What's wrong with classic "Sesame Street"?? (vent)

[alphamommy]

mode on:

There was a story on last night's local news about a warning that appears on DVDs of the first two seasons of "Sesame Street". This warning indicates that the show is intended for grown-ups, and may not be appropriate for today's toddler/preschooler.

Huh?

I saw the teaser to this story just before the news came on, so I stayed up to watch the story. I wanted to know what was considered offensive to the sensibilities of a child of today. Unfortunately, the news report didn't go into details about the inappropriate content. I poked around on the web just now, and found a story that talks about children wandering around with adults, Oscar the Grouch being crabby (hello! His name is Oscar the Grouch!), and other features of the show that seem suitably inane to this 40-something. What am I missing?

When my DD was a preschooler, and I happily sat her in front of the TV to watch the newer version of this show, I was more appalled by what I saw now. In one sequence, the Gettysburg Address is recited incorrectly: "Four score and seven years ago, our mothers...." What kind of revisionist history is this? One may not like the fact that women were not included in Mr. Lincoln's speech, but that doesn't give one the right to change the wording!

Okay, I've calmed down a little. I'll get off my now...

[Hayden's Dad]

I agree completely this is outrageous. Both my DW and myself grew up on Sesame Street, and we turned out fine. You know I even heard that they have stopped lettign Cookie Monster eat cookies for fear that it would encourage obesity in kids. How utterley ridiculous! Sorry I had to jump on your rant too. Everything is just entirely to PC now a days.

[Ian]

I totally agree. I grew up watching Sesame Street and, quite honestly, loved it immensely as a child.

But now, I won't even let my kids watch it. It's just awful.

[RBrooksC]

Well, you have to remember, as time moves forward some people who feel they have an education try to change things for, what they believe is better.

When I was in college oh so many years ago now, my ex-wife was in the elementary education program. She was being taught phonics is bad and whole language is good. That isn't the only thing however, it has been too many years to remember details but the phonics/whole language seems a good place to discuss. When the whole language came into vogue in the school systems, millions of children were delayed in learning the English language and reading because it was believe to immerse a child in the word and not the parts of the word. It was discovered soon thereafter that phonics was needed for children to really get a grasp of the English language.

Watching my son learn to speak, he is using phonics on his own to learn. For "dance" he says "D." For boat, he says "buh buh boat."

These do-gooders are usually a flash in the pan and fade away when it is discovered what they are trying to peddle is snake oil.

I say, if you want your children to watch the classic episodes of Sesame Street, please do so. To be honest, I don't smoke so I don't think Cookie Monster smoking in a spoof of Masterpiece Theatre harmed me any... And I really did enjoy eating cookies they way Cookie Monster did.

[prprincess]

I read an article about this about a month ago, and to be honest with you, I took it all with a grain of salt. Yeah, things change, and I guess what was deemed okay back then isn't PC nowadays, but honestly, I'd let my kids watched the old episodes. I love them and still don't. I don't see what harm they would cause.

[ncscgirl2005]

Lucky for me neither have my kids have ever liked Sesame Street but I watched it growing up, and I must say that I turned out fine (at least I think I did).

[ncscgirl2005]

And I really did enjoy eating cookies they way Cookie Monster did.

LOL! DH still eats his cookies that way!!!

[Marker]

I wonder who "they" are this time. Given the nature of most network television programming, by want measure of logic do "they" find the greater concern with the likes of Oscar and Cookie Monster?

Once again, I believe "they" are vastly misguided.

[PirateLover]

Another excuse they give was that characters looks (both human and muppet) have changed, as well as relationships and attitudes. I own both Classic Sesame Street Volumes and there's nothing I see as offensive. I watched Sesame Street regularly from the mid-1980s to mid 1990s. One of my favorite shows to this day is Christmas Eve on Sesame Street which was filmed in the 70s. By the time I started watching the show, Mr. Hooper had died and many of the characters featured in this movie had a different look, but I still was able to follow and enjoy it. It's really not that confusing.

They also shows the Monsterpiece Theater skit when I was growing up as well. Amazing how things can change in a little over a decade.

[Disney-lovin' Dutchman]

It might be the fact that Bert and Ernie live with each other and are not brothers.

Sesame Street is also very big in the Netherlands, and I have certainly been brought up with those characters. This is just what young children need now instead of Pokemon and power rangers and all that thrash..

[DisneyDog]

Sesame Street first aired shortly before I was born. I have always loved it, and I still love watching it with my DS5.

But, one of the things that I really remember was when they changed Snuffalupagus. When the show was new, all the characters thought that Snuffy was Big Bird's "Imaginary Friend." No one else was ever around when Snuffy was around. So, they thought Big Bird was making Snuffy up. Kids saw this and were afraid that grown-ups wouldn't believe them when they told important information. And, actually, I remember being very upset and frustrated when I watched the Big Bird sequences and to see the other characters not believe him.

[Ian]

Sesame Street first aired shortly before I was born. I have always loved it, and I still love watching it with my DS5.

But, one of the things that I really remember was when they changed Snuffalupagus. When the show was new, all the characters thought that Snuffy was Big Bird's "Imaginary Friend." No one else was ever around when Snuffy was around. So, they thought Big Bird was making Snuffy up. Kids saw this and were afraid that grown-ups wouldn't believe them when they told important information. And, actually, I remember being very upset and frustrated when I watched the Big Bird sequences and to see the other characters not believe him.

Yep, me too. The first episode aired in November of 1969 when I was just 4 months old. I literally watched it probably every day, multiple times a day, for maybe the first 6 or 7 years of my life.

I had every Sesame Street toy known to man (in fact, in my home office I still have one of my little Bert finger puppets from when I was a kid on my bookshelf) and just loved to play Sesame Street with my brother (we had the Fisher Price Sesame Street playset).

Funny you say that about Snuffy, though. I kinda remember being very frustrated about that, too. I remember thinking, "When are these people finally going to meet Snuffy for real??"

[PirateLover]

Kids saw this and were afraid that grown-ups wouldn't believe them when they told important information. And, actually, I remember being very upset and frustrated when I watched the Big Bird sequences and to see the other characters not believe him.

Funny you say that about Snuffy, though. I kinda remember being very frustrated about that, too. I remember thinking, "When are these people finally going to meet Snuffy for real??"

This is something I'll agree with you on. And a clip of "Imaginary" Snuffy is indeed featured on the Classic collection. I was just watching the other night and getting really upset because they were practically yelling at Big Bird saying he wasn't real. Maria especially had a bad attitude. That is one direction that I think was a bad one for Sesame.