Sesame Street

Bob Banner on working with Jim Henson and the Muppets on The Jimmy Dean Show and A Sesame Street Christmas

Executive producer Lewis Bernstein on his impressions of Sesame Street upon seeing the show for the first time circa 1970

Executive producer Lewis Bernstein on landing a job as a research fellow on Sesame Street in 1972

Executive producer/former Director of Research Lewis Bernstein on Sesame Street's joining of TV producers and educators, which he discovered as he learned the ropes in the 1970s

Executive producer/former Director of Research Lewis Bernstein on the "distraction study" of Dr. Ed Palmer, which tested a child's engagement, used in early Sesame Street research

Executive producer/former Director of Research Lewis Bernstein on how Sesame Street researchers (in tandem with executives Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett) geared the show to the "disadvantaged child"

Executive producer/former Director of Research Lewis Bernstein on Sesame Street's effect on racial tolerance in children

Executive producer/former Director of Research Lewis Bernstein on the long-term research of children who watched Sesame Street in the early years

Executive producer/former Director of Research Lewis Bernstein on the international distribution of the US version and creation of foreign versions of Sesame Street

Executive producer Lewis Bernstein on the Sesame Street shows produced immediately following 9/11 that addressed children's fears and on tolerance

Executive producer/former Director of Research Lewis Bernstein on the approach to culture in foreign versions of Sesame Street

Executive Producer Lewis Bernstein on bringing stories from around the world to Sesame Street with the "Global Grover" segment (in response to 9/11)

Producer Lewis Bernstein on creating the Israeli/Palestinian co-production of Sesame Street (Shalom Sesame and Sha'ra Simsim), in which he had direct involvement 

Producer Lewis Bernstein on overcoming the resistance to a Israeli/Palestinian co-production of Sesame Street (Shalom Sesame and Sha'ra Simsim)

Exectuive producer Lewis Bernstein on "Sesame English"— segments of Sesame Street created to teach English to the foreign market

Executive producer/former Director of Research Lewis Bernstein on rethinking Sesame Street for the current market and considering the show's competition, out of which came "Elmo's World" in the late 1990s

Executive producer/former Director of Research on what research indicated were the successful elements of "Elmo's World"

Lewis Bernstein on the rethinking of the original "magazine" format of Sesame Street in the late '90s when "Elmo's World" was introduced

Lewis Bernstein on continuing the legacy of Sesame Street

Lewis Bernstein on keeping current with the issues that affect children on Sesame Street

Lewis Bernstein on changes to Sesame Street's curriculum over the years

Lewis Bernstein on serving as Sesame Street's executive producer

Executive Producer Lewis Bernstein on what goes into a season's writing on Sesame Street

Executive producer Lewis Bernstein on the importance of music to Sesame Street

Executive Producer Lewis Bernstein on Children's Television Workshop (Sesame Workshop) visionary Joan Ganz Cooney

Frank Biondo on how he became a camera operator on Sesame Street, his early thoughts on the show, and how he came to like the program

Frank Biondo on the original Sesame Street cast

Frank Biondo on the expansion of the Sesame Street set and bringing senior citizens onto the cast

Frank Biondo on the Muppeteers on Sesame Street

Frank Biondo on how Sesame Street is shot

Frank Biondo on the music on Sesame Street

Frank Biondo on setting up the monitors for Sesame Street

Frank Biondo on Richard Hunt getting him to be in charge of the Sesame Street wrap parties; on emceeing the wrap parties

Frank Biondo on a typical week on Sesame Street

Frank Biondo on the kids on Sesame Street and meeting a young Whoopi Goldberg

Frank Biondo on the guest stars on Sesame Street

Frank Biondo on changes in how Sesame Street is shot over the years

Frank Biondo on memorable songs on Sesame Street

Frank Biondo on shooting the "Farewell, Mr. Hooper" episode of Sesame Street

Frank Biondo on the Sesame Street cast interacting with kids and fans of the show

Frank Biondo on Sesame Street episodes in response to 9/11 and to hurricanes

Frank Biondo on the wedding of "Maria" and "Luis" on Sesame Street and Christmas specials; on the types of camera shots on Sesame Street and the Christmas specials

