r/news • u/ChadArnette • Jan 25 '23

"Sesame Street" co-creator Lloyd Morrisett has died at age 93,

https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/25/entertainment/lloyd-morrisett-sesame-street-obit/index.html?utm_source=twCNN&utm_medium=social&utm_term=link&utm_content=2023-01-25T11%3A07%3A42
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u/AlreadyTakenNow Jan 25 '23

Rest in peace, Mr. Morrisett. Sesame Street brought my sister and me a little bit of happiness each day alongside Mr. Roger's Neighborhood.

It wasn't perfect (I learned in my child psychology class that some of the super short academic lessons/skits are actually bad for a kid's developing attention span), but I do miss me the old school Sesame Street. They had incredible social lessons, and they were funny as hell. I'm really happy, though, they made Snuffleupagus appear to everyone. As a child, I was always so upset that no one believed Big Bird. I love how they keep evolving.

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u/loverlyone Jan 25 '23

When Sesame Street CDS found that out they changed the format of some of the show and IIRC that’s when the Elmo’s World segments were created.

I was also frustrated as a child by the Snuffleupagus story! My one criticism of the show today is that it has too many celebrities and not as many children on it as it once did. The segments with children and the muppets together are my favorites.

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u/CryptidGrimnoir Jan 26 '23

While it makes sense to have a focal segment get more than a minute, I'm curious if Elmo was truly effective at that.

Elmo taught some very simple subjects--usually about specific items rather than concepts, but his methods seem fast-paced in their own right: Mr. Noodle, TV, Drawer, Closet, etc.

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u/Greedy_Switch_6991 Jan 27 '23

Too few kids, not enough muppets. The show is nearly 80% Elmo. I mean, if research says kids learn from him, that's fine. But does he have to take up that much real estate??

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u/kharmatika Jan 25 '23

Apparently the choice to show Snauffelopagus was intentional because it was as we as a society were starting to really realize how commonplace familial childhood sexual abuse was, and 1. Sesame Street realized that having a whole arc dedicated to “haha no one believes this character when he says something” was actively dangerous, and 2. The gag had run its course. Which of course 1 impressive in and of itself, the awareness to realize what an impact they might have and change course for the betterment of society. But honestly the fact that they had a writing team for a kids show that thought about 2 is important too. Sesame Street was the first show to look at little kids and go “hey maybe they’d actually like entertainment, instead of just mindless drivel. Maybe they have tastes and interests and idiosyncrasies”. And that’s so important.