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Sesame Street: the story on HearLore | HearLore
Sesame Street
In 1966, a television producer named Joan Ganz Cooney and a foundation vice president named Lloyd Morrisett decided to do something that experts at the time considered positively heretical. They proposed combining the addictive, fast-paced techniques of commercial television with serious educational goals for preschoolers. At a time when most researchers believed young children could not pay attention for more than a few minutes, Cooney and Morrisett set out to master the addictive qualities of television and do something good with them. Their goal was to help young children prepare for school, particularly those from low-income families who did not traditionally watch educational programs. After two years of research, the newly formed Children's Television Workshop received a combined grant of eight million dollars from the Carnegie Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and the U.S. federal government to create and produce a new children's television show. This funding was secured only because Cooney and Morrisett decided that if they did not procure full funding from the beginning, they would drop the idea of producing the show entirely. The show was officially announced at a press conference on the 6th of May 1969, with Cooney stating that the name Sesame Street came from the saying open sesame, which gives the idea of a place where exciting things occur. The program premiered on public television stations on the 10th of November 1969, and it was the first preschool educational television program to base its contents and production values on laboratory and formative research.
The Arranged Marriage
The creation of Sesame Street required an unusual alliance between two worlds that rarely mixed: television producers and child science experts. Joan Ganz Cooney characterized this collaboration as an arranged marriage, where planners, educational advisers, researchers, and television producers collaborated as equal partners. The show's research team developed what came to be called the CTW Model, a system of planning, production, and evaluation that did not fully emerge until the end of the show's first season. This model consisted of four parts: the interaction of receptive television producers and child science experts, the creation of a specific and age-appropriate curriculum, research to shape the program directly, and independent measurement of viewers' learning. Cooney credited the show's high standard in research procedures to Harvard professors Gerald S. Lesser, whom CTW hired to design its educational objectives, and Edward L. Palmer, who conducted the show's formative research and bridged the gap between producers and researchers. CTW conducted research in two ways: in-house formative research that informed and improved production, and independent summative evaluations, conducted by the Educational Testing Service during the first two seasons, which measured its educational effectiveness. In 1970 and 1971, the Educational Testing Service conducted two landmark summative evaluations that demonstrated the show had a significant educational impact on its viewers. These studies have been cited in other studies of the effects of television on young children, and there are now over one thousand research studies regarding Sesame Street's efficacy, impact, and effect on American culture.
When was Sesame Street officially announced and who announced it?
Sesame Street was officially announced at a press conference on the 6th of May 1969 by Joan Ganz Cooney. Cooney stated that the name Sesame Street came from the saying open sesame, which gives the idea of a place where exciting things occur.
Who founded Sesame Street and what was their initial goal?
Television producer Joan Ganz Cooney and foundation vice president Lloyd Morrisett founded Sesame Street in 1966. Their goal was to help young children prepare for school, particularly those from low-income families who did not traditionally watch educational programs.
When did Sesame Street premiere and what was its initial format?
The program premiered on public television stations on the 10th of November 1969. At first, its street scenes consisted of character-driven interactions written as individual, curriculum-based segments interrupted by inserts of puppet sketches, short films and animations.
How did Sesame Street address social issues and affective goals?
Sesame Street addressed real-life issues such as the death of Will Lee and the September 11 terrorist attacks. The show's creators formulated cognitive and affective goals to increase children's self-esteem and feelings of competency by featuring themes of social competence and tolerance of diversity in interpersonal disputes.
When did Sesame Street change its format to a half-hour version and why?
Starting in 2014, during the show's 45th season, the producers introduced a half-hour version of the program. In 2017, the show's producers retired the full-hour version across all its broadcast platforms in response to the changing viewing habits of toddlers.
When did Sesame Street expand globally and how many international versions exist?
By its 50th anniversary in 2019, 190 million children viewed over 160 versions of Sesame Street in 70 languages. By 2006, there were twenty co-productions around the world, and by 2001 there were over 120 million viewers of all international versions of Sesame Street.
