Sept. 25, 2003

COLLEGE PARK, Md. — The University of Maryland has unveiled a statue honoring Jim Henson and his signature creation, Muppets.

The statue was unveiled Wednesday, Sept. 24, during a special ceremony. NBC’s Willard Scott emceed the event.

Henson graduated from the University of Maryland. The statue on the College Park campus depicts the puppeteer and one of his most loved characters, Kermit the Frog. The statue is located outside the Stamp Student Union.

A Jim Henson garden has also been created there. The sculpture and garden are gifts from the classes of 1994, 1998, and 1999.

Filmmaker and puppeteer Jim Henson was born in Greenville, Mississippi, in 1936 and grew up in nearby Leland, Mississippi. His signature character of Kermit, whose voice Henson himself supplied, was named after one of his childhood friends in Mississippi.

Henson died of pneumonia in 1990.

Related Links
	“Statue a tribute to Muppets’ Henson.” Baltimore Sun (24 Sept. 2003)
	“Kermit the Frog was a Terrapin.” The Delaware NewsJournal (25 Sept. 2003)
	“Henson, Kermit take a final seat together.” The Diamondback (25 Sept. 2003)
	“Etched in eternity: Henson and his Muppets are unmatched icons in the university history books.” The Diamondback (25 Sept. 2003)

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