The creator of the lifelike characters, Jim Henson, was born on this day in 1936. The puppeteer first named his puppets, Muppets, in 1954 when he was working as a producer of the Washington, D.C. TV show, Sam and Friends.

Henson moved his Muppets to network TV in 1969. Children of all ages were able to enjoy the Muppets’ antics on the educational, yet entertaining Sesame Street. The Muppets then got their own show, The Muppet Show; which generated The Muppet Movie and other films, like The Muppets Take Manhattan and The Great Muppet Caper.

And Jim Henson got the awards: 18 Emmys, 17 Grammys, 4 Peabody Awards and 5 Ace Awards (National Cable Television Association).

The premier muppeteer, and voice of Kermit the Frog, died suddenly in May of 1990. Jim Henson lives on through his Muppets.

Born on this day in 1936, Jim Henson became an acclaimed puppeteer while still in high school, working on TV during the 1950s and honing his craft until his amorphous, friendly and expressive Muppets became a starring attraction on television, first on 'Sesame Street' and then his own 'The Muppet Show'. Kermit the Frog, Oscar the Grouch, Big Bird and Ernie & Burt are among his best known and most loved creations to all who grew up during the 1970s and 1980s. He is seen wearing a bowtie in a portrait. 
 1936: Jim Henson, amerik. Puppenspieler und Filmproduzent, Der Vater der "Muppets", geboren
Henson ist Schöpfer der Puppen, die er aufgrund ihrer Mischung aus Marionetten und Handpuppen »Muppets« nannte. 1969 wurden Kermit der Frosch, Ernie und Bert in die Fernsehserie »Sesamstraße« für Vorschulkinder aufgenommen. 
1936 - Jim Henson, amerikanischer Puppenspieler und -entwickler, Film- und Fernsehproduzent (Erfinder der Muppets), gest. 1990, geboren
 1936 - Jim (James Maury) Henson
Muppeteer; died May 16, 1990; see Muppeteer Day [above], geboren
1936 Jim Henson Greenville Miss, muppeteer (Sesame Street, Muppet Show) , geboren

 1941 - Linda McCartney (Eastman)
photographer: Rolling Stone magazine; singer: group: Wings: Silly Love Songs [w/husband Paul McCartney]; died Apr 17, 1998, geboren
1941 Linda Eastman McCartney NYC, Mrs Paul McCartney, rocker (Wings-Ram) , geboren

1968 - The longest-running newsmagazine on television began on CBS-TV. 60 Minutes started on this, a Tuesday, night in 1968. During its first three years on the tube, 60 Minutes ran on an alternate-week schedule with CBS News Hour, moving to Sundays (all by itself) in early 1972. 60 Minutes debuted with two correspondents: Mike Wallace and Harry Reasoner.
1968 "60 Minutes" premiers
1968 "That's Life" premiers-A Broadway musical type TV show
1968 NY Met manager Gil Hodges suffers a heart attack

1988 - Guns N’Roses Appetite for Destruction reached #1 on the Billboard album chart. The tracks: Welcome to the Jungle, It’s So Easy, NighTrain, Out Ta Get Me, Mr. Brownstone, Paradise City, My Michelle, Think About You, Sweet Child O’ Mine, You’re Crazy, Anything Goes, Rocket Queen.

1988 - Seoul Summer Olympics flashes: 1) Carl Lewis ran the fastest 100 meters of his life, 9.92 seconds, but was beaten by Canadian Ben Johnson’s 9.79. “I ran the best I could, and I'm pleased with the race.” Lewis said. (Lewis did become the recipient of the that gold medal when Johnson tested positive for steroids, a banned substance for Olympic athletes.) 2) Jackie Joyner-Kersee amassed a world-record score (7,291) in the heptathlon (seven different track-and-field events for women).
1988 Barbara C Harris of Mass, elected 1st woman Episcopal bishop
1988 Canada's Ben Johnson runs drug-assisted 100 m in 9.79 sec
1988 Jackie Joyner-Kersee of USA sets the heptathlon woman's record (7,291)

1991 - Der frühere DDR-Spionagechef Markus Wolf stellt sich bei seinem freiwilligen Grenzübertritt von Österreich nach Deutschland den Behörden
Ex-Spionagechef gibt auf
Markus Wolf, ehemaliger Leiter der Spionageabteilung im Ministerium für Staatssicherheit der DDR, stellt sich nach einjähriger Flucht am 24. September 1991 am deutsch-österreichischen Grenzübergang Bayerisch-Gmain den deutschen Behörden.
1991 "Good & Evil" & "Sibs" premiers on ABC TV
1991 Doogie Howser loses his virginity
1991 Robin Yount is 37th to hit 2,000 singles

Eine 19-jährige Mutter, die in Würzburg wiederholt beim Schwarzfahren erwischt wurde, muss zur Strafe einen Pullover stricken. Das Kleidungsstück soll eine gemeinnützige Einrichtung bekommen