i'm not wounded anymore. i mean, oh, it's likely at you, you're wounded. wounded means i'm still hurt. i'm not hurt. i'm fine. so -- once upon a time i was a wounded warrior. but now i'm healed. i'm just a guy living life. >> barbara starr, cnn, dallas. >> that is "ac360" for tonight. cnn "spotlight" starts right no now. >> famous. >> a national icon snow and famously in love. >> he is my prince. >> kermit and ms. piggy in a movie. the smiles, on set? another story. >> piggy was very jealous of how

close kermit and tina fey became. >> tonight, new revelations on a storybook romance. >> you're embarrassing me. >> cnn spotlight. the muppets. hollywood's most famous couple, sorry, brangelina, muppets claimed the crowd. >> we're not just one of the a-list couples in hollywood, we're the hollywood couple. >> kermit and ms. piggy is coupled again in "muppet's most wanted." their romance? legendary. but their past, a mystery until we did some digging.

for kermit, the story begins in the swamp like this recently discovered footage revealed. he is the oldest of several thousand siblings. >> there is angie and artie. >> brett gets close to kermit while writing for the most recent movie. >> if you end up working with kermit, don't ask him about his brothers and sisters. >> mary and millicent. >> he started to recite every single name. it took six or seven hours. >> meanwhile, in a sky several states to the north? a young sow squeals her first tune. >> ms. piggy was born on a farm in iowa, seemed to be a nice,

normal enough childhood. >> until? >> her father died tragically in a tractor accident and i think that was the beginning of her daddy issues. >> there are mommy issues, too. >> my mother, i don't talk to my mother. >> peggy never got along with her mother. she never appreciated the glamorous and fabulousness. >> she quit iowa about as fast as her stubby legs could take her. >> i think times were very tough. >> so tough she resorts at one point to posing for a bacon ad. >> for a bacon product? >> i would rather not talk about it. >> all the while, kermit keeps his reputation wart-free, with any messes handled by high-powered attorneys. >> there must be some mistake. i'm kermit the frog. >> i represented kermit in the '90s on a rather sensitive legal matter. i can't get into the specifics

because of attorney/client privilege but let's just say we made it go away. >> musical talent becomes kermit's ticket out of the swamp. >> you got talent, kid, singing, telling jokes. >> a chance meeting with an agent puts him on the road to hollywood. >> we picked up a weirdo. >> he acquires new friends along the way. >> here she is, folks. >> then, stopping by chance at a county fair. a life-changing moment. ms. piggy and kermit find their own rainbow connection. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> what was it like when you first laid eyes on each other? >> well, for me it was hubba

hubba, who is that hot frog? >> i guess i looked at her and thought well, a singing pig, you don't see that every someday. >> from the start the relationship was volcanic, with regular eruptions, stolen kisses with lady gaga and ellen pushed piggy's buttons. >> piggy, are you the jealous type? >> i'm not the jealous type. i'm just plain jealous. ladies, if you come near my frog you are toast. >> tina fey ignores that warning, working intimately with kermit on "muppet's most wanted." the muppet insider brett mckinzie sees it all.

fey is quick to deny any rom romantic intentions. >> oh, that is just my friend. >> and ms. piggy laughs it off. >> that is rich. he loves me. he loves me not! >> ms. piggy turns her relationship with kermit and the muppets into a fortune. >> why be you when you could be me? >> fortune and fame transformed them into a power couple, rivaling kanye or billary, maybe kiggy? >> kermit the pond -- >> i really do like that actually. >> but for kermis, dating a pog is not readily accepted. >> i am an amphibian american

and i love it. i am taking an issue to discuss with the president. that is inter-species dating. >> the whole subject of inter-species dating was sensitive back there. >> we've actually had the longest inter-species dating event in hollywood even including the people that went out with charlie sheen. >> relationship is one thing, but marriage is another. ms. piggy claims their vows in the muppet movie are legit. but kermit insists it was only pretend. ever optimistic, ms. piggy denies her boyfriend has cold webbed feet. >> it is mutual, isn't it? >> of course, of course. >> is he really going to marry

you? >> there will be a wedding. get the cards --! there will, yes, there will. >> whether we will ever see a valid muppet marriage remains achingly unclear. >> they are the greatest, will they, won't they of all time. >> so what do you think? will they or won't they? >> i don't know, i want to live in this romantic touching lives. >> coming up. the man behind the muppets. >> do you feel like you owe your careers to jim henson. >> i really don't know who this person is. >> they may deny it, but we get to the man who spun this into gold. ♪

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. do you feel like you owe your careers to jim henson?

