The Jim Henson Company

The Jim Henson Company is an American entertainment company.  It started with Muppets, Inc. in 1958 by puppeteer Jim Henson.  Henson is the creator of The Muppets. The Muppets helped the company become popular worldwide.  They were well known in family entertainment for more than forty years.

In 1969, the company started making characters and more than 20 short movies for the popular children's show Sesame Street.

One of the company's first characters regularly on national television was Rowlf the Dog.  He was first made for Purina Dog Chow commercials.  He became famous when he became a regular character on The Jimmy Dean Show from 1963–66.

In 1976, British media mogul Lew Grade asked Jim Henson to make a weekly show based in England, which became The Muppet Show. The success of The Muppet Show led to many movies, specials, videos, and more.

In the early 1980s, Jim Henson also formed Jim Henson's Creature Shop.  It made characters for shows such as The Storyteller, Farscape, and Dinosaurs; and movies such as The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth.  It was also in the 1980s that Jim Henson produced new television series such as Fraggle Rock and The Jim Henson Hour.

In 1990, Jim Henson was talking to The Walt Disney Company about selling his company. Henson died during the week that he was going to sign the contract.  His family decided to have the company keep the rights to the characters. However, on December 18, 1991, The Walt Disney Company bought the distribution rights to the entire Jim Henson Company library up to that time.New York Times

In 2000, Jim Henson’s children sold the company to the German media company, EM.TV. In January 1, 2001 they sold the Sesame Street Muppets to Sesame Workshop.  In 2003 Henson's children bought back the company. In 2004, they sold the rights to The Muppets and Bear in the Big Blue House characters to The Walt Disney Company.Disney Corporate The Walt Disney Company now owns all Muppet-related trademarks, including the word “Muppet”.

Filmography

Films
 Production company Title Release date Production partners Distributor Muppets Inc. Time Piece   Pathé Contemporary Films The Cube   NBC Henson Associates The Muppet Movie  ITC Entertainment Associated Film Distribution The Great Muppet Caper  Universal Pictures The Dark Crystal  Universal Pictures The Muppets Take Manhattan   TriStar Pictures Sesame Street Presents: Follow That Bird  Children's Television Workshop Warner Bros. Labyrinth  Lucasfilm TriStar Pictures Jim Henson Productions The Witches  Lorimar Film Entertainment Warner Bros. Jim Henson's Muppet*Vision 3D Walt Disney Imagineering Disney-MGM StudiosWalt Disney Attractions The Muppet Christmas Carol  Walt Disney Pictures Buena Vista Pictures Distribution Gulliver's Travels  Hallmark Entertainment NBC Muppet Treasure Island  Walt Disney Pictures Buena Vista Pictures Distribution Jim Henson Pictures Buddy   Sony Pictures Releasing Muppets from Space  Columbia Pictures The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland   Rat  (UK)  Jack and the Beanstalk: The Real Story  Hallmark Entertainment CBS It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie   Universal Pictures Good Boy!   Five Children and It   Capitol Films Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars  Hallmark Entertainment Syfy The Muppets' Wizard of Oz   ABC MirrorMask  Destination Films  The Jim Henson Company Unstable Fables: 3 Pigs and a Baby   Genius Products Unstable Fables: Tortoise vs. Hare  Unstable Fables: The Goldilocks and the 3 Bears Show  Sid the Science Kid: The Movie   PBSNCircle Entertainment Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day   Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Lily the Unicorn   Amazon Prime Video Turkey Hollow   Lifetime The Star   Sony Pictures Releasing Dinosaur Train: Adventure Island   PBSUniversal Pictures Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio   The Portable DoorApril 7, 2023Story Bridge Films Jim Henson Idea ManMay 31, 2024 Imagine DocumentariesDiamond DocsFifth Season Disney+ Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Road Trip March 28, 2025  Untitled Labyrinth spin-off sequel TBA  Sony Pictures ReleasingThe Buried Giant  Netflix

Television

From 1969 to 2000, Henson was contracted to design and create Muppet characters for Sesame Street. With the exception of occasional appearances in the Muppets franchise, the characters were used exclusively for Sesame Street, but Henson legally owned these characters prior to their acquisition by Sesame Workshop. The only exception was Kermit the Frog, who was featured in other projects prior to Sesame Street. Sesame Workshop retains the rights to use any Sesame Street footage featuring the character.

The sale ended any direct affiliation between The Muppets and Sesame Street, although the series retains use of the term "Muppet" under license from Disney. Many of the puppeteers continue to perform with both The Muppets and Sesame Street franchises. While no longer owning the Sesame Street characters, Henson continues to design them. This list excludes pre-2001 Sesame Street co-productions outside the United States.

