Sesame Street

On Nov 10, 1969, the children’s television program Sesame Street first aired on PBS. The show got its name from the famous command in The Arabian Nights, “Open, Sesame!” The show’s producers thought the word “sesame” would suggest adventure and excitement.

Sesame Street was the brainchild of Joan Ganz Cooney, who produced documentaries for public television. In the late 1960s, the average American preschooler was watching 27 hours of television a week, much of it confusing and violent. Cooney knew that television could be used for educational purposes, and that underprivileged kids needed help before entering kindergarten, so she hit on the idea of a free, fun-filled educational television show that would teach preschoolers the alphabet and how to count.

Sesame Street was set in a fictional New York City neighborhood and populated by kind adults and an assortment of ragtag creatures known as “Muppets,” invented by puppeteer Jim Henson. At first, the humans got more screen time, but early tests showed that kids paid more attention to the show when the Muppets appeared, and this is how generations of kids came to know and love characters like Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, and Kermit the Frog. Sesame Street was an immediate hit, and by 1979, 9 million American kids under the age of six were watching every day.

Thanks Writer's Almanac

There are many more details of the show, it's history, it's awards, it's characters. Check out Wikipedia's article.

It is still aired, though I'm not certain if it's still on PBS. But there are also some YouTube episodes available. They are known for including live performers with the Muppets and other characters, like Big Bird. This clip (5 min.) is one I hadn't seen, but talking between kids, muppets and a human dancer.

And here's a link for full episodes if your inner child wants to play! https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=sesame+street+full+episodes

Today's quote:

In Think and Grow Rich, he wrote: "Do not wait: the time will never be 'just right.' Start where you stand, and work whatever tools you may have at your command and better tools will be found as you go along." Napoleon Hill