LOS ANGELES, Apr 3: Jane Nebel Henson, the former wife of Muppets creator Jim Henson who was influential in the creation of the popular US TV puppet program, died yesterday following a long bout with cancer, The Jim Henson Company said. She was 78 years old. Henson, who died at her home in Connecticut, was an “integral creative and business partner” in the Muppets, the company, owned by the Hensons’ five children, said in a statement. (agencies)