Sesame Street: 40 Years of Sunny Days

Sesame Street has been educating and entertaining kids for 40 years. But the kind of TV programming for children that we currently take for granted didn't exist until Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett dreamed up the concept of curriculum-based, educational children's television in the late 1960s. By 1969, lots of research, consultation with educators, and testing had culminated in Sesame Street--a show that was groundbreaking not only for its educational content, but also for its integrated cast and realistic setting. Amazingly, the show hasn't really changed all that much in 40 years--it still maintains its focus on educating kids and helping them understand and deal with things they're likely to encounter in their real lives. It accomplishes those goals with great characters, skilled puppetry, and the latest technological advances in animation. Summing up 40 years of Sesame Street programming in about five hours is no easy task, but this two-disc set is a great compilation of "best-of" memories, arranged by season. Classic scenes with Ernie singing "Rubber Ducky" and Kermit crooning the moving ballad "It's Not Easy Being Green" are obvious favorite choices, as are recurring segments such as the "Pinball Machine Count" (sung by the Pointer Sisters), "Ladybug Picnic," "Monsterpiece Theatre," and Cookie Monster attacking pile after pile of cookies. Scores of famous singers, actors, and sports stars have guest starred on Sesame Street over the years. This compilation includes performances by Lena Horne, Henry Winkler, Mr. (Fred) Rogers, James Taylor, Smokey Robinson, Pee-wee Herman, Marilyn Horne, Tony Bennett, Robert De Niro, Olamide Faison, Alicia Keys, Matt Lauer, David Beckham, and Neil Patrick Harris. In addition to an assortment of typical Sesame Street segments featuring everyone's favorite characters, both Muppet and human, there are also several hugely memorable episodes, including when Big Bird learns that Mr. Hooper has died and isn't ever coming back, Luis and Maria's wedding and the birth of their first child, Snuffy's first appearance before someone besides Big Bird, and the time a hurricane blew away Big Bird's nest. Other favorite segments like "Elmo's World," "Bert and Ernie's Great Adventures," various alphabet and counting songs, and a star-filled rendition of "Sing, Sing a Song" are also included in the compilation. Among the bonus features are optional pop-up facts and "Behind the Street" scenes; interview footage with actors/puppeteers, producers, and puppet designers/builders; TV montages; a fan-favorite scene; and a preview of "Abby's Flying Fairy School," a segment that features Sesame Street's first-ever CGI animation. Whether reliving childhood days watching the show or sharing it with a whole new generation, everyone will be thoroughly entertained by this great collection of Sesame Street programming. --Tami Horiuchi