Sesame Street
APM Studios
You probably know Sesame Street as a fun, fast-paced show full of talking puppets, like Elmo and Big Bird. But it actually started as a huge experiment to see if TV could change kids’ lives for the better! Join Joy and co-host Truman as tell the tale of how Sesame Street came to be. It’s a wild story full of big gambles, creative ideas, haters and doubters! Along the way, they’ll help a very eager actor get ready for a big audition. Plus, a new First Things First featuring three iconic Sesame Street characters!
Audio Transcript
Download transcript (PDF)
JOY DOLO: Oh, Truman, come here. My commercial is about to be on.
TRUMAN: Cool! I'll turn the TV up.
[REMOTE CONTROL BEEPS]
JOY DOLO: Scarlett Johansson, Viola Davis, Timothée Chalamet, Joy Dolo, some of the finest actors in our modern age. But only one offers an acting class taught out of the back of a discount shoe store, and that one is Joy Dolo.
Learn from the actress Time magazine once called late with her monthly subscription payment. And critics say, who? At the Joy Dolo School of Acting, you'll master all the emotions-- happy [LAUGHS], sad [SOBS], angry [GROWLS], confused-- how do I update my payment info in the Time magazine website? By the end, you'll be ready for any role. So call now or I'll be so sad [SOBS]. Aha! Fooled you. Acting!
TRUMAN: That was an awesome commercial, Joy.
JOY DOLO: Thanks.
[DOOR CLOSES]
LETTER E: Hello. Is this the Joy Dolo School of Acting? I just saw your commercial and I need your help.
TRUMAN: Is that--
JOY DOLO: --a giant, green capital letter E?
LETTER E: Yeah, I get that a lot. Mostly because I am a giant, green capital letter E. And right now I need E for experts to help me with my next audition.
TRUMAN: What are you auditioning for?
LETTER E: To play the letter E on Sesame Street.
JOY DOLO: Oh, wow! Well, you came to the right place. Class is about to begin.
LETTER E: Eeee! I'm double E for extremely excited.
[THEME MUSIC]
JOY DOLO: Welcome to Forever Ago from APM Studios. I'm Joy Dolo here with my buddy, Truman from Minneapolis, Minnesota.
TRUMAN: Hello.
JOY DOLO: And also one giant, green Letter E.
LETTER E: Hiyee!
JOY DOLO: Today, we're talking Sesame Street because E here is hoping to land a big part on that show. Truman, do you have a favorite Sesame Street character?
TRUMAN: I think, for sure, Rocco.
JOY DOLO: Rocco? OK, can you-- if someone has never seen Rocco, would you describe what Rocco is?
TRUMAN: So Rocco is Elmo's friend Zoe's pet rock.
JOY DOLO: Yeah. And Rocco drives Elmo nutty.
TRUMAN: Because Zoe thinks Rocco is real. But Elmo knows that Rocco is a rock.
JOY DOLO: Do you think that Rocco is a rock, or do you think that Rocco is real?
TRUMAN: I think Rocco has a beautiful personality.
JOY DOLO: [LAUGHS] He's just very calm.
TRUMAN: Yes, just a very like-- kind of shy, but very funny when you get to know him type of guy.
JOY DOLO: I have a-- I have an embarrassing question for you. Can you do an impression of Rocco?
TRUMAN: There's my impression.
JOY DOLO: [LAUGHS] Spot on. Spot on. Do you think that TV shows are capable of changing the world?
TRUMAN: I think so.
JOY DOLO: Yeah?
TRUMAN: If they have the space, if they have the people who will watch them that can teach good morals, teach to not lie, teach to not cheat, they could change the world.
LETTER E: Ooh, I want to change the world to empower. I've got to be on Sesame Street.
JOY DOLO: Well, Letter E, we're going to help you get that part. And the Joy Dolo School of Acting Methods says to truly understand a part is to immerse yourself in the history, in this case, the history of Sesame Street.
LETTER E: Eee-- Exciting.
JOY DOLO: We're also going to work on your range of emotion. Show me happy.
LETTER E: Aah! I'm elated.
JOY DOLO: Show me mad.
LETTER E: Grr-- I am enraged.
JOY DOLO: Show me sad.
LETTER E: Um, sad? That's a tough one for an E. Um, how about engrossed or-- or entertained? Or even envious?
TRUMAN: Wait, can you only do feelings that start with the letter E?
