| Jane Henson | (28 May 1959 - 16 May 1990) (his death) 5 children |
Trivia
Died the weekend he was going to sell his company to Disney.
Attended the University of Maryland, College Park
Puppeteer.
Attended Northwestern High School in Hyattsville, Maryland.
Named Kermit the Frog after a childhood friend from Mississippi.
Shares same birthday (September 24) with Steve Whitmire, fellow muppeteer who took over Kermit the Frog after Henson's death.
Father of Brian Henson, Lisa Henson, Heather Henson, Cheryl Henson and John Henson.
Founded the "UNIMA Citations of Excellence" in 1973 to provide a peer-judged award for the art of puppetry in North America. In 1966, Jim Henson had previously founded (with other American puppeteers) the USA chapter of the Union Internationale de la Marionette (UNIMA) - the world's oldest international theatre arts organization, and served as the USA Chapter's founding chaiman.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991) was dedicated to his memory.
One of the main reasons why Henson preferred to use Kermit the Frog for his signature character was that he was the lightest in weight of the regular puppets and therefore one of the most comfortable for use for extended periods of time.
Created the original Kermit the Frog out of his mother's old coat and a ping-pong ball. In the beginning Kermit was not a frog, but a lizard-like character. He gradually evolved, and first appeared as Kermit The Frog in Hey Cinderella! (1969) (TV) and has remained so ever since.
Died the same day as Sammy Davis Jr..
Had been ill with walking pneumonia for several days before his death but never told anybody, not even his family, because, true to his character, he didn't want to be a burden to anybody. By the time he finally sought medical help, it was too late to do anything.
Was a good friend of George Lucas, who originally offered him the role of Yoda in Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980). He declined and suggested Frank Oz for the part.
His funeral at St. John the Divine in New York was attended by over 1,000 people and Muppets, including Frank Oz, George Lucas, Richard Curtis, Kermit the Frog, and Lord Lew Grade.
Harry Belafonte sang the much beloved song "Turn the World Around" from "The Muppet Show" (1976) at Jim's funeral. It was reported to be his favorite.
Was pictured on a USA 37¢ commemorative stamp issued 28 September 2005, which was issued on a single souvenir sheet honoring Jim Henson, the man behind the Muppets. The souvenir sheet contained 10 additional 37¢ stamps featuring the following Muppet characters: Kermit the Frog; Fozzie Bear; Sam the Eagle; Miss Piggy; Statler and Waldorf; the Swedish Chef, Animal; Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and Beaker; Rowlf; and the Great Gonzo and Camilla.
Before his career in puppetry, he would experiment with 8mm and 16mm film, often making animation.
First met Jerry Juhl at a Puppeteers Of America convention.
First met David Lazer when he had been contracted to make a few short puppet films for them. Lazer worked at IBM.
A Jim Henson retrospective was held from September 1990 to February 1991 at London's Museum of the Moving Image.
In his early TV shows, he didn't always perform voices, but lip-synched to records of the day.
His first television character was called Pierre, the French Rat. It began life as a comic strip drawn by Henson for a high-school publication in 1954.
On a trip to Europe, he saw puppet theater being taken seriously by adults. He returned to the United States convinced he could create a puppet TV show that would appeal to adults.
"Lydia The Tattooed Lady" was one of his all-time favorite songs. The Muppets performed this song at his memorial service. Henson himself drew the tattoos on the Lydia, the female tattooed Muppet used in episode 2 of "The Muppet Show" (1976).
The Wizard of Oz (1939) was one of his favorite films.
Arrived at his graduation in a Rolls Royce.
His earliest puppetry influences were Kukla, Fran Allison and Ollie, Bil Baird, and Edgar Bergen.
Once said his earliest artistic influence was his grandmother, Dear. She taught him to value and appreciate everything he saw around him.
Had a hit single singing "Rubber Duckie" as Ernie. "Rubber Duckie" entered the Billboard Top 40 chart for pop/rock in August 1970 and stayed on the chart for seven weeks, peaking at number 16. The 'famous' rubber-duck-squeaking solo in the original version of the song (for the very first "Sesame Street album") is squeaked by the song's writer, Jeff Moss. When the "Sesame Street" (1969) cast appeared in concert with the Boston Pops Orchestra, the rubber duck was considered a percussion instrument. Apparently unwilling to pay musicians to play a 'second instrument,' duck squeaking was limited to the percussion section when the cast sang this song with the Pops (with Big Bird conducting).
