Following appearances on late-night talk shows and in advertising during the 1960s, the Muppets began appearing on Sesame Street (1969–present) during their formative years in the early-mid 1970s and attained celebrity status and international recognition through The Muppet Show (1976–1981), their flagship sketch comedy television series that received four Primetime Emmy Award wins and 21 nominations during its five-year run.

Throughout seven decades, the Muppets have been regarded as a staple of the entertainment industry and popular culture in the United States and English-speaking areas around the world.

Originally conceived for an adult audience,[5] the Muppets were introduced in 1955 in Sam and Friends, a short-form television series produced for WRC-TV in Washington, D.C.[6] Developed by Henson and his future wife, Jane Nebel, the series was the first form of puppet media not to incorporate a physical proscenium arch typical of such works, relying instead on the natural framing of the television set through which it was viewed.

In 1966, Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett began developing a children's educational television program and approached Henson to design a cast of Muppet characters during this stage.

Sesame Street garnered a positive response, and the Muppets' involvement in the series was said to be a vital component of its increasing popularity, providing an "effective and pleasurable viewing" method of presentation for its educational curriculum.

[8][9] In the early 1970s, the Muppets continued their presence in television, primarily appearing in The Land of Gorch segments during the first season of NBC's Saturday Night Live.

The writers of Saturday Night Live clashed with Henson's vision for the program, often refusing to commit to writing the segments, and several cast members bemoaned the inclusion of the Muppets.

After ABC passed on the pilots and other networks in the United States expressed little interest in the project, British producer Lew Grade approached Henson and agreed to co-produce the series for Associated Television.

Aired in first-run syndication in the United States, The Muppet Show became increasingly popular due to its sketch-variety format, unique form of vaudeville-style humor, and prolific roster of guest stars.

[14] Eisner was also interested in acquiring the Sesame Street Muppet characters, but Henson declined that proposal, considering it a "non-starter" for the deal.

[20] Fourteen years after initial negotiations began, Disney acquired the Muppets intellectual property from the Henson company for $75 million on February 17, 2004.

[20] A cover version of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" was among these projects and immediately went viral, ultimately amassing 90 million views and winning two Webby Awards.

Directed by James Bobin, written by Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller, and starring Segel, Amy Adams, Chris Cooper, and Rashida Jones, The Muppets was a critical and commercial success, becoming the highest-grossing puppet film of all time and winning the Academy Award for Best Original Song for Bret McKenzie's "Man or Muppet".

[38] The ABC series portrayed the characters in more adult situations than previous incarnations, including depictions of alcohol consumption, sexual innuendos, and mild profanity.

Musical guests Gerard Way and Ray Toro of My Chemical Romance, along with Jarrod Alexander, Matt Gorney, and Jamie Muhoberac performed a tribute to Labyrinth with a medley of songs including "Underground" and "As the World Falls Down".

The series was developed and written by Adam F. Goldberg, Bill Barretta and Jeff Yorkes and starred Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, alongside Lilly Singh and Tahj Mowry.

As technology has advanced, the Jim Henson team and other performers have developed several means to operate the Muppets for film and television; these include the use of suspended rigs, internal motors, remote manipulators, and computer enhanced and superimposed images.

By the time The Muppet Show began, the primary cast of performers grew to consist of Henson; Oz; Dave Goelz; Jerry Nelson; Richard Hunt; and later, Steve Whitmire, while Juhl became head writer for the series.

[71] The Muppets are currently performed by a core cast of six principal puppeteers: Goelz, Barretta, Jacobson, Vogel, Rudman, and Linz,[70][30] with the occasional ensemble of "additional" Muppet performers that includes Julianne Buescher, Tyler Bunch, Alice Dinnean, Bruce Lanoil, Leslie Carrara-Rudolph, Drew Massey, Mike Quinn, and Michelan Sisti.

[72] Muppet*Vision 3D, a 4D film attraction that also uses Audio-Animatronics characters, opened at Disney's Hollywood Studios on May 16, 1991, exactly one year after Henson's death.

[81] In November 2024, it was announced that the Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith attraction at Disney's Hollywood Studios will be re-themed to the Muppets.

An eponymous comic strip by Guy and Brad Gilchrist first ran on September 21, 1981, in over 500 daily newspapers, six months after The Muppet Show ended its five-year run.

In 1989, Muppet Adventure: Chaos at the Carnival, was released by Hi Tech Expressions for the Apple II, Commodore 64, and MS-DOS, the following year it was ported by the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) in 1990.

[87] In 1996, Activision and in association with Jim Henson Interactive released the CD-ROM game, Muppet Treasure Island (on which the film of the same name was based) for Windows 95.

[94] The mobile game Disney Magic Kingdoms, developed by Gameloft, includes characters and attractions based on The Muppets franchise during limited time contents.

Kermit was interviewed by Jon Stewart on The Daily Show;[102] was a guest host on The Tonight Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, America's Funniest Home Videos, and an April Fools' Day edition of Larry King Live;[103] and has served as Grand Marshal of the Tournament of Roses Parade.

[106] The Muppets also appeared on Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve on December 31, 2007, in which Kermit and other characters presented segments following advertising breaks.

The Muppets, as well as the title character of Bear in the Big Blue House, have made frequent appearances on The Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon.

On July 25, 2007, the Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta announced plans for the Jim Henson Wing, which would house up to 700 retired Muppet characters.

A Kermit the Frog stuffed toy rigged to spray fake vomit was a recurring joke on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, and the Muppets were frequently preempted at the beginning of episodes of You Can't Do That on Television.