>> who? >> jim henson, maybe you have heard of him? >> i don't think so. who is he? >> well, he is the guy who taught me how to make movies. >> before the muppets find fame in the spotlight there is a boy with a dream of entertaining people through television. that boy? jim henson. >> i really don't know who this jim person is? >> he was kind of a hippy person with a beard. >> at the college of maryland, henson creates a puppet show as a way into the business. "sam and friends" is a surprise for henson, according to his biographier. more flex materials create more

flexible characters, with the camera that keeps him out of sight. >> what are you doing? >> he calls his characters muppets, and creates a prototype for what would become his biggest star. >> kermit was initially kermit the thing, he was built for the sam and friends show. he was not a frog, he was not green. he was built from jim's mother's coat. his eyes are a ping pong ball cut in half. >> he hires frank oz, and their work gets national attention on shows like "the jimmy dean show." in 1969, his show teams up with the television workshop to create a series for a new educational program. ♪

♪ >> sesame street is an instant hit with a capital h. and henson's creations become the beloved icons for an entire generation of people. >> old school generation. >> i love you. >> i love you, too. >> he really wanted me to be relevant, to matter. so he always loved the idea behind sesame street. >> henson is pleased to see the response children have to sesame street. but he has a bigger dream. entertaining audiences of all ages. the muppet show launches in 1976. >> i have a memory of the opening sequence. you know, the huge big opening number. the show airs nationally in the

evening. ms. piggy, ralph the dog, and beaker become breakout sketch players while two grumpy old guys comment on it from the balcony. >> after this show, nothing hurts. >> stetler and waldorf, i don't remember what was said but they made my dad laugh. that is one of the weird things it does is bring parents together because parents generally find it funny. >> with subversive humor geared to both parents and kids each episode also features a celebrity guest. among the most memorable, bob hope, elton john and steve martin. >> the reason is they wanted to play on a different format. all the celebrities were doing

"the tonight show" and doing a little bit of different things, this was an opportunity to have fun. >> three years after the show premieres, they make the big screen, the muppet movie. it features a chart-topping song. >> why are there so many songs about rainbows ♪ >> two more films follow, the great muppet caper. ♪ ♪ >> and the muppets take manhattan. >> here we go, let's start the show. like the muppet show, the movies feature a who's who of hollywood. >> watching back if you watch the muppet movie, i'm like oh, my gosh, this is insane, so many people came to play because the muppets were so fun. >> fun on screen and off. he consults with george lucas on

"the empire strikes back." henson himself branches out with darker fantasy films. and the lighter hbo series, r b rabble rock. henson builds an empire, but the day comes when he decides it might be time to sell. he starts to talk with disney. >> mainly put the muppets there, so he could go off to be jim henson and do other things. >> they announced a deal in august of 1989. >> it is great fun to think about it right now. >> but the celebration proves premature. negotiations over the sale drag on for months. >> they were very close to signing. >> please welcome jim henson. >> then in may of 1990, henson comes down with what he believes is just a cold. on the show, his scratchy throat

is noticeable. >> we'll take a commercial. >> his illness is much more serious than he realizes. he is in the early stage of pneumonia brought on by a rare and fast spreading bacterial infection. just 12 days later surrounded by family in a new york hospital jim henson dies. he is only 53. his children inherit the responsibility of managing the muppets. the jim henson company continues making movies including 1999's "muppets from space." but rocketing production costs prove challenging. in 2004, henson's heirs finally seal a deal. >> he hoped they could go on, that he didn't have to be there to sort of stage manage it. letting the next generation pick up the torch and move it on. i think he would be delighted

with that. >> shoot straight, you guys are not famous anymore. >> the muppets get a makeover. >> let's just start at the bottom and work our way back to the top. >> and make a major comeback. >> you're hot, you're having a moment. >> i don't want this moment to end. [squeals] ♪ [ewh!] [baby crying] the great thing about a subaru is you don't have to put up with that new car smell for long. the versatile, 2015 subaru forester. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru.

