49 Fun Facts About Sesame Street

In what year did the television show Sesame Street first premiere?

1969's debut reached only about two-thirds of American TV homes yet drew 1.9 million households; the Muppets were added late, after test screenings found kids tuned out during the all-human street scenes.

Which two people created Sesame Street, an idea born at a 1966 dinner-party conversation?

Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett hatched the idea at a 1966 dinner party; Cooney later said the name came from 'open sesame', suggesting a place where exciting things happen.

What is the dwelling of the character Oscar the Grouch?

A trash can: Oscar's can is famously bigger inside than out, housing a swimming pool and his pet elephant Fluffy among the junk.

What is the neighbourhood variety shop and diner on Sesame Street where Big Bird orders a birdseed milkshake?

Hooper's Store is the corner shop later run by David, Mr. Handford and then Alan; Big Bird's birdseed milkshake is its signature order.

What kind of animal is Oscar the Grouch's pet, Slimey?

Slimey once flew to the Moon in a 1998 storyline, the 'Worm Air and Space Agency' mission, and the German co-production gave its Grouch a caterpillar named Gustav modeled on him.

Which geometric shape is Telly Monster's absolute favorite?

Triangle is Telly's favorite shape; he founded the Triangle Lovers' Club. Martin P. Robinson took over the chronic worrier in 1984, after the character began as a television-obsessed monster with spiralling eyes.

Who was instrumental in creating the Muppets for Sesame Street?

Henson was initially reluctant to join a children's show, and Big Bird and Oscar were only created after test audiences lost interest in street scenes with no puppets.

What is the name of Oscar the Grouch's girlfriend?

Grundgetta and Oscar love each other, though the relationship is somewhat rocky, as you would expect when both halves are Grouches.

Which of these was one of the original four human characters on Sesame Street?

Gordon was the very first character introduced on the show and has been played by three actors, most durably Roscoe Orman from 1974; the other original humans were Susan, Mr. Hooper and Bob.

Which puppeteer performed Big Bird from the show's start until 2018?

Matt Vogel, his understudy since 1996, took over the role full-time.

What is the name of Big Bird's teddy bear?

Radar is the teddy bear Big Bird keeps in his nest, named after M*A*S*H's Radar O'Reilly, who also clutched a teddy bear.

In 2000, Big Bird was named a Living Legend by which institution?

The Library of Congress named Big Bird a Living Legend in 2000 as part of its bicentennial celebration, honoring Americans who made creative contributions to the nation's life.

How old does Elmo describe himself as being?

Elmo says he is three and a half years old; his birthday is 3 February, and his 'Elmo's World' segment closed episodes from 1998.

Who took over performing Elmo after Kevin Clash resigned in late 2012?

Ryan Dillon took over Elmo in 2013 after Kevin Clash resigned in November 2012; the character had begun as a spare red puppet nobody could crack until Clash gave him his voice in 1985.

Which 1966 snack-commercial monster puppet evolved into Cookie Monster?

The Wheel-Stealer, built for unaired 1966 General Foods snack ads alongside the Flute-Snatcher and Crown-Grabber, evolved into Cookie Monster; Henson reused the puppet in a 1967 IBM training film, Coffee Break Machine.

What is the title of the blue biscuit-loving monster's signature song, first aired in the 1971-72 season?

'C Is for Cookie', written by Joe Raposo, debuted in the 1971-72 third season and became Cookie Monster's signature anthem, with its refrain 'that's good enough for me'.

Where did Big Bird's original puppeteer find inspiration for Oscar the Grouch's voice?

The name came from a 'magnificently rude' restaurateur whose place, Oscar's Salt of the Sea, Henson frequented.

The Grouch in the trash can was named after the rude owner of which New York restaurant?

Oscar's Salt of the Sea was a Manhattan seafood restaurant whose 'magnificently rude' owner inspired the Grouch's name; Jim Henson and director Jon Stone were regulars.

Which of these is listed among Bert's famously dull interests?

Frank Oz, who performed him from 1969 to 2006, cheerfully called the character 'boring'; pigeons and oatmeal round out the list.

Bert and Ernie share their names with two minor characters from which classic film?

It's a Wonderful Life has a cop named Bert and a cab driver named Ernie; Sesame Street writers call the match a coincidence, and the pair walk past that very scene on a TV in Elmo Saves Christmas.

Who performed Ernie after Jim Henson's death, from 1993 until 2014?

Steve Whitmire, who also inherited Kermit, performed Ernie from 1993 to 2014; Billy Barkhurst followed until 2017, when Peter Linz took over.

Before he was named Grover in 1970, what was the blue monster called in season one?

Fuzzyface was the season-one name of the scruffy greenish-brown monster who became Grover in 1970; an earlier prototype, Gleep, had appeared in Santa's workshop on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1967.

What happens whenever Count von Count finishes counting a set of items?

Thunder and lightning roll whenever the Count finishes a tally, even indoors or on sunny days, followed by his staccato 'Ah-Ah-Ah!' laugh.

The Count's castle is home to many bats, a cat named Fatatita, and a wolf named what?

Establishing shots in the 1970s used Central Park's Belvedere Castle, and visitors always remark on the squeaky door.

In which year did the adults finally see Mr. Snuffleupagus, ending the running gag that he was imaginary?

In 1985 the adults finally saw Mr. Snuffleupagus; the writers ended the gag so children would not fear that grown-ups disbelieve them, a concern sharpened by child-abuse reporting at the time.