Frank Biondo on Sesame Street getting a jib and on the technical crew on Sesame Street

Frank Biondo on the Muppet version of Frank Biondo

Frank Biondo on writing a song for Sesame Street

Frank Biondo on being a camera operator on Sesame Street for the last fifty years and all of the accomplishments of the show

Frank Biondo on competition for Sesame Street -- Barney & Friends -- and Sesame Street producing fewer episodes

Frank Biondo on production not changing on Sesame Street with the HBO first-run deal

Frank Biondo on his then-current thoughts on how much longer he'll continue to work at Sesame Street

Frank Biondo on the legacy of Sesame Street and what it's meant to him to be a part of the show

Manager Bernie Brillstein on Jim Henson's contributions to Sesame Street

Garrett Brown on working on short films for Sesame Street

Ed Christie on designing for Sesame Street and The Muppet Show

Ed Christie on supervising art direction for Sesame Street

Ed Christie on his art direction duties on Sesame Street

Ed Christie on liaising between The Children's Television Workshop and The Henson Company for Sesame Street

Ed Christie on who owns the Sesame Street characters

Ed Christie on designing for international productions of Sesame Street

Ed Christie on specifics for designing for different countries for international productions of Sesame Street

Ed Christie on how Sesame Street has changed since he started on the show

Ed Christie on designing a South African puppet with AIDS for Sesame Street South Africa

Ed Christie on the popularity of "Elmo" on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on television he watched as a kid, including Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on working on Captain Kangaroo, The Great Space Coaster, and Sesame Streetat the same time

Kevin Clash on going to work on Sesame Street full time

Kevin Clash on how it felt for him to be working on Sesame Street, and on performing various Muppets

Kevin Clash on various Muppets he performed in his early days on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on the creation of "Elmo" on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on his early performances of "Elmo" on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on working with the Sesame Street writers on his characterization of "Elmo"

Kevin Clash on the popularity of "Elmo" on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on "Elmo" and "Snuffleupagus" on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on some of his favorite performances and storylines as "Elmo" on Sesame Streeet

Kevin Clash on the "Elmo's World" sketches on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on working with Bob McGrath on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on working with Roscoe Orman on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on working with Loretta Long on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on Caroll Spinney as "Oscar" and "Big Bird" on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on Frank Oz on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on Jim Henson on Sesame Street, and on working with the Jim Henson Company

Kevin Clash on how "Elmo" was made and how he is cared for on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on the logistics of operating "Elmo" on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on how he works "Elmo" with his hand on Sesame Street

Kevin Clash on how "Elmo" is stored

Joan Ganz Cooney on importance of research in the development of Sesame Street

Joan Ganz Cooney on the use of Muppets on Sesame Street and initial reaction to the show

Joan Ganz Cooney on the various Muppets on Sesame Street  

Joan Ganz Cooney on the importance of humor in Sesame Street

Joan Ganz Cooney on the Sesame Street episode following actor Will Lee's death,  "Farewell, Mr. Hooper" (airdate: November 24, 1983)

Joan Ganz Cooney on the international versions of Sesame Street

Joan Ganz Cooney on how Sesame Street competes in the new marketplace; on the show's legacy

Joan Ganz Cooney on the origin of the name for Sesame Street

Joan Ganz Cooney on the creation of Sesame Street

Danny Epstein on the five pilot programs and original plan for Sesame Street

Danny Epstein on the beginning of his association with Sesame Street and the research that went into creating Sesame Street

Danny Epstein on popular music of the day influencing the music on Sesame Street

Danny Epstein on the theme song to Sesame Street

Danny Epstein on the library of music from Sesame Street

Danny Epstein on how Sesame Street has changed over the years

Danny Epstein on winning Emmys for Music Direction for Sesame Street

Danny Epstein on the success of Sesame Street

Danny Epstein on the legacy of Sesame Street

Danny Epstein on the theme song to Sesame Street, contd.

