---
title: "Create, Make and Play in 50-Plus Ways at Expanded, Weeklong Henson Celebration"
date: 2026-09-21T05:30:00-04:00
author: University of Maryland
canonical_url: "https://today.umd.edu/create-make-and-play-in-50-plus-ways-at-expanded-weeklong-henson-celebration"
section: Articles
---
# Create, Make and Play in 50-Plus Ways at Expanded, Weeklong Henson Celebration
*September 21, 2026* — by [Lauren Frank ’27](/author/lauren-frank-27)
> A Guinness World Record-seeking sock puppet party, new Maryland Dairy flavor and surprises top the lineup highlighting creativity and innovation.
*Statue of Jim Henson and Kermit the Frog in front of Stamp Student Union.
Photo by Stephanie S. Cordle/University of Maryland*
[Henson Week 2026](https://innovate.umd.edu/hensonweek#Activities%20Across%20Campus) at the University of Maryland won’t have any boomeranging fish tricks, singing chickens or cooking segments gone awry. But it will be a most sensational, inspirational, celebrational lineup of events and activities including a Guinness World Record attempt.
The showcase across campus, inspired by famed puppeteers and innovators [Jim ’60 and Jane Henson ’55](https://today.umd.edu/7-fun-facts-for-kermits-70th-birthday), has ballooned from one day to more than 50 events and activities spanning Sept. 20-26, including a chat with his biographer, improv and jazz nights, a scavenger hunt and what could be the world’s biggest sock-puppet party.
“The whole point of Henson Week is to really create and foster a community of people who celebrate creativity and innovation across campus, and to that extent, it's sharing what you do, exploring something new, creating something different, having fun and being silly,” said Sammy Popat, UMD’s innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem catalyst in the Division of Research’s Office of Innovation. The office organized Henson Week with the campuswide [Arts for All](https://arts.umd.edu/) initiative.
Jane majored in art education, and Jim studied home economics and focused on costume design, screen printing and set design. The pair first brought their puppets to TV on “Sam and Friends” (1955-61), a live show on WRC-TV, the NBC affiliate in Washington, D.C. Kermit the Frog, made from his mother’s felt coat and a split ping pong ball, first appeared on the show.
The Hensons made their national television debut on “The Tonight Show” in 1965, “Sesame Street” premiered in 1969, and “The Muppet Show” (1976-81)—which debuted 50 years ago this month—became a global hit.
The Muppets have remained relevant through movies, variety shows, a cartoon show and commercials. [Kermit’s Commencement](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78tr-_zXT0o) address at UMD last year garnered international headlines, and just this month, the latest revival of “The Muppet Show” won four Emmys.
“People still love the Muppets, and they’re still excited about Kermit, and they’re kind of itching to hear more about what Jim and Jane Henson did,” Popat said.
Events will be held on campus, online and in the community, including at the College Park Aviation Museum and Busboys and Poets in Hyattsville. Download the [app](https://henson.umd.edu/) for the full lineup. Here are seven not to miss:
## "They Call this Editing. I Call it Cheating!" Script Drafts From the Greatest (and Cheapest) Muppet Movies (N)ever Made"
**Noon-1 p.m. Sept. 22**
**Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center Piano Room**
Paul Cote, principal lecturer in the English department, will discuss the unproduced screenplay, "The Cheapest Muppet Movie Ever Made!" as well as other Henson-related scripts. This event is open to all UMD students, faculty and staff.
## Misfits & Trailblazers: Fireside Chat With Jim Henson Biographer Brian Jones
**6-7 p.m. Sept. 22 on** [**Zoom**](https://umd.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_wRdOh2sKTTusxZPTAgsv1w#/registration)
Join Jim Henson biographer Brian Jay Jones and writer and Jiménez-Porter Writers’ House director Ross Angelella for a fireside chat about creativity, storytelling, and the people who defy the norm. They will discuss misfits and trailblazers and what Henson’s work can still teach us about making something distinctly our own.
## It's Not Easy Being a National Treasure: The Henson Collection at the National Museum of American History
**1-2 p.m. Sept. 23**
**Hornbake Library lobby in front of the Gallery and Maryland Room**
This Henson Week @ Hornbake event will feature Ryan Lintelman, entertainment curator, Division of Culture and the Arts for the National Museum of American History, who will share why the Henson collection is among the favorites of visitors, researchers and museum staff. The collection of over 40 Henson puppets and props there date back to 1975, when Ernie and Bert puppets from “Sesame Street” were displayed in the exhibition “We the People.” In 1980, Jim visited the museum to donate a Kermit puppet. In 2010, Jane gifted the original “Sam and Friends” puppets, including the original 1955 Kermit, to the museum.
## Kami’s Impact: When “Sesame Street” Took on HIV/AIDS
**3:30-4:30 p.m. Sept. 23**
**Hornbake Library lobby in front of the Gallery and Maryland Room**
School of Public Health Research Professor and UMD Global Health Initiative Director Dina Borzekowski will discuss the development and 24-year impact of Kami, South Africa's HIV-positive Muppet created for AIDS education effort. This Henson Week @ Hornbake event will include video clips and data.
## The Great Terp Quest
**10 a.m.-10 p.m. Sept. 24**
Take on trivia, challenges and photo missions during a one-day campuswide adventure open to all UMD students. In honor of Henson Week and Jim Henson’s 90th birthday, the game will feature special Henson and Muppet trivia, plus questions that put your UMD knowledge and campus history to the test. Competitors can earn small prizes along the way, and the top three winners will earn a $100 bookstore shopping spree. Download the [RandeVous App](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/randezvous/id6468038708) to participate.
## Celebration of Jim Henson’s 90th Birthday
**Noon-1 p.m. Sept. 24**
**Jim Henson Statue and Memorial Garden, outside the main entrance of the Adele H. Stamp Student Union**
Commemorate Jim Henson's 90th birthday by taking a selfie and enjoying some cookies.
## Henson Mania: A Night of Art, Innovation & Imagination
**6-8 p.m. Sept. 24**
**Orem Hall, Samuel Riggs IV Alumni Center**
The Student Alumni Leadership Council, SEE, Terps After Dark and the Immersive Media Design programs welcome Terps to celebrate the Hensons’ lasting impact by making Henson-themed tie-dye shirts, trying a guided drawing experience with a Terp alum and enjoying a showcase of student-created work. It is open to UMD students only, and registration is required.
## Sock Puppet Party
**2:30-4 p.m. Sept. 25**
**Grand Ballroom, Adele H. Stamp Student Union**
In collaboration with the Office of Family Engagement, students (and their families here for Family Weekend), faculty and staff will gather to attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the number of people wearing sock puppets in one venue, which now stands at 628. Those without a sock puppet will get the opportunity to adopt one or make their own, while supplies last.
Also, thanks to the xFoundry's sponsorship of Henson Week through the Horizons Challenge, 500 attendees will receive a coupon to stop by the Dairy for a scoop of a new flavor, Imagination Inspiration!, a rainbow sherbet, or another flavor of ice cream, while supplies last.
## Related Articles
- [Creativity Beyond Kermit](https://today.umd.edu/creativity-beyond-kermit-4d5b6d77-5d98-4c30-a748-2687bd984036)
- [Five Things You Didn’t Know About Jim Henson’s Time as a Terp](https://today.umd.edu/five-things-you-didnt-know-about-jim-hensons-time-terp-f21599e6-cce1-4afc-9d56-6fc7cb9c1a36): The late Jim Henson ’60 would have turned 82 today, and his timeless creations are still solidly part of pop culture—and our campus.