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Former Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton will appear Saturday on a CNN town hall with characters from “Sesame Street” to educate kids and parents about coronavirus safety. Acton, who resigned Thursday, will join Sesame Street cast members like Big Bird, Elmo and Grover in the one-hour special moderated by Dr. Sanjay Gupta titled “The ABCs of Covid-19.” Acton was a fixture on the television screen during the last three months as part of Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s coronavirus briefings, receiving praise for breaking down complex health concepts into digestible information. Joining Acton will be Olympic gold medal...

Elmo, Rooster and Cookie Monster are doing their part to help keep kids safe as the coronavirus pandemic grinds on. The beloved Sesame Street Muppets are featured in some of four new animated public service spots reminding young fans to take care while doing such things as washing hands and sneezing. One of Elmo’s signature songs, the toothbrush classic “Brushy Brush,” has been updated to “Washy Wash.”Rooster pops up in another of the 30-second spots to remind kids to “wash hands now” before eating, playing sports or using the bathroom.

If you have kids, or if you ever were a kid, you know about the television show Sesame Street. It’s been around for more than 50 years and it’s been appropriately described as an American institution, with lovable characters, entertaining stories, and unique music. It was the first television show to base its content on educational goals and a curriculum, and for so many children (and their parents), it made learning fun. Indeed, if there’s one street that always felt safe for children, it was Sesame Street. And why not? It features a plethora of friendly puppets, an 8-foot tall...

In the transgender debate, even Bert and Ernie are puppets for the left. Incredibly, “Sesame Street,” the once-beloved kids’ show, is making the best case for defunding PBS yet: inviting drag queen Billy Porter on to teach kids the virtues of gender confusion. Wearing a “tuxedo dress,” Porter, the star of “Kinky Boots,” has already been tweeting about the appearance. “I was tickled to meet Elmo and the gang,” he posted. Parents, on the other hand, aren’t nearly so thrilled. More than 55,000 have signed a LifeSite petition calling on the network to drop the episode. "By contributing to this...

Billy Porter, a homosexual cross-dressing actor who is known to wear dresses on red carpets to posh Hollywood events, will be appearing on the PBS kids’ show ‘Sesame Street’ to warp the minds of the young viewers. The show made the announcement in a Facebook post on Thursday, claiming that Porter would bring his “fierce vibes” to Sesame Street. This deeply offended some of the show’s fans on social media. “That is pushing [too] much at little children, it makes no sense, kids have [too] much on their little plates as it is,” a commenter said. “Why add more?”

PBS once provided children with happy thoughts of a fatherly Mr. Roger's talking to us about our day or adorable Ernie singing about his rubber ducky on Sesame Street. But for the LGBTQXYZ movement, children's programming is just another opportunity to teach kids all the ways that it is a homosexual/transgender day in the neighborhood. In recent years, children's public television has premiered a "gay marriage" on Arthur, sang about two dads with a baby in a preschool song about families, and put Grover in a purple dress on Sesame Street. But apparently having a muppet go transvestite for a...

Bert and Ernie may not be a same-sex couple, but the long-running children’s franchise Sesame Street is about to get an infusion of LGBT “vibes” with an upcoming guest appearance by actor and LGBT activist Billy Porter. Porter, best known as Pray Tell in the FX’s LGBT ballroom drama Pose and for wearing extravagant dresses, will appear during the 51st season of the beloved children’s show, according to Sesame Street’s official Facebook page. “Billy Porter bringing those fierce vibes to Sesame Street,” the post declares, accompanied by photos of Porter on the classic set, wearing a tuxedo gown. Comments on the post were largely positive, though some readers expressed concern....

Two famous actors passed away today. Rene Auberjonois was 79. He played a snooty staffer opposite Robert Guiiaume in the 80's series 'Benson'. He was slightly morer famous for playing the shape-shifting Founder 'Odo' on 'Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'. The other was Carrol Spinney, who was 85. You probably don't know him by face, but you definitely knew him as his characters. He was the first and original 'Big Bird' and 'Oscar the Grouch' on 'Sesame Street' providing both the voices and puppetry for the characters. He only gave up being the characters not that long ago.

Caroll Spinney, a puppeteer who brought the beloved Sesame Street characters Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch to life, died today at his Connecticut home. He was 85 and died from Dystonia, a movement disorder. His death was announced by the Sesame Workshop, a nonprofit focused on helping preschool-age children reach their potential. Spinney was described by Sesame Workshop as “an artistic genius whose kind and loving view of the world helped shape and define Sesame Street from its earliest days in 1969.” Spinney joined Jim Henson and developed a huge career using the Muppets characters. Big Bird visited China...

As Sesame Street gives one of its Muppets a new story, the children’s show continues to confront important issues with viewers. Lily, a previously introduced character, has become the first homeless puppet on the program in an effort to raise awareness of childhood homelessness. In a heartbreaking moment from a series of online videos, her schoolmates make their way out, but Lily hesitates. “I miss our apartment and now we don’t have our own place to live,” she says. “And sometimes I wonder if we’ll ever have our own home again.” With help from her friends, she learns that “home...