Danny Epstein on his responsibilities on Sesame Street

Danny Epstein on the musical talent of the Sesame Street cast

Danny Epstein on the process for creating songs for Sesame Street (and the creation of  "Being Green," "Sing," "Rubber Duckie" and other hit songs)

Danny Epstein on popular songs from Sesame Street ("Doin' The Pigeon," "People In Your Neighborhood," "One of These Things," "Monster In the Mirror")

Danny Epstein on music/songs that were rejected on Sesame Street

Danny Epstein on working with the characters/cast members of Sesame Street

Danny Epstein on working with guest stars on Sesame Street

Tony Geiss on Joan Ganz Cooney and the genesis of Sesame Street; on the philosophy of the show; on the state of public television at the time

Writer Tony Geiss on joining Sesame Street and how assignments were made; on the rules for writers; on the research goals on the series

Writer Tony Geiss on Sesame Street's teaching of Spanish and the show's reach into diverse communities; on writing for adult audiences, too

Writer Tony Geiss on the journey of a Sesame Street script to production; on making sure children don't model bad behavior

Writer Tony Geiss on the journey of a Sesame Street script to production

Writer Tony Geiss on the importance of music on Sesame Street; on Buffy Saint-Marie's appearance and the song written for her; on some of the series' famous songs, including "Elmo's" theme

Writer Tony Geiss on writing for Sesame Street's guest stars including Madeline Kahn, Robin Williams, Lena Horne, Tony Bennett

Writer Tony Geiss on how Sesame Street changed from his start there in the 1970s until 2004

Writre Tony Geiss on the legacy of Sesame Street

Geri Jewell on "decapitating Big Bird" when she appeared on Sesame Street

Chuck Jones on being a consultant for Sesame Street

Loretta Long on how she came to be cast as "Susan" on Sesame Street

Loretta Long on her audition to play "Susan" on Sesame Street

Loretta Long on her parents' reaction to her taking a job on Sesame Street

Loretta Long on PBS' coverage around the country at the time Sesame Street started, and on spreading the word about the show

Loretta Long on the first few days of filming Sesame Street, and on cast members Will Lee as "Mr. Hooper," Bob McGrath as "Bob," and Matt Robinson as "Gordon"

Loretta Long on her character, "Susan," on Sesame Street

Loretta Long on Roscoe Orman taking over the character of "Gordon," and on the adoption storyline on Sesame Street

Loretta Long on the Sesame Street episode "Farewell, Mr. Hooper"

Loretta Long on working with The Muppets on Sesame Street, and on working with "Big Bird" and "Elmo" specifically

Loretta Long on working with Jim Henson as "Kermit," and on working with various other of the Muppets

Loretta Long on pursuing her doctorate while still appearing on Sesame Street, and on her dissertation, "Sesame Street: A Space Age Approach to Education for Space Age Kids"

Loretta Long on the curriculum goals of Sesame Street, on the diversity of the cast, and on how the show impacts viewers

Loretta Long on the various issues that Sesame Street has taken on over the years, and on the cultural impact of the show

Loretta Long on the directors of Sesame Street, and on the special guest stars

Loretta Long on how Sesame Street has changed since it began

Loretta Long on the importance that she keep working on Sesame Street, and her then-current outside projects

Loretta Long on the power of television, and on the impact that her character of "Susan" on Sesame Street has had on black television characters

James L. Loper on the introduction of Sesame Street

Sonia Manzano on seeing Sesame Street for the first time in college

Sonia Manzano on her audition for Sesame Street with Jon Stone and his philosophy about her role

Sonia Manzano on the natural aging and incorporation of her feminism in the character "Maria" on Sesame Street

Sonia Manzano on why there weren't many female and ethnic Muppet characters on Sesame Street

Sonia Manzano on Sesame Street executive producer Dulcy Singer

Sonia Manzano on "Maria's" marriage and motherhood storylines on Sesame Street; on how her own daughter was briefly in the cast

Sonia Manzano on executive producer Dulcy Singer's fight to make a show which would address the death of "Mr. Hooper" (following actor Will Lee's death)

Sonia Manzano on the research and script of "Farewell, Mr. Hooper," which addressed the death of regular character "Mr. Hooper"

Sonia Manzano ("Maria") on Caroll Spinney's performance as "Big Bird" in the episode "Farewell, Mr. Hooper," which addressed the death of regular character "Mr. Hooper"

