Muppet characters for the series. He and his creative team also appeared on the first season of the sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live (1975–present). He produced the sketch comedy television series The Muppet Show (1976–1981) during this period. Henson revolutionized the way puppetry is captured and presented in video media, and he won fame for his characters – particularly Kermit the Frog, Rowlf the Dog, and the characters on Sesame Street. During the later years of his life, he founded the Jim Henson Foundation and Jim Henson's Creature Shop. He won the Emmy Award twice for his involvement in The StoryTeller (1987–1988) and The Jim Henson Hour (1989).
Henson died in New York City from toxic shock syndrome caused by Streptococcus pyogen His creations are known around the world. Now the man behind the Muppets is getting a retrospective moment in the spotlight in the new documentary Jim Henson Idea Man, now streaming on Disney+. Henson died in 1990 at age 53 but remains perhaps the most famous American TV puppeteer. The new documentary explores his inner life and creative innovations. “It’s a shame that we lost him when we did because what he’d be doing with tech today would be very exciting, and he probably would’ve pushed that medium along in a way that we would recognize,” director Ron Howard said. Jim Henson Idea Man premiered at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this month. Watch Jim Henson Idea Manon Disney+ Puppeteer Jim Henson was the man behind the Muppets. He started creating his signature characters, including Kermit the Frog, during a TV gig in college. The Muppets reached a new level of fame as stars on Sesame Street, a popular kids’ show that launched in 1969, with Henson voicing and operating Ernie and Kermit, among others. Next, he created The Muppet Show in 1976, and the program for all ages launched several films, including 1979’s The Muppet Movie that Henson directed. The puppeteer received several accolades for his work, including Emmys, Grammys, and a Peabody Award. Henson died of pneumonia at age 53 in May 1990. FULL NAME: James Maury Henson James Maury Henson, better known as Jim Henson, was born on September 24, 1936, in Greenville, Mississippi. He spent his early years in nearby Leland with his parents, Betty and Paul Henson, and his older brother, Paul. The family moved to the Hyattsville, Maryland, outside of Washington D.C., when J Readers of Jim Henson: The Biography often tell me that they find the chapter on Jim’s death to be both sad and fascinating, especially as the circumstances of Jim’s death have, for the last two-and-a-half decades, been misinterpreted, misreported, or just plain misunderstood. I appreciate hearing that readers find this portion of the book as gratifying as they do heartbreaking.You can thank the Henson family for their openness in discussing Jim’s death, and for providing me with the honor — and responsibility — of reading Jim’s medical records from that day in May 1990. As we remember Jim on the occasion of his passing, then, I thought I’d do something a bit different. I’m posting below — perhaps for only a limited time — an excerpt from the chapter “Just One Person,” from Jim Henson: The Biography, on the days leading up to and including Jim’s death. We’ll begin on Saturday, May 12, 1990, with Jim and his daughter Cheryl flying to North Carolina to visit his father Paul and stepmother Bobby. * * * * * On the morning of Saturday, May 12, after two days of seemingly nonstop meetings at One Seventeen, Jim and Cheryl boarded a USAir flight at LaGuardia Airport, and touched down in Norfolk, Virginia, a little after 10:00 a.m. Jim wasn’t feeling well again; while he didn’t have a fever, his throat was still sore, his nose was running, and he had picked up a slight cough. “It seemed like a cold or flu,” said Cheryl. But he felt well enough to carry his own bags and drove their rental car the seventy miles south from Norfolk to rural Ahoskie, North C Jim Henson
1936-1990
Latest News: Muppet Creator Jim Henson Featured in New Documentary
Who Was Jim Henson?
Quick Facts
BORN: September 24, 1936
DIED: May 16, 1990
BIRTHPLACE: Greenville, Mississippi
SPOUSE: Jane Henson (1959-1990)
CHILDREN: Lisa, Cheryl, Brian, John, and Heather
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: LibraEarly Years
Just One Person: An Excerpt from JIM HENSON: THE BIOGRAPHY
A NOTE FROM BRIAN: I usually prefer to celebrate a subject’s date of birth rather than observe the day he died. But it’s worth noting that twenty-five years ago today — May 16, 1990 — Jim Henson passed away at 1:21 a.m. in New York.