The Pig of the Nineties The Pig of the Nineties is a marketing campaign that was proposed by The Jim Henson Company in 1990 , as a way to reinvigorate Miss Piggy ' s popularity . A document from the Henson Company was reprinted in " MuppetZine " # 13 in the summer of 1995 , including some concept art and an outline of events planned to take place over several years . The pitch was outlined by writers Bill Prady and Jim Lewis , and conceptual designer Michael K . Frith . The first step of the campaign — a gossip item about Miss Piggy breaking up with Kermit — was published by " People " magazine in the May 14th , 1990 issue . The campaign was dropped following the tragic passing of Jim Henson , just two days later . Twenty - five years later , just prior to " The Muppets " premiering on ABC , Miss Piggy and Kermit announced that they would be ending their relationship . Similar to the proposed Pig of the Nineties campaign , the story was covered in several media outlets ( " Variety " , " People " , etc . ) , official social media feeds , and a press conference held by ABC featuring the former couple as well as showrunners Bob Kushell and Bill Prady ( who had worked on the original Pig of the Nineties proposal ) . Henson Company Document . Miss Piggy — the most popular porcine cultural icon of all time — has spent her life giving new meaning to the words " flamboyance " , " glamour " , " elegance " , and " moi " . She turned a generation on its ear , and she reached a height of popularity that few can stand without experiencing severe vertigo . Yet the frog always came first . Now the moment has come for Miss Piggy to take her career into her own hands and achieve the prominence she deserves . It is time for her to broaden her focus , free herself from a codependent relationship with Kermit , and reestablish her place among the very brightest stars . The Pig of the 90 ' s campaign is a major public relations effort designed to do all this . Working with the Muppet production , public relations , licensing , and publishing departments , we have created a scenario that will refocus the eyes of the world on Piggy . Our campaign will take Piggy from a well - publicized breakup with Kermit through a brief , well - documented period of soul - searching to a loud and triumphant return . This return will both spark and support a coordinated calendar of productions , books , theme - park events , and licensed products . Miss Piggy is not just a star ; she is symbolic of all great stars . Like Madonna , Bette , and Cher , Miss Piggy is larger than life , capable of weathering any storm and emerging — dripping wet , perhaps — but bigger and better than ever . Below is a tentative outline of what will happen in the Pig of the 90 ' s campaign ( see Time Line for more specific dates ) . 1 . A letter appears in the Ann Landers column , which is obviously from Piggy , asking for advice on how to handle an un - fulfilling relationship with a difficult frog . Ann advises . Press picks up on column . Piggy and Kermit respond . 2 . TV special with surrounding publicity . Piggy and Kermit appear on The Today Show to promote the TV special . On the show , tension between Piggy and Kermit becomes very apparent . Piggy is obviously angry that she wasn ' t consulted about the Disney deal . She alludes to the fact that she was treated badly during the shooting of the special . She also drops hints about her dissatisfaction with the time Kermit has been spending in the company of Minnie Mouse , Jessica Rabbit , et cetera . 3 . A live theatrical show is planned and also appear in Walt Disney World . 4 . Subsequent to the Today Show appearance , Piggy appears on Today , The Tonight Show , Entertainment Tonight , or a similar forum to explain what ' s going on between the pig and the frog . Kermit could appear on a satellite feed to comment . Piggy announces that , for the first time , she has doubts about her relationship with Kermit , as well as doubts about where her career should head next . She has decided that it is in her best interests to go into seclusion and " find " herself . Kermit expresses surprise . People magazine is at the studio and has an exclusive on the breakup , which appears in its next issue . 5 . Piggy appears on either a highly rated magazine - format show or a talk show ( e . g . , Oprah , Donahue , A Current Affair , et cetera ) . She admits that , after reading an article called " Smart Pigs , Foolish Choices , " she realized that she had been in a codependent relationship with Kermit . A psychologist comes on to talk with her about the subject . 6 . Piggy goes into a brief but well - publicized seclusion . We begin a print campaign orchestrated by her agent , Bernie . His releases respond to nonexistent rumors that the pig is gaining weight . ( Actually , she has been gorging on chocolate and other sweets . ) 7 . Piggy searches for inner peace . Rumors of her gazing into crystals , channeling , going to the mountaintop , et cetera , get into the columns . There is a major release and photo in People , Star , or another publication . 8 . An author ' s request appears in the New York Times Book Review . It asks for anyone who has information about the life of Miss Piggy , for use in a biography , to contact a certain post office box . The item is leaked to Liz Smith . 9 . Piggy tells Entertainment Tonight that she knows nothing about a biography about her , that she hasn ' t authorized anyone to write her life story , and that she herself is thinking about doing a book . She plans to sue the author of the unauthorized biography as soon as she can find out who he or she is . 10 . Piggy announces her return to show business . After much soul - searching , she has realized just how much the world needs her . She is making career decisions — e . g . , to produce and direct her own movie , to move to L . A . , to come out with her own line of licensed products — all those things one does to get over a frog . A photo is released of her and Michael Eisner in a quiet tête - à - tête . Rumor has it that Piggy is about to sign a multi - picture deal with Touchstone . She is also dating . Shots are published of her with stars such as Warren Beatty and Tom Cruise . Perhaps a romance is cooked up for her in The Star . 11 . Piggy starts to make more and more appearances in print . . . she begins to look into launching her own perfume . . . she appears on Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous . A portion of the unauthorized biography , including photos , is released . 12 . Piggy and Kermit appear together as presenters on the Academy Awards telecast . They are giving the Oscar for Best Short Subject ; Piggy makes a crack about Kermit . Their banter is about their new , solely professional relationship . They also mention the fact that they ' re doing a movie . 13 . The unauthorized biography of Piggy is released , with accompanying publicity . Piggy herself is trying to get an injunction against its publication , picketing the publisher ' s booth at an A . B . A . , trying to buy up all the copies — anything to prevent its coming out . She appears on talk shows to decry the book . She also announces that she ' s hired a lawyer — perhaps Corbin Bernsen from LA Law — to handle the case . And Piggy announces that she has decided to do a book of her own — perhaps a coffee - table book about her life . 14 . Special exclusive upscale licensing campaign linked to a major department store kicks off during the season . 15 . The Muppet section of Walt Disney World and the Muppet 3 - D movie open in Florida . 16 . Muppet movie number four opens . 17 . Piggy ' s coffee - table book is published in fall 1991 . Licensing gathers steam . There is no real " ending " to this campaign , because any subsequent events will be dictated by the public ' s response to the above . By this time , the Piggy juggernaut will begin to take on its own momentum — fueling new production , product , and publishing opportunities . Licensing : Product will be in two formats : editorially driven and design driven . The former will rely on a biting , quick , and clever editorial voice . Product examples are greeting cards , mugs , puzzles , and party supplies . The latter will reflect Piggy ' s flamboyant , romantic , and tres chic side . A design and / or logo will be developed to define Piggy at a glance , a la Polo , Izod . These products may include scarves , apparel , jewelry , and collectibles . The target audience for the Pig of the 90 ' s campaign will be working women , ages 21 to 45 . These women relate most to Piggy ' s struggle to make a place for herself in her career and in a relationship . A limited product line of scarves , jewelry , accessories , and apparel will appear initially in an exclusive Macy ' s boutique in the spring of ' 91 . By fall ' 91 , the product line will have been expanded to include gift and stationery items and will be rolled out for broader distribution .