LETTER E: Uh, no. Well, maybe. Ah, yes. Hah, I can only emote in letter E. And I can't think of a word for sad that starts with E.
JOY DOLO: Hmm, that'll definitely limit you. Let me think about it. For now, back to history.
TRUMAN: You might Sesame Street as a cute show with talking puppets like Elmo, Big Bird, and Oscar the Grouch.
JOY DOLO: Plus friendly humans who interact with the puppets.
TRUMAN: But Sesame Street actually started as a wild experiment to see if a TV show could help kids become successful adults.
JOY DOLO: It's a story full of big gambles, wild ideas, haters and doubters, and ultimately, a huge win.
LETTER E: Oh, elaborate, please. I'm all ears.
JOY DOLO: To understand why anyone would think a TV show could change the world, we need to go waaay back [REWIND] to America in the 1960s.
[ROCK MUSIC]
TRUMAN: Rock and roll was pretty new.
JOY DOLO: Ford released the iconic Mustang muscle car.
TRUMAN: People called each other on phones that were attached to the wall with a long, curly cord.
JOY DOLO: Americans were about to send the first humans to the moon.
[WHOOSH]
There was a feeling that American smarts could solve anything.
TRUMAN: But there was a lot that needed solving.
JOY DOLO: One big problem was that even though lots of people had plenty of money, others were struggling to pay their bills. And researchers discovered that kids who grew up poor struggled later in life.
TRUMAN: They often fell behind in school.
JOY DOLO: And they didn't make as much money when they were adults. Then their kids would grow up with less money, too. It was a cycle.
TRUMAN: But some people thought, hey, if we could just help get those kids ready for school earlier in life, they'd break the cycle.
JOY DOLO: They'd do better in school, get better jobs, make more money, and their kids would be better off. Problem solved.
LETTER E: Oh, E for enticing idea. But how do you execute such an all-encompassing plan?
TRUMAN: That's where TV comes in. Lots of people had TVs back then. In fact, more Americans had TVs in their homes than toasters or telephones.
JOY DOLO: Speaking of which, I just found this old 1960s TV in my closet. [BLOWS] [COUGHS] Let's switch it on and see what TV was like back then.
[STATIC]
TRUMAN: Color TV was still new in the 1960s. But there were only a few channels you could watch.
JOY DOLO: And unlike today, where you can watch pretty much whatever you want whenever you want, back then, there were set TV schedules. A show would come on at a certain time and that was it. You either watched it at that time or you missed it.
TRUMAN: And if you felt like turning the TV on at a random hour, you had to watch whatever was playing at that time.
JOY DOLO: Oh, like this show.
[SWITCH FLIPS]
[SHOW MUSIC]
SQUIGGLES: [LAUGHS] Hey, kids, it's Squiggles the Clown here on Topsy Turvy Town, the show where fun is always on tap. [LAUGHS] In a little bit, I'm going to throw a pie in mean old Mr. Beansworth's face. But first, have you seen these nifty Topsy Turvy Town toys? Available now. This one of me has real pie throwing action. [LAUGHS]
JOY DOLO: Geez, that's a toy commercial wrapped in a show. Let's change the channel. [SWITCH FLIPS]
RUGGED RUSTLER: It's the Rugged Rustler, an outlaw turned sheriff.
OUTLAW: Look, Rustler, I'm taking the snoot and riding off and you can't stop me.
RUGGED RUSTLER: Oh, yeah? My fists of fury and my lasso of the law have something to say about that. Get back here. [FIST POUNDS] Whoa, hey. [FIST POUNDS] [GRUNTS]
LETTER E: Egads, there was a lot of advertising and fighting on TV back then. Where were the educational shows?
JOY DOLO: Back then, there were only a handful of educational shows. And they usually weren't popular. Still, kids in the late 1960s were watching a ton of TV.
TRUMAN: By some estimates, preschoolers were watching an average of 54 hours of TV a week. That's like eight hours a day.
JOY DOLO: Which leads us to a fateful morning, when one little girl was watching TV and it would inspire something huge.
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]
The little girl was a three-year-old named Sarah Morrison. It was around 6:30 in the morning. Back then, TV didn't even have shows until 7:00 AM. Before that, it just showed a single image called a test pattern. Usually, a test pattern was just a picture of some circles and squares. Sarah didn't care. She stared at the TV screen, glued. Her dad, Lloyd, found her like this.
