Jim Henson (September 24, 1936 - May 16, 1990) was the creator of the Muppets, founder of The Jim Henson Company, and the performer behind many of his company's most famous characters, including Kermit the Frog, Ernie, and Rowlf the Dog. James Maury Henson was born in Greenville, Mississippi on September 24, 1936. The Henson family lived in Stoneville, an adjacent unincorporated community where Henson's father worked as a USDA agronomist. Henson attended elementary school in the neighboring comm