TV series
 Production company Title Creator(s) / Developer(s) Release date Production partners Network Henson Associates, Inc. The Muppet Show Jim Henson 1976–1981 Associated TelevisionITC Entertainment ITV (UK)Syndication (US) Fraggle Rock 1983–1987 CBC (Canada)HBOTelevision South CBC (Canada)HBO (US)ITV (UK) Muppet Babies Jim Henson: Jeffrey Scott 1984–1991 Marvel Productions CBS Little Muppet Monsters Jim Henson 1985 Fraggle Rock: The Animated Series Jim Henson: John Semper & Cynthia Friedlob 1987 NBC Jim Henson Productions, Inc. The StoryTeller Jim Henson: Anthony Minghella 1988–1990 TVS NBC (US)Channel 4 (UK)HBO (US) (Greek Myths) The Jim Henson Hour Jim Henson 1989  NBC The Ghost of Faffner Hall  Tyne Tees Television ITV (UK) Jim Henson's Mother Goose Stories  1990 Television South West ITV (UK)The Disney Channel (US) Dinosaurs Michael JacobsBob Young: Jim Henson 1991–1994 Michael Jacobs ProductionsWalt Disney Television ABC Dog City Jim Henson: Peter SauderJ.D. Smith 1992–1995 Nelvana Limited Fox Kids (US)YTV (Canada) CityKids Jeffrey Solomon 1993–1994 The CityKids Foundation ABC Secret Life of Toys  1993  The Disney Channel (US)BBC (UK) Jim Henson's Animal Show  1994–1998 Survival Anglie, Ltd. Fox Kids (seasons 1–2)Animal Planet (season 3) Muppets Tonight  1996–1998  ABCDisney Channel Aliens in the Family Andy BorowitzSusan Borowitz 1996 The Stuffed Dog Company ABC The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss Dr. Seuss (characters) 1996–1998  Nickelodeon Jim Henson Television Bear in the Big Blue House Mitchell Kriegman 1997–2006 Shadow Projects Playhouse Disney Brats of the Lost Nebula Dan Clark 1998–1999 Decode EntertainmentWandering Monkey Entertainment The WB (US)YTV (Canada) Mopatop's Shop : Jocelyn Stevenson 1999–2003 Carlton Television ITV (CITV) Construction Site   Farscape Rockne S. O'Bannon Hallmark Entertainment Nine Network (Australia)Sci-Fi Channel (US) Family Rules  Russell Marcus 1999  UPN The Fearing Mind Billy Brown 2000–01 Angel/Brown Productions Fox Family The Hoobs Jocelyn StevensonBrian Henson 2001–2003 Decode Entertainment Channel 4 (UK)TVOKids (Canada) Telling Stories with Tomie dePaola  2001  Hallmark Channel Bambaloo  2002–2003 Yoram Gross-EM.TV Seven NetworkABC TV Animal Jam John Derevlany 2003  TLCDiscovery Kids The Jim Henson Company Frances  Russell Hoban: Alex RockwellHalle Stanford 2008 HIT Entertainment  Sid the Science Kid  2008–13 KCET (2008–09)KOCE-TV (2010–12) PBS Kids Jim Henson's Pajanimals Jeff Muncy and Alex Rockwell Sixteen SouthJohn Doze StudiosIngenious PBS Kids Sprout Dinosaur Train Craig Bartlett 2009–20 Info-communications Media Development AuthoritySparky AnimationFableVisionSnee-Oosh, Inc. (uncredited)Tail Waggin' Productions PBS Kids Jim Henson's The Possibility Shop Courtney Watkins 2009–2011   Hot Dog TV  2010  Cartoon Network Me and My Monsters Mark GrantClaudia Lloyd: Rebecca De Souza 2010–2011 Tiger Aspect ProductionsSticky Pictures Network Ten (Australia)CBBC (UK) Wilson & Ditch: Digging America Joe PurdyCraig Bartlett 2010–2012  PBS Kids That Puppet Game Show Jamie Ormerod 2013–14 BBC Entertainment BBC One Jim Henson's Creature Shop Challenge  2014  Syfy The Doozers  2014–2018 DHX Studios Halifax Hulu (US)Kids' CBC (Canada) Hi Opie! Barbara Slade 2014–2016 marblemedia TVO Kids Dot. Randi Zuckerberg 2016–2018 Industrial Brothers CBC Kids (Canada)Universal Kids (US) Splash and Bubbles John Tartaglia 2016–2018 Herschend Studios PBS Kids Word Party Alex Rockwell 2016–2021  Netflix Julie's Greenroom Julie AndrewsEmma Walton HamiltonJudy Rothman 2017  The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance Jim Henson (characters): Jeffrey AddissWill Matthews 2019  Fraggle Rock: Rock On!  2020  Apple TV+ Earth to Ned  2020–2021 Marwar Junction Productions Disney+  Duff's Happy Fun Bake Time Duff Goldman 2021  Discovery+ Harriet the Spy  2021–present Postworks New YorkWellsville PicturesTitmouse, Inc. Apple TV+ Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock Jim Henson (original series): Matt FusfeldAlex Cuthbertson 2022–present New RegencyFusfeld & Cuthbertson Regional Entertainment Slumberkins Alex Rockwell 2022 Factory The Storyteller Jim Henson (original series) TBA Fremantle  Lore Olympus Rachel Smythe TBA Webtoon 