LLOYD: Sarah, what are you doing?
SARAH: Watching.
LLOYD: But there's nothing on right now.
SARAH: I know.
JOY DOLO: Lloyd thought to himself, wow, TV can really grab a kid's attention. What if we could use that power for good?
TRUMAN: A few days later, he told that story to a woman named Joan Ganz Cooney, and it sparked an idea in her that would change the world.
LETTER E: Wow, this reminds me of the time I was eyeing an elephant who was entertaining an exasperated eel.
TRUMAN: Um, Letter E, how is this like watching an elephant trying to entertain an eel?
LETTER E: Both experiences had me at the edge of my seat. [LAUGHS] So, what eventually happened?
JOY DOLO: Oh, you'll find out right after we play a round of--
KIDS: (SINGING) First Things First.
JOY DOLO: So this is the game where we take three things from history and try to put them in order of which came first, second, and most recent in time. Today's three things are characters from Sesame Street. So we've got Elmo, the lovable red monster, Snuffleupagus, the furry elephant creature, and the Count, a vampire who loves numbers. Uh, 1-- hahaha, 2, hahaha, 3 characters. Hahaha.
TRUMAN: [LAUGHS]
JOY DOLO: That was a good impression, huh?
TRUMAN: That's a great impression.
JOY DOLO: Thank you so much. Truman, which do you think started on the show first, which was second, and which showed up most recently?
TRUMAN: So, I know that Elmo is a big part of Sesame Street and a face seen throughout the world.
JOY DOLO: Yep.
TRUMAN: So, I'm guessing that Elmo came first.
JOY DOLO: OK.
TRUMAN: That's my first guess.
JOY DOLO: That's good. That's an educated guess.
TRUMAN: Yeah. And then I remember Count very, very well from lots of things. And so I'm guessing he came second because I see-- I saw him more on the show. And then I'm guessing Snufflelorus?
JOY DOLO: Snuffleupagus.
TRUMAN: Snuffleupagus?
JOY DOLO: Have you seen Snuffleupagus? Do you know the big, furry elephant?
TRUMAN: I know I've seen him.
JOY DOLO: Yeah.
TRUMAN: But I don't remember where.
JOY DOLO: It was probably on Sesame Street.
[LAUGHTER]
You didn't see him at the grocery store.
TRUMAN: Yeah. Yeah, that's where I saw him. That's sure.
JOY DOLO: Well, that's cool, too, because if it's probably the most recent, then it probably wouldn't be like in your memory storage. So--
TRUMAN: Yeah, that's why I'm guessing order number one, Elmo came first. Number two, Count. Number three, Snuffleupagus.
JOY DOLO: OK, Elmo, one, Count, second, and Snuffleupagus, third.
TRUMAN: Correct.
JOY DOLO: OK, we'll hear the answers at the end of the episode right after the credits.
TRUMAN: So, stick around.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
JOY DOLO: We're working on an episode all about jobs that people used to have in the past but don't exist anymore today. But we want to know, what job do you think will exist in the future that doesn't exist today? Like a mechanic for flying cars-- Truman, what do you think? Any ideas about jobs of the future?
TRUMAN: I think that we're going to automate a lot of jobs, so I think we're going to have jobs that help AI in like proofreading AI's work.
JOY DOLO: Aah, to make sure the AI is getting it correct.
TRUMAN: Yeah.
JOY DOLO: I see. That's a really good guess. And that's probably going to happen. Listeners, record yourself describing what job you think will exist in the future and send it to us at foreverago.org/contact. And while you're there, you can send us episode ideas, questions, and drawings. Like maybe you want to draw a picture of your favorite Sesame Street character or me hugging a Sesame Street character. Me and Elmo, best friends, draw that picture. It's exciting!
MOLLY BLOOM: Brains On! Universe is a family of podcasts for kids and their adults. Since you're a fan of Forever Ago, we know you'll love the other shows in our universe. Come on, let's explore.
[PLANE RUMBLES]
ALIEN: Forever Ago. I'm their biggest fan. I also love Smash Boom Best, a fun debate podcast for kids and families. Listen, I will play you Smash Boom Best. You will love.
[DEVICE BEEPS]
NARRATOR: To refresh your memory, the ugly duckling goes like this. A bunch of duck eggs hatch and the cute little ducklings go, quack, quack, quack, quack.
