According to a very funny article by New York Times TV writer Virginia Heffernan, there is a warning on the new "Sesame Street: Old School" DVD that reads, "These early 'Sesame Street' episodes are intended for grown-ups, and may not suit the needs of today's preschool child." Baffled, Heffernan writes: At a recent all-ages home screening, a hush fell over the room. "What did they do to us?" asked one Gen-X mother of two, finally. The show rolled, and the sweet trauma came flooding back. What they did to us was hard-core. Man, was that scene rough. The masonry on the dingy brownstone at 123 Sesame Street, where the closeted Ernie and Bert shared a dismal basement apartment, was deteriorating. Cookie Monster was on a fast track to diabetes. Oscar's depression was untreated. Prozacky Elmo didn't exist.
It brings up an interesting question: Were those of us who grew up in a time before organic snacks and mandatory car seats and Abby Cadabby really at a disadvantage?
Heffernan suggests that over-protected kids today could learn a little something from old-school Sesame Street:
The harshness of existence was a given, and no one was proposing that numbers and letters would lead you "out" of your inner city to Elysian suburbs. Instead, "Sesame Street" suggested that learning might merely make our days more bearable, more interesting, funnier.
We're with her. Kids today are often presented by kids' programming with a misleading "everyone wins!" version of reality. They could stand a little more misanthropic Oscar, a little less "Prozacky Elmo."
Reader Comments ( Page 1 of 14)
1. I couldn't agree more. I hate the namby pamby pansy way we educate our kids these days. They are living in a fairy tale world. Why do you think so many grow up to blindly follow ridiculous feel-good idealogies which don't mesh with reality? That's liberalism at work for you.
Steve at 4:37PM on Nov 19th 2007
2. Ah, "The Good 'Old' Days"! Don't Worry America, If Your Kids Need A Reality Check; You Can Take Them For A Drive Through The "Disadvantaged" Neighborhoods Of The "Lower-Class". If You Happen To Live In One Of These Neighborhoods; Then I'm Sure That Your Kids Have Already Seen It!
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JC at 5:07PM on Nov 19th 2007
3. Not having seen the 'new' Sesame Street, I can't say what the differences are, but being a Gen Xer myself, I remember Sesame Street very fondly. The show didn't promote learning as a means to an end, but rather as the natural state we should all strive for to be intelligent, creative, kind people. Is the new version pushing some kind of corporate agenda of the American Dream? Sounds like the show has drifted even further into fantasyland!
helas at 5:25PM on Nov 19th 2007
4. All of this is better than the crappy new math that was forced upon us during the 60s and 70s. We want you understand why the correct answer is correct.
Phooey. As mother said, who cares why 7 times 9 is 63. That's the answer. Move on to the next question.
Kent at 9:21PM on Nov 19th 2007
5. As a child who watched Sesame Street, I think that I spent more time learning about letters and numbers than making a psychological analysis of the various characters. Of course, I'm not of Generation X. I was born into the Millennial Generation or Generation Y (people born c.1980-c.1995)... which has just as many flaws, if not more, than previous generations. And I do think the television that we were watching as children can be blamed in part for this.
Moreso than Gen X, Gen Y had to deal with an absence of stay-at-home mothers and were increasingly raised by the cartoons they watched. I know that sounds like an outrageous claim, but when I look back at it, I had more access to my television than I did to either of my parents as a child. And my parents were at home a lot compared to many other people my age.
I have fond memories of the TV shows I watched as a little kid, but most of them had an "everybody wins" theme which cannot be applied to the real world. I can see it today, as people my age are overconcerned with an idealistic concept of fairness. They have trouble accepting discipline, they expect to have things done for them.
I like to think of Generation X as a sandwiched generation, stuck inbetween the hard-working, miserable Baby Boomers and the egotistical, self-indulgent Millenials. It's a tough spot. Kudos to those who are able to deal with it.
I'm going to be truly sad when the Greatest Generation dies out. They grew up during the great depression and had to make sacrifice in the following events surrounding WWII. They understand a level of suffering that will ultimately be forgotten in the next twenty years or so.
