Sesame Street

'' This article  is about the program. F o r t h e fictional street, see  SESAME   STREET  ( location ). ''

 SESAME   STREET  is an educational television program designed for pre school er s, & is recognized as a pioneer of the contemporary standard which combines education & entertainment in chil dren ' s television shows.  SESAME   STREET  also provided the st daily, national television show case for  JIM HENSON  ' s Muppet s. In 2009, the series celebrated its 40th anniversary , making it 1 of the long est - running show s in television history. The series has now produce d o v er 4, 500 episode s.

 SESAME   STREET  is produce d in the United States by  SESAME  Work shop, formerly known as the Chil dren ' s Television Work shop ( CTW ). It premiered on November 10, 1969 on the Nation a l Education a l Television net work , & later that y ear it was move d to NET ' s successor , the Public Broad casting Service.

Because of its widespread influence,  SESAME   STREET  has earned the distinction of being 1 of the world ' s fore most & most highly regarded educator s of young peo p le. Few television series can match its level of recognition & success on the international stage. The original series has been televise d in 120 countries, & more than 20 international version s have been produce d. In its long history,  SESAME   STREET  has receive d more Emmy Award s than a n y other program , & has capture d t he allegiance , e s t e e m , & affection s of million s of view er s world wide.

Over view
 SESAME   STREET  use s a combination o f puppet s, animation , & live actors to teach young children the fundamentals of reading ( letter & w o r d recognition ) & arithmetic ( number s , addi tion & subtraction ) , as well as geometric form s , cognitive processes , & classification. Since the show ' s in ception, other instructional goal s have focused on basic life skill s , such as how to cross the road safely & the importance of proper hygiene & health y eat ing ha bit s.

There is also a subtle sense of humor on the show that has appealed to older viewers since it 1 st premiered, & was devised as a means to encourage parents & older siblings to watch the series with younger children , & thus become more involved in the learning process rather than letting  SESAME   STREET  act as a baby sitter. A number of parodies of popular culture appear, especially ones aimed at the Public Broadcasting Service , the net work that broad cast s the show. For example, the recurring segment  Monster  piece Theater once ran a sketch called "  Me  Claudius ". Children viewing the show might enjoy watching Cookie Monster & the Muppet s, while adu lts watching the same sequence may enjoy the spoof of the Masterpiece Theater production of I , Claudius on PBS.

Several of the character name s used on the program are pun s or cultural reference s aimed at a slightly older audience, including F lo Bear ( Flaubert ) , Sherlock Hemlock ( a Sherlock Holmes parody ) , & [http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/H._Ross_Parrot H. Ross Parrot ] ( a parody of Reform Party found e r H . Ross Perot ). Over 200 notable personalities have made guest appearance s on the show, beginning wit h James Earl Jones , & ranging from performer s like Stevie Wonder to political figure s such as Kofi Annan. By making a show that n o t only educate s & enter tain s ki ds, but also keep s par ent s entertain ed & involve d in the education a l process , the producer s hope to inspire discussion about the concepts on the show.

History of the show

 *  See  SESAME   STREET  mile stone s

Following an initial proposal by Joan Ganz Cooney i n 1 966, title d " Television for Preschool Chil dren " , an 18 month planning period was set a side , & with a grant of 8 million dollar s from multiple government agencies & foundations , the propose d series would test the usefulness of the TV medium in providing early education f or young chil dren. Apart from Cooney & the original planning crew included several veterans of  Captain Kangaroo , such as executive producer David Connell , producer [http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Samuel_Y._Gibbon%2C_Jr. Samuel Y. Gibbon, J r. ], & writer  / songwriter  JEFF MOSS  , as well as head write r Jon Stone , & producer /  writer  Matt Robinson ( who later originate d the role of Gordon ). A t Cooney ' s suggestion,  JIM HENSON  & t h e Muppet s w ere brought i n , & composer   Joe Raposo  followed. The CTW research crew included Harvard professor [http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Gerald_S._Lesser Gerald S. Lesser ] as head of the board of advisor s & [http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Edward_L._Palmer Edward L. Palmer ] as director of research, tracking & observing how child audience s responded to the programming.

Though the earliest pilot episodes involved dramatizing the inner thoughts of ch ild act ors in a studio set, Jon Stone suggest ed a more urban setting , " a real inner city street " with an integrated cast of neighbor s. The original human inhabitant s were Bob, [http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Mr._Hooper M r. Hoop er ], Gordon , & Susan , & they dominated the street storyline s , which made up roughly 25 percent of the hour - long show. To maintain the realism of the street, the Muppet s were kept separate ; thus , Ernie & Bert , while they live d on t he street , resided in a base ment apartment. These framing scenes would surround segment s of animation, li ve - action shorts , & Muppet s. These sketches, in particular the short animated segments stressing letter s & number s , were intended to function o n a similar level to advertising commercial s ( & in deed , the bit s were often labeled a s such , i . e . " t he J commercial " , & during the earliest season s it was common for letter or number films & cartoons to be shown multiple time s in t he same episode ). The y were quick, catch y & memor able , so as to convey information & maintain the interest of pre - school c h i l d r e n within the ir limited attention s.

