History of Sesame Street
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This article chronicles the history of the children's television show Sesame Street.
[edit] Pre-production (1966-1969)
Joan Ganz Cooney invited some guests over to dinner on a blustery day in February 1966 to her and her husband Tom's Manhattan apartment. Most dinner guests were involved in some way with television; they included Cooney's boss Lewis Freedman former program director for local educational television station WNET in New York, and Lloyd Morriset, then vice president of the Carnegie Corporation, which has supported public television since its earliest days.
[edit] Naming the show
David Connell commented that CTW "toyed with everything from The Video Classroom to The Nitty Gritty Itty Bitty Kiddy Show." The list of names included an extended version of the second, The Nitty Gritty Itty Bitty Dog and Kitty Farm and City Little Kiddy Show. Staff writer Virginia Shoen wrote a list of possible names, which she then tested one weekend, on neighborhood children, to gather their reactions.
On the list was a play on the phrase "Open Sesame", magic words used in Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. Connell and the team were "desperate" enough, that he circulated a memo throughout the CTW office. It stated that anyone with a better name could submit it as an alternative, or else the name would take effect on the following Monday.
Staff have been described as feeling "lukewarm" about the name Sesame Street - the name won by default with no better alternatives offered. A month later, it is recorded that the staff had "adjusted to the name and thought it fitting". Still, fear lurked that its young audiences would pronounce it "See Same Street."
[edit] July 1969 test episodes
A week of test episodes were later seen in July 1969 on Philadelphia educational station WUHY-TV (now WYBE). ([1]) While the test show is similar to the version that will later be well-known, there were some elements that would later be dropped before going national. Episodes in this test week included a book reading segment; a different set for Ernie and Bert's apartment (with Ernie's voice similar to Rowlf the Dog); a live-action secret agent spoof starring Gary Owens called The Man from Alphabet; and a different actor playing Gordon (who would be replaced by Matt Robinson when the show went national). The opening for the test week featured the theme sung by Bob McGrath, while a little boy wanders through New York City, searching for Sesame Street, getting directions from various people. In the opening street scene of the first episode, Gordon greets viewers, "Oh, hello - I'm glad you found Sesame Street. It's not the easiest place in the world to get to."
[edit] This Way to Sesame Street
On November 8, 1969, NBC gave America its first nationwide look at Sesame Street in a special half-hour preview, This Way to Sesame Street, sponsored by Xerox. Hosted by Ernie and Bert, the special featured the film shorts and clips to be featured on the show, along with scenes featuring the Muppets and grown-ups. The special also mentioned a free educational guide that parents and teachers could order by mail. The special closed with a message from then-Commissioner of Education James E. Allen, Jr., praising CTW for its efforts, citing that the show is a valuable educational tool for children. ([2])
[edit] Inaugural season: 1969
| “ | Sally, you've never seen a street like Sesame Street before. Everything happens here; you're gonna love it! | ” |
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— Gordon Robinson at the beginning of the pilot episode of Sesame Street
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Sesame Street premiered on NET on November 10, 1969. The very first scene was a clay-animated sequence showing two crates forming the words "Sesame Street" with the number one appearing below indicating the episode number (this clay animation was produced by Jim Henson), followed by the opening theme music. The first regular performer to appear on screen is Gordon (Matt Robinson) who introduces one of his students to his wife, Susan, as well as Bob and Mr. Hooper. Big Bird also appears, though the first puppet-style Muppets to appear on screen were Ernie and Bert. The very first celebrity to appear on the series was Carol Burnett who appears in a short clip less than 10 seconds long during the first episode, commenting on a preceding animated clip (as revealed when the first episode was released to DVD in 2006). The very first celebrity to film a segment for the series, however (and again according to the DVD release) was James Earl Jones, who recorded several test segments for the series prior to the formal start of production; many of these segments (most famously a clip of Jones counting to 10) were aired on the show proper.
During this first season, Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch were the only Muppets to regularly appear in Street scenes, while Ernie and Bert and others debuted in separate segments. Big Bird had a much more naïve voice and a smaller head with fewer feathers, and Oscar was a "toxic" orange. Cast members Bob McGrath, Will Lee (Mr. Hooper), Matt Robinson (Gordon Robinson) and Loretta Long (Susan) were the original human cast members. With the exception of Mr. Hooper, who died in the early 1980s (along with the actor in real life), the other original characters are still with the series as of 2006, making them some of the longest continually-running non-soap opera characters in American entertainment. Bob and Susan are played by the original actors, but Gordon has been played by three different actors. The original Gordon was slimmer, with a large afro and a sideburn/mustache combo. (Actor Matt Robinson was one of the show's producers during this first year.)
