The Jim Henson Company
The Jim Henson Company is an American entertainment company. It started with Muppets, LLC. in 1958 by puppeteer Jim Henson. Henson is the creator of The Muppets.[1] The Muppets helped the company become popular worldwide. They were well known in family entertainment for more than forty years.[2]
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 The Jim Henson Company Lot in Los Angeles | |
Formerly | Muppets, Inc. (1958–1976) Henson Associates, Inc. (1976–1990) Jim Henson Productions, Inc. (1990–1998) |
|---|---|
| Private | |
| Industry | Entertainment |
| Founded | November 20, 1958 |
| Founders | Jim and Jane Henson |
| Headquarters | Jim Henson Company Lot, Los Angeles, California , U.S. |
Key people | Brian Henson (Chairman) Lisa Henson (President & CEO) |
| Products | Puppetry, Animation, Computer graphics, Digital puppetry, Entertainment |
| Brands |
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| Owner | Henson family |
| Parent | Independent (1958–2000, 2003–present) EM.TV & Merchandising AG (2000–2003) |
| Divisions | Jim Henson's Creature Shop Henson Recording Studios Henson Alternative |
| Website | www |
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.[3][4] However, on December 18, 1991, The Walt Disney Company bought the distribution rights to the entire Jim Henson Company library up to that time.[5]
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.[6] In 2004, they sold the rights to The Muppets and Bear in the Big Blue House characters to The Walt Disney Company.[7] The Walt Disney Company now owns all Muppet-related trademarks, including the word “Muppet”.
Filmography
Feature Films
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 The film's home media, TV, and digital distribution rights were purchased by The Jim Henson Company from ITC Entertainment in August 1984.[8] The film rights were then acquired by Walt Disney Studios upon their parent company's acquisition of the Muppets franchise in 2004.[9] Currently, Universal Pictures handles theatrical distribution[10]—due to prior contractual obligations with the former Associated Film Distribution and ITC—but the film's ownership and copyright are controlled by Disney, with home media reissues of the film branded as a Walt Disney Pictures release.
- ↑ The film's home media, TV, and digital distribution rights were purchased by The Jim Henson Company from ITC Entertainment in August 1984.[8] Currently, Universal Pictures handles theatrical distribution[11]—due to prior contractual obligations with the former Associated Film Distribution and ITC.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 The film's home media, TV, and digital distribution rights were not purchased by The Jim Henson Company from Walt Disney Studios upon their parent company's acquisition of the Muppets franchise in February 2004.
- ↑ The Sesame Street Muppets only.
- ↑ After the Muppets' acquisition to Disney in 2005.
The Jim Henson Company Media
Henson Associates Inc. logo from 1976 to 1987
Jim Henson Productions logo from 1988 to 2001.
Jim Henson Home Entertainment logo used since 2001.
References
- ↑ Willman, David (1992-07-26). "Jim Henson's Children Put Together a String of Big Deals to Keep Alive". The Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/1992-07-26/business/fi-5359_1_jim-henson. Retrieved 2010-10-18.
- ↑ Gritten, David (1990-08-19). "The Next Muppetmeister?". The Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/1990-08-19/entertainment/ca-3047_1_jim-henson-s-line. Retrieved 2010-10-18.
- ↑ Zonana, Victor F. (1991-04-18). "Henson Heirs Allege Disney Is Illegally Using Muppets". The Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/1991-04-18/news/mn-172_1_jim-henson. Retrieved 2010-10-18.
- ↑ Citron, Alan (1990-12-14). "Miss Piggy and Friends Won't Get Together With Mickey and Minnie". The Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/1990-12-14/business/fi-6567_1_jim-henson. Retrieved 2010-10-18.
- ↑ New York Times
- ↑ Verrier, Richard (2003-05-08). "Muppets Returning to Hensons' Hands". The Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/2003/may/08/business/fi-muppets8. Retrieved 2010-10-18.
- ↑ Disney Corporate
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Jay Jones, Brian (2013). "Chapter 12: Twists and Turns". Jim Henson: The Biography. Ballantine Books (Random House). pp. 374–375. ISBN 978-0345526113.
- ↑ Thompson, Simon (July 25, 2019). "Remembering 'The Muppet Movie' At 40 With Gonzo". Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/simonthompson/2019/07/23/remembering-the-muppet-movie-at-40-with-gonzo/#3e9d2dc61eef. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
- ↑ "Make the Rainbow Connection Again as 'The Muppet Movie' Returns to the Big Screen in Honor of its 40th Anniversary on July 25 and 30". prnewswire (Fathom Events). June 3, 2019. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/make-the-rainbow-connection-again-as-the-muppet-movie-returns-to-the-big-screen-in-honor-of-its-40th-anniversary-on-july-25-and-30-300860866.html. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
- ↑ "The Dark Crystal Returns to Movie Theaters". Fathom Events. Archived from the original on 2022-05-27. Retrieved 2022-07-12.
- ↑ "Film releases". Variety Insight. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
- ↑ Lang, Brent (October 22, 2018). "Guillermo del Toro Directing 'Pinocchio' for Netflix". Variety. Retrieved October 22, 2018.
- ↑ Fleming, Mike (May 26, 2020). "Scott Derrickson Set To Direct 'Labyrinth' Sequel For TriStar Pictures; Maggie Levin To Write Script". Deadline Hollywood. https://deadline.com/2020/05/labyrinth-sequel-scott-derrickson-director-maggie-levin-write-script-doctor-strange-1202943188/. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
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