Brought to you today by the letter "W" and the number "5"

                              

                                

In 1969 I was not even born yet ten years old. That year the first human walked on the moon's surface. Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix rocked Max Yasgur's upstate New York farm on a legendary weekend we like to call Woodstock. Monty Python's Flying Circus made made its television debut, and Sesame Street, a product of the Children's Television Workshop, was broadcast for the first time. In the 35 years since, it has never been off the air. This November when I celebrate one year of being a blogger, Sesame Street will also celebrate its 35th year as one of the longest-running television shows in history and I think it's only fitting that the show which has enjoyed the longest life on air is one devoted entirely to the education, affirmation, and entertainment of the world's most important citizens.

I can't say it was a part of my childhood, because it truly wasn't. I grew up in the generation of Captain Kangaroo's Treasure House. But when I was in the 6th grade our elementary school began taking students from 1st grade classes for special viewings of Sesame Street. A room near the principal's office was outfitted with a television and a handful of my peers were asked to monitor  these youngers students as they watched. My/our job was simply to make sure none of the little kids started a fire for the hour it was on, but I think the point was to see if this new show was going to make a difference in the learning comprehension of the school's youngest students. I'm sure that it did.

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I got hooked as an adult when, after a long day of teaching moody adolescents how to read and write the King's English, I would sit down with a beer and watch back-to-back episodes of Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood and Sesame Street in my tiny apartment. Really now, who could stay cranky after singing along with the cartoon farmer about the "Ladybug's Picnic"?

                                                                      

It wasn't until our kids were born that I had the time and, ultimately, the best reason to sit down and devote an hour to Bert & Ernie, Big Bird, the Count, Grover, Cookie Monster, Oscar the Grouch,and Kermit the Frog. Sesame Street was twice a day fare at our house. Mornings found my oldest two in their pajamas, parked in front of the television with bowls of cereal. Afternoons were for watching right before Thomas the Tank Engine came on with Mr. Rogers in between and maybe an appetizer of old Batman reruns. By the time the third kid came along, he had learned to pull his carseat in front of the television like an ersatz LazyBoy and kick back with toast and a cup of milk.

My sons learned to count and spell right along with the show's characters...both human or otherwise...and two copies of old VHS tapes ("Learning about Letters" and "Learning about Numbers" are still in our closet. I can't bring myself to throw them away. To see human characters like Mr. Hooper, Bob and Maria interact with starts such as Lily Tomlin and Savion Glover or watch James Taylor surrounded by a gaggle of kids as they joined him in the song "Jellyman Kelly" was just the icing on an already perfect cake.

Surely Sesame Street was one of the first shows to actually celebrate the fact that kids came in colors other than white and that the word "family" could be defined as any group of people who live with you and love, feed and nurture you. Call it the Rainbow Flag or the Freak Flag or whatever you want, but Sesame Street flew it high and proud. Diversity was important because the messenger was just as essential as the message. And the message, along with counting and the ABC's, was L-O-V-E.
I still count Sesame Street among my favorite alltime shows and I get a little lump of nostalgia in my throat whenever I hear the theme song. Personally, I'm all for a move to have Joan Ganz Cooney, primary founder of the Children's Television Workshop, canonized as saint of the highest order. To me, her star is high in the firmament...right alongside Fred Rogers.  Can I get an "amen"?
So...who was your favorite Sesame Street character?

 

Comments

[Annie]

Snuffalupagus was always my favorite.

[clickmom]

Pfffftt, Snuffy was the new guy, I'll take Cookie any day. Mumw mumw mumw. COOKIE!!!

ps I can't believe they make him eat veggies now, give a monster a break!

[shelley]

I liked Kermit, or course, and Bert. Ernie, too, but Bert was smarter. I always had a thing for smart men. Eggheads, if you will. :-)

[shelley]

Oh, and I always adored Mr. Hooper. *sniff*

[Melissa]

They don't make him eat veggies now. Just today he consumed the letter of the day and is frequently seen eating cookies.

I am just rediscovering my love of Sesame Street through my kids. It is a good excuse to sit and watch it with out feeling wierd. What I love about the show is that it is just as entertaining for my kids as it is for me.

I think that my favorite character is Big Bird.

[Kvetch]

I was in first grade when Sesame Street came on, and I spent my childhood watching it with my little brother. Ernie was my favorite. Um, is. But Mr. Rogers has the biggest part of my heart, and my kids never could bring themselves to even like that show a bit. A sign of the times (and they are 14 and 11). I have my "won't you be my neighbor/Trolley" mug proudly displayed. Sorry for the ramble!

[Nils]

When our first daughter was born, for some reason I was driven to find a name for her that could not be reduced to a diminutive like Bobbie or Jillie or Sammie. We came up with "Erin" - a good, solid name. A girl could be Prime Minister with a name like that.

So of course, the first time I picked her up and looked into her face I said "Look at you, little Ernie!"