The original episodes had a much more literal, almost lecture-like tone to the Street scenes, closer in style to its original contemporaries like Mister Rogers Neighborhood or Captain Kangaroo. With time, the Street-scenes became more natural and had a definite plot thrust, with less breaking of the fourth wall.
Sesame Street's format as established in 1969 would remain virtually unchanged for decades: live-action street scenes (sometimes following a minor plotline) would alternate with Muppet comedy skits, musical numbers and short film segments. Many of the Muppet scenes and films were created so that they could be replayed over and over (at least one segment would be repeated within any given episode); some of the segments made in 1969 would continue to be rebroadcast into the 1990s until most of them were retired in 2002.
[edit] The 1970s
In the second season of Sesame Street, the show quickly started to develop new elements, and polish off old ones.
[edit] More Muppets
Grover, as of yet unnamed, went from having brownish-green fur to his familiar fuzzy blue coat. Oscar, who originally had a bright, blinding orange fur with yellow eyes, changed to his forever messy, dirty green fur, with white eyes. Originally just a gag monster, Cookie got his name in the premiere episode. Big Bird, who looked rather dim-witted in the first season because of the small amount of plumage above the head, grew new feathers. As his appearance changed to show more intelligence, his personality followed suit. No longer a slow, pea-brained adult, he was now just a really tall 6-year-old kid with lots of curiosity.
Throughout the decade, more Muppets were added, due to popular demand. Herry, The Count, Little Bird, Sherlock Hemlock, Roosevelt Franklin, and Herbert Birdsfoot all made debuts in this decade. Roosevelt, an African-American puppet, would turn out to be one of the most popular characters, even spawning solo records. But with growing fears that the character's out-going, snappy, occasionally smart-alec personality might be misinterpreted as a negative stereotype of blacks, the character left when its voice, the original Gordon Robinson, was replaced.
Sam the Robot, originally known as Sam the Machine, was a full-body puppet robot that hung out on the inner-city New York streets. It walked, talked, and processed information very slowly, too slow to make the cut for future seasons. A dog named Woof-Woof was added as human librarian Linda's pet. His name later was changed to Barkley.
[edit] More humans
The human element of the neighborhood expanded as well, bringing the friendly faces of Molly the Mail Lady (Charlotte Rae), Tom (Larry Block), Rafael (Raul Julia), and longer lasting characters like David, Maria Figeuroa, and Luis Rodriguez. Rafael and Luis were the original proprietors of the "Fix-it Shop," until Julia left the show to pursue a movie career. Luis continued to run the shop, and eventually Maria began to work there to help pay her way through college.
David and Maria's characters would show obvious affection toward each other. It remained a mutual crush, as there were never any signs of a serious relationship. Their long-lasting love continued into the early 80s.
Also added was deaf actress Linda Bove playing a character called Linda. She was the first deaf regular on any television series, let alone in children's television. As a librarian, she was a positive role model to those with disabilities, proving that the disabled could make valid contributions to society. Also added in the late 1970's was Gordon's sister, Olivia, played by actress and singer Alaina Reed Hall, whose appearances were usually accompanied by her singing a song.
[edit] Off the show
The Sesame Street on Ice show was produced and toured around the United States. Also, the human cast toured in a live musical stage show, a predecessor to Sesame Street LIVE!.
[edit] The 1980s
The 1980s brought more new muppets- Telly Monster, Elmo, the Honkers, the Dingers, Forgetful Jones and Placido Flamingo. Elmo started as an anonymous Anything Muppet. Few guessed that he would become a legend in the coming decade. The major lasting human characters added to the show were Gina Jefferson and Bob's Uncle Wally.
1985 also saw the characters on movie theater screens for the first time in Sesame Street presents Follow That Bird.
[edit] Specials
1983 saw the 90-minute special Big Bird in China, a co-production with China Central Television, which aired on NBC.
[edit] Remembering Mr. Hooper
The 1980s brought about episodes and story arcs exploring important themes, such as birth, death and marriage.
Perhaps the most important of these "Sesame Street" episodes concerned the passing of Mr. Harold Hooper. Will Lee, who had portrayed Mr. Hooper since the series' first season, died December 7, 1982, leaving the producers with a dilemma: What to do with Mr. Hooper's character? Several different scenarios were explored; options included hiring another actor to play the beloved storekeeper, or writing the character out of the show by explaining that the character had moved away or gone on a trip. However, the producers decided these options would cause distress among young viewers.