[DUCKS QUACKING]
Mother duck is super happy with her eggs when crack, [EGG CRACKS] the last one explodes, and out comes a--
ALIEN: [GASPS] Zorg, where did the signal go?
[DEVICE BEEPS]
Must find Smash Boom Best now.
[PLANE RUMBLES]
MOLLY BLOOM: Listen to Smash Boom Best wherever you get your podcasts.
[THEME MUSIC]
JOY DOLO: This is Forever Ago. I'm Joy.
TRUMAN: I'm Truman.
LETTER E: And I'm a giant, green, capital letter E. Joy is educating me about acting so I can land a role on Sesame Street.
JOY DOLO: Hmm, I still need to teach you to act sad. Let's try this. What's the saddest memory you have?
LETTER E: Oh, probably the time I unexpectedly elbowed Ed Sheeran at an Earth Day event. I was so embarrassed.
JOY DOLO: Good. Channel that into acting sad.
LETTER E: I am feeling entirely-- gyah! I can't do it.
JOY DOLO: Oh, don't worry, E, we'll keep working on it. But back to Sesame Street. So far, we learned that researchers in the 1960s wanted to help kids from poorer homes do better in school.
TRUMAN: And TVs were everywhere. So people started wondering if you could use TV to teach these kids. That's where the mastermind of Sesame Street stepped in.
JOY DOLO: Her name was Joan Ganz Cooney. Joan was a go-getter TV producer who had many important documentaries for grownups, but nothing for kids. She wanted to test the idea that TV could teach.
LETTER E: Oh, E for an experiment. I love it. What happened next?
JOY DOLO: Well, to make a difference, this new show had to do three things. One, it had to be educational. Two, it had to show kids a world that looked like theirs. After all, if they couldn't relate to it, they'd be less likely to watch. And three, it had to be super fun or else they definitely wouldn't watch.
TRUMAN: Three simple things, but no easy task.
LETTER E: Sounds like the time I tried to enter an eggplant into an envelope and enshrine it on Mount Everest.
JOY DOLO: Uh, sure. So first step, educational. Joan rounded up the top experts in child development. Together, they figured out how to best teach kids basic things like counting and letters.
TRUMAN: Next, make it relatable. Joan and her team wanted to reach kids who lived in cities, so they set the show on a typical New York City street.
JOY DOLO: At the time, cities like New York were struggling. Lots of families living in the city were poor. And the schools there often didn't have enough money to spend on high quality resources.
TRUMAN: But Joan wanted kids to see cities in a positive light.
JOY DOLO: She also wanted to have actors on the show who were Black and actors that were white. So Black and white kids would see themselves in the characters.
TRUMAN: This seems normal to us now, but having actors of different races on a kid's TV show was a big deal back then.
JOY DOLO: In the 1960s, Black Americans were fighting to be treated the same as white Americans. This became known as the Civil Rights Movement. Joan hoped kids would see Black and white people in the show treating each other as equals, and they'd learn to do the same.
TRUMAN: So that leaves the last goal, make a show that's entertaining.
JOY DOLO: Luckily, Joan had a secret weapon.
LETTER E: An egg? Oh, an eagle. No, an engine.
JOY DOLO: It wasn't an E word. It was a man who made some of the most entertaining puppets ever-- Jim Henson.
TRUMAN: At first, Jim Henson didn't want to do a kids show. His dream was to make puppet shows for grownups. But Joan was super convincing.
JOY DOLO: He agreed to be a part of her experiment. Jim worked with writers and puppeteers to dream up all kinds of characters for the show.
TRUMAN: From a fuzzy Grouch living in a garbage can to a 7-foot tall, fluffy, yellow bird. Joan also enlisted the help of songwriters, musicians, and animators to make cool cartoons, catchy songs and skits.
SESAME STREET CAST: (SINGING) A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z. A, B, C, D--
SESAME STREET MAN: Just put it right there, Dudley.
DUDLEY: OK.
SESAME STREET MAN: Today I would like to show you the letter D. Now, this is the capital D and-- where's the small D, Dudley?
DUDLEY: Uh, I ate it for dinner.
SESAME STREET MAN: Well, get me another one.
DUDLEY: Yeah, OK. Here you go.
SESAME STREET MAN: Thanks. Now, as Dudley suggested, the word dinner begins with a D.
[CHEWING LOUDLY]
Dudley, mind your manners. Don't chew with your mouth open.
