The Muppet Mindset: Sesame Street Week

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Nov 14, 2009

Sesame Street Week: Day 7 - Season 40 Episode Recap, Week 1

D'Snowth (Muppet Central Forum) - What a monumental week this has been; while Season 40 of Sesame Street didn’t kick off with a special, as was speculated, we did get a nice start with an episode focused mainly on Big Bird, which is a nice change of pace. Sesame Workshop had the right idea to start Season 40 on the exact day the show kicked off 40 years ago really made the new season even more special to begin with.
At this time, I will be sharing with you a summary of this week’s (November 10 – 13) new episodes, as well as my personal thoughts and insights to them as well.

To start off, this year, another change to begin with is the opening and closing credits – while similar to previous two seasons, this year, however, features our favorite characters grooving in front of animated chalk drawings. But now, onto the actual episodes…

Episode 4187 – “Frankly, it’s Becoming a Habitat” (November 10, 2009)

Word On the Street: Murray Monster shares with us the word on the street, which is “habitat”; Murray, along with the viewers at home, learn that a habitat is where animals live, and that different animals live in different habitats. The word “habitat” is featured heavily in today’s episode.

Street Scene: The scene opens up with Big Bird waiting for a daily lunch of cream of birdseed soup – Big Bird’s idea of the perfect treat for such a cold day, when out of nowhere, Freddy Flapman (Lin-Manuel Miranda) of Flatchert Real Estate, a bird real estate agent tries to convince Big Bird he should migrate to a warmer climate. Using his “patented real estate agent magic”, Mr. Flapman takes Big Bird on a virtual tour of three different warmer climates he might like to migrate to, including a beach where birds like pelicans and sea gulls live, a swamp where birds like owls and ducks live, and even a rainforest where all kinds of birds and animals live, enticing Big Bird with descriptions of each habitat in the form of a rap. Having no luck with the beach and swamp, Mr. Flapman is overjoyed when Big Bird decides he’d like to live in the rainforest, since it’s so colorful, and there’s all kinds of different new animals to meet, but after Big Bird has packed, and realizes that moving away will mean moving away from all his friends, he decides he doesn’t want to move after all, and that Sesame Street IS his habitat, and Mr. Flapman realizes he has no sale. After the final decision, the residents of Sesame Street throw Big Bird a “home coming” celebration.

Celebrity Segment: Cameron Diaz is in the woods, and meets with a raccoon, a duck, and a moose to discuss habitats with viewers; Cameron is surprised that they know so much about habitats, until they explain to her that the woods are their habitats.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray tells us that the letter of the day is the letter H, and the kids in the neighborhood help him show things that begin with the letter H such as a hula-hoop, hair, a hug, and hands.

Insert (Film): Two kinds demonstrate things that begin with H in their clubhouse such as home, hands, handle (on a watering can), hide, hook (for a) hat, help, hose, healthy and happy.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray tells us that the number of the day is the number 40 – the first time in the show’s history the number of the day was anything other than 1-20 – and demonstrates by showing us 40 candles on a birthday cake and 40 nurses.

Insert (Animated): Traction Jackson and three of his friends do a hip-hop tune about the number 40, by counting by tens with their fingers.

Abby’s Flying Fairy School: A new series of CGI segments by Rickey Boyd depicts Abby’s life at her fairy school, along with her two friends Gone Again (who’s so shy, he constantly turns invisible, hence the name “Gone Again”) and Blogg, a shorter fairy who carries a wand, though Blogg‘s wand is stolen when they play with their unicorn gerbil, Niblet. The fairies chase Niblet around though-out their classroom, until Niblet slips into a drawing on the wall that the fairies can’t get into. Gone Again draws a door into the picture, which leads them inside the picture; once there, they resume their chase, only to have Niblet foil them at every turn, first by drawing a river between them. Abby draws a pumpkin with sails so they can sail across the river, but once they’re on board, Niblet redraws the river into mountains, so the fairies change their pumpkin boat to a pumpkin wagon, only to get caught in a deep valley Niblet drew. Once out of the drawing, Niblet hides inside a little dollhouse, and locks all the doors, until the fairies come up with a rhyme for door (“Zja Zja Gabor”) to open them, only to find Niblets is still hiding; this saddens the fairies to at the thought of never seeing their class unicorn gerbil again, which makes Niblet feel sorry for them, so he comes out of hiding, and gives Blogg his wand back, as well as Gone Again some confidence.

Bert and Ernie’s Great Adventures: Today, Bert and Ernie are Duck Detectives, where they meet the distressed Miss Lambshank, who’s friend, Maltese “Malty” Duck for some reason won’t quack; curious about it themselves, Ernie and Bert agree to meet with Malty, dressed as Miss Lambshank’s cousins, who try to lead Malty to water after Rubber Ducky dictates to Ernie that ducks only quack when they’re in water (a little error, but who cares?) Bert accidentally falls into a pond, and although Malty saves him, he still won’t quack. Bert and Ernie continue their investigation by following Malty through the city at night, where not only do they discover that Miss Lambshank is following them, but they learn that Malty isn’t a Maltese duck at all, but rather a whistling, black-bellied duck, a breed that doesn’t quack; he never told Miss Lambshank, because he was afraid it would end their friendship, but she assures him that she’s still be his friend irregardless if he can quack or not.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray announces Elmo’s World is next, but first, leads us into the next Celebrity Segment.

Celebrity Segment: First Lady Michelle Obama is in the community garden in the back of the arbor with Elmo, Big Bird and some kids, where they plant the seeds of various vegetables like tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, and carrots; Mrs. Obama explains to the kids that the seeds will grow into the vegetables, and that vegetables are not only healthy for you, they taste good too.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray leads us into Elmo’s World

Elmo’s World: Today’s EW segment was about frogs… admittedly, I started to fast-forward through my DVR, figuring nothing special here to see… until I caught a glimpse of Kermit the Frog, and quickly rewound the recording to see Kermit perched on a leather easy chair, talking about how this is his kind of pad.

Closing: Murray reminds us that Sesame Street was brought to us today by the letter H, and by the number 40.

Overall Review: Great kick-off for a very special season of Sesame Street! Admittedly, there were a few things I didn’t care for – the new Zoe puppet that we all dreaded was going to be used is, indeed, in use, and it’s hideous. I also didn’t care too much for Murray’s transitions, especially when we could’ve had classic characters like Cookie Monster and Count doing their signature Letter and Number of the Day segments like they have been for the past six seasons or so; but other than that, it was great to see a street scene revolve around Big Bird, with a few references to Follow That Bird, as well as giving new life to the running gag of Big Bird never getting someone’s name right (in this case, Mr. Flapman), and of course, Kermit the Frog’s cameo in Elmo’s World today was priceless. Overall, I give the Season 40 premiere four-and-a-half out of five stars.
Episode 4188 - “Cowmonster Pair” (November 11, 2009)

Word On the Street: Murray Monster shares with us the word on the street, which is “pair”; Murray, along with the viewers at home, learn that a pair are two similar things that go together, such as shoes, eyes, socks, and hands, and that “pair” will be featured through out today’s episode.

