This video essay, originally posted on Moving Image Source on July 15, 2011, is republished on the occasion of the publication of Jim Henson: The Biography (2013, Ballantine Books) and Museum of the Moving Image's program on October 1, with author Brian Jay Jones, Fran Brill, Dwight Bowers, Bonnie Erickson, Karen Falk, Barbara Miller, and Craig Shemin in person.

Jim Henson and Frank Oz were puppeteers, writers, and filmmakers. They were also partners who boasted some of the finest comedic teamwork of the 20th century. They worked together for 27 years, from 1963 until Henson's untimely death in 1990, and their friendship and professional association spanned several TV shows (including Sesame Street and The Muppet Show) and a series of feature films. The title of this video essay sums up their excellence, and their significance: "Henson & Oz: Never Before, Never Again." — MZS