Eventually, the show's writing team completed a script that was later selected by the Daytime Emmys as one of the ten most influential moments ever on daytime television - one focusing directly on the death of Mr. Hooper.
The 1,839th episode aired on November 24, 1983 (Thanksgiving Day), so that parents could be home to watch the episode with their children and discuss it afterward.
In the episode, Big Bird had scrawled a picture of Mr. Hooper, and wanted to present it to him. However, Mr. Hooper was nowhere to be found, prompting Big Bird to ask his adult friends to help look for him. The adults remind Big Bird that Mr. Hooper had died some time ago. No big deal, reasons Big Bird, since he'll just wait for him to come back. This forces the adults to tell him the painful truth: When someone dies, they never come back. Big Bird realizes the loss and breaks into tears. The adults begin to cry as they console Big Bird and explain that everyone has to die someday and that it is a natural part of life. By episode's end, Big Bird eventually realizes that Mr. Hooper has died, but both he and his adult friends will have many happy memories to remember him by.
The topic of death was dealt with directly; euphemisms that are often used to soften the blow of one's death (e.g., "passed away," "in Heaven now") do not appear in the script. Also, the cause of Mr. Hooper's death is not announced to the viewers.
In later interviews, cast members admitted the "Mr. Hooper farewell" episode was one of the most painful they ever had to do. In addition to explaining the process of life and death, this episode showed its childhood audience that it is OK for people - children and adults alike - to grieve when someone beloved dies.
[edit] Snuffy is real
Another landmark episode (2096) of the show took place on November 18, 1985, and concerned the revelation of Big Bird's "imaginary friend," Snuffleupagus, to the adults.
For 14 years, Snuffleupagus – or "Snuffy," as Big Bird called him – was known only to Big Bird (and sometimes children as well), but seemed to never be around when the adults came into the area. The adults often chided Big Bird for using Snuffy as a scapegoat for things that had gone wrong when they were away.
Finally, Big Bird became frustrated with all the adults refusing to believe that Snuffy was real, so he decided to summon them to his nest so they could see for themselves. The plan worked as Big Bird hoped and the adults entered the room and saw Snuffy. Snuffy introduced himself, and Big Bird asked for an apology, which he received. The event was so important to Big Bird, that even Phil Donahue guested on that episode, to discuss the situations with the other folks on the Street.
Snuffy was originally conceived as a nod to imaginary friends children often have. However, the Children's Television Workshop ended this running gag in light of high-profile stories on pedophilia and sexual abuse of children that had aired on shows such as 60 Minutes and 20/20 in the mid-1980s. CTW feared the Snuffy plot would scare children into believing that they could not tell "fantastic" stories to parents or other responsible adults without being dismissed as a liar or ridiculed, even if these stories were true.
Despite the Children's Television Workshop's intentions, some longtime fans of Sesame Street said the revelation of Snuffy to the outside world created a suspension of disbelief. It is sometimes cited as a moment when Sesame Street "jumped the shark."
In addition, some past scenes involving Snuffy would end up being either reshot, re-edited or withdrawn from the show, in order to remove the "imaginary" angle. One example included a segment involving guest Sally Ride, the first American woman astronaut in space -- the end of that segment featured Big Bird commenting on Snuffy being an astronaut someday, but, as always, was rebuffed, as Snuffy was imaginary. After Snuffy being revealed as a "real" being, that ending was cut in later episodes.
[edit] Baby Miles and the Rodriguez wedding
On a brighter note, Gordon and Susan Robinson adopted baby Miles in 1985. In 1988, Maria and Luis began a romantic relationship that led to a wedding, in which Elmo was a ring-bearer. Months later, Maria gave birth to her daughter, Gabriella. This storyline was a twist from earlier seasons, in which David had been Maria's long-term romantic interest; the David/Maria plot was dropped without comment. Shortly after, the actor who played David died. His death was not addressed on camera. Producers likely didn't want to have a second death episode in the decade. In his absence, Gina became the manager of Hooper's Store.
[edit] Don Music
For a brief time in the 1980's, Kermit the Frog's "Sesame Street News" segments featured a Muppet named Don Music. Don was a songwriter who tries to write "songs" which are actually nursery rhymes set to piano music. Don would always need one more line to complete his song and could never think of what to write. In his frustration, Don would forcefully bang his head on his piano. Sesame Street's producers stopped the segments because of numerous letters from parents complaining that their children were imitating Don Music by banging their heads on pianos and injuring themselves.