What is Mr. Snuffleupagus's first name?

Aloysius Snuffleupagus, Big Bird's best friend, has a younger sister named Alice; Mr. Snuffleupagus is the surname, though Big Bird just calls him Snuffy.

The landmark episode in which Big Bird learns that Mr. Hooper has died aired on which holiday in 1983?

It aired on Thanksgiving Day, 24 November 1983, chosen so parents would be home to watch with their children; child-development experts helped the writers address the death honestly rather than recast the role.

Which actor played Mr. Hooper from the show's premiere until his death in 1982?

Mr. Hooper's first name was Harold.

Sesame Street co-founder Lloyd Morrisett was a vice president of which philanthropic body?

Carnegie: Morrisett was a vice president of the Carnegie Corporation, which funded Cooney's 1966 feasibility study and joined the Ford Foundation and the U.S. Office of Education in the $8 million launch grants.

Until June 2000, the organisation that produces the show was known by what name?

Children's Television Workshop, founded in 1968, became Sesame Workshop in June 2000; Cooney said it would borrow commercial television's techniques to teach young children.

In January 2016, first-run episodes of Sesame Street moved from PBS to which premium channel?

HBO took first-run episodes in January 2016 under a five-year deal, with PBS airing them nine months later; the show later moved to HBO Max and then, in 2025, to Netflix.

As of 2022, roughly how many Emmy Awards had Sesame Street won, more than any other children's show?

About 220: by 2022 Sesame Street had collected more than 200 Emmy Awards, the most of any children's series, along with 11 Grammy Awards.

What was the title of the 1985 Sesame Street feature film?

Follow That Bird (1985) sends Big Bird to live with a family of dodos in Illinois before he flees home; the second feature, The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland, followed in 1999.

The first Kermit puppet was made from two ping-pong ball halves and what else?

Jim Henson stitched the 1955 Kermit from a discarded spring coat of his mother's, with halved ping-pong balls for eyes, for the Washington local show Sam and Friends.

Which song did Kermit first perform on Sesame Street in 1970?

'Bein' Green', written by Joe Raposo, was first sung by Kermit on Sesame Street in 1970 and later covered by Frank Sinatra and Ray Charles; 'Rainbow Connection' came later, for The Muppet Movie in 1979.

How high did Ernie's 'Rubber Duckie' peak on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1970?

No. 16: Ernie's 'Rubber Duckie', written by Jeff Moss, peaked at No. 16 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1970 and earned a Grammy nomination.

What kind of pet is Dorothy in the segment Elmo's World?

Dorothy is Elmo's pet goldfish, a real fish in a bowl; like the mute Mr. Noodle, she never speaks, so Elmo does the talking and children answer.

What is the address of the fictional brownstone at the centre of the show?

123 Sesame Street is the brownstone where Bert and Ernie live in the basement and Gordon and Susan upstairs; Big Bird's nest sits beside it.

Who originated Abby Cadabby, the fairy who joined the show in 2006?

Leslie Carrara-Rudolph originated Abby Cadabby, the pink fairy-in-training, at her August 2006 debut; the character's catchphrase is 'That's so magic!'

Julia, who joined the TV series in April 2017, is the first Muppet with what diagnosis?

Autism: Julia first appeared in the 2015 online initiative 'See Amazing in All Children' and joined the TV show on 10 April 2017, during Autism Awareness Month; her puppeteer Stacey Gordon has an autistic son.

Rosita, the show's first regular bilingual Muppet, is of what heritage?

Rosita is Mexican, a turquoise monster from Mexico introduced in 1991 and performed by Carmen Osbahr; originally designed as a fruit bat, she lost her wings in 2004 and regained them in 2021.

What colour was Oscar the Grouch during the show's first season?

The switch to green was explained on air by a trip to Swamp Mushy Muddy. Oscar later told Anderson Cooper the green is moss that would wash off if he bathed.

How tall is Big Bird?

8 ft 2 in: Big Bird stands 8 feet 2 inches, built by Kermit Love from a design that grew out of the seven-foot La Choy Dragon Henson had made for commercials.

Super Grover's secret identity, Grover Kent, is an ace salesman of what for Acme, Inc?

Doorknobs: Super Grover's alter ego, Grover Kent, is an 'ace doorknob salesman for Acme, Inc.', a spoof of Clark Kent; Grover also moonlighted as the hapless waiter at Charlie's Restaurant.

Sesame Place, the theme park that opened in 1980, is in which US state?

Pennsylvania: Sesame Place opened in 1980 in Langhorne, outside Philadelphia; the park was one of several early-1980s side ventures, including video games, that strained the Workshop's finances.

Kami, the first HIV-positive Muppet, was created for a co-production in which country?

South Africa: Takalani Sesame introduced Kami in 2002 to fight AIDS stigma; UNICEF later named her a Champion for Children, while her creation drew objections from some US congressmen.

In his 1972 debut sketch with Bert and Ernie, what does Count von Count count?

In his first few seasons the Count was far more villainous, hypnotising people so he could keep counting. Jerry Nelson performed him from the start.

Which puppeteer, frustrated with Elmo in 1985, threw the puppet to Kevin Clash, who made it a star?

Brian Muehl had performed Elmo from 1980 to 1984 before Hunt. Clash's high-pitched version debuted with the Season 17 premiere in November 1985.

How does Elmo characteristically refer to himself?

In the third person: Elmo always says 'Elmo' rather than 'I', a habit Sesame Workshop's FAQ defends as mimicking how real preschoolers talk.