Prehistoric

Here's another clip from "This Way to Sesame Street," where Ernie and Bert introduce the Street and some of the people who live there.

Prehistoric: Numbers

What follows is the next Ernie and Bert interlude from "This Way to Sesame Street." After having been treated to some quick animations about letters, including one with Carol Burnett, Bert plans to introduce a learning sketch about milk and cows. Ernie, true to his developing character, will not let Bert continue unless they move on to numbers. Ernie's persistence prevails, setting up a dynamic between the two that will become very familiar in the years to come, and the pre-Sesame audience gets a sneak peak at how their children will learn about numbers and counting.



Things to note:

1. This sketch was filmed well before Bert learned about "hair gook" (check out the blog next Monday).

2. Seven pumpkin pies: That's Jim Henson's voice, but the baker himself is stuntman Alex Stevens. The "mother" of Sesame Street, Joan Ganz Cooney, never liked the baker pratfall, but Henson kept the character anyway.

3. We see here that Ernie has already demonstrated his fickleness for favorite numbers, claiming seven as his favorite here but admitting that it had been both two and three in the past. Later, he will name as his favorite 8,243,721.

4. Some days I wish Ernie would pull out the old purple and orange shirt and wear it just for old times sake.

Prehistoric

On November 8, 1969, a Saturday, at 5:00 pm, NBC stations showed a special entitled, "This Way to Sesame Street." The purpose of the show was to introduce the television audience to the new educational program that was to debut as a daily series two day later on the 10th. Naturally, the pair chosen to introduce Sesame Street to the masses was our own favorite duo, Ernie and Bert. Forty years later, it appears that they did their job very well.

Please note Bert's playful attitude that is hidden much deeper beneath the surface in later years. Also interesting is the approach they take in explaining the program. The pedagogical approach shines through the humor and reveals the hands of the educational and media experts behind the show's creation.

"Way to go, there, Xerox."

For you literary and historical types inspired by this clip to learn more about what it took to develop Sesame Street and put it on the air, I recommend going straight to here to purchase this book: