The popular childrens’ show Sesame Street aired for the first time in November 1969. Here are some fun facts about the monumental television show.

  • The show was almost called 123 Avenue B, but it was changed due to the fact that it was a real New York City address.
  • Cookie Monster predates the show by 3 years. Jim Henson originally designed an early version of the character in 1966, for a cracker commercial.
  • Roosevelt Franklin was one of the first breakthrough characters on the show. However, his character was dropped after season 7 following letters complaining of the character was a negative African-American stereotype.
  • The rumor that Bert and Ernie are gay dates back to 1980, when Kurt Andersen questioned the duo’s sexuality in his book The Real Thing. For the record, they are not gay.
  • Originally the Muppets and humans were not intended to interact. However, this changed once producers learned that the audiences were focusing their attention on the Muppets and ignoring the actors.
  • In 1970, Ernie’s signature song “Rubber Duckie” reached No. 16 on the Billboard Hot 100.
  • Big Bird’s height is 8’2.”
  • Ernie wears horizontal stripes on his sweater to make him appear more relaxed; while Bert wears vertical stripes on his sweater to make him appear more uptight.
  • Oscar the Grouch was originally orange.
  • James Earl Jones was the first ever guest star, he recited the alphabet.
  • The show is the longest running children’s program in the U.S. In 2008, it was estimated that 77 million Americans had watched the series as children.