Street Scene: While enjoying breakfast in Hooper’s Store, Elmo, Telly and Chris encounter Little Bo Peep, who has announced that she no longer looks after sheep because they’re so small and easy to lose, and that she’s now herding cows, only to discover she just lost her new cow. Telly has an idea to help her find her cow, and has him and Elmo dress up as “The Cowmonster Pair”, who along with Luis offering clues in the form of Tex/Mex ditties will help Little Bo Peep find her cow. Telly and Elmo decide that in order to find the cow, they have to look for animal tracks, which they find along the sidewalk; assuming it’s the cow, Telly tosses his lasso, only to find he captured Super Chicken, and learns that the tracks are of a chicken’s claw with three long toes. Needing to find rounder tracks, The Cowmonster Pair find rounder tracks leading into Oscar’s trashcan; once again, Telly tosses his lasso, but captures a raccoon instead. Needing to find larger tracks that are shaped like two half moons, The Cowmonster Pair find the tracks they’re looking for leading inside 123; so Telly tosses his lasso, but nabs a Canadian moose who got lost on his way to a frozen tundra. On the verge of giving up (even Luis suggests it in song), Elmo realizes that cows are much smaller than moose, so the tracks they need to look for have to look like those of the moose, but smaller; they follow various animal tracks through the arbor, and find the cow’s tracks, but are puzzled when they just stop, with no sign of the cow in sight, until Bo Peep notices a rope dangling from the sky. Telly pulls the rope, and the cow comes tumbling down, thus Bo Peep and her cow have been reunited thanks to The Cowmonster Pair.

Celebrity Segment: A now-brunette Sarah Jessica Parker and Elmo talk about pairs, demonstrating it to viewers with a pair of shoes, a pair of mittens, and a pair of ice skates, but when Elmo decides he wants to be a pair, Sarah Jessica tells him that the two of them together are a pair.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray tells us that the letter of the day is the letter E, and dresses up with odd things on his face to demonstrate – ears, elephant trunk, and earrings.

Insert (Animated): Cookie Monster and a trio of elephants demonstrate the letter E in a funky little tune.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray leads us into Abby’s Flying Fairy School.

Abby’s Flying Fairy School: It’s Puppet Day at the flying fairy school, and Abby, Gone Again, and Blogg are about to put on a puppet play, but Blogg wants his puppet to be a real boy; using his wand to cast a spell, he accidentally turns himself into a puppet, and learns he has to go through “The Pinocchio Process” to become a real boy again. The process contains three steps – 1. Hop with a cricket, 2. Do the ‘Dance of Joy’ with a donkey, and 3. Swim with a whale. The fairy kids go out into a meadow to look for a cricket, and when they finally do, Blogg is unable to hop with it by himself, and must be helped by his friends pulling his strings; once that is finished, Blogg’s legs and feet are back to normal. Next, the kids travel to a farm, but the donkey they find is less than happy, and starts charging after Blogg; with the help of the class pet Spot, Abby and Gone Again realize that the donkey has no hay to eat, which is making him angry, so Gone Again conjures up some hay for the donkey. This makes it happy, and with the help of his friends, Blogg does the Dance of Joy with the donkey, and finds his arms and hands are back to normal. Now all that is left is for Blogg to swim with a whale, but once under water, he has a confession to make – he doesn’t know how to swim. With the help of his friends, Blogg learns to swim with the whale, and is back to normal completely, and the kids are back in school again, ready for their puppet play… but instead of using their hands to work the strings, they make the puppets move themselves with magic.

Insert (Muppet): Ernie’s Ding-a-long song from Season 37.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray tells us that the number of the day is the number 2, and the neighborhood kids help him demonstrate by showing 2 dogs, 2 hats, and 2 balls that bounce 2 times.

Insert (Animated): The stop-motion adventures of Salty and Peppier – French-accented salt and pepper shakers, respectively, who go in search of what they can find 2 of; they later travel to a lake with a swan, and soon realize there’s another swan, thus they find 2 swans.

Murray Had a Little Lamb: Irish Step Dancing School from Season 39.

Insert (Muppet): Here it is folks, the highly anticipated Mad Men parody sketch.

Insert (Animated): The stop-motion cavemen with their previously aired bit about accidents and forgiveness.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray announces it’s time for Elmo’s World.

Elmo’s World: Farms. Old stuff. Nothing to report.

Closing: Murray reminds us that Sesame Street was brought to us today by the letter E, and by the number 2.

Overall Review: I give today’s episode an even four stars… despite of the continuous Elmo overkill, I actually enjoyed today’s street screen, it just had that familiar fun and educational Sesame vibe to it that we all love; and it was great to hear Frank Oz again, even though the E&B sketch was relatively older, but it’s still nice to know he still does occasional work for SST. And I loved the irony of today’s Abby’s Flying Fairy School segment about puppets, as the characters are pretty much designed to look like Muppets… Rickey Boyd does a good job. Other than that though, the current over-exposure of Murray with him being the unofficial host of the show this season is already starting to get old, but we can’t complain too much, as Joey Mazzarino is head writer this season, so he’ll probably want Murray to get more exposure… but really, Cookie could still do the Letter of the Day, Count the Number of the Day, and nobody does near and far quite like Grover; speaking of which, I’m not really liking how a lot of the inserts with Muppet characters are animated this season… today’s animated insert with Cookie? Forget about it! So to paraphrase what I just said – nice street scene, great to hear Frank again, the inserts could use a little work, and less Murray please.
Episode 4189 – “Baby Bear is Afraid of Bees” (November 12, 2009)

Word On the Street: Murray Monster shares with us the word on the street, which is “pollinate”; kids and adults in the neighborhood explain that “pollinate” is when bees take the pollen from one flower, spreading it to other flowers to continue to help the flowers bloom and grow.

Street Scene: Abby Cadabby and Chris watch Baby Bear complete his latest masterpiece – a picture of the flowers in the garden, though Baby Bear suddenly freaks out when he sees a bee has made its way over to the flowers, and begins a pollination process; Abby and Chris explain to Baby Bear that bees are not to be feared, and give him the age-old, yet not always necessarily true rule that “if you don’t bother them, they won’t bother you”. Baby Bear admits he wishes he wasn’t afraid of bees, so Abby decides to cast a spell on Baby Bear to grant his wish, but accidentally turns Baby Bear and Chris into bees… and doesn’t know how to change them back on her own. Abby tries to contact her mommy on her cellular wand, but can’t get through as she doesn’t have all of her bars, and her network isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Abby heads off to get a better signal, when a bossy worker bee hassles Baby Bear and Chris about slacking off their duties, and tries to put them to work, pollinating flowers, though both Baby Bear and Chris try to explain to him that they’re not really bees, though the worker bee thinks they’re making up excuses to get out of work. Baby Bear learns two things at this point… 1. Bees help flowers, plants, fruits and vegetables grow through pollination, and 2. Chris is allergic to pollen. Upon seeing this, the worker bee decides these “newbees” need to be put to some lighter work, and while Abby is frustrated with her “friends and fairies” calling plan, the worker bee takes Baby Bear and Chris inside a beehive, where they are instructed to produce wax to add on to the hexagons in their honeycomb, and while Chris continues to try to explain they are not really bees, Baby Bear learns that bees make the wax to not only make their honeycomb, but the wax that is used in such things as candles, soaps, and even one of his favorite things – crayons. Still seeing that the newbees aren’t working, the worker bee tries to put them to one last job – making honey. Baby Bear then learns that bees are the ones behind one of his basic food groups, and realizes how important bees really are to the world, and now has a new appreciation for them. Finally grasping the message, the worker bee helps Baby Bear and Chris out of the hive, where they find Abby now has the spell to change them back to their original selves; when all is said and done, Baby Bear decides something is missing from his new masterpiece, and draws a bee next to the flowers he drew, in honor of his new friends – the bees.

