Over at the New York Times, Big Bird tells all in Q & A session with some of his biggest fans.  Here are the highlights:

For a long time, everyone thought that Snuffy was Big Bird’s imaginary friend, but creators became concerned that they were modelling the idea that adults don’t believe things that children tell them. So an episode was written to “introduce” Big Bird’s very real friend to the rest of the neighbourhood.

Big Bird is controlled by the exact same system that Jim Henson set up 40 years ago.  There have been no upgrades in technology inside the bird costume itself, though Caroll Spinney says he “has replaced the batteries.”

Sesame Street’s “Old School” DVDs showing episodes from the early seasons are actually labelled as “not for young children” because they feature kids riding bikes without helmets and riding in cars without seat belts.
Big Bird’s favourite book is the Audobon Book of Birds.

For more on what the big guy has to say, see the full interview.

1969 was certainly a banner year. Neil Armstrong touched down on the moon. Woodstock took place in upstate New York. The Beatles released Abbey Road. The Boeing 747 is first placed into service. The television shows The Brady Bunch and Monty Python’s Flying Circus debuted. While those shows, for better or for worse (not necessarily in that order), eventually went off the air, another show that got its start in 1969 is still going strong: the venerable children’s show Sesame Street.

It would be difficult to be a part of our society and not be familiar with the show — everyone, it seems, knows Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, and the ubiquitous Elmo. The show was meant to depict the sort of world kids in the big city themselves lived in and the idea worked. It worked so well that now, 40 years later, the show is as popular as ever. As of 2006, Sesame Street was the most watched children’s show in the world — there are 20 international independent versions and it is shown in over 120 countries.

Next week, the show begins its 41st season and includes — as always — some big name guests.  “The new season will be star-studded,” Carol-Lynn Parente, executive producer, says. “We have Cameron Diaz in our premiere episode, and Adam Sandler, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kobe Bryant, Eva Longoria, Christina Applegate, Ricky Gervais, Greg Kinnear, and more — we have over 30 celebrities this season. And we also have First Lady Michelle Obama!” Mrs Obama will be on the show talking about planting a garden and eating healthily.

Initially, the show “was like a magic carpet ride,” says Bob McGrath, who has played Bob on the show right from the start. “It was a tremendously exciting time. It was just one of total exhilaration. None of us anticipated that it was going to have the impact around the world that it has had. We didn’t have any long-term outlook. It was just a very joyous thing from the get-go. But I think we all had a good gut feeling after that first year that we were on to something special. It was an extraordinary experiment that’s worked out miraculously.”

After 40 years, the miracle continues and I, for one, am glad of that.

What do you remember most about the show?  Share your memories of the show in the comments!

Image: Google

The show’s changed a lot since my childhood and feels more commercial to me. But those changes — and indeed the show itself –have been rigorously, carefully researched from the very beginnings.

According to this interesting Miller-McCune article, show founder Joan Ganz cooney, who was then working at a public-TV precursor called Channel 13 in New York, wrote a paper on the uses on television in pre-school education. It summed up what until then had been scant research on the topic. She also interviewed various experts about what would make a good children’s TV show. According to the article: “Nearly everyone I met liked the idea of a daily, hour-long programme,” she wrote. “Almost all of them wanted the letters of the alphabet and their sounds, as well as numbers, included.”

As thinking on how best to reach kids has evolved, so has the show. Even Elmo, who parents tend to either love or want to tickle right into oblivion, was a reaction to the fact that the age of kids who watch the show was skewing younger, so they created a character that would appeal to them. And he is like crack to toddlers, as any of us who have watched our child shout “MELMO!!” at the very sight of his likeness can attest.

Tonnes of research has been aimed at the show since its inception 40 years ago, certainly more than any other children’s show. It actually does help prepare children for school , it turns out, and even a  study of high school kids in the 1980s and 1990s who grew up with the Sesame crew found that the positive effects of the show still lingered.

I’m still not sure who was responsible for the current hip-hop opening, though.

Sesame Street’s long legacy of entertaining and educating kids in a way that respects their young age without ever talking down to them earned them a special recognition earlier this week: the Lifetime Achievement Emmy.  After the jump, watch the cast accept their award with a montage of favourite moments and see Cookie monster devour the “delicious” award.

Source

Photo: somegeekintn, Flickr

For a moment, I thought that this was the German version of Sesame Street. There are many international versions of the show, so I thought this could be the real thing. It’s not. The whole cyclops thing should have been my first clue, but I was tired.

So what is it?

