The Jim Henson Company is a company founded in 1958 by puppeteer Jim Henson, creator of The Muppets. Henson died in 1990; the company is now run by his son Brian and daughter Lisa, who serve as co-chairs and co-CEOs.

The Muppets helped the company gain worldwide acclaim in family entertainment for more than four decades. The company's units include Jim Henson Television, Jim Henson Pictures, Jim Henson Interactive, Henson Recording Studio, and Jim Henson's Creature Shop (a creature-building workshop for its own company, as well as many others).

Nine months before Jim Henson's death in May 16, 1990, he was negotiating the sale of his company to The Walt Disney Company for a reported $150 million. However, the deal fell through after his passing and the company remained independent.

On February 21, 2000, it was announced that German media company EM.TV & Merchandising AG would buy The Jim Henson Company for $680 million. Soon after EM.TV's stock began to plummet and Henson was put up for sale a year later.

On May 7, 2003, the Henson family repurchased the Henson Company for $78 million. Nine months later they sold the rights to the Muppets and Bear in the Big Blue House to Disney, 15 years after the first Disney-Muppet deal had been announced.

Kermit the Frog served as the mascot for The Jim Henson Company until the sale of the Muppet characters to The Walt Disney Company.

Timeline

• 2003 - The Jim Henson Company inked a deal with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, to co-produce live-action movies.
• 2004 - The Jim Henson Company sold the Muppets assets, along with all their rights and entertainment libraries, to the Walt Disney Company

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Notable television programs

• The Muppet Show 1976-1981 - A syndicated variety show.
• Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas 1977 - Holiday special for HBO.
• Fraggle Rock 1983-1987 - A children's musical television series produced for HBO.
• Jim Henson's Muppet Babies 1984-1992 - Animated children's series.
• Jim Henson's The Storyteller 1987-1989 - Anthology series produced for ITV and NBC.
• The Jim Henson Hour 1989 - Short-lived variety show produced for NBC.
• Jim Henson's The Storyteller: Greek Myths 1990 - Anthology series.
• Dinosaurs 1991-1994 - Sitcom produced for ABC.
• Jim Henson's Secret Life of Toys 1994 - Limited-run series produced for the Disney Channel.
• The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss 1996-1997 - Live-action/puppet series produced for Nickelodeon
• Bear in the Big Blue House 1997-2003 - Mixed live-action and animated series produced for the Disney Channel. (Production sold to Walt Disney Company in 2004).
• Farscape
  • 1999-2003 - A live-action science fiction series for Sci Fi cable channel, which it co-produced with Hallmark Entertainment.
  • 2004 - A four-hour miniseries, Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars for the Sci-Fi Channel.

Notable films

• The Dark Crystal (1982)
• Labyrinth (1986)
• Astro Boy (2005) (in conjunction with Columbia Pictures)

External link

• Official web site (http://www.henson.com)