Celebrity Segment: Nancy O’Dell is baffled that her new flower friend has no idea what pollination is, until worker bee comes along, and retrieves her pollen, and has him explain to her and the viewers that when he takes the pollen from one flower, he spreads it around to other flowers to continue to help them grow and create more new flowers as well.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray tells us that the letter of the day is the letter F, and goes in search of things that begin with F, such as flashlight, finger, and foot.

Insert (Film): Alphaboy – F (Fanning Father’s Feet with Funky Feathers).

Murray Intermezzo: Murray leads us into Abby’s Flying Fairy School.

Abby’s Flying Fairy School: It’s Recycling Day at school, and the fairies each bring in something that can be recycled – Gone Again brings in assorted metal cans, which can be recycled into a bird house (not sure how safe that would be for the birds, in my opinion), Blogg brings in his collection of belly button lint, which he recycles into a belly button lint doll; lastly, Abby brings in various plastic and glass bottles, one of which is so dusty, she’s not sure what it was used for. Abby tries to rub off the dust, only to discover it’s actually a genie’s bottle, belonging to Gene the Genie, who’s so happy to be out of his cramped bottle, he decides he’s going on a 1001 days’ vacation in Las Vegas, but before he goes, he explains his bottle hates to be empty, and it ends up sucking up Miss Sparklenose. While Gene desperately tries to flee for his vacation, the fairy kids tell him he needs to grant them three wishes, which he reluctantly complies – the first wish it to get Miss Sparklenose out of the bottle, but when that wish is granted, Niblet ends up inside the bottle instead. Thinking about their next wish carefully, Gone Again wishes that not one of them are inside the bottle, to which Gene misinterprets and sends all of them inside the bottle; needing to think extra carefully about their last wish, Spot helps the fairies realize they need to wish for all of them to be out of the bottle, and none of them in, which Gene grants. However, the bottle still hates to be empty, and ends up sucking in Miss Sparklenose again. Gene once again explains that the bottle hates to be empty, and that somebody needs to live in it to make it happy; the fairies suggest he live in it since it’s his bottle, but he refuses saying that it’s so small that he can’t live comfortably inside. With fairy magic, the fairies recycle all of the bottles in the room to create a newer, fancier, and even bigger bottle for Gene that he would be happy to call home, and for whenever he wants to come and go as he pleases, the bottle is also equipped with sliding glass doors.

Insert (Film): Big Bird narrates as none, some, more, and all of the dancers are dancing from Season 27.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray tells us that the number of the day is the number 6, and demonstrates by counting a boy doing 6 jumping jacks, counting the 6 strings on a man’s guitar, and watching 6 kids count themselves off.

Insert (Film): Count sings “Six at Sea” from Season 35.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray leads us into Bert and Ernie’s Great Adventures.

Bert and Ernie’s Great Adventures: Bert and Ernie find themselves taking on an unusual babysitting job for a half-onion/half human fellow named “Mr. Boss”, who runs a nursery with some unusual babies, including a Bavarian mountain plant named Hans, a Mexican cactus named Onath, and a Brazilian flower named Tootsie – each flower has its own special needs: Hans gets bored easily, and in order to perk him back up, one must yodel; Onath gets cold easily, and must be kept warm at all times; and Tootsie may be watered, but never fed. Bert notes all the details, but Ernie is too distracted by the other plants in the nursery to listen, and when Mr. Boss leaves, Bert and Ernie have their work cut out for them – while Bert juggles yodeling for Hans, and bringing Onath warm clothing, Tootsie keeps complaining that she’s hungry, so Ernie feeds her whatever he can from all of Bert’s oatmeal cookies, to an entire bag of plant food. Knowing Mr. Boss isn’t going to be happy when he sees this, Ernie and Bert consult a plant book that Mr. Boss left them in case of an emergency, and it is here that Ernie reads that Tootsie is a samba plant, and in order for her to shrink back to her normal size, her caretakers must wear fruit hats, and dance the samba when with her, which Ernie and a reluctant Bert do, thus a satisfied Tootsie shrinks back to her normal size. After all is said and done, Tootsie still complains that she’s hungry, but learning from his mistake, Ernie refuses to feed her anymore, but gives her a big drink of water instead; when Mr. Boss returns and sees what a good job Bert and Ernie did of babysitting his babies, he decides he feels confident in leaving them in charge while he takes a three week vacation, much to the dismay of Ernie and Bert.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray decides to play a sound game, where the viewers at home help him name the various sounds he hears in the neighborhood from a barking dog, to a whirring helicopter, to a sneezing tiger that has allergies.

Insert (Film): An educational little ditty about bees.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray announces it’s time for Elmo’s World.

Elmo’s World: Skin. Old.

Closing: Murray reminds us that Sesame Street was brought to us today by the letter F, and by the number 6.

Overall Review: Again, the street scene was really nice, both fun and educational, just like a Sesame story should be, and I loved the jabs at how sophisticated technology can be anything but with Abby’s complications with the network her cell-wand’s on, and her “friends and fairies” plan. It would also appear to me that Baby Bear’s overall drawing skills have improved since his old “Hero Guy” days as well. Nice blend of relatively older segments as well, even though “Six at Sea” isn’t really that old to begin with, but it’s one of my favorite current bits. Abby’s Flying Fairy School and Bert and Ernie’s Great Adventures were both amusing in this episode as well… but the one thing that puzzled me the most was the use of Elmo’s World: Skin… that seemed out of place… I figured they would use either the previously aired Elmo’s World: Bugs, or even create a completely new segment focusing on bees. But then again, nobody cares about Elmo’s World anymore anyway, so there’s really no cause to complain there. I give today’s new episode another even four stars… right now, Murray’s preventing me from giving them a full five star rating.
Episode 4190 - “Wild Nature Survivor Guy” (November 13, 2009)

Word On the Street: Murray Monster shares with us the word on the street, which is “nature”, and Murray learns that everything around us that isn’t made by man is a part of nature.

