Animation Magazine Animation ran a story on the Muppets joining Disney in 1989 . THE MOUSE AND THE FROG : Disney and Henson join empires By Bill Givens Volume 3 , Issue 3 - Winter / Spring 1990 " It ' s an unusual day on the back lot of the Disney Studios in Burbank . Pyrotechnics experts are wiring up incendiary devices and air cannons , and a memo has been circulated to all the offices on the lot , warning them to expect a series of explosions later in the day . There ' s a bit of tension in the normally bucolic town square setting , which is about all that remains of the Disney back lot . Gaily dressed extras hang around , playing cards , reading , waiting for the cameras to roll . Firemen - both real ones and actors - lounge on the back of a Burbank fire truck . Nearby , construction workers are putting the finishing touches to Disney ' s new corporate headquarters , a sandstone - colored ' modem monument on which the roof will be supported by statues of ( ahem ! ) . . . the seven dwarfs . The brobdingnagian creatures ( let ' s face it - can you call a twenty - orso foot statue a dwarf ? ) are covered by plastic tarps to hide them from prying eyes until the structure is ready for its public unveiling . The building and a nearby parking structure have eaten up much of the studio ' s back lot . For the time being , there ' s not a mouse in sight . The star of this production is a frog . A frog . . . on the lot built by a mouse . A brick wall is about to be blown to smithereens , and the crew is hustling about , making sure every little detail of the filming is locked down , every safety precaution is firmly in place . The one person who doesn ' t reflect any of the tension of the moment is Jim Henson . The bearded creator of " The Muppets " , who is directing the film , is an island of relaxation in the midst of all the frantic activity . Asked about his calm demeanor , the Muppet Master says " There ' s not a lot that tension will do for us . There are times like this when I ' ve done everything I can do , then I just sit back and wait for everybody else to get ready . " The project that Henson is directing is a 3 - D film , scheduled to become an attraction at the Disney / MGM Studio Tour in Florida . California ' s Disneyland may have its hipper - than - thou Michael Jackson as a 3 - D " Captain EO " , but Florida ' s multi - dimensional image will be good ole lovable Kermit the Frog and his Muppet Friends . Kermit , Miss Piggy , and all of the Henson characters are becoming a hard - working part of the Disney family in a buyout deal that has been estimated as worth $ 150 to $ 200 million dollars to Henson , even though neither party has quoted numbers . While the production shuts down for a lunch break , Henson heads for Disney ' s Roof top Executive Dining Room for a fast lunch and a chance to talk about the way things will be going when his company becomes a part of Mickey ' s empire . Idea Came From Eisner Henson says that the idea of the merger started with a meeting with Michael Eisner to discuss some joint projects , but before too long the conversation turned to a high - powered deal wherein Mickey ' s empire takes over Kermit ' s domain . " JIM HENSON : A DAY IN THE LIFE By Bill Givens Volume 3 , Issue 4 - Summer 1990 " A writer has the rare opportunity to get to know a wide variety of people - the famous , the infamous , the ordinary . It ' s one of the privileges of the profession . But with every privilege comes an attendant responsibility , that of constructing your article from whole cloth , of painting a true picture of the subject of your interview . There are times when it ' s difficult . Early on , you develop your personal " smoke detector " , and within minutes you can recognize someone who ' s all style and no substance , an image made from smoke and mirrors . That ' s when you have to perform a little dance around your subject ' s psyche , looking for the door that will open long enough for you to get in and look around for the truth , for something solid on which to base your piece . When there ' s just nothing there , you can only back off and merely report your impressions , and let the chips fall where they may . But an interview is a true joy when you meet someone who is genuine , whose conversation transcends corporate jargon , political sidesteps , and " yupspeak " . You ask a question , you get an answer . Sometime the answer is " no " or " I can ' t answer that " , but you aren ' t taken into the woods of obscurity , you don ' t have to play mind games with your subject . You get a person who looks you straight in the eye , whose every word and gesture reflects the essence of the topic , who treats you as an equal . Jim Henson was such a man . We met over lunch at Disney ' s executive dining room and immediately hit upon a common chord , since he and I were both born about 20 miles and three years apart , in the Delta region of northern Mississippi . He also confirmed a rumor I had heard - that , as Kermit the Frog , he had preached Edgar Bergen ' s funeral oration from the pulpit . of my parish church in Los Angeles . Throughout the rest of the afternoon as I watched him at work , I could easily see why his characters can entertain children without condescending to them , and can entertain adults without patronizing . There is a large portion of Jim Henson in every one of his characters : a gentleness , a goodness , a charm , and a generous supply of wit . As I watched him direct an extremely complicated and somewhat dangerous scene , he was an island of calm surrounded by tension . I asked about it , and his reply was that " There ' s not a lot that tension will do for us . There are times like this when I ' ve done everything I can do , then I just sit back and wait for everyone else to get ready . " The crew went about the business of setting up an " explosion shot " for Disney Florida ' s 3 - D movie as Henson watched from the background , intervening only when he caught something out of kilter . That was , to me , also a measure of the man . I ' ve seen many a famous person surrounded by fawners and sycophants , yes - men and hangers - on who can ' t make a move or a decision without a nod from " the boss " . Not Henson ' s crew . They seemed to work in an atmosphere of mutual respect , on a set that was both lighthearted and professional . That can come only from the top . From our conversation , I had the impression that Henson ' s sale of his company to Disney - even though he said that he didn ' t instigate it - was " the deal of a lifetime " for him . Disney was the ideal company to take over his characters ; he was free of administrative duties and the selling of his products and could now concentrate on what he liked to do best - create and produce . " That ' s what makes me happiest , " he said . " That ' s what I like doing the most . " Therein lies one of the tragedies of Jim Henson ' s early death , that famous " what might have been " . If a man could give us so much while starting out as a puppeteer on a local Washington , D . C . station , and going on to create some of the most memorable characters ever to appear on television ( and in the movies , ! too , for that matter ) , to build up a world - ~ ranging company , to feed both public ~ and network television ' s hungry maw , r ; , who knows what we would have seen \ ~ once he was freed of the fetters of rou - o ~ tine - when he could direct 100 % of his genius to that which we see on the screen ? The day of our conversation , Henson told me that the deal for the sale to Disney was essentially complete , and that it was now " in the hands of the lawyers " . His death came before it was out of those hands and officially signed , leaving a host of questions about the future , both from Disney ' s point of view and Henson Associates ' . I felt a real sense of personal loss when Jim Henson died , because as a writer you treasure the time spent in the company of people of genius , of goodness , of genuine accomplishment . You rejoice at the privilege of spending time with people whose lives and work make a difference . You are honored when you meet someone who shows as much respect for your work as you have for his . And that ' s exactly the way I felt about my day with Jim Henson . There ' s so much sadness surrounding the early death of Jim Henson . But there ' s also a joy in knowing that he left us triumphant - at the very top of his profession , surrounded by solid accomplishment , a large and loving family , and creativity that will continue to enhance the lives of both children and adults . Jim Henson was a man wrapped in the mantle of a nation ' s love and respect . Not a bad way to go . "