[edit] 20th Anniversary
The show celebrated its 20th anniversary with an hour-long special titled Sesame Street: 20 and Still Counting hosted by Bill Cosby, which featured many classic excerpts. It was aired on NBC.
[edit] Off the show
Sesame Place theme park opened in Langhorne, Pennsylvania, touting rides, attractions and parades themed to Sesame Street. Also, Sesame Street LIVE! arena tours were first organized with VEE Entertainment. These shows featured costumed characters based on the Muppets in the show, with multiple touring groups, each performing its own show with a unique script. These were a replacement for the earlier shows featuring the human cast.
Joe Raposo, the musical director for the show, died in 1989.
During the 1980s, rumors began to spread about the relationship between Muppet characters Bert and Ernie, who share a one-bedroom apartment and star in blackout skits in the series. Various sources began suggesting the two characters were homosexual partners. This rumor persisted into the 1990s, thanks to the growth of the Internet. However, producers with CTW have continually denied that Ernie and Bert were gay [3], and have stated that the pair are nothing more than friends.
[edit] The 1990s
Many people agree that the third full decade of Sesame Street brought the most drastic changes to its format, though this is debatable as Sesame Street has always been a progressive show. The decade brought deaths, resignations, a gradual end to the ending segment in which letters and numbers would "sponsor" the show, and most critically, the meteoric popularity of Elmo.
In 1992, the Sesame Street Theme was completely redone with a calypso beat. The opening sequence was reshot to feature more Muppets and animated elements. The new closing credits sequence featured a more up-beat version of the theme and live-action kids dancing around an animated New York City. This received a mixed response, mostly from those who had grown up with the original theme and were jarred by the changes. In 1998, the open sequence was redone again, featuring a remix of the theme done in a style similar to the original 1969 version and featuring live-action footage of Big Bird and the kids playing in Central Park. The 1992 closing sequence continued to be used, however, until 2007.
Starting in November of 1993, the street's perspective expanded beyond the one corner it had occupied for the past 24 years. This expansion included a hotel, the Furry Arms, and new characters who worked in the establishment. This was dropped in 1998, but can occasionally be seen today.
[edit] Elmo
In 1996, Tickle Me Elmo was the fastest-selling toy of the Christmas season, selling over 5 million units in the United States.
On November 16, 1998, the Elmo's World segment was added. Many older Sesame fans were unhappy with the change, believing it had little educational value and took away from the adult appeal of the show. Thus they believe that this is when Sesame Street jumped the shark. However, Elmo's World does have a central theme as Elmo explores a question with other friends which include muppets like Big Bird, Grover, and other human characters like a baby and Mr. Noodle as played by Michael Jeter and Bill Irwin.
[edit] Slimey in space
In season 29 (1997-1998), a story arc featured Slimey undertaking a 6-week journey into space. With his landing on the moon, Sesame Street changed directions from teaching children about basic literacy and numeracy, adding basic science. The separation of Slimey and Oscar showed the rarely-seen soft side to Oscar. The journey explored concepts such as the distance to the moon and the difference between heavy and light, as well as how scientific exploration occurs, with Slimey and the crew performing experiments and collecting samples. The mission included the song "Slimey to the Moon" sung by the famous Jazz singer Tony Bennett to the tune of "Fly Me to the Moon" by Bart Howard.
[edit] Specials
In 1991, Big Bird's Birthday Celebration celebrated Big Bird's sixth birthday; until that point, the character had been only four years old. This seems to be somewhat of a retcon, since in the 1985 feature film Follow That Bird and in the 1989 television special Sesame Street: 20 and Still Counting, Big Bird is stated to be six years old.
[edit] Deaths and resignations
[edit] Jim Henson
One of the biggest blows to the series was the death of creator Jim Henson in May 1990, although to this day he is still being credited as a Muppet cast member due to his continued appearances via stock footage.
Henson's death resulted in rumors that Muppet character Ernie would be killed off to help children understand the concept of death and dying. However, this proved to be nothing more than myth [4], since Sesame Street had already done an episode about death (upon Will Lee's passing, and the subsequent storyline death of Mr. Hooper); however, thanks to the then-new medium of the Internet, rumors of Ernie's impending fate persisted for several years.
[edit] Other deaths
Other notable Sesame Street personnel who died during the 1990s were:
- Northern Calloway (David), in 1990 from cancer; he had left the series a year earlier.