Street Scene: While Leela picks tomatoes from her tomato plants for lunch at Hooper’s a helicopter suddenly circles overhead, and dropping from a rope is Wild Nature Survivor Guy (Jimmy Fallon), who has chosen this “wild” location in nature to practice surviving by his Wild Nature Survivor instincts, consisting of finding food, water, warmth and shelter in order to survive in the wilds of nature, despite Leela, Alan, Elmo, and Rosita constantly telling him that he isn’t really out in the wilds of nature, but rather in the middle of the city. Ignoring that, WNSG goes in search of food for nourishment, and once he sees Leela’s tomato plants, he pounces on them, gorging himself on a fresh tomato so as to provide him with nourishment for survival, much to the disgust of Leela, who takes her plants away from him, and Alan, who tries to tell him he has plenty of food in Hooper’s. Still insisting on surviving on his own, WNSG realizes that he won’t be able to survive for very long without water, and waits for it to rain, so he can consume rain water, only to discover that there’s no rain coming, though it did rain earlier that day; grabbing his canteen, WNSG collects drops of rain water from the leaf of a plant in the community garden, once again refusing Alan’s offer to fill his canteen with a pitcher of water from Hooper’s Store. As the sun begins to set, WNSG must find a way to keep warm, and finds a trail of feathers on the sidewalk, which he stuffs into his safari shirt, reasoning that feathers are one of the best ways nature keeps us warm, even pointing out that Alan’s coat vest is stuffed with feathers. WNSG follows the trail of feathers to a duck, and promptly attacks it, trying to stuff the duck into his shirt, which the duck wants no part of; shirt stuffed with feathers for warmth, WNSG sees night is about to fall, and needs to seek shelter, so gathering two branches that fell from a nearby tree, and finding Big Bird’s nest, WNSG decides that the nest will be the perfect spot to camp out for the night, while the branches provide a covering for him, despite Alan, Elmo, and Rosita explaining to him that someone already lives in the nest, namely Big Bird, who astounds WNSG by his massive size, claiming that a large wild bird like Big Bird is a wonder of nature. Others confused, WNSG explains, in song, that everything and even everyone is all a part of nature, before settling down in Big Bird’s nest for the night.

Celebrity Segment: Debra Messing points out that animals, such as a frog, plants, rocks, and even people are all apart of nature, and that nature is all around us.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray tells us that the letter of the day is the letter D, and wears various things to demonstrate, including a doll, a daisy, dots on his scarf, and dogs on his shirt.

Insert (Animated/Muppet): The silhouettes of Big Bird, Elmo, and Snuffy jam to the letter D on their D-shapes iPods.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray leads us into Abby’s Flying Fairy School.

Abby’s Flying Fairy School: It’s Dance Recital day at school, and while Abby and Blogg are practicing for the recital, Gone Again refuses to participate, reasoning that he doesn’t know how to dance. Miss Sparklenose conjures up something to help Gone Again learn how to dance, namely, Magical Sugar Plum Fairy Dancing Shoes; but before Gone Again can get the shoes on his feet, they start to dance by themselves, prompting Gone Again to chase after them. Gone Again chases the shoes all through out the classroom, growing more and more frustrated each time they slip away. Abby isn’t of much help either when she offers to put a spell on Gone Again to help him dance; each time at the last minute, Gone Again lunges for the shoes, and whatever Abby ends up zapping starts dancing, including a lunchbox, a chair, and an art easel. On the verge of giving up, the fairies consult with Spot to see what they should do about catching the shoes; Spot shows them that dancing isn’t in one’s shoes, it’s in one’s feet, and soon afterwards, Miss Sparklenose helps Gone Again realize that chasing the shoes around actually helped him create some dance moves of his own without realizing it, including a wiggle when Niblet ended up inside his shirt, a slip-and-slide, and a head shake when he got paint on his head – putting the moves together with music, Gone Again realizes he can dance after all, and the fairies are ready to put on their dance recital.

Insert (Street): Miles’ Forward and Backward Dance from Season 39.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray tells us that the number of the day is the number 5, and demonstrates by counting 5 backpacks, a man doing 5 pushups while standing on his hands, and watching 5 kids count themselves off.

Insert (Animated): 5 in space from Season 29.

Murray Had a Little Lamb: Karate School from Season 39.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray prepares to lead us into Elmo’s World, but before he does, he does a demonstration of outside and inside.

Celebrity Segment: Ziggy Marley, along with cameo appearances from other celebrity guests this season; sing “Set Your Piggies Free”, a catchy little tune about bare feet.

Murray Intermezzo: Murray announces it’s time for Elmo’s World.

Elmo’s World: Helping from Season 38.

Closing: Murray reminds us that Sesame Street was brought to us today by the letter D, and by the number 5.

Overall Review: Personally, for some reason, I felt today’s street scene was too fast-paced, and hard to keep up with… not to the extent that we didn’t know what was going on, but rather again, how quickly the story flow went. It just felt very rushed, but it was nice to see Big Bird make an appearance in the street scene, and nice to see Alan have a larger role today as well. I did like the Abby’s Flying Fairy School segment, as it reminded me of an episode of Wimzie’s House, in which Jonas refused to participate in the daycare’s play, fearing that he was a klutz, and would end up ruining the entire play for everybody. I really like Ziggy Marley, and I thought “Set Your Piggies Free” was a cute little number. Other than that… I didn’t really feel today’s episode measured up to previous new episodes… I’d give it three stars, but I think even that might be a little too generous.

In conclusion, while it’s wonderful that Sesame Street has made it this far, and is still going strong, Season 40, to me, looks to be rather hit-and-miss… there are some things that could use a little working, ala more of our favorite Muppets in their original Muppet form – again, Cookie could still do the Letter of the Day, Count the Number of the Day, let Grover do the lectures on things near and far, and outside and inside. With all due respect to Joey, I don’t think making Murray the unofficial host of the show works very well… it would make more sense to give a character with more seniority the hosting duties, but then again, I don’t work for the show, I’m just a fan of it. This has just been the first week, but the excitement for the rest of Season 40 continues to grow, so here’s to looking forward to the rest of what will certainly be a very memorable, and sentimental season of the greatest children’s show in the history of television.

Nov 13, 2009

Sesame Street Week: Day 6 - Sesame Street 40 Years of Sunny Days DVD Review

Sesame Street: 40 Years of Sunny Days
DVD Review

Ryan Dosier - What's going on, Sesame Street fans? Are you having a happy, sunny day? If not, might I recommend picking up a brand new 2-disc DVD box set? No, not the "Death to Smoochy: 'Kill Me Now" Edition"! Go buy Sesame Street: 40 Years of Sunny Days! This set is teetering on the edge of perfection and gives Sesame Street fans things they've been waiting to see for years; including a comprehensive collection of clips from each of the Street's 40 seasons, rare, exclusive behind the scenes footage and interviews with the Sesame people, and a whole lot more. Let's get started, shall we?

THE CLIPS

This set is separated into two DVDs. The first features clips from the seasons 1-20 (1969-1989) and the second features clips from seasons 21-40 (1990-2009). Both discs are jam-packed with all of the clips you would expect: "Rubber Duckie," "People in Your Neighborhood," "Bein' Green," etc. But also included are tons of wonderful surprises along the way including Forgetful Jones' "Oklahoma" performance, Kermit's "African Alphabet," and "Law and Order: Special Letters Unit."

The real highlights of these clips, however, are the inclusion of some of the biggest moments on the Street. Some clips from the Hawaii Episodes, Maria and Luis' Wedding, Big Bird coping with Mr. Hooper's death, Snuffy's introduction to the adults, and an excerpt from the Hurricane Episodes are all included. Being able to have some of the Street's most influential and memorable moments on DVD is a fantastic thing for all fans.

Some of the clips included seem extremely random such as "O-Orange Man," "AlphaQuest," and "Ooh What a Fabulous Party." It seems like these could have been replaced by more well-known sketches that are surprisingly not included like "Alligator King" or the original "C is for Cookie."