DUDLEY: It ain't so.
[LAUGHTER]
TRIANGLE: Oh, boy, are you square. You don't move. You're always the same. All four sides the same length. 1, 2, 3, 4. All four corners square is a box. I have three sides, and I can make them as long or as short as I want.
JOY DOLO: Then they tested it over and over again. They'd play the show for kids and notice the exact spots kids got bored.
TRUMAN: Then they'd go back and redo those parts to make them even more fun.
JOY DOLO: And then they'd play the new version for kids to see if it had worked. By the end, they had created the most well-researched, most tinkered with, most elaborate kids TV show ever.
TRUMAN: And they called it Sesame Street.
LETTER E: Wow! What an exceptional tale. But I got to say, when you talk about all this tinkering and studying, all these people weighing in, it sounds like too many cooks in the kitchen. A recipe for an e-- epic fail.
JOY DOLO: A lot of people thought it would fail. It cost millions of dollars to make. And remember, the people who made Sesame Street didn't just want it to be good. It had to be so good it would change lives.
TRUMAN: The first episode of Sesame Street aired on November 10th, 1969.
GORDON: Sally, you've never seen a street like Sesame Street. Everything happens here. You're going to love it. They're playing play games and-- say, hi, Bob.
BOB: Hi, how are you?
GORDON: Say hello to Sally. She just moved into the neighborhood.
BOB: Hi, Sally. How are you?
GORDON: That's Bob.
BOB: Nice to see you. Greetings, my friend.
JOY DOLO: Lots of people tuned in, almost 2 million households.
TRUMAN: And guess what, they loved it. Critics loved it, too.
JOY DOLO: The team could have easily made a flop, but instead they made magic.
LETTER E: I knew it. I wasn't worried at all.
TRUMAN: There was pushback, though.
JOY DOLO: Some parents and teachers said the show was too fast paced and too flashy, that it was bad for kids' attention spans.
TRUMAN: Others didn't like that the show had white and Black actors working together.
JOY DOLO: In Mississippi, officials banned the show for that reason. But the officials got so much pushback from the public, they quickly changed their minds.
LETTER E: Yeah, but the people who created Sesame Street weren't just trying to make a good show. You said it was an E for experiment. Did it do what they wanted it to do? Did it help poorer kids do better in school?
JOY DOLO: Actually, it helped all kids who watched it do better in school, regardless of how much money their families had, which was a big win for them.
TRUMAN: But it did not break the cycle that led to some families struggling more with money and jobs.
JOY DOLO: Right. It didn't stop poor kids from struggling altogether either. Since the 1960s, we've learned a lot more about why some kids have a harder time than others. Turns out, there are a lot of complicated reasons for this, and there's no simple fix.
TRUMAN: But still, Sesame Street did a lot of good and it's still doing good today.
LETTER E: OK. Wow. I feel E for energized.
JOY DOLO: I know. Imagine if the show was a flop. We'd never get to know Bert and Ernie. Imagine if Cookie Monster was canceled after one season.
LETTER E: Not Cookie!
JOY DOLO: Imagine if-- dare I say it-- the most popular E Muppet never existed.
LETTER E: Elmo?
JOY DOLO: Yes. Imagine no Elmo.
LETTER E: I feel so emo just thinking about it. [GASPS] Wait, I found my sad word. Emo. Emotional. Joy, you're a genius.
JOY DOLO: That's what my resume says. And my business cards and the vanity license plate on my car.
LETTER E: Thanks, Joy and Truman. I am ready to give this audition E for everything I've got. See you tomorrow after I get this part. Eeee--
[DOOR SLAMS]
[THEME MUSIC]
BIG BIRD: Sesame Street has been brought to you today by the letter A--
JOY DOLO: [SIGHS] what a great episode of Sesame Street.
TRUMAN: Yeah, it's so fun to think that the show was such a huge gamble when it started.
JOY DOLO: For sure. Researchers wanted to find a way to teach preschoolers basics like numbers and letters before they got to school, especially kids living in poorer homes in cities who needed a little extra help. It took a visionary like Joan Ganz Cooney to figure out that a TV show could do that.
TRUMAN: Yeah, and it's amazing how they took ideas from scientists and teachers and entertainers to make something that was both fun and educational.
JOY DOLO: Totally. Speaking of Sesame Street, I wonder how our pal E did at that audition today.