Jim Henson and the Muppets' involvement in Sesame Street began when he and Cooney met at one of the curriculum planning seminars in Boston. Author Christopher Finch reported that Jon Stone, who had worked with Henson previously, felt that if they could not bring him on board, they should make do without puppets. Henson was initially reluctant, but he agreed to join Sesame Street to meet his own social goals. He also agreed to waive his performance fee for full ownership of the Sesame Street Muppets and to split any revenue they generated with the CTW. In early research, the Muppet segments of the show scored high, and more Muppets were added during the first few seasons. Morrow reported that the Muppets were effective teaching tools because children easily recognized them, they were stereotypical and predictable, and they appealed to adults and older siblings. Although the producers decided against depending upon a single host for Sesame Street, instead casting a group of ethnically diverse actors, they realized that a children's television program needed to have a variety of distinctive and reliable personalities, both human and Muppet. Jon Stone, whose goal was to cast white actors in the minority, was responsible for hiring the show's first cast. He did not audition actors until Spring 1969, a few weeks before the five test shows were due to be filmed. Stone videotaped the auditions, and Ed Palmer took them out into the field to test children's reactions. The actors who received the most enthusiastic thumbs up were cast. For example, Loretta Long was chosen to play Susan when the children who saw her audition stood up and sang along with her rendition of I'm a Little Teapot. Most of the cast and crew found jobs on Sesame Street through personal relationships with Stone and the other producers. According to puppeteer Marty Robinson in 2019, longevity was common among the show's cast and crew.
The Street That Changed
The format of Sesame Street has evolved significantly over the decades to reflect changes in American culture and audiences' viewing habits. When it premiered, most researchers believed that young children did not have long attention spans, and the show's producers were concerned that an hour-long show would not hold their attention. At first, its street scenes, the action recorded on its set, consisted of character-driven interactions. Rather than ongoing stories, they were written as individual, curriculum-based segments interrupted by inserts of puppet sketches, short films and animations. This structure allowed producers to use a mixture of styles and characters, and to vary its pace, presumably keeping it interesting to young viewers. However, by season 20, research showed that children were able to follow a story, and the street scenes, while still interspersed with other segments, became evolving storylines. On recommendations by child psychologists, the producers initially decided that the show's human actors and Muppets would not interact because they were concerned it would confuse young children. When CTW tested the new show, they found that children paid attention during the Muppet segments and that their interest was lost during the Street segments. They requested that Henson and his team create Muppets such as Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch to interact with the human actors, and the Street segments were re-shot. In 1998, the popular Elmo's World, a 15-minute-long segment hosted by the Muppet Elmo, was created. Starting in 2014, during the show's 45th season, the producers introduced a half-hour version of the program. In 2017, in response to the changing viewing habits of toddlers, the show's producers retired the full-hour version across all its broadcast platforms. The new half-hour version featured fewer characters, reduced pop culture references once included as winks for their parents, and focused on a single backbone topic. In October 2023, The Hollywood Reporter announced that Sesame Street would be reimagined by completely dropping the half-hour magazine-style format of the show in favor of a longer narrative-driven style and more live action Muppet characters. The new format took effect in Season 56, which premiered on the 10th of November 2025, alongside a new animated series, Tales from 123.
The Social Laboratory
Sesame Street has always been more than just entertainment; it has been a social laboratory addressing real-life issues. During the 1980s, the show incorporated real-life experiences of its cast and crew, including the death of Will Lee, who played Mr. Hooper, and the pregnancy of Sonia Manzano, who played Maria. In later seasons, it addressed real-life disasters such as the September 11 terrorist attacks and Hurricane Katrina. The show's creators and researchers formulated both cognitive and affective goals for the show. They initially focused on cognitive goals, while addressing affective goals indirectly, believing it would increase children's self-esteem and feelings of competency. One of their primary goals was preparing young children for school, especially children from low-income families, using modeling, repetition, and humor. They adjusted its content to increase viewers' attention and the show's appeal, and encouraged older children and parents to co-view it by including more sophisticated humor, cultural references, and celebrity guests. By 2019, 80% of parents watched Sesame Street with their children, and 650 celebrities had appeared on the show. During Sesame Street's first season, some critics felt that it should address more overtly such affective goals as social competence, tolerance of diversity, and nonaggressive ways of resolving conflict. The show's creators and producers responded by featuring these themes in interpersonal disputes between its Street characters. Starting in 2006, Sesame Workshop expanded its outreach by creating a series of PBS specials and DVDs focusing on how military deployment affects the families of servicepeople. Its outreach efforts also focused on families of prisoners, health and wellness, and safety. In 2013, SW started Sesame Street in Communities, to help families dealing with difficult issues.