Although there are a few odd choices, each and every clip on this set is gorgeous and represents Sesame Street beautifully. From the very first clip of the theme song to the very last clip of the "D-Dance" song from the 40th Season, each one is just an awesome Sesame moment to relive over and over again.

It is truly a treasure to own this set and all of the wonderful, wonderful songs, laughs, and sunny days from 40 years of Sesame Street. It's hard to pick out favorite clips here because they are all so chock-full of cloud-sweeping goodness. Whether you're watching Elmo as The Lord of the Dance or Bert and Ernie building a snowman, you are sure to be in for a treat.

THE BONUS FEATURES

Undoubtedly, one of the biggest selling points of this set is its bonus features. Never before have fans been given such an in-depth, behind the scenes look at Sesame Street. There are interviews with Jon Stone, Caroll Spinney, Leslie Carrara-Rudolph, Jason Weber (puppet designer), Kevin Clash, and Jim Henson (all of whom I could listen to for hours), behind-the-scenes footage of the Muppeteers and the cast members rehearsing various scenes (such as a blue-screen shoot with Elmo, Two-Headed Monster "Telephone," and "Hello, Hello, Hello" song), the making of the Muppet, Dr. Nobel Price, pop-up facts about Sesame Street, and a Fan-Favorite clip: "Bert and Ernie's String-Tied."

All of the bonus features are just incredible and there is enough here to make you watch both discs over and over again (as if the clips weren't enough to do that). So many intricate pieces are included and there are even a few Easter Eggs I'll leave you to find for yourself. I can't praise the bonus features on this set enough and they alone are worth the price of the set.

THE PRESENTATION
Everything on this set is presented beautifully. The clips, the crystal-clear behind the scenes footage, the archive photos presented before various clips--everything is crisp, clear, and beautiful.

Another real treat are the menus on each disc. Every menu has a different song from that disc corresponding to it; even each "page" of the clip selection section has a different song from the season represented on that page. The main menus are all presented on a blacktop looking screen with various props (a Muppet bat, Rubber Duckie, etc.) on the screen.

Each of the two discs are included in a separate slim case with some interesting trivia bits included (and the misnaming of Oscar's trash man, Bruno) on the back and some screenshots from some of the clips on the disc (much like the main box).

The set also includes a small, 24-page book which acts as a preview to Sesame Street: A Celebration - 40 Years of Life on the Street that is a very nice touch and will probably prompt more buyers to pick up the book.

FINAL THOUGHTS

There is absolutely nothing not to love about this set. Everything that is here is perfect and fantastic, sunny, Sesame Street fun. I only wish that there were more included! The clips and bonus features that are included are just fantastic, of course, but it seems that after 40 years more moments could have been included--but, again, there is probably enough Sesame Street out there to fill thousands of DVDs, and this two-disc set is most definitely some of the best of it.

Between the bonus features, the songs, the laughs, the hugs, the embraced tears, the over-arching retrospective of 40 seasons of the greatest children's TV show ever, and the sunny days this set will bring you every time you watch it, the twenty dollar price tag seems like an extremely small price to pay. Especially when you consider that all twenty of those dollars will be going to Sesame Workshop to bring us more and more Sesame Street for 40 more years.

I can't recommend this set enough, no matter what age you are. If you watched Sesame Street in 1969, then this set is for you. If you watched Sesame Street in 1979, then this set is for you. This set is for you if you watched the show in 1989, 1999, or 2009. This set is for any and every Sesame Street fan who wants to escape to their home away from home and hang out with Big Bird, Bob, Kermit, Elmo, Telly, Grover, Ernie, Bert, Mr. Hooper, and all of their friends.

Whether you're watching Ernie croon "Rubber Duckie," C-3PO sing a song about counting with Big Bird, Herry counting with John-John, Mr. Hooper surfing, or Bert and Ernie fishing, this set will be brought to you by the letters A-OK, and the number 1-derful. Be sure to put this set on your holiday wish list or pick it up for yourself wherever DVDs are sold!

Nov 12, 2009

Sesame Street Week: Day 5 - What Does Sesame Street Mean to You?

What Does Sesame Street Mean to You?
Last week on both Muppet Central and ToughPigs forums, I asked the members this question: "What Does Sesame Street Mean to You?" I wanted to know from the show's biggest and most supportive fans why Big Bird, Elmo, Grover, and the rest of the Street mean so much to them. Their responses really provide insight as to how the Street has affected generations of fans.

"Sesame Street gave my imagination a kickstart. Before I could even speak full sentences I used to make my teddies 'talk' to each other saying "Doobie doobie doo". I've always seen pictures, faces and living objects in the world around me. I'm obsessed with colours and see the world from a different perspective to people around me. I hold Sesame Street responsible for this, despite the fact I can only remember a few sketches from the show as a child. My parents have told me the show always kept my enraptured for an hour a day as a kid, and I think it subconsciously changed my perceptions of the world around me. The world is SUCH an amazing place." ~ Beauregard (Muppet Central Forum)

"Sesame Street... It's a great program. No question about that. Kids can learn, and have fun too. And it was successful! Sesame Street is part of the fabric of our culture, and so many other countries'. I hardly ever watched it when I was younger, but now, when I look at clips from it, I see just how great of an idea it was. Take the "The Triangle Is Right" sketch. Adults and older children will laugh at the pointless game show, and younger kids will love to see some of the Street's familiar cast memembers--Guy Smiley and Prairie Dawn--and they'll learn about triangles. Sesame Street appeals to all age groups, and that is what you need with a children's program - not repetitiveness that makes anyone older than 6 want to get out of the room." ~ Henry (ScootertheGofer from Muppet Central Forum)

"Sesame Street was my first experience of real diversity. I grew up in rural Australia, so much of my need to take in the complexity of life on Earth came from TV, films, music, magazines and books. If I trace it back I see that Sesame Street showed me the world could unite, despite and because of it's differences... And over the years it only expanded that vision." ~ Peter Savieri (ToughPigs Forum)

"Sesame Street means almost everything to me. I can't remember when I first watched it, but among the first words I can remember being able to spell are Ernie, Kermit, and Muppet. I had a lot of Sesame Street books, I have some albums, and I have many Sesame Street videos and DVDs. I've seen a handful of Sesame Street Live shows. I visit sesamestreet.org almost every day. Sesame Street is probably the only show where I can remember the original broadcast date (November 10, 1969) off-hand without checking.

Thanks, Sesame Street, to 40 wonderful years and still counting." ~ Michael Wermuth, Jr. (minor_muppetz from Muppet Central Forum)

"Sesame Street for me means so many things I almost can't put into words. It's almost like a home or a family - you turn on the TV and your friends are always there for you. I owe so much to Sesame Street. I learned my ABC's but I also learned about life by watching them each day. I'm so grateful to have grown up in a time period that included it and hope to someday share it with my future children." ~ Beth Kondrick (redBoobergurl from Muppet Central Forum)

"Being about three years younger than Sesame Street, I'm so excited seeing it just as strong and influential as ever (and a bit chagrined knowing that my own 40th birthday won't be too much longer!) Sesame was such a major part of my life as a child - and looking back it's clear just how much that influence stays with me almost four decades later.