- Richard Hunt (Muppeteer), in 1992 from AIDS.
- Jon Stone (producer who had been with the show since the beginning), in 1997, from ALS.
- Jeff Moss (songwriter who wrote such well-loved songs as Rubber Duckie, The People in Your Neighborhood, I Love Trash, and several others), in 1998, from cancer.
[edit] News headlines
- In 1994 the show was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
- In February 1996, the original Ernie and Bert puppets were stolen from a museum in Germany. In addition to a large man hunt, Snuffy was shown pleading on German national television for their eventual safe return.
[edit] 25th and 30th Anniversary
The show aired a 25th anniversary special in 1994 and a 30th anniversary special in 1998 and 1999 all on ABC.
[edit] The 2000s
Curly Bear was born to Mama and Papa Bear. Baby Bear was grief stricken at no longer being the baby of the family.
Due to what they considered an "uncertain economic climate," Sesame Workshop (the succeeding name to CTW since 2000) laid off 70 people, amounting to about 20 percent of its work force in 2001 [5]. By 2004, they were producing only 26 episodes a year, down from 65 (earlier seasons had turned out 130 episodes a year).
In the March 3, 2004, episode of The West Wing, President Bartlet enlists C.J. to try to improve the First Lady's image. As a solution, the First Lady films a public service announcement where she gives Elmo a checkup. The episode had guest starring roles of Big Bird, Elmo, Zoe and Rosita. The doctor's office used is that of Dr. Gina Jefferson on Sesame Street; Jefferson is a vet.
Carol-Lynn Parente was promoted from senior producer to executive producer of Sesame Street in June 2005.
[edit] Dealing with disaster
[edit] The "Sesame Street" Hurricane
A story arc starting on March 26, 2001 (encompassing episodes #3976-3980) deals with a (hypothetical) hurricane that hits New York City, directly affecting Sesame Street. The night after the hurricane, Big Bird finds, to his horror, that his nest has been destroyed. He and his friends spent the rest of the week dealing with this issue and rebuilding his home.
The "hurricane" episodes were repeated the week of October 4, 2004, in response to the 2004 Atlantic hurricane season which devastated Florida – in particular, hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne. The episodes were replayed again on the week of September 12, 2005, in response to Hurricane Katrina.
Sesame Workshop announced plans in the fall of 2005 to release excerpts from the shows to DVD (called "Friends to the Rescue"). [6]
The filming of these episodes was featured in the show's A&E Biography.
[edit] 9/11 terrorist attacks
To deal with the events of September 11, 2001, the producers of the show had a plot line dealing with a grease fire in Hooper's Store, indirectly addressing the emotional issues involved with the terrorist attacks, namely fear. Elmo witnesses a grease fire, and is very frightened. The rest of the episode explains the duties of a firefighter, and thus gives credit - since Sesame Street is also in New York City - to the members of the Fire Department of New York who had risked their lives to save innocent people on 9/11.
[edit] Reformatting for modern audiences
In its 33rd season (2002), Sesame Street underwent an obvious, dramatic makeover, apparently intended to address many of the current trends in children's programming. The new format emphasized rituals and repetition, featured brighter, more cartoon-colorful real-life characters and sets, and more exaggerated, simplistic mannerisms in addressing the screen and seeking viewer interaction. Regular segments, like Journey to Ernie, are almost identical from one episode to the next, with only minor story details changing between shows. The Number of the Day is always presented initially by Count von Count, playing up an organ keyboard until he finds it, sequentially.
This seems an attempt to emulate the huge success of Elmo's World, an extremely ritualized segment presenting a similar routine every week.
Also, at the end of every episode, Oscar reads a book to Slimey, the worm called "The Adventures of Trash Gordon". Everytime Trash Gordon saves the day, he presents the letter/number of the day. Slimey then tells Oscar to read more of the story but, he refuses; in a nice way.
[edit] Osama and Evil Bert
A photograph of a protest rally in Bangladesh supporting Osama bin Laden showed a poster of Osama bin Laden with a small but clearly identifiable image of Bert over his right shoulder. For more on this event, see Bert is Evil.
[edit] 35th Anniversary
The show celebrated its 35th anniversary with the special Sesame Street: The Street We Live On, home videos of What's the Name of That Song? and assorted licensed merchandise. This episode took place about right around the time Michael Jeter, the actor who played Mr Noodle, had died of AIDS. The episode was dedicated in his memory (the 76th Academy Awards also included him in the In Memoriam segment).
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