Sonia Manzano on Sesame Street castmate Will Lee ("Mr. Hooper")

Sonia Manzano on working on the set of Sesame Street

Sonia Manzano on the Muppets being the heart of Sesame Street and the legacy of Jim Henson

Sonia Manzano on working with the Muppets and their puppeteers on Sesame Street

Sonia Manzano on her favorite Sesame Street moments

Sonia Manzano on the legacy of Sesame Street

Bob McGrath on how his character on Sesame Street came to have the name Bob

Bob McGrath on getting acting advice from Will Lee ("Mr. Hooper")

Bob McGrath on the research/script done for the episode "Farewell, Mr. Hooper," which dealt with the death of character "Mr. Hooper" following actor Will Lee's death

Bob McGrath on a favorite scene with actor Will Lee ("Mr. Hooper") in the special Christmas Eve on Sesame Street

Bob McGrath on how he got his start on Sesame Street

Bob McGrath on his character of "Bob" on Sesame Street

Bob McGrath on filming the emotional episode "Farewell, Mr. Hooper" when "Big Bird" comes to understand that "Mr. Hooper" has died

Bob McGrath on the evolution of the "street" set of Sesame Street

Bob McGrath on the cast's Sesame Street wardrobe over the years, including his sweaters

Bob McGrath on the reception of episode "Farewell, Mr. Hooper," which dealt with the death of "Mr. Hooper" following actor Will Lee's passing

Bob McGrath on the writing, scripts and production process for a typical week on Sesame Street

Bob McGrath on the format of Sesame Street

Bob McGrath on working with "Big Bird," "Oscar the Grouch" and "Bert and Ernie" on Sesame Street

Bob McGrath on the highlight of his career, working on Sesame Street

Bob McGrath on memories working with guest star Linda Bove on Sesame Street and the far-reaching impact of an episode about hearing impairment

Bob McGrath on the evolution of the music of Sesame Street over the years; on his favorite moments on the show; on celebrating the 35th anniversary of Sesame Street and the show's success

Anne Meara on appearing on Sesame Street

Lloyd Morrisett on the birth of Sesame Street

Lloyd Morrisett on the research and efforts that went into creating Sesame Street

Lloyd Morrisett on fundraising to get Sesame Street made and trying to get it on the air

Lloyd Morrisett on the early days of production on Sesame Street

Lloyd Morrisett on how Sesame Street was a product of its time

Lloyd Morrisett on how integral research was to Sesame Street

Lloyd Morrisett on early production on Sesame Street

Lloyd Morrisett on audience reaction to Sesame Street

Lloyd Morrisett on funding for a second season of Sesame Street

Lloyd Morrisett on the future of Sesame Workshop and the success and impact of Sesame Street

Thad Mumford on writing songs for Sesame Street with Joe Raposo

Roscoe Orman on how he got his start on Sesame Street

Roscoe Orman on his first days on Sesame Street and trying to win over the kids on set

Roscoe Orman on the Jim Henson puppeteers, Muppets he relates to best, and working with Frank Oz and Kevin Clash on Sesame Street

Roscoe Orman on the puppeteers, puppets, and characters of Sesame Street

Roscoe Orman on Sesame Street's: "Farewell, Mr. Hooper"

Roscoe Orman on the legacy of Sesame Street

Roscoe Orman on people recognizing him as "Gordon" on Sesame Street

Charlotte Rae on appearing as "Molly the Mail Lady" on Sesame Street

Caroll Spinney on performing "Oscar the Grouch"

Caroll Spinney on performing both "Bird Bird" and "Oscar the Grouch" when they appear in the same scene

Caroll Spinney on his characterization of "Big Bird"

Caroll Spinney on going to New York to work for Jim Henson on Sesame Street

Caroll Spinney on a child's shock at seeing him getting out of his "Bird Bird" costume at one filming; on children's belief that there is a "real" Sesame Street and that the show just recreates it

"Big Bird"/"Oscar the Grouch" performer Caroll Spinney on Will Lee ("Mr. Hooper") and "Big Bird's" mispronunciation of "Mr. Hooper's" name

