1979

Jim Henson noted in his journal that 1979 was “A VERY MAJOR BIG YEAR”.Jim Henson's Red Book
==Television & Movies==
* The Muppets Go Hollywood on CBS, May 16
* The Muppet Movie released June 22
* The Muppet Show Season 4 begins in syndication, September; United Kingdom airings begin in October on ITV due to the union strike.
* Sesame Street Season 11 begins airing on PBS, November 26
* John Denver & the Muppets: A Christmas Together on ABC, December 5
==International Television & Movies==
* The Muppet Movie (Mupparna) released in Sweden, September 29
*Die Muppets in Hollywood (The Muppets Go Hollywood) premiers in Germany on ZDF, November 9
* Barrio Sésamo premieres in Spain
* Iftah Ya Simsim premieres in Kuwait
* Production of The Muppet Show was brought to a halt for eleven weeks (between August and October) due to a strike affecting the technicians of ITV (of which Associated TeleVision, the company that made The Muppet Show, was one of the affected companies)
==Appearances==
* 60 Minutes features a report on The Muppet Show, March 17
* Kermit the Frog guest-hosts The Tonight Show, April 2
* Big Bird appears on Presenting Susan Anton, April 29
* The Muppets appear in Hello, Here Is Berlin, August 23
* Big Bird is featured in Bob Hope's special The Road to China on NBC, September 15
* The Muppets visit The Mike Douglas Show to promote The Muppet Show, December
* The failed pilot for The Orson Welles Show features the Muppets and an interview with Jim Henson and Frank Oz
==Live appearances==
* Kermit, Sweetums, Gonzo and Miss Piggy at the Blackpool Illuminations, August 31
==Books==
*A la Découverte de la Rue Sésame
*The Amazing Mumford Forgets the Magic Words!
*Big Bird's Rhyming Book
*Cookie Monster's Book of Cookie Shapes
*Cookie Monster's Storybook
*Ernie's Work of Art
*The Four Seasons
*Learn at Home the Sesame Street Way
*The Many Faces of Ernie
*The Up and Down Book
*The Sesame Street Library (Volumes 13-15)
==Albums==
*The Muppet Movie (soundtrack)
*A Christmas Together
*Muppet Show Music Album in UK
Sesame Street:
*At Home with Ernie and Bert
*Every Body's Record
*Welcome!
*Anne Murray Sings for the Sesame Street Generation
*The Stars Come Out on Sesame Street, February
*Sesame Disco 
*Dinah! I've Got a Song
==Magazine Appearances==
* Miss Piggy on the cover of SuperMag Vol. 4, No. 1,
==Merchandise==
*1979 Sesame Street Calendar
*Muppet Valentines from Hallmark
*Sigma Christmas ornaments
*Picco watches
*Muppet sneakers from Keds
*Muppet sheets and bedding (Martex)
*Stormin' Norman disco jackets
==Milestones==
* "The Muppet Movie soundtrack" reaches number 32 on Billboard's Top LPs and Tapes chart, and was certified Gold by the RIAA.
* "Rainbow Connection" reaches #25 on Billboard's "Hot 100 Singles" chart.
* Kevin Clash performs with the Muppets for the first time, performing Cookie Monster at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
==Muppet Character Debuts==
*Sesame Street: Irvine, Bruno the Trashman, Osvaldo, el Gruñón, Telly Monster, Elmo (as a minor character)
*The Muppet Show: Foo-Foo, various background Muppets
*Barrio Sesamo: Caponata, Perezgil
*Iftah Ya Simsim: Nu'Man, Malsun
==Attractions==
*The Art of the Muppets exhibit debuts at Lincoln Center in New York City
==Parades==
*Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade features Miss Piggy in a Rolls Royce, followed by the rest of the Muppets in the Electric Mayhem Bus, the Kermit the Frog balloon, and the Sesame Street float.
==Sources==
__NOWYSIWYG__
 1979