# Oh Lord, I'm now ranting about Sesame Street! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 30, 2004, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258 "2004-03-30T06:01:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/41 "2004-03-31T14:04:24Z")
My kids really don’t care for SS. One day I was watching it and by Big Bird’s nest there is a drawing of Mr. Hooper. I started tearing up. \*\*Monster At The End Of This Book \*\* is one of my all time favorite books. I give it to all the kids I know for a present. ---
**Author:** ![beajerry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@beajerry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beajerry)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/42 "2004-03-31T15:53:41Z")
> [@elmwood](#): > > Thanks for calling me a shithead. ☹ You can be an ADHD kid. Or an ADHD shithead kid. I’m sorry if you’re the latter. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![The\_Man\_Who](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c2a13f/32.png) [@The\_Man\_Who](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Man_Who)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/43 "2004-03-31T16:23:34Z")
> [@whiterabbit](#): > > I forgot to say that I honestly feel personally betrayed by these people. It’s amazing how much it stings, seeing what they’ve done to the show. It’s like they’ve fucked with the _good_ parts of my childhood just because they can. You should see what they did to the Letter People. -M ---
**Author:** ![Ashes\_Ashes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/db5fbb/32.png) [@Ashes\_Ashes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashes_Ashes)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/44 "2004-03-31T20:21:46Z")
Thank goodness for this thread, I thought maybe SS just wasn’t as good as I remembered. Also, Elmo needs to be made into a bathmat (and in a particularily nasty bathroom just to make the punishment fit the crime). I read some article in one of my teaching magazines, that SS and similar snippet-shows, is suspected of contributing to decreasing attention spans among young children. Mixing longer and shorter stories is much better, like Mr. Rogers did. Of course, the article also pointed out that before the age of four, kids don’t get much out of tv and are better off without. How that might work in reality, I dunno. ---
**Author:** ![look\_hergo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85e7bf/32.png) [@look\_hergo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/look_hergo)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/45 "2004-03-31T20:48:54Z")
You used to be able to watch “Sesame Street Unplugged” on a cable channel called Noggin. This was about 3 years ago. I was thrilled; all the classic episodes shown in order! I should have taped them. We don’t get cable TV anymore, but maybe someone else can check and see if Noggin is still airing them? Because, yeah, new SS sucks the bag. (And that’s from an ADD kid!) ---
**Author:** ![Olentzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90ced4/32.png) [@Olentzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olentzero)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/46 "2004-03-31T21:30:15Z")
According to this [site](http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/ShowMainServlet/showid-2402/), Noggin pulled the original Sesame Street episodes a while ago. Firstly they wanted to emphasize original programming, and secondly the only people watching it were aging hippie babies like us. Furthermore, it appears that there were only 65 episodes aired; seems to me there were a lot more episodes filmed between 1969 and 1986. (That Electric Company site isn’t half bad either… Gene Wilder did the voice of Letterman?!) ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2004, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/47 "2004-04-01T23:11:53Z")
[QUOTE=beajerry] What the fuck, you goddamn educational psychiatrists that fucked up Sesame Street and turned it into a fucking goddamn program for ADHD shithead kids!!!??? What happened to all the variety? The fucking coolness of the little skits and cartoons and films that made SS so great?? Now it’s all fucking Elmo and Search for Ernie and Monster Playhouse! What a bunch of shit! I wish I could obtain the first two decades on dvd to show my kids. This new format sucks! Fuck you, SS! You suck! Take Elmo and stick him up your ass! [QUOTE] Get out of my head! 🙂 I HATE the “nu-n-improovd” Sesame Street. **HATE.** Hate it enough that I hand-coded that last sentence. I remember storylines that lasted a full week. I remember creative little animations that didn’t flash by at 60,000,000 frames a second. I remember the pinball machine. Why did they ditch the pinball machine? _Why?_ I weep for children’s educational programming. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/48 "2004-04-02T00:19:31Z")
> [@Green Bean](#): > > I’d rather watch a 24-hour Boobah marathon… :eek: Good Lord! That Boobah shit is unwatchable! You must really be serious about your loathing of “The Street”! 😃 * * * I’m off home for the weekend for internal deployment of liquid intoxicants! ---