Much of this past decade (and the last few years in particular) has been made up of incredible hardships and its mainly been the sense of humor and coping skills that the Muppet mentality had instilled in me that's kept me going and alive today. All in all, Sesame Street and the Muppets have shaped my life and personality tremendously and i thank the whole team for it." ~ D.W. McKim (Muppet Central Forum)

"To me, Sesame Street was more than just a TV show. I remember watching hours of just that show as a child, and I even still watch it now from time to time. The show managed to teach kids in a way they enjoy it using cute puppets and sweet catchy songs, rather than just lecturing them in a classroom. The show not only taught children things like numbers and the alphabet but also deep meaningful values. For example, we all know how cute and fun the songs "It's Not Easy Being Green" and "I'm Proud to be a Cow" are, but they also teach the important lesson of being proud of yourself for who you are. Sesame Street has been an important part of several children's lives for 40 years now, and I am proud to admit that I was and still am one of them." ~ GelflingGirl (Muppet Central Forum)

"My life was changed a lot by Sesame Street. Sure, there were other programs out there that could possibly compare to Sesame, but once I first saw it at age 3 I knew that it was truly the best children's show out there. I watched the show during the 1998-2000 period, from age 3-5. I have many fond memories of the show, including the many days that I watched those classic Bert and Ernie sketches with my father and he laughed more than I, or all of those instances where my grandmother would just break into "C is for Cookie" while I was at her house. On another note, once when I went to a SST Live show and I was escorted backstage to look at all of the props and such. I loved it so much because of all of the humor, the happiness on the street, and eventually I respected it for what it taught me about life and how to accept all people, no matter. I started watching it again in 2007 at age 12 and I still adore it to this day." ~ ohtherain (Muppet Central Forum)

"It's so hard to sum up Sesame Street either generally or personally without writing an entire book about it all. Yes, how it's impacted millions of kids around the world and taught everything from numbers to tolerance to what not to do if there is a monster in your mirror. To me it's something that serves as a sort of connector for people, a way of understanding, of bringing the universe together using these shared experiences. Okay, maybe that's just corny, but if you didn't speak a word of Japanese, someone over there would probably recognize a reference to Kermit the Frog.

It's impossible to forget or grow tired of, whether it's just nostalgia or something life-shaping; no one outgrows their need for Sesame Street-- the need to laugh and learn and sometimes just be a kid and EAT COOKIES! No one ever really leaves Sesame Street, what's sad are the people who try to leave." ~ APRena (Muppet Central Forum)

"For me, Sesame Street has influenced me as an artist, with the elaborate puppetry and always excellent music and animations; it has influenced much of my work. Half of my mixed media artworks get remarks claiming it reminds people of Sesame Street.

The humour used on the show, has been instrumental in forming my own style of humour. Doing occasional stand up and being a songwriter; Sesame Street's skit based visual humour and wordplay helped give me a healthy sense of humour. And as someone currently writing a musical; I find myself again and again refering back to "The Street" when inspiration runs flat." ~ The Shoe Fairy (Muppet Central Forum)

"Sure, we can say all we want about about how funny Ernie and Bert are, how much we love Pinball Number Count and hate Elmo, but that's not what Sesame Street means to me at all. There has never been a greater cultural phenomenon as big as Sesame Street. Not fleetingly popular stuff like Pokemon or Dora or anything like that. Not even long lasting shows like the Simpsons and Saturday Night Live that had a major cultural impact. No. This show built an empire. A Children's television empire that no one has been able to emulate since the first show in 1969. We saw the amazing collaboration between a start up company and Jim Henson, as well as so many others. Even the famous animator, John Hubley. The people who worked on the show in it's 40 year history (and even its prehistory) give a list that's far more than impressive. And look at the show's reach. All those great co-productions for other countries so their kids can grow up not thinking about their country's problems. A puppet character teaching kids about HIV, and all with a smile on its face, acting like a normal person? Ha! I'd like to see Romper Room or Blue Clues reach their hands out that far to comfort the world's children.

Sure, Sesame Street means a lot to my childhood.... and yours, and yours and yours... but it goes beyond that. Sesame Street IS the magic and wonder of childhood. Not just for us, not just for our children, for people we never even know exist! it's more than just some cartoon, or kid's show. It's a global outreach that employs artists. The characters are part of who we are... even the tiny obscure ones." ~ Drtooth (Muppet Central Forum)

"Would you believe me if I told you I didn't watch Sesame Street as a child?

It's true. That was before they told you the whole plot right away. I'm told that the first time I sat down to watch Sesame Street, when they cut to the first "commercial break," I thought the show was over and started crying. Really! I devoted my childhood television hours to Mr. Rogers and Barney. I don't want anyone to get the impression that my childhood was Sesameless. Au contraire! Mommy watched a bunch of neighborhood kids when I was little. Sesame Street was definitely around.

My earliest Sesame memories are just snapshots of a few bits and sketches... Ernie sitting on the moon and singing, animated numbers, outlines of squares and rectangles in windows and buildings, cartoon water drops coming out of a faucet singing "Don't waste water water water!"

Then there was Follow That Bird. We had the VHS, and watched it... who knows how many times. A lot. Of course, I've watched it so many times in recent years that I don't remember what I USED to remember of it... but it was a fond memory, indeed. I was utterly thrilled when I found the DVD in the bargain bin at WalMart, and no amount of "You're HOW old now?" eye-rolls from my mother could change that!

But the fundamental part of Sesame Street in my childhood was the music. My sisters had a Sesame Street record that would come out every few years and play again and again for weeks on end... That is still the version of "Somebody Come and Play" that sticks in my head, and I haven't heard it in years and years. I think we lost the record at some point... Tragic loss, that. But we still have our great big Sesame Street piano book. We've had that as long as I can remember. I STILL don't know all of the songs in it. It has everything from the Theme Song to Big Bird's "Tall Enough" to "The Word is No" to "True Blue Miracle." I don't know what I was thinking, leaving it at home while I'm at college. That and a rubber duckie... both are yellow and Sesame. ...I guess I associate the color yellow with Sesame Street. I can't BEGIN to imagine why... Oh, hi Big Bird!

Sesame Street, to me, is a safe place. It's somewhere I can go to relax, and go back to the basics... the ABC's and 1-2-3's of life. Get a good laugh, a good cheer... a good emotional suntan, basically. A healthy dose of yellow.

Yeah... that's what Sesame Street means to me. A healthy dose of yellow... and somewhere, in the back of my mind, those darned singing water drops." ~ TogetherAgain (Muppet Central Forum)

If you would like to tell us what Sesame Street means to you, comment on this article or tell us on Facebook!

Nov 11, 2009

Weekly Muppet Wednesdays: Big Bird

Written by Ryan Dosier.

BIG BIRD

Performed by...
Caroll Spinney (1969-present)
Matt Vogel (various appearances since 2000)

First appearance...
Sesame Street Season 1: Episode 0001 (1969)

Most recent appearance...
Sesame Street Season 44 (2013)

Height...
8 feet, 2 inches

Best known role...
Fun-loving, curious, friendly, happy six year old bird resident of Sesame Street.

Best friend...
Mr. Snuffleupagus

WHO IS BIG BIRD?
Big Bird has always been the face of Sesame Street. He was the first Muppet character to appear in the show's first episode, and he was the focus of the premiere episode of the landmark 40th season. As one of the most popular characters on the Street, Big Bird has been through a lot over the years, but he has never lost his charm or appeal.