As a contributor
 The Tonight Show (1955–1961)
 The Jimmy Dean Show (1963-1966)
 Sesame Street (1969–present)
 Saturday Night Live (Season 1)
 "The Land of Gorch" segments (1975–1976)
 The High Fructose Adventures of Annoying Orange (2012–2014)

TV specials
 Hey, Cinderella! (1969)
 The Great Santa Claus Switch (1970)
 The Frog Prince (1971)
 The Muppet Musicians of Bremen (1972)
 Out to Lunch (1974)
 The Muppets Valentine Show (1974)
 The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence (1975)
 Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas (1977)
 The Muppets Go Hollywood (1979)
 John Denver and the Muppets: A Christmas Together (1979)
 The Muppets Go to the Movies (1981)
 Of Muppets and Men (1981)
 The Fantastic Miss Piggy Show (1982)
 Rocky Mountain Holiday (1983)
 The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years (1986)
 The Tale of the Bunny Picnic (1986)
 The Christmas Toy (1986)
 A Muppet Family Christmas (1987)
 Sesame Street... 20 Years & Still Counting (1989)
 The Muppets at Walt Disney World (1990)
 The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson (1990)
 Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree (1995)

Direct-to-video
 Jim Henson Play-Along Video (1988)
 Hey, You're as Funny as Fozzie Bear: A Comedy Show Starring Fozzie Bear and You
 Mother Goose Stories: Miss Muffet, Songs of Sixpence, Little Boy Blue (1987–1990)
 Neat Stuff... To Know and Do
 Peek-A-Boo, A Big Surprise for Little People
 Sing-Along, Dance-Along, Do-Along: Rowlf teaches kids about music
 Wow, You're a Cartoonist!
 Muppet Sing Alongs
 Billy Bunny's Animal Songs (1993)Zad, Martie. "Muppet Group Offers Eight New Songs." The Washington Post. (November 25, 2013).
 It's Not Easy Being Green (1994)
 Muppet Treasure Island Sing Along (1996)
 Things That Fly (1996)Maes, Nancy. (March 7, 1996) Tish Hinojosa's Music Bridges Two Cultures. Chicago Tribune. Accessed on November 26, 2013.
 Muppet Classic Theater (1994)
 Jim Henson's Preschool Collection (1995)
 Mother Goose Stories: Humpty Dumpty
 Mother Goose Stories: Mary Had a Little Lamb
 Muppets on Wheels
 Yes, I Can Be a Friend
 Yes, I Can Learn
 Yes, I Can HelpMartie Zad. (July 2, 1995) "Muppets, Kids Join in Series For Preschoolers." The Washington Post. 1995.
 Kermit's Swamp Years (2002)

Web content
 The Skrumps (2007)
 The Sam Plenty Cavalcade of Action Show Plus Singing! (2008)

Henson Alternative
The following list contains projects of The Jim Henson Company under its Henson Alternative banner.

Movies
 Title Release date Production partners Distributor The Happytime Murders   STX Entertainment

Television series
The first eight series are produced under its Henson Alternative banner exclusively in North America before premiering worldwide in 2015.
 Tinseltown (2007)
 Alt/Reality (2010–2011)
 Simian Undercover Detective Squad (2012)
 Late Night Buffet with Augie and Del (2006)
 Del's Vegas Comedy Binge (2007)
 Late Night Liars (2010)
 Marvin E. Quasniki for President (2011–12)
 Neil's Puppet Dreams (2012–13)
 Ketchup with the Hot Dogs (2013–14)
 Good Morning Today (2013–14)
 No, You Shut Up! (2013–2016)
 The Curious Creations of Christine McConnell (2018)
 The Miskreants (2019-2020)

Stage shows
 Puppet Up! - Uncensored (2005–present)
 Stuffed and Unstrung (2010–2013)

Other productions
 The Muppet segments of the Nintendo Digital Event, shown during E3 (2015).
 Star Fox Zero commercial (2016).

Notes

References

Category:1958 establishments in California
Category:Companies based in Los Angeles
Category:American entertainment companies