Since Sesame Street’s inception, it has maintained its astounding, unwavering inclusivity. Sesame Street has been tackling issues such as racism with its young audience long before adults candidly addressed this topic on adult television.
However, some of its characters, such as Roosevelt Franklin, created controversy among the audience. He was the first black Muppet introduced in the show.
Roosevelt Franklin made his first appearance on Sesame Street in the year 1970. Sesame street actor Matt Robinson created him because he felt the program needed more material to appeal to Black children. He even provided his voice for the character.
Roosevelt Franklin had a purple skin color with shaggy black hair. Roosevelt was depicted as an intelligent boy who often spoke in rhyme or scat.
He appeared on the show for seven consecutive years. However, after the middle of the 1970s, Roosevelt started appearing in fewer episodes. And finally, in 1977, he was removed from the show.
Why did Sesame Street get rid of Roosevelt Franklin?
Even though loved by many, Roosevelt Franklin was a character that created immense controversy. Parents assumed that he was not a good image for their youngsters.
People thought that he was too stereotypical and his rowdy elementary school was not a good example for the children. The audience believed that the character lacked soul. As his character became more recognized, Black parents started criticizing him.
They alleged that he was fostering racial prejudices. Eventually, they started phasing his character out from the year 1973. And finally, in 1977, they completely got rid of the character from the story. However, he did appear on the show’s 50th anniversary.
Who were the original members of Sesame Street?
The original members the producer chose at that time include Matt Robinson, Loretta Long, Will Lee, and Bob McGrath.
When Sesame Street began in 1969, Matt Robinson played the character Gorden. Along with that, he also provided the voice for the puppet Roosevelt Franklin.
However, he left the show in 1972. Loretta Long played the character of Gorden’s wife, Susan. She played the character of Susan from 1969 to 2016. However, after the 45th season, she was removed from the show.
William Lee was one of the four original human characters on Sesame Street. He was famously known as Mr. Cooper in the show. Several generations grew up with him. He died in 1982.
However, another artist did not replace his character because the show’s creators wanted to discuss death and loss, a topic complicated for parents to discuss with their children.
Bob McGrath has been one of the human characters in the casting of the series for the longest time. He played the role of a music teacher on Sesame Street.
Who are the famous characters of Sesame Street?
It’s incredible to think that this series will be 50 this year. And in these 50 years, many characters gained immense recognition, some of which are Oscar the Grouch, Big Bird, Cookie Monster, and Elmo.
Oscar the Grouch lives in the trash can and never complains because he loves trash. The character is depicted as a grumpy older man whose only job is always complaining.
On the other hand, Big Bird is a big yellow bird who’s a Muppet prone to misunderstandings. However, he doesn’t complain about this trait and fully accepts himself the way he is giving the children a precious lesson to love themselves however they are.
As the name suggests, Cookie Monster is a hungry character who loves to eat cookies and makes a lot of noise while eating.
Last but not least, Elmo is the most famous character on Sesame Street and has his show by the name The-Not-Too late show, which he currently hosts himself.
How did Sesame Street Muppets become revolutionaries?
It began with a controversial bet that young children could learn from television. To help kids reach their full potential, Sesame Street aims to develop new, entertaining material that utilizes the educational power of media.
Sesame Street conjured a society based on an unconventional worldview. The show was not afraid of controversies and talked about some of the world’s major issues, including neurodiversity, disability, and racism.
Sesame Street and its Muppets also gave the children some eye-opening lessons. Even though it has been 50 years since it’s been on the air, it’s still the favorite show among many people.
Sesame Street became a model for many other shows and tried replicating it.
Why did Sesame Street create an autistic character?
Sesame Street has made conscious efforts to bring something on the screen that was not of the ordinary. They created characters with disabilities to raise awareness about them in the audience, and such was the character Julia.
She is a yellow Muppet with short red hair and green eyes and is known as the character with autism on the show.
The character is written by Leslie Kimmelman and the parent of an autistic child. The concept for the autistic character, Julia, came about when authors who were parents of autistic children were sharing how much their children responded to and enjoyed Sesame Street.
According to research, Julia is a tool for parents to learn, increasing their knowledge of and acceptance of kids with autism.
Sesame Street has been remarkably brave for the past 50 years and is willing to take down challenging topics. It tells us how to embrace societal differences with an open heart and a positive attitude.
Why is the character Grover a role model for perseverance?
Grover is innocent and has a talent for nurturing and loving. The only problem is that he frequently makes mistakes when trying to assist others.
But the significant part about the character is that he is ok with making mistakes. Children need that in their lives right now.
Kids need to learn how to develop their independence and resiliency. The character encourages people to continue attempting, learning from errors and iterating through trial and error. And that is why Grover is a model of perseverance.
Politigory provides in-depth reviews of science, history, humanities, religion, social sciences and arts 