According to the invaluable Muppet Wiki, “Bernie und Ert” was a sketch that appeared on “Freitag Nacht News”, a German sketch comedy show. (”Now is the time on Sprockets vhen ve dance!“) It is described as an “obscene parody of Sesamstrasse“, which is the German version of Sesame Street.

Here’s a couple of video clips. They’re in German, and since I don’t speak German, I have no idea if what they’re saying is obscene or not. If you work somewhere where people speak German, this may be Not Safe For Work (NSFW). If not, well, who knows. To me, one-eyed muppet knock-offs speaking in German is creepy enough.

“101 Muppets of Sesame Street” allows you to click on Muppets well-known and obscure and get info about each and every one of them, including the season they were introduced. Sure, you could look them up at the marvelous Muppet Wiki, which is what the National Post folks did. But this way is easier.

A few highlights:

Grover / Super Grover: I’m a big Grover guy. Always was. Always will be. Elmo. ELMO! Feh.

Little Jerry: Of “Little Jerry and the Monotones.” I had forgotten about him. He’s from way back in Season 2.

The Yip-Yips: They fascinated me when I was a kid. Something about the way their bodies moved when they talked. Or rather, when they yipped.

Sam the Robot: Another one I’d forgotten about.

Bip Bippadotta aka Mahna Mahna: Fun trivia fact — the famous “Mahna Mahna” sketch from The Muppet Show originated on The Street. I did not know that.

Here’s the original:

And what it became:

I think the original Muppet, Bip Bippadotta, was a little bit scarier looking than he was in his later form, when he took the name “Mahna Mahna.” But hey, it was the 70’s. A time of upheaval. And body hair.

Check out all 101 Muppets at NationalPost.com.

No related posts.

The First Lady paid a visit to Sesame Street yesterday and we’ve got the picture to prove it! Michelle Obama was there to film a public service announcement with Elmo for Sesame Workshop’s Healthy Habits for Life initiative. She and the First Muppet spoke about eating right, getting regular exercise, and being a positive role model for kids.

I think the red really makes Michelle pop, what do you think?

Photo: Richard Termine

Plaza Sesamo, the Mexican version of Sesame Street, is not shying away from the issue. They have created four PSAs that began airing on Televisa this morning. The message of the PSAs, according to a press release, is the following:

* Tell a parent if you feel sick so they can take you to the doctor. Don’t go to school or outside where there are people who might catch your sickness.

* It is important to cover your mouth with a tissue or your arm if you sneeze or cough. Be sure to throw away the tissue and cover the trash can, too!
* Wash your hands with soap and clean water several times throughout the day for at least 20 seconds.

Sounds good to me. I hope a local version will pop up here. I’ve definitely stepped up my efforts to sanitise my children, and I admit to being more worried about a stuffy nose than I was a month ago. Still, reminders about basic prevention are always welcome.

Image: Wikipedia

In fact, this particular segment of Gervais’ Sesame Street appearance is clearly more geared to adults than kids (last time I checked, “necrophilia” was not exactly a word to bring up around the kiddies), but Elmo’s ability to roll with very adult humour while maintaining his irrestibly childish sweetness is what makes this video so precious.

Enjoy!–probably without the kids. While this clip only flirts with the inappropriate, you might prefer not to answer the question, “Why are they laughing?”

Photo: Buck Daddy Diaries

Stacy Conradt at Mental Floss has found the answers. She compiled a list of the secret histories of 20 popular Sesame Street characters (sorry, Big Bird was too boring to make the list).
Here are some highlights:

Telly Monster: Why do you think Telly Monster worries so much? Too much TV! Apparently Telly began his life as the Television Monster, complete with whirly hypnotized eyes whenever he saw a television. Producers soon realised the folly (hey, if watching too much TV causes that… maybe I shouldn’t let my kids watch this!) and changed him to Telly the worrywart.

Cookie Monster: nee the “Wheel Stealer,” Cookie Monster began his life in a series of commercial drawings by Jim Henson. He was used in a 1967 IBM training video and 1969 Fritos commercial before taking up permanent residence on the Street.

Elmo: According to those familiar with the show, the red fuzzy puppet was just lying around the set for years
before finding the perfect voice and personality with puppeteer Kevin Clash. Elmo as we know him was born in 1984.

Statler and Waldorf: These two grumpy judges first appeared in the 1975 Muppet Show pilot and were fixtures
ever since. They take their names from the NYC hotels (Hotel Pennsylvania was originally the Statler Hotel) and Waldorf’s wife is named… Astoria! Who, by the way, looks a lot like Statler… Maybe that’s why Waldorf has had a pacemaker for 30 years?

You can read the whole list here.