A wide variety of characters have appeared on the American children's television series Sesame Street. Many of the characters are Muppets, which are puppets made in Jim Henson's distinctive puppet-creation style. Most of the non-Muppet characters are human characters, but there are many characters that are animated.
General information
Jim Henson created many Muppet characters for the purpose of appearing on Sesame Street. His involvement with the show began when he and one of the creators, Joan Ganz Cooney, met in the summer of 1968 at one of the show's five three-day curriculum planning seminars in Boston. Author Christopher Finch reported that director Jon Stone, who had worked with Henson previously, felt that if they could not bring him on board, they should "make do without puppets".Finch, p. 53
Henson was initially reluctant, but he agreed to join Sesame Street for social goals. He also agreed to waive his performance fee for full ownership of the Sesame Street Muppets and to split any revenue they generated with the Children's Television Workshop, the series' non-profit producer.Davis, p. 5 The Muppets were a crucial part of the show's popularity and it brought Henson national attention.Morrow, p. 93 In early research, the Muppet segments of the show scored high, and more Muppets were added during the first few seasons. The Muppets were effective teaching tools because children easily recognized them, they were predictable, and they appealed to adults and older siblings.Morrow, pp. 94–95
During the production of Sesame Streets first season, producers created five one-hour episodes to test the show's appeal to children and examine their comprehension of the material. Not intended for broadcast, they were presented to preschoolers in 60 homes throughout Philadelphia and in daycare centers in New York City in July 1969.Lesser, p. 164 The results were "generally very positive";Finch, p. 39 children learned from the shows, their appeal was high, and children's attention was sustained over the full hour. However, the researchers found that although children's attention was high during the Muppet segments, their interest wavered during the "Street" segments, when no Muppets were on screen. This was because the producers had followed the advice of child psychologists who were concerned that children would be confused if human actors and Muppets were shown together. As a result of this decision, the appeal of the test episodes was lower than the target.Gladwell, p. 105
The Street scenes were "the glue" that "pulled the show together",Gladwell, p. 106 so producers knew that they needed to make significant changes. The producers decided to reject the advisers' advice and reshot the Street segments; Henson and his coworkers created Muppets that could interact with the human actors.Fisch & Bernstein, pp. 39–40 These test episodes were directly responsible for what writer Malcolm Gladwell called "the essence of Sesame Street—the artful blend of fluffy monsters and earnest adults". Since 2001, the full rights for the Sesame Street Muppets have been owned by Sesame Workshop, as the CTW was renamed in 2000.
Muppets
Big Bird
Performed by Caroll Spinney (1969–2018) Daniel Seagren (stand-in, 1969; 1970)), Rick Lyon (2003; only in Season 33 Theme Song), Matt Vogel (1996;1997–present)
One of the series' three main protagonists along with Elmo and Cookie Monster, and the first Muppet to appear on the show was Big Bird, a curious 8-foot-2-inch tall yellow bird believed by writer Shalom M. Fisch and Dr. Lewis Bernstein to be a canary, who resides in a large nest alongside the "123 Sesame Street" building and represents the 6-year-old child with his tendency to question everything.Borgenicht, p. 33Gikow, p. 51 On special days, he wears a white collar and colorful necktie. Big Bird's best friend is Aloysius Snuffleupagus (better known as "Snuffy"), who was portrayed as the bird's imaginary friend from the adults' perspectives until revealed to the human cast in 1985.Borgenicht, p. 38
Oscar the Grouch
Performed by Caroll Spinney (1969–2018), Eric Jacobson (2015–present)
Also living outside of the building is Oscar the Grouch, a trash can-dwelling creature belonging to his own unique species, who is portrayed as a habitual pessimist and was designed to give children "permission to feel grouchy—and to demonstrate differing opinions".Gikow, p. 157 Oscar and Big Bird were specifically created for the reshooting of the "Street" scenes with the idea that they would be able to interact with the human characters.Fisch & Bernstein, p. 40 For his part, Oscar has several friends of his own despite his pessimism; these include the Grouch's pet worm, Slimey, and his girlfriend Grundgetta.Davis, p. 322
Bert and Ernie
Bert: Performed by Frank Oz (1969–2006), Eric Jacobson (1999–present) Ernie: Performed by Jim Henson (1969–1990), Steve Whitmire (1993–2014), John Tartaglia (2003, Play with Me Sesame) ,Billy Barkhurst (2014–2017), Peter Linz (2017–present)
Two other Muppets who have appeared on the show since its beginning are Bert and Ernie, a pair of best friends with contrasting personalities; Ernie is portrayed as a free-spirited trickster who loves his rubber duck,Borgenicht, pp. 21-25 while Bert is the world-weary foil to his friend's naïve trouble-making, and shows himself to be obsessed with things like pigeons and paper clips.Finch, p. 61 The debate on these characters' sexuality is highly disputed, but as of September 2018, Bert and Ernie are confirmed to not have any sexuality, as do the other characters on this list.