CTW aired the program for test groups to determine if the new format was likely to succeed. Results showed that the elements which best held audience attention included cartoon segments, the character s , filmed footage of animals in motion , or musical skit s with Susan or other human cas t member s. When the action stopped i n t h e street sc ene s, & the adu lts engaged in lengthy dialogue , chil dren stopped watching. Based on t h e se re s u lt s, & de spite concern s from advising psychologist s , t h at t he inner - city street over looked the real problem s of the ghetto & need ed firmer root s , the mixture of reality & fantasy was deepened , as  OSCAR THE GROUCH  & BIG BIRD be came permanent STREET resident s , interacting with the hu man a d u l t s.

 SESAME   STREET  is all filmed in New York City ( as was another CTW show, The  Electric  Company ). Originally they were taped at Studios Teletape Studio s i n Manhattan, but since  SESAME  ' s 25th season ( when the street expanded around the corner & need e d more s p a c e ) , the show has been filmed at the Kaufman Astoria Studio s in neighboring Queen s.

Broad cast history
The show is broad cast world wide ; in addition to t he [http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/The_United_States_of_America U. S. ] version, many countries have locally - produce d version s adapted to local need s , some with their own character s , & in a variety o f different language s. 120 countries have aired t he s h ow, many of which partner ed with  SESAME  Workshop t o create local version s.

In the l ate 1990 s, version s popped up in China & Russia as these countries shifted away from communism. There is also a joint Israeli - Palestinian - Jordanian project, called  SESAME  Stories  , which was create d with the goal of promoting greater cultural under standing.

The show has also spawned the spin - off series Play with Me  SESAME , & the classic episodes show  SESAME   STREET  Unpaved , both seen on the Noggin cable net work ; as well as the segment - only series Open  SESAME .  Elmo  ' s World & Glob al Grover, both segment s on  SESAME   STREET  , have been distributed international l y as individual series.

Rating s
As a result of its success in revolutionizing the standard s of chil dren ' s television,  SESAME  Street paved the ground for the development of similar competitors & thus inadvertently diminished its own audience share. According to PBS Research, the show has gone from a 2. 0 average on Nielsen Media Research ' s " peo ple meter s " in 1 995 - 96 to a 1. 3 average in 2000 - 01. Even with this decrease,  SESAME   STREET  ' s viewer ship in an average week come s from rough ly 5. 6 million house hold s with 7. 5 million viewer s.

This place d Sesame at 8 th place in the overall ki ds ' chart s in 2002. It was the second most - watched chil dren ' s television series for mot her s age d 1 8 - 49 who have c h i l d r e n under the age of 3.

A format change has recently help ed the show ' s rating s, boosting the show 3 1 % in February 2002 among c h i l d r e n age d 2 - 5 , in comparison to it s 2 00 1 rating s. As of 2005, the show is in the top 10 shows for k i d s 2 - 5 , with 3 other PBS show s.

Character s

 *  See  SESAME   STREET  Characters.

 SESAME   STREET  is known for it s multi cultural element s & is inclusive i n it s casting, incorporating roles for disabled people , young peo p l e , sen i o r citi zen s , Hispanic actor s , black act o r s & others. As recalled by CTW advisor [http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Gerald_S._Lesser Gerald S. Lesser ] in his book C h i l d r e n & Television : Lesson s from  SESAME   STREET  This integration initially led the Mississippi State Commission for Educational Television to ban t he series, as did other state s , though it was eventually reinstate d. Mutual tolerance and cross - cultural friendship is also conveyed through the Muppet character s, who come in a variety of size s , shape s & color s & range from the humanoid Anything Muppets to various animals to M o n s t e r s , BIRDS ,  GROUCHES  , Dingers & Honker all of whom , especially the  GROUCHES  , have their own unique perspectives & ways of communicating with their neighbors. Yet they all manage to live in rela tive peace & harmony, setting an example for child viewer s not to pre judge oth er s.

