John Henson, the son of Muppets creator Jim Henson, died of a heart attack on Friday. He was 48.

John Henson Dies

Henson passed away at his home in Saugerties, N.Y. after building a snow igloo with his daughter, his sister, Cheryl Henson, told the New York Daily News. She says he suffered a “massive heart attack.”

Following in his father’s footsteps, Henson worked as a puppeteer in a number of Muppet films. In Muppet Treasure Island, It’s a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie and others, Henson performed as the ogre Sweetums. Henson also served as both a shareholder and board member of the Jim Henson Company.

In addition to his work honoring his father’s legacy, Henson enjoyed working on restoration projects. “He was more of an artist," Brian Jay Jones, who wrote a biography on Henson, told the Los Angeles Times. "He renovated a turn-of-the-century schoolhouse, making every surface in the house interesting and beautiful. He had his dad's mentality in that he was so detail oriented."

Henson is survived by his wife Gyongyi and his two daughters – Katrina, 15, and Sydney, 10. His father, Jim Henson, died young as well at age 53 after suffering complications from pneumonia. His mother, Jane Henson, who helped in the development of the Muppets empire, died in April 2013 at 79 after a battle with cancer.

– Chelsea Regan

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