In his first appearance, and throughout the first season, Big Bird was very different from the way we know him today. He was performed as a goofy, country yokel type character. Most notably, he was not portrayed as a child. Writers wrote Big Bird as sort of the "village idiot" of Sesame Street. It wasn't until an episode where Big Bird pined to go to a day care center with the kids of the Street that performer Caroll Spinney realized who Big Bird's character really was. "I thought maybe he shouldn't be a big goofy guy," Caroll said. "Why would he want to go to day care if he wasn't a kid? He could be a kid--naive and learning." Once this revelation was made, more feathers were added to Big Bird's head to make him look less goofy, and he became the bird we know and love today.

Since that day, Big Bird sky-rocketed in popularity. He made the cover of TIME Magazine in November 1970, which proclaimed Sesame Street "TV's Gift to Children." Soon, more and more Sesame Street episodes and specials began to focus on the Bird. By the 1980's, Big Bird was a powerhouse, starring in two specials; Big Bird in China and Big Bird in Japan, along with his very own feature film: Follow That Bird.

Throughout the run of the show, Big Bird has been the focus of most of the show's biggest moments. In the second season, Big Bird met (a very scary looking) Mr. Snuffleupagus. Every time the bird attempted to introduce his adult friends to Snuffy, Snuffy would just barely miss them as he returned to his cave to brush his teeth or grab a tie. This led Big Bird's adult friends to deem the Snuffleupagus as imaginary. It wasn't until Season 17 in 1985 that Bob, Susan, Gordon, Maria, and all of the other adults on Sesame Street finally met Snuffy and believed Big Bird after all their years of disbelief.

Big Bird was also instrumental when Sesame Street dealt with the death of Mr. Hooper. In the classic scene, Big Bird brings all of his adult friends drawings he has done of them. When he hands them all out and has only Mr. Hooper's left, the adults have to explain to Big Bird that Mr. Hooper died and isn't coming back. This is often regarded as Big Bird's most famous moment on the show.

More recently, in 2001, Big Bird's nest was destroyed in a hurricane when Sesame Street taught about dealing with crises after the terrorist attacks on New York City in 2001. The Bird was also the focus of the Season 40 premiere episode, in which he contemplates migrating away from Sesame Street.

Big Bird has been there for all of Sesame Street's biggest moments, and will be there for all of the ones to come. He will also presumably be six when they happen, too. In the 20th Anniversary special Sesame Street: 20 and Still Counting, when Bill Cosby asked Big Bird how he could still be six after 20 years, Big Bird laughed and responded, "Just lucky, I guess!"

Very lucky, indeed.

BIG BIRD AND CAROLL SPINNEY

Since the very first episode, and forty years later, Big Bird has been performed by Caroll Spinney. Big Bird and Caroll share an immensely powerful bond. So much so that Caroll's autobiography is titled The Wisdom of Big Bird. Caroll obviously loves the Bird if he is still willing and able to perform inside the huge, somewhat heavy costume, even at 75 years old.

Caroll was actively involved in choosing an understudy for him as Big Bird. Ultimately, Matt Vogel was chosen as the understudy for Big Bird. During auditions, Caroll Spinney shook hands with Matt and told him, "You know, Vogel means bird in German. This may be just the job for you."

BIG BIRD SONGS

WHY DOES SESAME STREET NEED BIG BIRD?

It is obvious why the Bird is needed on the Street. In many ways, Big Bird is Sesame Street. Big Bird represents the love, innocence, curiosity, and hilarity of Sesame Street. He also represents the immense staying power of the show. Big Bird has been around for all of the show's 40 years. There is nothing more representative of Sesame Street's 40 years than the Bird, and that's why Sesame Street needs him. Without Big Bird, there really is no Sesame Street.

The Bird may have been overshadowed in recent years, but he is always there with a smile, a song, or a question. As he sang in yesterday's season premiere, "Sesame Street is my habitat. Sesame Street is my home." And Sesame Street finds a home in Big Bird. In his heart, his soul, and his hugs.

Nov 10, 2009

Sesame Street Week: Day 3 - Everything I Know, I Learned from Sesame Street

Everything I Know, I Learned from Sesame Street

Ryan Dosier – I’ve been thinking a lot about Sesame Street lately. The characters, the songs, the people, the way it has affected the world, the 75 million “graduates” of the Street, what things would be like without it, how to get there… And I keep coming back to one unshakable thought; one rock solid fact: Sesame Street has influenced the lives of more children than any other television show ever. Sesame Street has influenced the world more than any other television show ever. Sesame Street has influenced my life more than any other television show ever.

I have been a Sesame seed since as far back as I can remember. There are home videos of me in a crib with a Sesame Street mirror. I remember reading “The Monster at the End of This Book” and watching my “Sing Along” videotape until it almost wouldn’t play anymore.

At every period in my life I can think back and recall Sesame Street having some sort of effect on it. Be it my 3rd birthday when a walk-around Big Bird visited me at the zoo, or my 16th birthday when the first thing I did after getting my driver’s license was go to Best Buy and purchase Sesame Street Old School: Volume 1, Sesame Street has always been there.

And, thankfully, it looks like it always will. After 40 years of producing over 4100 consistently high quality shows, Sesame Street shows absolutely no sign of stopping. How could it? It has become such an ingrained part of our society that we’ve actually started to take it for granted. We know that it has always been there and we assume that it always will be; we just can’t expect it to just suddenly go away.

Big Bird, Elmo, and the rest of the gang have taught millions and millions of children so many things beyond just the letters and numbers they set out to teach in 1969. They have taught words, songs, environmentalism, math, reading, computer literacy, even toilet training! I would like to show you just a few of the things Sesame Street has taught me that I use everyday.

Learning
Of course the primary goal of Sesame Street is to teach, so it’s no wonder that I’m starting with Learning. Sesame Street taught me the importance of learning at a very young age. I think they instilled in me my curious nature. I always want to find out more information about things that interest me (including Sesame Street, wouldn’t ya know) and I can only attribute this to the Street. Sesame Street taught me that learning can be fun.

How can you not have fun learning when Big Bird, Grover, or Cookie Monster are your teachers? Imagine how much more fun school would be if The Count taught math or Murray Monster taught English classes. Heck, even Oscar could be the lovably grouchy janitor! I would argue that Sesame Street is better than school in all aspects. At what school are your best friends and classmates eight-foot two-inch yellow birds or a monster that won’t steal your lunch money, but will eat your lunchbox?

Sesame Street was the first thing to show me that learning could be fun. I would assume this is the same for millions of children all over the world. I mean, why else would that “alphabet” thing be so darn popular? It MUST be because of Sesame Street!

Lilting
My first week in college, my English professor handed us an assignment, asking us to write a page about our first memory of music. I had to sit down and actually think about what I first remember hearing. The answer, which is probably a surprise to no one, is Sesame Street music.

When I was about five or six, my mom bought the cassette of “Platinum All-Time Favorites.” When I was about seven, she had to buy a new one because my little brother and I had run the tape dry. I distinctly remember being in the car on a beautiful sunny day and hearing “Monster in the Mirror” and “Fuzzy and Blue” while, on more cloudy days, I remember “Little Things” and “Bein’ Green.” Is it any wonder that these songs have stuck with me for 15 years?