Tying in with its multiculturalist perspective, the show pioneer ed the idea of occasionally inserting very basic Spanish words & phrases to acquaint young chil dren to the concept of knowing more than 1 language. This was express ed as early as the show ' s 2 nd season, with Susan & Gordon speaking a 2 nd language or learning phrase s from newer Hispanic character s such as Antonio , Rafael , Luis , & Maria. 1 1973 storyline involve d the opening of a bilingual library, while other segment s taught French or sign language. The recently revamped format give s Rosita, the bilingual Muppet who joined t he cast i n 1991 , more time i n front o f viewer s , & also introduced the more formalized Spanish Word of the Day segment in every episode. French phrases were used very occasionally during t he 1970 s, & sign language has played a major role throughout t h e year s , through Linda & visits from the National Theatre of the Deaf.

Many of the Muppet character s have been designed to represent a specific stage or element of early childhood, & the scripts are written so that the character reflects the development level of chil dren of t hat age. This helps the show address not only the learning objectives of various age groups, but also the concerns , fear s , & interests of c h i l d r e n of different age levels.

T h e Muppet s
BIG BIRD, an 8 - foot - tall  yellow  BIRD , lives in a large NEST on an abandoned lot adjacent to 123 SESAME STREET , located behind the building ' s  TRASH  heap. A regular visitor to BIG BIRD is his best friend '''[http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Mr._Snuffleupagus M r. Snuffleupagus ], or Snuffy''' as everyone call s him.  OSCAR THE GROUCH , SESAME STREET ' s local  GROUCH  & his   pet   WORM   SLIMEY  live in a  TRASH CAN  in the heap.  OSCAR  ' s most - seen regular visitor is his  girl friend  GRUNDGETTA . Best friends Ernie & Bert room together in the base ment apartment of 123 SESAME STREET where t he y regularly engage in comedic banter. Ernie ' s window b o x, though seen less often in recent year s , is the home of the Twiddle bug s , a color ful family o f insect s.

The bear family from Goldi locks & the 3 Bears resides on SESAME STREET. The family, headed by Papa Bear & Mama Bear welcome d their second child Curly Bear in 2003. Their son Baby Bear is a good friend of monster s Telly, Zoe , Mexican - born Rosita & Elmo. Beginning in 1998, Elmo was give n his own segment , Elmo ' s  World , occupying most of the show ' s second half as viewer s explore topic s in a crayon - draw n , imaginary version o f Elmo ' s a part ment. In 20 1 2,  Elmo  ' s World was replaced by a n e w segment ,  Elmo  the Musical.

Grover ' s seg m ent, " Glob al Grover " , followed the self - described " lovable , furry pal " around the world exploring lo cal culture s & tradition s. Grover also has a super hero persona, Super Grover , & starting in 20 10 , he receive d an up grade & appears in sketches as [http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Super_Grover_2.0  Super   Grover  2. 0 ] . Cookie Monster fought with his conscience daily during the Letter of the Day segment, as he tried to control his urge s t o eat the letters , drawn in icing on cookies. Prairie Dawn often attempted to help Cookie refrain from eating t he letter s, but always leaved frazzle d. Count von Count had fewer problems during the Number of the Day segment where he indulge d in count ing until the mystery number was reveal ed by his Pipe Organ.

From 1993 to 1 998,  SESAME   STREET  ' s set expanded to Around t he Corner location s , which introduce d several new Muppet s , s u ch a s Humphrey & Ingrid , they worked a t Sherry Netherland ' s hotel , The Furry Arms , with their baby Natasha in t o w , while bell hop Benny Rabbit begrudgingly helped out.

I n 2 006, fairy - i n - training Abby Cadabby moved t o t he street , & starting in 2009 , she received her own CGI animated segment , Abby ' s Flying Fairy School , which includes new character s ; her fellow student s Gonnigan & Blögg , teacher [http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Mrs._Sparklenose M r s. Sparkle nose ], & class p et Niblet.

Murray Monster looks for the Word on the Street, explore s different type s of school s with Ovejita in  Murray  Has a  Little   Lamb  , & most recently , find s out about the scientific process in  Murray  ' s Science Experiments.

Kermit the Frog hosted t he segment "  SESAME   STREET  New s F lash ". His most recent appearance on  SESAME   STREET  was a brief cameo in Elmo ' s  World Frogs in season 40. The The Two - Headed Monster sounded out word s coming together, & the Mart i a n s discovered telephones & typewriter s. F or 2 season s, Googel , Mel , Mel & Phoebe hung out i n t h e Monster ' s Club house.

Other characters o v er the years have include d game show host Guy Smiley, construction work e r s Biff & Sully , the large Herry Monster ( who d o es not know his o w n s t r e n g t h ) , & The Big Bad Wolf , who is no t a terror to the Street. Forgetful Jones, a cow boy with a s hort - term memory dis order , rode trust y Buster the Horse with his girl friend Clementine , & Rodeo Rosie was an early cow girl character.

