Happy 40th Birthday, Sesame Street!
“Can you tell me how to get, can you tell me how to get, how to get to Sesame Street ……”
Happy 40th Birthday, Sesame Street!
Forever young and forever loyal fans we are of The Muppets and Sesame Street, remember, we started very young! So many of us grew up with Sesame Street in our living rooms, and now our children are watching and learning from The Muppets and the Sesame Street community. Sesame Street is about learning, living, neighbourhoods, humanity, diversity, and inclusiveness.
Sesame Street premiered on PBS on November 10, 1969. The Muppets characters were created by the late Jim Henson, the leading force and shining light behind the longest running children’s series on U.S. television. By 2006, Sesame Street had become the most widely viewed children’s television program in the world, broadcasting in over 120 countries with 20 international independent versions produced. By this year’s 40th Birthday, Sesame Street is ranked the fifteenth most popular children’s show on television. Sesame Street now holds the Guinness Record for most Emmy wins by a television series, with 122 Emmy Awards.
Video: Sesame Street “Sunny Days” song
Sesame Street made learning fun, not only for the kids but also “helped out a lot of parents.” Along with the television series, there are Sesame Street movies, books, magazines, video and audio, and especially, the must-have toys for Christmas and birthdays. How many bleary-eyed and brave moms and dads had lined up for that bright red fuzzy “Tickle Me Elmo?” We love them all: Elmo, Big Bird, Cookie Monster, Oscar the Grouch, Bert and Ernie, The Count, Mr. Snuffleupagus or Snuffy, Grover, Zoe, Kermit the frog, and more …
“Sesame Street uses a combination of animation, puppets, and live actors to stimulate young children’s minds, improve their letter and word recognition, basic arithmetic, geometric forms, classification, simple problem solving, and socialization by showing children or people in their everyday lives. Since the show’s inception, other instructional goals have been basic life skills, such as how to cross the street safely, proper hygiene, healthy eating habits, and social skills; in addition, real-world situations are taught, such as death, divorce, pregnancy and birth, adoption, and even all of the human emotions such as happiness, love, anger, and hatred.” (Source: Wikipedia)
U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama plants a garden with Elmo and Big Bird on Tuesday’s November 10 premiere of the 40th season of Sesame Street (see the video below for this season’s highlights). More than 400 celebrities have guest-starred since the first episode aired – whether its singing, dancing, reading, counting, anything to share an unforgettable experience with the Sesame Street gang and The Muppets. And they all love it! To name a few throughout the years, they have included Johnny Cash, Lena Horne, Andrea Bocelli, Stevie Wonder, Feist, Danny Devito, Christopher Reeve, Ray Charles, Yo-Yo Ma, Diana Krall, Whoopi Goldberg, Itzhak Perlman, Alec Baldwin, Smokey Robinson, Tina Fey, Patti Labelle, Jack Black, Norah Jones, Paul Simon, Ben Stiller, David Beckham, Natalie Portman and three other First Ladies. This 40th milestone season will be Sesame Street’s most “star-studded” as yet, with 32 guest stars signed up, including Sarah Jessica Parker, Jimmy Fallon and Kobe Bryant. The show continues to be in high demand among celebrities. Executive producer Carol-Lynn Parente says they have more requests for guest appearances than they can accommodate in the 26 new episodes they film each year. These guest stars keep the show current and helps draw in the parents, since Sesame Street encourages parents and children to view the shows together for the greatest educational benefits.
Season 40 features a science and environmental theme, 3-D computer-generated animation segments and a brand new look; however, the preschool education curriculum and learning which is Sesame Street’s “heart and soul” remain the focus as it did 40 years ago.
Happy Big 4-0 Sesame Street!
Video: Sesame Street: Season 40 Highlights
Similar Posts:
- Feist on Sesame Street
- Street Food in Beijing, Parts 1 & 2 video
- Natalie Portman as director; Cambridge U in soaps
- Carla Bruni Sarkozy joins Metallica and Paul McCartney
- Indonesian Street Kids Find Rescue in Organic Farming