Cookie Monster
Performed by Frank Oz (1969–2001; 2004), David Rudman (2001–present)
Also appearing on the show are an unidentified species of furry characters referred to as "monsters". Among these are Cookie Monster, a fuzzy, blue gluttonous monster with a baritone voice, who is most famously addicted to the baked goods for which he is namedBorgenicht, p. 65 but ironically also likes enjoying healthy foods as well; he will eat anything and everything in sight, regardless of whether it's food or not. He often goes "Om nom nom nom nom!" whenever he is eating something, His signature song is C is for Cookie, He also started in several recurring segments where he tried to not resist on eating a cookie that has the letter of the day on it, started in several cinematic styles trailer parodies of famous movies, and even ran a food truck with Gonger from the Furchester Hotel. He also is depicted to be a chef/baker due to his love of food (especially cookies)
Zoe
Performed by Fran Brill (1993–2015), Jennifer Barnhart (2016–present)
Zoe is an orange 3-year-old female monster who is "simultaneously dainty and strong, practical and impulsive" and is Elmo's best friend. She has a pet rock named Rocco;Borgenicht, p. 87 and loves to dance ballet.
Rosita
Performed by Carmen Osbahr (1991–present)
Rosita is a bilingual turquoise 5-year-old female monster who speaks both English and Spanish. She also plays the guitar.
Grover
Performed by Frank Oz (1970–2012), Eric Jacobson (1999–present)
Grover is a blue monster described by Borgenicht as "self-confident, furry, cute, capable, and intelligent",Borgenicht, p. 46 and has a superhero alter-ego named "Super Grover", who is more well-meaning than helpful.
Count von Count (The Count)
Performed by Jerry Nelson (1972–2012), Matt Vogel (2013–present)
In addition to Ernie and Bert, recognizable humanoid Muppets appearing on the show include Count von Count, a friendly and harmless, but number-obsessed vampire based on Bela Lugosi's interpretation of Count Dracula.Davis, p. 239 The Count has been confirmed to be of an Indian descent, explaining the love of numbers as his being directly related to Aryabhata.
Prairie Dawn
Performed by Fran Brill (1971–2015), Stephanie D'Abruzzo (2016–present)
Prairie Dawn is a young girl who loves to write and direct pageants featuring her friends.
Elmo
Performed by Kevin Clash (1985-2012), Ryan Dillon (2013-present). Other Performers: Various including: Jerry Nelson (Ca. 1980), Kathryn Mullen (Ca. 1980), Brian Meehl (1981-1984), Richard Hunt (1984-1985)
One Muppet monster who became a household name and main icon in the show's recent history is Elmo, a small, red monster with a falsetto voice, representing the 3-year-old child, and usually referring to himself from a third person perspective. Elmo became what his eventual performer, Kevin Clash, considered a "phenomenon"Borgenicht, p. 9 after Clash took over the role in 1984, and his popularity ultimately grew to the point where he became what writer Michael Davis called "the embodiment" of Sesame Street.Davis, p. 249 Typically, he is portrayed as friendly and cheerful, he has a distinctive giggling laughter, and every so often he falls over backwards to amuse viewers, such as in the 2002 video, Elmo Visits the Firehouse (except that Maria caught him on that occasion). In 1998, the Muppet got his own segment occupying the last 15 minutes of the show, "Elmo's World", in which he explored child-centered topicsFisch & Bernstein, p. 45 from two worlds of live action and computer animation, which looked like "a child's squiggly crayon drawing come to life".Clash, p. 75 "Elmo's World" continued until 2012, when it was alternated by another segment starring the character, "Elmo the Musical".Jensen, Elizabeth (2012-09-13). "Hey, Elmo, That Concept Has Legs" The New York Times. Retrieved 2013-08-07 Later, "Elmo's World" returned in 2017, with a new revamped version.Steinburg, Brian (2016-10-17). Variety. Retrieved 2022-02-25 Elmo is one of the main protagonists along with Abby Cadabby, Cookie Monster and Grover. He has two pets: a fish named Dorothy and his puppy Tango.
Abby Cadabby Performed by Leslie Carrara-Rudolph (2006–present)
While the rights to Muppet characters from other productions were sold to The Walt Disney Company in 2004, Sesame Workshop continued to fully own the Sesame Street Muppets; as a result, Sesame Workshop was and is allowed to have new Muppets designed and built for the show. These have included Abby Cadabby, a four-year-old pink fairy-in-training, who was introduced in 2006 to increase the number of the show's female Muppets; Her stepbrother, Rudy, was introduced to the show in the summer of 2017.
Julia
Performed by Stacey Gordon (2017–present)
Julia is the first Muppet with autism on the show, introduced in 2017, who was created to familiarize young children with the autism spectrum. She is four years old.
Two-Headed Monster
Left Head: Performed by Jerry Nelson (1978–2000), Joey Mazzarino (2001–2016), Eric Jacobson (2016–present) Right Head: Performed by Richard Hunt (1978–1992), David Rudman (1998–present)
Two-Headed Monster teaches cooperation while speaking in baby-like gibberish but with heavy accents.Borgenicht, p. 133
Others In addition to these regular characters, others that occasionally appear are: the Twiddlebugs, a family of cute and innovative insects; the Yip Yips, a species of Martians who "valiantly explore our world despite their frequent terrifying encounters with everyday objects"; game show host Guy Smiley;Borgenicht, p. 98 construction workers Biff and Sully;Davis, p. 242 Herry Monster, a burly blue monster who does not know his own strength;Borgenicht, p. 103 Forgetful Jones, a "simpleton cowboy" with a short-term memory disorder; and even Kermit the Frog, the flagship character of The Muppets.Borgenicht, p. 89