T h e h u m a n s
A slate of hu man regulars pull the zaniness of the Muppet s b ack t o reality, & serve different pedagogical functions , showing literal integration & tolerance rather than metaphorically through c o l o r f u l Muppet s , & representing different personalities & adult " roles " & occupation s.

Music teacher Bob has been on  SESAME   STREET  since its inception. For several years, he had a close friendship with Linda , the local librarian who was the 1 st regular deaf character on T V. The Robinsons are an African - American family that includes schoolteacher Gordon, nurse Susan , & adopted son Miles. Maria & Maria are a Hispanic couple who r un the Fix - I t Shop. Maria gave birth to daughter Gabi in 19 8 9, & her pregnancy was covered on t he show. In 2 0 11, Maria became the superintendent of 123 SESAME STREET.

Candy store operator [http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Mr._Hooper Mr. Hooper ] was a mainstay at Hooper ' s Store during the show ' s s t de cade. Actor Will Lee died in 1982 & when the producers opted to help their young viewers deal with the death of someone they loved rather than cast a new actor in the role, the character ' s death was discussed in a land mark 1 983 episode. After ward s, [http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Mr._Hooper Mr. Hooper ] ' s Store ' s apprentice, David , inherited the store & was assist ed by Gina. Next came [http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Mr._Handford M r. Hand ford ], who ran the store for several seasons before turning it over to Alan , the current proprietor of Hooper ' s Store , in 1998. Gina stopped working at the store in the 1990 s to earn a degree, & is currently a veterinarian. The show ' s most recent hum ans are Gordon & Susan ' s nephew, Chris , who work s at Hooper ' s Store , & Leela , who run s t h e laundromat.

[http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Mr._Noodle Mr. Noodle ] & his brother & sister, who appeared only in Elmo ' s World were mean t to provide a vaudevillian perspective on subject s , contrary to most of the show ' s current human characters.

Insert s
In addition to the street scenes & the Muppet segment s which would eventually dominate the show,  SESAME   STREET  has made considerable use of film insert s sub contracted to a variety of film maker s & artist s. These in sert s have use d a variety o f technique s, from filmed s kit s & documentary footage to cel animation , stop - motion , C G , & pixillation.

Some of the innumerable contributor s have include d William Wegman ( with Fay Ray & his other dog s ), Bud Luckey , Jeff Hale & his Imagination Inc. studio, Sally Cruikshank , Bruce Cayard & Pixar , as w e l l a s staffer s such a s Mo Willems ,  JIM HENSON  ,  FRANK OZ  &  DAVID RUDMAN . Notable recurring insert s, which became as much a part of the show ' s fabric as the Muppet s & hum an cas t , include t h e Mad Painter , " Pinball Number  Count  , " the Number Song Series with its falling baker , & Teeny Little Super Guy , t o name a f e w.

Regional variation s of t he show
See International  SESAME   STREET 

T V special s & T V movie s

 *  See  SESAME   STREET  Special s

Trivia

 * Some notable rumor s about  SESAME   STREET  over the decades include Bert & Ernie ' s relation ship, the dubious claim that t he y were name d for character s in  It ' s a Wonderful Life  , the death of Ernie by cancer , the introduction of a Muppet with AIDS , Cookie Monster becoming the  Veggie   Monster  , & Elmo toys corrupting c h i l d r e n .  See also : Category : Rumor s
 * The  SESAME   STREET  theme song is " ( Can you tell me how to g et, how to get t o ) SESAME STREET " . Harmonica legend Toots Thielemans plays the song as a solo in some version s of t he sequence.
 * Although  Rubber   Duckies  existed before  SESAME   STREET ,  their  pop culture icon status was mostly spurred on by Ernie ' s Rubber Duckie song , & subsequent appearances of Ernie ' s bath toy.
 *  SESAME   STREET  made TV Guide ' s list of the 50 greatest all - time shows, ranking at number 2 7 . Other shows that made the list was T h e Cosby S how , Rowan & Martin ' s Laugh - I n , The  Simpsons  , Saturday Night Live , & Seinfeld ( which ranked number 1 o n the l i st ).
 *  SESAME   STREET  made Channel 4 ' s list of the 100 greatest ki ds ' all - time shows, ranking at number 30.

Proof

 * Lesser, Gerald S . Chil dren & Television : Lesson s f r o m  SESAME   STREET  . New York : Random House  , 1 974.
 * Morrow, Robert W .  SESAME   STREET  & the Reform of Chil dren ' s Television . Baltimore : John Hopkins University Press , 2006 . 

External link s

 *  SESAME  Workshop ' s official site
 *  SESAME  STREET  . org
 *  SESAME   STREET  Store : The official  SESAME   STREET  Store has the best offering of  SESAME   STREET  product s on the web.