Caroll Spinney has been with Sesame Street since the beginning. For nearly 50 years, since the show first debuted in 1969, he breathed life into two of the most popular puppets, Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch, for viewers. Now, at the age of 84, Spinney is stepping down from his post and passing the reins to two new actors. “Big Bird brought me so many places, opened my mind and nurtured my soul,” he said in a statement announcing his retirement. “And I plan to be an ambassador for Sesame Workshop for many years to come. After all, we’re...

Well this is news to millions of fans of the beloved PBS franchise. Then again, maybe not. The topic of Bert and Ernie’s homosexuality has been a subtle joke over the years. Saltzman recalled a comical story from the San Francisco Chronicle awhile back that mentioned how one progressive child picked up on the not-so-subtle clues. He stated, “a preschooler in the city turned to mom and asked, ‘Are Bert and Ernie lovers?’ “That coming from a preschooler was fun, and that got passed around,” he mentioned

The organisation behind Sesame Street has denied co-habiting duo, Bert and Ernie, are gay, following comments by one of the show's writers. Mark Saltzman said his writing about the room-mating couple was based on his relationship with film editor Arnold Glassman. Sesame Workshop then issued a statement saying the pair "do not have a sexual orientation". Bert and Ernie may look human, but the pair "remain puppets", it said. "They were created to teach preschoolers that people can be good friends with those who are very different from themselves." It broadly repeats past statements the non-profit organisation has made about...

Folks on Sesame Street have a way of making everyone feel accepted. That certainly goes for Julia, a Muppet youngster with blazing red hair, bright green eyes – and autism. Rather than being treated like an outsider, which too often is the plight of kids on the spectrum, Julia is one of the gang. Look: On this friendliest of streets (actually Studio J at New York’s Kaufman Astoria Studios, where “Sesame Street” lives) Julia is about to play a game with Oscar, Abby and Grover. In this scene being taped for airing next season, these Muppet chums have been challenged...

“Sesame Street” is brought to you today by the letters F-I-R-E-D. Three beloved human characters from the 45-year-old children’s show have been given the Sesame Sweep. Bob the music teacher, Gordon the science teacher and Luis the “Mr. Fix-It,” played by Bob McGrath, Roscoe Orman and Emilio Delgado respectively, have all been axed. “They let all of the original cast members go, with the exception of Alan Muraoka — who is probably 20 years younger than the rest of us — and Chris Knowings, who is also young,” McGrath, 84, said at a Florida Supercon Q&A on July 2.

‘Sesame Street’ Unveils Hijab-Clad Muppet: ‘Zari’ Is A Feminist From Afghanistan by Jerome Hudson 7 Apr 2016 Sesame Street unveiled a fresh face Thursday: a hijab-wearing Afghani Muppet named Zari who will teach kids about “girl empowerment, social and emotional wellbeing.” Zari will first appear in season five of Baghch-e-Simsim, which is the Afghan version of Sesame Street. The popular children show’s Twitter account was abuzz with Zari content Thursday.

David Smyrl, the Emmy-winning actor best known for his role as Mr Handford, the retired firefighter who ran Hooper's Store on Sesame Street, has died. He was 80. Smyrl was diagnosed with lung cancer in January, his wife, Cheryl, said. He died on Tuesday at Lankenau Medical Center outside Philadelphia. 'He was funny,' Cheryl Smyrl said. 'I could say so many good things about him. He was loved by so many people. He was a mentor to a lot of children. He was a family man, loyal, true and faithful.' A north Philadelphia native born on September 12, 1935, Smyrl...

The gang from "Sesame Street" is welcoming a new member to the neighborhood — Julia, a girl who has bright orange hair and big green eyes. She also has autism. Julia is the latest creation from the Sesame Workshop, and she offers children a relatable character they can understand, whether they're living with autism or know someone who is. On Wednesday, "Sesame Street and Autism: See Amazing in All Children" was launched online, and Julia is just part of that educational and awareness initiative. "Children with autism are five times more likely to get bullied," Dr. Jeanette Betancourt, the senior...

Rupert Murdoch just bought National Geographic. Here’s the problem everybody should be talking about. The media was up in arms yesterday at news of Murdoch's high-profile acquisition. Here's what you should know. The news that National Geographic has now been placed in the hands of Rupert Murdoch prompted a predictable outcry, roughly akin to what happens in the movies when the clearly evil tycoon takes the orphans away. A bastion of popular science is now controlled by a very prominent climate change denier who, despite his company’s assurances of editorial integrity, has spent decades interfering with the independence of his...

The churning of market forces in television are once again forcing the question of why Americans are spending hundreds of millions of tax dollars a year on public broadcasting. On August 13, HBO announced it was buying all-new episodes of the iconic PBS show "Sesame Street," delaying their debut on PBS for nine months. Decades of liberal mockery of Republicans for wanting to "kill Big Bird" just collapsed in an ugly pile. The show that was supposedly dedicated to poor kids in "underserved" communities was just sold to the highest-bidding paywall in Yuppie Land. Before that they were negotiating with...