Sesame Street

Sesame Street is a television show for children on the PBS network. It has been around since 1969 and has spawned a series of movies, books, magazines, and toys. Sesame Street features muppets interacting with adults and children in an educational setting that emphasizes learning numbers and letters. The show has won a number of Emmy Awards and is shown in over 25 languages around the world.

Spinoffs

Sesame Street successfully launched the career of Jim Henson's muppets and has produced countless imitations and variations. A number of Sesame Street movies have been made, including Follow That Bird and The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland. Sesame Street characters have made appearances on a number of game and talk shows. Many stuffed animals of the Sesame Street characters are sold in amazing quantities and the Tickle Me Elmo is considered to be one of the best selling toys of all time. A number of musical albums have been released by Sesame Street characters, most notably Bert's Blockbusters which scored an unexpected success in 1974 with the single Doin' the Pigeon.

Muppet Characters

• Big Bird
• Cookie Monster
• Snuffleupagus
• Oscar the Grouch
• Elmo
• The Count
• Bert & Ernie
• Telly Monster
• Kermit the Frog
• Grover
• Miss Piggy

Controversy

Sesame Street has been criticized its liberal bias and for encouraging children to watch television. The story lines in the episodes often revolve around socialist issues and challenge conservative values. Oscar the Grouch is widely understood to be a homeless character. The characters Bert and Ernie are often recognized as a homosexual couple, as they live in the same house and share clothing and a bedroom. Bert once taught Ernie how to knit. The show is also known for promoting the arts, organic gardening, and union organizing.

External Links

• Sesame Street homepage