The Funding Paradox
The financial survival of Sesame Street has been a constant struggle, balancing its educational mission with the need for revenue. As a result of Cooney's initial proposal in 1968, the Carnegie Institute awarded her a one million dollar grant to create a new children's television program and establish the CTW, renamed in June 2000 to Sesame Workshop. Cooney and Morrisett procured additional multimillion-dollar grants from the U.S. federal government, The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, CPB, and the Ford Foundation. After Sesame Street's initial success, its producers began to think about its survival beyond its development and first season and decided to explore other funding sources. From the first season, they understood that the source of their funding, which they considered seed money, would need to be replaced. The 1970s were marked by conflicts between the CTW and the federal government; in 1978, the U.S. Department of Education refused to deliver a two million dollar check until the last day of CTW's fiscal year. As a result, the CTW decided to depend upon licensing arrangements with toy companies and other manufacturers, publishing, and international sales for their funding. In 1998, the CTW accepted corporate sponsorship to raise funds for Sesame Street and other projects. For the first time, they allowed short advertisements by indoor playground manufacturer Discovery Zone, their first corporate sponsor, to air before and after each episode. Consumer advocate Ralph Nader, who had previously appeared on Sesame Street, called for a boycott of the show, saying that the CTW was exploiting impressionable children. In 2015, in response to funding challenges, it was announced that premium television service HBO would air first-run episodes of Sesame Street. Steve Youngwood, SW's Chief Operating Officer, called the move one of the toughest decisions we ever made. According to The New York Times, the move drew an immediate backlash. Critics claimed that it favored privileged children over less-advantaged children and their families, the original focus of the show. They also criticized choosing to air first-run episodes on HBO, a network with adult dramas and comedies. In December 2024, HBO announced it would part ways with Sesame Street, and in 2025, new episodes began to air on Netflix worldwide and would once again premiere episodes on PBS.
The Global Street
Sesame Street's influence extended far beyond the United States, becoming a global phenomenon. Shortly after Sesame Street debuted in the United States, the CTW was approached independently by producers from several countries to produce versions of the show at home. These versions came to be called co-productions. By 2001 there were over 120 million viewers of all international versions of Sesame Street, and in 2006, there were twenty co-productions around the world. By its 50th anniversary in 2019, 190 million children viewed over 160 versions of Sesame Street in 70 languages. In 2005, Doreen Carvajal of The New York Times reported that income from the co-productions and international licensing accounted for 96 million dollars. The show's music also played a crucial role in its global appeal. Director Jon Stone, talking about the music of Sesame Street, said there was no other sound like it on television. For the first time in children's television, the show's songs fulfilled a specific purpose and supported its curriculum. In order to attract the best composers and lyricists, the CTW allowed songwriters like Joe Raposo, Sesame Street's first musical director, to retain the rights to the songs they wrote, which earned them lucrative profits and helped the show sustain public interest. By 2019, there were 180 albums of Sesame Street music produced, and its songwriters had received 11 Grammys. In late 2018, the SW announced a multi-year agreement with Warner Music Group to re-launch Sesame Street Records in the U.S. and Canada. For the first time in 20 years, an extensive catalog of Sesame Street recordings was made available to the public in a variety of formats, including CD and vinyl compilations, digital streaming, and downloads. Sesame Street the Musical opened at Theatre Row off Broadway on the 8th of September 2022.