Published: November 10, 2009 01:51 pm      

LIFESTYLE: 'Sesame Street' turns 40 years old

When the creators of “Sesame Street” first pitched the idea of a fuzzy elephant and digit-loving vampire teaching children, youth-oriented programming was sparse.

Led by Joan Ganz Cooney, the Children’s Television Workshop had to worry about “Captain Kangaroo,” “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” and “The Friendly Giant.” CTW leaders aimed to differentiate their program — which would be called “Sesame Street” when it debuted Nov. 10, 1969 — by pouring extensive research into the show so that it was the ideal mix of education and entertainment.

Now, as “Sesame Street” enters its 40th season Tuesday, there are more networks devoted to children’s programming than there were children’s programs when the PBS landmark premiered. But the plethora of competitors — many of whom are imitators — owe thanks to, and still can’t compare with, the rag tag mix of monsters and men who occupy that small urban neighborhood.

Some of the faces — Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, Bob, Luis — remain the same as in decades past, but changes have occurred. Elmo lingered in the background for some time before becoming a cultural and Christmas shopping icon over the past couple decades, while Cookie Monster learned that his favorite sweets are a “sometimes food” and letters-and-numbers lessons have learned to share space with some information on technology and the environment.

“It's continued to evolve over the years, and that's the key to its longevity,” said Carol-Lynn Parente, the show’s executive producer for more than two decades.

“Sesame Street” not only evolved, but it also forced the rest of the world to change. African-Americans, Hispanic people, Asians and people of all other cultures melted into the urban pot of “Sesame Street,” along with monsters , giant birds and grouches.

“I liked the ethics and the compassion they showed on the show toward the characters,” said Susan Ferrio, vice principal of St. Andrew’s Country Day School in Kenmore. “Our country is made up of all different people. God created us all different, and we’re unique. But he also accepted us all for who we are.”

Ferrio raised three children in North Tonawanda, where she and her husband still live. She got into education only after her youngest child (a son who’s now 23) started school. She cited “Sesame Street” — which she admitted to watching even after her children fell asleep or played elsewhere — as one source of inspiration for her career choice.

“There was no treatment of anybody different than anybody else, and that’s what I always wanted to make sure of when I taught,” said Ferrio, who now watches the show with her 6-year-old grandson.

Humble beginnings

Spearheaded by Cooney and Jim Henson, the CTW (now called the Sesame Workshop) set out with some simple goals: create a daily hour-long show for 3- to 5-year-olds that would use music, puppets and stories to teach children the alphabet and numbers. In chronicling the show in his book, “Street Gang: The Complete History of ‘Sesame Street,’ ” writer Michael Davis said that CBS and NBC turned down the project before it was picked up by PBS.

A lot of time was devoted to researching and fundraising for the show, while matters such as casting and naming the show lingered until close to its premiere. No one could agree upon a suitable name, Cooney recalled in Davis’ book, but since the deadline had arrived, “We decided that ‘Sesame Street’ was the least bad” option, she said.

A good number of cast members remain from that first season, including Loretta Long (Susan), Bob McGrath (Bob) and Carroll Spinney (the puppeteer for Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch). Viewers immediately took to this eclectic mix of would-be educators, and within a few years of its launch “Sesame Street” had achieved icon status.

“ ‘Sesame Street’ was originally conceived so that less advantaged children would arrive in school with the same preparation as middle-class children,” Cooney said in a letter to viewers earlier this year. “Co-founder of the Workshop Lloyd Morrisett and I weren’t sure the show would make it past the first season, so it is both surreal and wonderful for us to see ‘Sesame Street’ reach such a landmark.”

The show has achieved landmark status at Rochester’s Strong National Museum of Play, where a “Sesame” exhibit is on long-term display.

“The program has had such a deep impact on our culture that it belongs in a museum that takes American cultural history as its primary interest,” Scott Eberle, museum vice president for interpretation, said in an e-mail. “For most people, it’s probably easier to recognize Big Bird’s face than it is to recognize the portraits of most American presidents.”

That impact has, at time, moved beyond the scope of letters and numbers. Women’s liberation, equitable treatment of people with disabilities and even the recent swine flu scare have been topics of discussion.

One such event came in November 1983, when the human cast of the show had to explain the concept of death to Big Bird, who couldn’t comprehend that store owner Mr. Hooper wasn’t returning (the actor, Will Lee, had died of a heart attack in December 1982). Questioning why he had to die, Gordon’s reply summed it up as best as could be understood by young children: “Because. Just because.”

A changing culture

Preschoolers aren’t the only 21st century beings with different lives. In 1969, many people considered it lazy or even damaging to children to have them watch television instead of interacting with people. That’s not the case any more, Parente said.

“Parents are no longer afraid to admit that their parents use televisions as a babysitter sometimes, where there might have been a stigma attached to that 40 years ago,” she said. “We want to be able to be that for parents, because we know that the content is so valuable.”

Indeed, the U.S. Department of State estimates that some 75 million Americans grew up watching the show. There are now 20 international editions of the show, the State Department said, with “Sesame Street” broadcasts airing in more than 140 nations, making it the most-watched children’s show on Earth.