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hey, look what i found. >> in 2011, the muppets mount a comeback. >> feels wonderful to have

another movie on the big screen. it has been a while since ms. piggy and i have been on the big screen. >> disney is now in charge and it taps jason siegal to launch the franchise. >> this was on the list of dreams for sure. i never really thought i would be able to accomplish this. i thought maybe i would get a chance to do a cameo in a muppets movie, but somehow it ended up that i wrote it and helped get it made that meant a lot to me. >> once again, stars line up to take part. segel's reboot does the trick. the muppets are back. in commercials. >> they were singing vegetables and chickens. >> yeah, happens to me all the time. >> it was one of the highlights of my whole life. kermit is a national icon. there is mickey mouse and santa

claus and kermit the frog. >> take a load ♪ ♪ >> and the sure sign the muppets are back? they land a sequel. >> they're back with another movie. and it is something now that kids are excited about all over again and again, parents are not complaining about having to go see it. it is kind of nice. >> in the sequel, "muppets most wanted." the individuvillainess asks to a heist. >> i don't see the resemblance. i don't think i look nothing like you. >> i agree, you're a lot less handsome. >> there is constantine's evil accomplice. >> to be sure my name goes down

for all time. of course, my name first, then space bar, space bar, space bar, your name. >> we are going to be here a while. >> then, there is tina fey as a russian prison guard. >> lights out! turn them back on, i can't see anything. >> what is it about the muppet comedy that just works? >> well, i think because it is real comedy. i grew up watching the muppet show and realized that is the first sketch and variety show i ever saw. i was too little to see saturday night live. and they do creative jokes and physical gags. they do real jokes. >> it is that muppet humor that drew ty burrell to the program, as well. >> anything goes on the muppets, so you basically go to work knowing you're going to laugh all day. >> but there is one problem working with muppets. staying focused. did you find it more challenging

to work with a muppet than you thought a muppet co-star? >> yeah, i mean, it was distracting at first. i think they probably found it more challenging to work with me because i was so distracted, i was so in awe, my jaw opening. and the director telling me just look at the muppet, just try to focus on the muppet. >> it seems everybody in hollywood has their favorite. >> i think animal is like one of the best characters ever made. >> ms. piggy is everything. like i love her. >> i love swedish chef, i just think he is absolutely insane. >> sam. we bonded pretty heavily. we share the same eyebrow. >> as usual, though, ms. piggy plays the role of scene-stealer. >> and perhaps i was a little too eager. >> i would love to do that too. >> but when all is said and done

muppets most wanted is a kermit vehicle. you know, kermit, hollywood has surprisingly not produced many amphibian stars. >> yeah, i am a little surprised by that myself. >> so that didn't deter you. so what was it inside you that said i can do this, i can make it in this business? >> well, it is odd, you have to dream big. i was just your average talking, playing frog in show business. >> you are selling yourself short. >> well, really and truly in the early days it came down to a couple of choices, i could either work at a biology lab or show biz, and show biz seemed safer. >> he had eight movies under his collar. and if this movie clicks kermit and the cast will be back for more. >> come on, everybody, strike up the band. >> they're doing a sequel! that is what we do in

hollywood ♪ and everybody knows that the sequel is never quite as good ♪ >> i'm ready. >> justin timberlake was ready for one of the biggest years of his career, which is really saying something for a mousketeer turned teen heartthrob, turned solo smash. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> and you're just in that dress i like ♪ >> he dropped his first album in seven years. >> let me show you a few things ♪ >> backed by a slew of promotions and carefully planned performances. on the jimmy fallon show it was the history of rap. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> and on one of the