**Author:** ![KJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b2d939/32.png) [@KJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KJ)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/49 "2004-04-02T08:11:40Z")
> [@gatopescado](#): > > Good Lord! That Boobah shit is unwatchable! Not if you’ve just taken 5 tabs of acid… ---
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/50 "2004-04-02T09:19:59Z")
> [@Tentacle Monster](#): > > Ha ha ha! Elmo feel whole fist! It’s proven, you can’t read SDMB with beer all over the screen. ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/51 "2004-04-02T11:25:31Z")
This week, there has been a story arc about Baby Bear getting a baby sister. Which means absolutely zippo to a child who doesn’t have a baby sibling. Robin ---
**Author:** ![whiterabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/cab0a1/32.png) [@whiterabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whiterabbit)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/52 "2004-04-02T13:26:23Z")
> [@MsRobyn](#): > > This week, there has been a story arc about Baby Bear getting a baby sister. Which means absolutely zippo to a child who doesn’t have a baby sibling. If any of the only kids watching this are like me, this will probably launch them into begging their parents for a baby sister/brother. I actually don’t think this is a bad idea for a storyline – it can be quite traumatic for a toddler or somebody just out of toddlerhood to be presented with a baby sibling, and hopefully Baby Bear isn’t being traumatized – but I do remember stuff like this driving me crazy when I was little. There’s this assumption that everybody’s going to have siblings, and it’s not just SS that’s assuming it. I finally got my little brother just past my eighth birthday. I was a little old for SS at that point. Fortunately, he’s turned out great. (Though my begging had nothing to do with his appearance. I think it was more “if we’re gonna have another, now’s the time!”) ---
**Author:** ![Spudo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbce88/32.png) [@Spudo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spudo)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/53 "2004-04-02T13:32:40Z")
> [@Green Bean](#): > > And Caillou is a wanker. Amen. ---
**Author:** ![Jenaroph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Jenaroph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jenaroph)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/54 "2004-04-02T15:59:48Z")
PBS is going to air a very special 35th anniversary episode this weekend called [Sesame Street Presents: The Street We Live On.](http://www.pbs.org/previews/sesame_street/) The good news: it’ll have flashback footage from old episodes. Mr. Hooper’s in it! The bad news: it stars all Elmo, all the time. I’m debating whether to watch it… ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/55 "2004-04-02T16:02:12Z")
It surprises me that CTW hasn’t figured out there is a market for the original Seseme Street DVD collection. Then we could expose our children to the good Seseme street. I loved the aliens with the telephone. Cow…Yep, Yepyepyepyepyep. (Last I checked, Guin, Telly was still on. But I hate to break this to you, Telly is part of the abomination we are talking about. We of the Grover, Bert and Ernie, Cookie Monster and Kermit the Frog years - I’m old enough that even secret Snuffie was past my peak SS years. Telly is part of the Elmo, Zoe, Baby Bear set). ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/56 "2004-04-02T16:07:24Z")
Big Bird (I once was told) is supposed to be a six-year old. Telly is a _stupid_ six-year old. Elmo is a three-year old. A really, really obnoxious three year old. Zoe is a _severely limited_\* three year old. Grover is God. - Insert your favorite PC-ism for “retarded” here… ---
**Author:** ![a35362](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/57 "2004-04-02T16:16:55Z")
There is a wonderful book about the making of _Sesame Street_ called _Sesame Street Unpaved_. You can get it from Amazon. Lots of behind the scenes stuff, lots of pictures. ---
**Author:** ![The\_world\_s\_most\_deadliest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@The\_world\_s\_most\_deadliest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_world_s_most_deadliest)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/58 "2004-04-02T17:22:40Z")
I almost forgot… [the Teeny Little Super Guy](http://www.monkey-fest.com/teenylittlesuperguy.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Netbrian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71e660/32.png) [@Netbrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Netbrian)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/59 "2004-04-02T17:30:54Z")
> [@The Man Who](#): > > You should see what they did to the Letter People. > > -M Okay, I can’t contain my curiosity. Tell me, who ressurected them and what did they do to their poor corpses? ---
**Author:** ![Chastain86](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Chastain86](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chastain86)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258/60 "2004-04-02T18:14:49Z")
"And I know what you’re thinking. ‘Jesus, he’s not going to attack **children** now, is he?’ “ **Yes, he is.** ” - George Carlin [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-lord-im-now-ranting-about-sesame-street/237258.md?page=4)