Since I can do a passable Bert impression and a deadly Kermit, she became Ernie to me - as far as I know, nobody else ever called her that. It was ours. It still is.

At her wedding last month, the guests tables were identified by large pictures of cartoon couples. You might be seated at the Coyote and Roadrunner table (a couple? Oh, come on, sure. He so wanted her. Or him.) or at the Sylvester and Tweety table, etc.

Her new husband was a rubbery-legged basketball star in high school, and was nicknamed "Gumby" for it. So, the parents' table was the Gumby and Ernie table.

Not sure where Bert was. Maybe pokin' Pokey.

Entirely off topic, as usual. But THAT is why my favourite Sesame Street character is ... Oscar. No, really, Ernie.

[Spamboy]

That's easy: H. Ross Parrot!

[Arabella]

I love all the characters--even the minor ones. Guy Smiley, Betty Lou, Janice, Prairie Dawn, the Honkers--all of them. I remember them better than my own classmates.

I wish there were a way to access some of the older clips that they no longer air.

[Nap Queen]

Since my mom was the TV police (I thank her now), Seasame Street and Mr. Rogers were the only shows we were allowed to watch as children. I LOVED Maria. (I preferred the people to the monsters). Of all the puppets, I think I liked Oscar and Slimey best. I loved the idea that his garbage can was so huge on the inside.

You should search You-Tube for Sesame Street. I found the "Tan Van" skit as well as "Take a Breath" and "I Get Mad". I found all my old favorites except for "Me and My Llama" (where they go to the dentist). Oh, and they had the Ladybug's Picnic!

[Mrs. Davis]

I'm a huge Ernie fan! And I loved the diversity on Sesame Street, since there was not much of it in my real childhood.

[Sandra]

My first record album I ever owned was "Grover Sings The Blues". Thanks for reminding me of that.

[Marcie]

I always loved Grover. And even though he seems to get a lot of hate I think Elmo is cute too.
Now I have "123, 456, 789, 10 11 12, and they all went down to the ladybug picnic" stuck in my head!

[Tink]

I can bash Barney all day. Pee Wee gave me the creeps. The smurfs had annoying voices. And the care bears were too cute to take seriously.

But there is NOTHING bad anyone could possibly say about Sesame Street. I STILL love it.

The Honkers were my favorite characters. :)

[Gina]

Grover. I can be a sucker for slapstick sometimes.

[Gina]

Grover. I can be a sucker for slapstick sometimes.

[Nina]

My first pets in life were two fish I won at some amusement park. They were Bert & Ernie. My favorite character as I grew up was Grover - he was green AND grumpy. I fell in love.
I am with you wordgirl - Capt. Kangaroo was the greatest.
And who could forget Picture Pages? Did anyone else order them through the mail so that they could do them live with the show? Awesome. TV isn't like it used to be.

[Nina]

My first pets in life were two fish I won at some amusement park. They were Bert & Ernie. My favorite character as I grew up was Grover - he was green AND grumpy. I fell in love.
I am with you wordgirl - Capt. Kangaroo was the greatest.
And who could forget Picture Pages? Did anyone else order them through the mail so that they could do them live with the show? Awesome. TV isn't like it used to be.

[Karen]

A group shout out to Sesame Street- this is great!
I was born in mid-74 and had my TV lineup: Sesame Street, The Muppet Show, Mr. Rogers, Capt Kangaroo syndicated (?), and the Electric Company.
Grover was my favorite on Sesame. followed closelly by Ernie; Kermit was tops on The Muppet Show and I loved when he was on Sesame- what was his nephew's name? Robin?

[Jennifer]

Grover is definitly my favorite muppet. He still cracks me up! I have to give a vote to that silent guy that painted the # or letter of the day on things and then it would get messed up. I don't think they have him on anymore, but I used to love it.

[LetterB]

Ahem. "Letter B" sung by the Beetles. Also available on YouTube if you need to get the Ladybug Picnic song out of your head.

[roo]

Hmm... That's a tough one.

I think my favorite regular character was Mr. Snuffalupagus-- I loved how big and gentle he was, and that he was secret and sort of magical.

But I also LOVED the Yup-yup-yup-yup-yup!Uh-huh!Uh-huh! aliens, and the little fuzzy honky-nose monster that hatches out of an egg.

[sweatpantsmom]

I always loved Elmo, until a few years ago when the whole "Tickle Me Elmo" craze blew up. My sister-in-law practically lost a limb securing one for my daughter, and after a few days of that thing in my house, laughing maniacally, I was ready to throw it in the oven and watch it melt.

But I still have a soft spot for Bert and Ernie.

[V-Grrrl]

I didn't watch it as a kid.My kids didn't watch it because we didn't have a TV when they were small. The only time I saw Sesame Street was when I babysat as a teen.

Talk about flying my freak flag! Sesame Street's been on for almsot 35 years and I've MISSED it.

[Chris]

Oh, Mr Hooper, how I miss you. 35 years...incredible run!