1961: Met Frank Oz in Asilomar, California.
Henson's final televised appearance was on "The Arsenio Hall Show" (1989), just 12 days before his death.
Biography in "The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives," Volume Two, 1986-1990, pp. 413-415. New York: Scribners/Simon & Schuster, 1999.
According to an interview with Frank Oz, Jim wanted to direct and produce a film version of "Beauty and the Beast" in the late 1980s, with Tom Cruise playing the handsome prince who would turned into a beast. The storyboard was very similar to Disney's movie, even with the servants turned into magical objects, when the Walt Disney Company announced its intention of doing an animated version of the fairy tale, he decided not to go through with the production.
Upon his death it was said that Rowlf the Dog would never be used again, for this was Henson's signature character. As a memorial of sorts Rowlf is seen in a few shots of Muppet Treasure Island (1996). However, out of respect for Jim Henson, he never speaks.
His original name for the Muppets was the Anything People.
His wife Jane separated from him in 1986, but they never divorced. The two remained good friends.
Was a lifelong fan of science fiction.
Apart from his family and puppets, his greatest passion in life was music.
Henson based his early Muppet designs on the drawings in "Pogo" by Walt Kelly.
In his book Street Gang: The Complete History of "Sesame Street," author Michael Davis says that after separating from his wife, Jane, Henson dated several well-known women, including actress Daryl Hannah.
Henson's alma mater, University of Maryland, commissioned a life-size statue of Henson and Kermit the Frog, which was dedicated on September 24, 2003.
Personal Quotes
When I was young, my ambition was to be one of the people who made a difference in this world. My hope still is to leave the world a little bit better for my having been here. It's a wonderful life and I love it.
Despite this discussion of things spiritual - I still think of myself as a very 'human' being. I have the full complement of weaknesses, fears, problems, ego, and sensuality. But I think this is why we're here - to work our way through all this, and, hopefully, come out a bit wiser and better for having gone through it all.
I believe in taking a positive attitude toward the world, toward people, toward my work. I think I'm here for a purpose. I think it's very likely that we all are, but I'm only sure about myself. I try to tune myself in to whatever it is that I'm supposed to be, and I try to think of myself as a part of all of us - all mankind and all life. I find it's not easy to keep these lofty thoughts in mind as the day goes by, but it certainly helps me a great deal to start out this way.
I believe that life is basically a process of growth - that we go through many lives, choosing situations and problems that we will learn through.
I believe that we form our own lives, that we create our own reality, and that everything works out for the best. I know I drive some people crazy with what seems to be ridiculous optimism, but it has always worked out for me.
I don't know exactly where ideas come from, but when I'm working well ideas just appear. I've heard other people say similar things - so it's one of the ways I know there's help and guidance out there. It's just a matter of our figuring out how to receive the ideas or information that are waiting to be heard.
I spend a few minutes in meditation and prayer each morning. I find that this really helps me to start the day with a good frame of reference. As part of my prayers, I thank whoever is helping me - I'm sure that somebody or something is - I express gratitude for all my blessings and try to forgive the people that I'm feeling negative toward. I try hard not to judge anyone, and I try to bless everyone who is part of my life, particularly anyone with whom I am having any problems.
I think there are lots of ways of leading very good lives and growing spiritually. This process of growth goes on whether we believe in it or not.
If our 'message' is anything, it's a positive approach to life. That life is basically good. People are basically good.
Simple is Good.
Some people claim Kermit is my alter-ego. I'm not sure I know what that means. I like to work Kermit because there's a lot of leeway for ad-libbing, which I don't have with most other characters but I'm not sure that I'm not Kermit.
Life is meant to be fun, and joyous, and fulfilling. May each of yours be that - having each of you as a child of mine has certainly been one of the good things in my life. Know that I've always loved each of you with an eternal, bottomless love. A love that has nothing to do with each other, for I feel my love for each of you is total and all-encompassing. Please watch out for each other and love and forgive everybody. It's a good life, enjoy it.
I love my work, I enjoy it. I have a terrific group of people who work with me.
I've always tried to present a positive view of the world in my work. It's so much easier to be negative and cynical and predict doom for the world than it is to try and figure out how to make things better. We have an obligation to do the latter.
The most sophisticated people I've ever known had just one thing in common: they were all in touch with their inner children.
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