Tony Messinger at 9:51AM on Nov 20th 2007
6. Tony, I agree with your assesment as the greatest generation fading out now, though I think that the comotose lifestyles of Y and beyond are in for possibly serious hardships as the environment that has been degredated and near destroyed by previous generations has set them up for the same hardships they sought to avoid.
Tony P. at 3:11PM on Nov 20th 2007
7. Another attack on the Public by Corporate interests.
dave at 3:21PM on Nov 20th 2007
8. I'm going to post a topic on www.U-Debate.com about this...anyone who wants to take me on come on over.
Jessica Summer at 3:27PM on Nov 20th 2007
9. I was in 5th grade when Sesame Street first came on the air. I remember watching it and liking it very much even though I was older. I remember watching it again in the early 1990's with my little nephew and even though it was still cute it had lost some of the original punch that made it so fun to watch. Sesame Street should teach children about reality not fantasy. They could be a big boon to helping children prepare for the real world instead of helping to set them up in a fantasy one. The truth is everybody doesn't win and every one doesn't feel good all the time nor should they. No one is entitled to these things and if you can't handle discipline or correction, then how are you ever going to be able to survive when you do get out into reality. These are part of every day things as an adult and a child.
LambLion58 at 3:43PM on Nov 20th 2007
10. morons all of you...its all about parental input and if you believe this malarky chances are you need professional help
Me at 3:59PM on Nov 20th 2007
11. a sesame street for today?
for one the neighbors would not know each other, except they might be jealous of the nicer car they see.
maybe they would occasionally bump into each other at wal-mart.
burt would be too busy texting ernie. big bird would be chatting with mr snufflupagus on a hands free cell. bob would worry that his housing values will go down if gordon lived nearby, and mr. hooper would be suspicious of maria's immigration status.
back in those days regular people hung around regular people
people interacted with those around them instead of constantly calling and texting somebody else
people respected the working class
people actually had local business which they frequented, and knew the shopkeeper
damn right the "old school" sesame should be for adults (((as well as kids if we can save the next generation))) if you have an iota of education and sense, you could understand the lessons of community and civility, and maybe after that remember what 9 x 7 equals
mr mike at 4:01PM on Nov 20th 2007
12. I had a vision...a great vision...of a movie or a TV Special where the Care Bears nuked the Smurfs. I did my best to pervert my child by teaching her the same perverse kids' songs we sang when I was growing up in the 60's, and making sure she got told about how life actually works as opposed to the garbage they teach in schools these days where everyone wins. As a result, she is a well-adjusted, appropriately cynical, funny, humor filled honor student graduating from college and going on to med school 22 year old woman. Her choices are great. She is highly self-disciplined. She hopes for the best but plans for the worse. She credits me with her cynicism, which is the ONLY stance it makes sense to take in today's world. Both my daughter and I found Oscar the Grouch our favorite Sesame Street character. Neither of us can stand Elmo. She has gone on to educate her 9 year younger little brother, who is following in her footsteps. More Oscar. Less Elmo. Tickle Elmo to death and give him a decent burial.
Father John at 4:07PM on Nov 20th 2007
13. Oh and that stupid purple dinosaur. My kid used to sing "I hate you, you hate me, we put Barney up a tree/with a knife in his back and an A-bomb in his head/now that stupid dinosaur's dead." She'd probably get kicked out of school for that in these absurd "no tolerance" times where idiot teachers and administrators kick kids out for DRAWING pictures of guns and so on. The school system and their employees need massive enemas.
Father John at 4:10PM on Nov 20th 2007
14. I HATE Elmo. Unfortunately, my children love him. I would love to be able to sit and watch old Sesame Street episodes with my kids. That and The Muppet Show. I watched Sesame Street in the early 80's and I think I turned out just fine!!
Stacey56637 at 4:20PM on Nov 20th 2007
15. I even heard some baloney where they said that big yellow bird is actually being an closeted gay pedo or something like that. It was like some decade ago more or less. I grew up with early 'Sesame Street' TV shows in 1970's, especially before they had Close Caption on it or something little after 1978-80 for deaf kids like I once was. And from what I could remember of it, they're pretty being lame in an comparison to where they might would want to put out new 'Sesame Street' XXX adult shows of today for our today kids to see. I think these old ones would be just fine for these today's very young kids, nonetheless!
whitehudson at 4:33PM on Nov 20th 2007