"Big Bird" performer Caroll Spinney on telling Will Lee ("Mr. Hooper") he loved him, during what turned out to be Lee's last day of shooting

"Big Bird"/"Oscar the Grouch" performer Caroll Spinney on the Sesame Street episode "Farewell, Mr. Hooper" which addressed the death of character "Mr. Hooper," following actor Will Lee's death

"Big Bird" performer Caroll Spinney on performing the scene in "Farewell, Mr. Hooper" when "Big Bird" comes to fully realize that Mr. Hooper has died

"Big Bird"/"Oscar the Grouch" performer Caroll Spinney on two Sesame Street episodes that never aired: one on divorce and another on a bad dream (by "Ernie")

"Big Bird" performer Caroll Spinney on a scene in which "Snuffleupagus" becomes "real" (as opposed to "Big Bird's" imaginary friend)

Caroll Spinney on the commercialization of Sesame Street

Caroll Spinney on his schedule and making appearances for Sesame Street

Caroll Spinney on the second season and beyond of Sesame Street and how Jim Henson's death affected the show

Norman Stiles on going to write for Sesame Street

Norman Stiles on the early process of writing for Sesame Street

Norman Stiles on the research department vetting his Sesame Street scripts and the curriculum of the show

Norman Stiles on the length and format of a Sesame Street segment

Norman Stiles on learning to write for Sesame Street and the basic philosophy of writing for the show

Norman Stiles on working with Joan Ganz Cooney on Sesame Street

Norman Stiles on Jim Henson's involvement in Sesame Street and creating the Muppet "The Count"

Norman Stiles on creating the character of "Forgetful Jones" on Sesame Street

Norman Stiles on creating the character of "Elmo" on Sesame Street

Norman Stiles on fine-tuning the character of "Telly Monster" on Sesame Street

Norman Stiles on the female character of "Prairie Dawn" on Sesame Street

Norman Stiles on writing for "Zoe" and "Rosita" on Sesame Street and Sesame Street's evolution in selling products

Norman Stiles on his favorite Sesame Street characters to write for

Norman Stiles on writing for the actors on Sesame Street

Norman Stiles on writing for the ensemble of Sesame Street

Norman Stiles on Ladysmith Black Mambazo performing on Sesame Street and writing songs for the show

Norman Stiles on Dulcy Singer as executive producer of Sesame Street

Norman Stiles on writing songs for Sesame Street

Norman Stiles on leaving Sesame Street and co-creating When Things Were Rotten

Norman Stiles on returning to Sesame Street in 1980

Norman Stiles on collaborating with the writers on Sesame Street as head writer of the show and what he looked for in a writer

Norman Stiles on writing the iconic Sesame Street episode "Farewell, Mr. Hooper"

Norman Stiles on winning a Daytime Emmy for the Sesame Street episode "Farewell, Mr. Hooper"

Norman Stiles on the unaired Sesame Street segment "Snuffy's Parents Get A Divorce"

Norman Stiles on dealing with Sesame Street segments that didn't test well

Norman Stiles on his favorite Sesame Street segments 

Norman Stiles on keeping his writing for Sesame Street fresh over several decades

Norman Stiles on working on international versions of Sesame Street

Norman Stiles on leaving Sesame Street in 1995 and creating Between the Lions

Norman Stiles on the legacy of Sesame Street

Norman Stiles on why "Snuffleupagus" started out as only visible to "Big Bird," but soon became visible to everyone on Sesame Street

Norman Stiles on NASA approaching Sesame Street about a storyline

Bruce Vilanch on writing for Sesame Street specials and the Muppets

Dan Wilcox on how he started writing for Sesame Street and what made the show unique

Dan Wilcox on working with executive producer Jon Stone on Sesame Street

Dan Wilcox on the writing process of Sesame Street

Dan Wilcox on working with Jim Henson on Sesame Street, and on writing for the Muppets

Dan Wilcox on writing for the ensemble cast of Sesame Street

Dan Wilcox on writing for Pete Seeger when he appeared on Sesame Street, and on the music of the show

Dan Wilcox on winning a Daytime Emmy for his work on Sesame Street

Dan Wilcox on leaving Sesame Street, and on the legacy of the show