Kelly Ceckowski, an elementary school art teacher from North Tonawanda, said her father used to commonly pull a quote from the show: “Cooperation makes it happen.”

“My younger brother and I danced around our living room to Bert’s ‘Doing the Pigeon’ and Oscar’s ‘I Love Trash,’ ” she said in an e-mail. “I learned my alphabet with the ‘letter of the day’ and counted along with The Count. My whole family laughed together each show.”

Elayne Rapping, a professor of American studies at the University at Buffalo and pop culture expert, said that “Sesame Street” is largely responsible for pop culture having the status it does today.

“What ‘Sesame Street’ did ... is to start taking popular culture much more seriously, as something that’s not going to rot your children’s brains but as something that’s hip and fun and interesting,” she said.

“Sesame Street” has, in fact become something of a family treasure to pass down from generation to generation, Eberle said.

“ ‘Sesame Street’ has aired long enough that viewers now include great-grandparents and great-grandchildren — there are very few subjects and few activities that a multi-generational family can share so comfortably,” he said. “Of all the children’s educational shows, ‘Sesame Street’ is still really the only one that adults can watch alongside their children. It’s unlikely that little kids will know why it’s so funny to have Katie Couric, Hillary Clinton or B.B. King on the show ... but for adults, the inside jokes are funny enough to keep them watching. This is hard to do.”

Holding the world’s interest

As the 40th season gets set to kick off Tuesday, Parente said that special attention was paid to revamping the program in the age of mass technology. A new title sequence features a more contemporary introduction, while season 40 will feature Abby the fairy-in-training in a new computer-animated segment. The show will also air in a block format to more closely resemble typical broadcasting, as longer segments will be linked by educational transitions.

“They still approach each season as an experiment,” Davis wrote in his book. “As long as they do that, they will grow and change as children grow and change and the culture grows and changes.”

That, Rapping said, is just one more example of how “Sesame Street” has thrived while so many of its peers have died.

“Little kids are in tune to everything. They use computers. They don’t want the old kind of stuff anymore,” she said. “It goes fast, and it’s colorful, and it’s jazzy. It’s an attention-getter at a time when attention spans are getting lower.”

One thing that will not change is the use of celebrities. Kobe Bryant, Cameron Diaz and Hugh Jackman will be on this year. Also appearing is first lady Michelle Obama, who will encourage viewers of the first episode to grow and eat their own produce as part of the show’s season-long environmental curriculum.

“For our audience, it’s about instilling a love and an awe for experiencing their environment,” Parente said.

Having celebrities appear on the show is still a thrill, but Parente said a telling sign of the show’s legacy is those celebrities’ reactions to appearing on “Sesame Street.”

“We're always reminded by their reaction to being on our set, seeing ‘Sesame Street’ — the real place — for the first time. They meet Big Bird, Elmo for the first time. They’re the real rock stars,” she said.

Down to business

The biggest show on Earth has naturally spawned big business over the years. Hundreds of licensees make products related to the show, including East Aurora-based Fisher-Price, according to Brenda Andolina, Fisher-Price’s director of public relations and brand marketing.

“We’ve worked together to help bring ‘Sesame Street’s’ endearing characters to life for the generations of children and their parents who’ve enjoyed the show for 40 years,” Andolina said via e-mail, citing Tickle Me Elmo among many successful collaborations.

There are also live events (“Sesame Street Live” always draws well when it visits Buffalo, while the Buffalo Museum of Science will host the “Sesame Street Presents: The Body” anatomy exhibit beginning Feb. 27), videos, books and other items. Sesame Workshop earned $145 million in fiscal 2008, according to records from the nonprofit group.

As for the program itself, Parente said that it takes about 10 hours to film the segments for one episode. Filming only commences after a curriculum seminar and writers’ meetings take place, though, with production meetings and follow-up research and screening adding up to several weeks’ worth of work going into each hour that’s broadcast.

“For a show that seems simple, a lot of work goes into it,” she said.

Into the future

When Parente was interviewed a few weeks ago, she spoke while taking a break from filming the show’s 41st season, to be broadcast next fall (the 40th season was delayed to coincide with the anniversary air date). So while crew members were too busy to fully appreciate the milestone, the moment was not completely lost on everyone, she said.

“When you’re working on the show every day, sometimes you forget its impact,” she said.

Nary a viewer has forgotten, though.

“The show has such a great influence. It’s just great,” Ferrio said.

“The show will be remembered most for its style, the way it cleverly blends education and entertainment,” Eberle said. “As for content, Sesame Workshop keeps a big, thick notebook that contains its educational goals. The (museum) exhibit boils the ‘Sesame Street’ philosophy down to literacy, numeracy and diversity. And that’s where they’ve made their biggest impact.”

“ ‘Sesame Street’ was the one program in my childhood I remember best,” Ceckowski said. “I still find myself watching it today, and (I) know that will continue when I have a family of my own.”

“ ‘Sesame Street’ is deservedly long-lived,” Rapping said. “It deserves to last.”