Sesame Street was my first real exposure to music. It opened the door for me to an entire musical world—it still does that today, in fact. New musical artists on the Street lead me to new discoveries of their music outside of the Street. I first heard of The Goo Goo Dolls when they sang “Slide (Pride)” with Elmo, and now they are one of my favorite bands. And now that I’m an older Sesame Street fan (yeah, yeah, point and laugh—you aren’t the first!), I recognize some of my favorite musicians visiting the show to lend their voices and skills with the Muppets. James Blunt and Telly, Plain White T’s and the Letter T, Ray Charles and Kermit, Jason Mraz and the cast… all of these hugely popular musicians visited the Street, giving children their first glimpse and listen into the world of music.

The musical aspect of Sesame Street, be it a song of Joe Raposo, Jeff Moss, Christopher Cerf, Tony Geiss, or Feist, is one of its most vitally important pieces of the show. It acts as the first exposure to music for most children who tune in. That first bar of the theme song that proclaims a sunny day sweeping the clouds away is more often than not the most lasting impression music that children will ever receive—or… this child, at least.

Laughing

If learning is Sesame Street’s main goal, then laughing is its vice president. Nearly every aspect of the show can be drawn back to the purpose of making its viewers laugh. Whether it be a hysterical pratfall by Bert to make the younger viewers giggle, or Grover declaring, “You cannot shove singing and dancing under the door, it is artistic!” to make their parents laugh out loud, Sesame Street is comedy at its finest.

There is no doubt in my mind that my sense of humor came straight from the Street. It represents everything that makes me laugh: puns, ridiculous character traits, physical humor, and good, old-fashioned, slapstick wit.

This is the aspect of Sesame Street that has probably influenced my life the most. Every day I find myself referring back to Ernie and Grover and Telly when trying to make someone laugh. I can never be a waiter because I would find myself too tempted to imitate Grover’s classic sketches. I can probably never function well with a roommate because Ernie has given me too many great ideas. I can never hear someone freaking out about something because I will mock them by becoming comically neurotic like Telly.

It may seem that Sesame Street has left me unable to function in society—but that’s simply not true. I would fit in perfectly in Sesame Street’s society! (Hint, hint, nudge, nudge to anyone from the Street that may be reading—Elmo, baby, e-mail me; we’ll do lunch!)

Loving
Perhaps the greatest lesson I’ve learned on the Street is how to love. The Sesame Street gang has taught me that loving everyone of all shapes, sizes, colors, fur-consistencies, or species is important.

You would be hard-pressed to find a group that hasn’t been represented on Sesame Street. African Americans, Asian Americans, Latin Americans, Native Americans, Indian Americans, Monster Americans, deaf, blind, mentally and physically disabled, grouchy, hungry, county, Ernie, cookie (COOOOOOKIE?!), magical, flightless, hard-working, bottlecap collecting, lisped, imaginary, Slimey, Smiley, and everything else in between have all been stars on the Street.

Sesame Street has taught me and children everywhere that all of these people are important and special. It provides children a sense of appreciation and understanding for people of all walks of life. There is no question that the world would be a better place if there was a mandatory class on Sesame Street teaching tolerance. Simply hearing Ernie and Bert’s “But I Like You” song is enough to teach acceptance and appreciation.

It was Bert and Ernie who taught me tolerance. Ernie tortures Bert day in and day out with ridiculous antics, yet Bert still loves Ernie as his best friend. And even though Bert is boring and doesn’t always like to play with Ernie, Ernie still loves his old buddy Bert. If that isn’t acceptance, I don’t know what is.

Living

Sesame Street’s undying message is that life should be sunnier. For 40 years the theme song has proclaimed sunny days sweeping clouds away, and for 40 years, Sesame Street has done just that in the lives of its fans and viewers. Sesame Street is a world that everyone wants to live on. It is a place where it is always sunny, where there is always a song to be sung, a laugh to be had, a hug to be shared.

Sesame Street provides a model for the rest of the world. It shows acceptance and tolerance and happiness. If the world was more like Sesame Street, we can only assume that there would be fewer wars, less pointless bickering between political groups, less unemployed and uneducated individuals, more fuzzy monsters, more Fix-It Shops, and more birdseed milkshakes, more singing—basically everything that Oscar hates; which… he likes, but of course he hates that he likes it, so that makes him—oh, you know the story!

I have always dreamt of living on Sesame Street. As a child, I distinctly remember pondering packing up my clothes and my stuffed dog and running away to Sesame Street. I knew Big Bird and Bob and Maria would all be waiting for me there with open arms. Obviously, I never did run away to Sesame Street… but it’s still a dream. Sesame Street is always there as a dream—as the dream. It is the greatest place on earth. Everyone loves each other, everyone loves everything (except Oscar), everyone is happy. It is truly the epitome of happiness, and if they sold apartments on the Street—or even on the set, I would be moving there immediately.

After 40 years of sunny days, there are still no clouds in sight for the happiest street in the world. They will continue to shine through any clouds that blow their way and kids all over the world, much like me, will continue to learn and grow up on the Street. They will continue to sing with Big Bird, dance with Elmo, laugh with Grover, and grumble with Oscar.

On Today last Friday, Elmo was asked “What do you have planned for the next 40 years?” The little monster thought for a second before answering, “We hope we get to sing and dance and love each other just as much as we’ve been loving each other for 40 years!”

What more could anyone ever ask for from Sesame Street? As long as Big Bird, Elmo, Cookie Monster, Ernie, Bert, Grover, The Count, Zoe, Abby Cadabby, Rosita, Telly, Prairie Dawn, Baby Bear, Mr. Snuffleupagus, Bob, Susan, Gordon, Maria, Luis, Gina, Alan, Murray Monster, Chris, Leela, Barkley, Gabi, Slimey, Hoots, Herry, Guy Smiley, Two-Headed Monster, and, yes, even Oscar the Grouch, are still able to sing and dance and love each other, the show will go on for 40 more years and 75 million more children will learn, lilt, laugh, love, and live.

But no matter how many children learn from the Street, one thing will always be certain: They will always be asking how to get there.

Happy 40th Birthday, Sesame Street! Here’s to 40 more years of singing, dancing, and loving each other! Thank you for everything you have ever done for the world over the past 40 years. It is truly a sunny world because of you! There are not enough words in the 120 languages you are broadcast in to illustrate how much you mean to me. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Nov 9, 2009

Sesame Street Week: Day 2 - The World Celebrates the Street

NOTE: Our very special interview planned for today has been pushed back due to our very special interviewee needing more time to complete the questions. We will publish the interview as soon as we are able! Thank you for understanding!

Be sure to catch Elmo and Rosita on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon tonight on NBC at 12:35am ET/PT!

Today we take a look at how the world has turned out to celebrate Sesame Street's 40th Anniversary. There have been tons and tons of newspaper and blog articles discussing the happiest street in the world, along with videos interviewing the Muppets of the Street. Here is a rundown of what the world has been saying:

THE MEDIA
Google, of course, has been featuring the Sesame Street characters for the past six days, concluding tomorrow. Big Bird, Cookie Monster, Bert and Ernie, Elmo, and The Count have all appeared so far.