[DOOR CLOSES]
LETTER E: Joy, Truman, E for exciting news.
TRUMAN: You got the part of E on Sesame Street?
LETTER E: Sadly, no, but I did get a part. Get this. I am playing the number three. Yeah, look, I may be a capital E, but if I turn this way, I look just like a three. The casting director thought I was so convincing, they gave me a recurring role. I'm going to be a number.
TRUMAN: That's amazing.
JOY DOLO: Way to show range as an actor.
LETTER E: Thanks. Now I have to go home and practice getting into character. Three is me. I am three. Three, you see, not an E. Ee-tee-tee tee-tee-tee.
[DOOR SLAMS]
JOY DOLO: Oh, and when you're famous, don't forget to tell them who trained you. I take coupons.
[PHONE RINGING]
I bet that's another actor who wants my help. [GASPS] Hello, Joy Dolo School of Acting. Joy Dolo speaking.
[GARBLED REPLY]
Time Magazine.
[GARBLED REPLY]
I told you the check is in the mail.
[THEME MUSIC]
This episode was written by--
SANDEN TOTTEN: Sanden Totten.
JOY DOLO: It was produced by--
NICO GONZALEZ WISLER: Nico Gonzalez Wisler.
JOY DOLO: And--
RUBY GUTHRIE: Ruby Guthrie.
JOY DOLO: It was edited by--
SHAHLA FARZAN: Shahla Farzan.
JOY DOLO: Fact checking by--
NICO GONZALEZ WISLER: Nico Gonzalez Wisler.
JOY DOLO: Engineering help from Alex Simpson with sound design by--
RACHEL BREES: Rachel Brees.
JOY DOLO: Original theme music by--
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
JOY DOLO: We had additional production help from the rest of the Brains On! Universe team.
MOLLY BLOOM: Molly Bloom.
ROSIE DUPONT: Rosie duPont.
ANNA GOLDFIELD: Anna Goldfield.
LAUREN HUMPERT: Lauren Humpert.
JOSHUA RAY: Joshua Ray.
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
CHARLOTTE TRAVER: Charlotte Traver.
ANNA WEGGEL: Anna Weggel.
JOY DOLO: And--
ARON WOLDESLASSIE: Aron Woldeslassie.
JOY DOLO: Beth Pearlman is our executive producer and the executives in charge of APM Studios are Chandra Kavati and Joanne Griffith.
OK, Truman, are you ready to hear the answers for First Things First?
TRUMAN: Yes, I am.
JOY DOLO: Oh, my gosh. Roll up your socks and put a napkin in your lap. Here comes the answers. As a reminder, your order was Elmo and then the Count--
TRUMAN: Yes.
JOY DOLO: And then Snuffleupagus is the most recent, correct?
TRUMAN: Totally.
JOY DOLO: All right, let's see what is going on. OK, you did pretty good. You did pretty good.
TRUMAN: I did.
JOY DOLO: First up was actually Snuffleupagus.
TRUMAN: Really?
JOY DOLO: Yeah, so Snuffleupagus was from 1971.
TRUMAN: Interesting.
JOY DOLO: Yeah. Mr. Snuffleupagus is also called Snuffy. And he's not an elephant even though he has a trunk. He's just like a made up creature. For a long time, people on Sesame Street thought he was just Big Bird's imaginary friend because Snuffy would hide whenever Big Bird tried to bring other people over to see him.
TRUMAN: Yeah.
JOY DOLO: But finally, other people saw him, and he soon became a key part of the Sesame gang.
TRUMAN: That's awesome.
JOY DOLO: So yeah, Snuffleupagus was first. You did great. [LAUGHS]
TRUMAN: Completely biffed it.
JOY DOLO: But I'll tell you what you didn't biff, you got number two right.
TRUMAN: Yes!
JOY DOLO: It was the Count. Count Von Count is from 1972, so like a year later from Snuffleupagus.
TRUMAN: Really?
JOY DOLO: Yeah, so he's a vampire-like Muppet who loves counting. And he lives in a creepy castle with some bats. And he drives a wicked cool, purple convertible car called-- do you know the name of his car is?
TRUMAN: I don't. Wait, wait. Is it like the Counter or something?
JOY DOLO: That's a really good guess, the Counting. It's called the Count Mobile.
TRUMAN: Oh, uf-- yeah, I could have gotten that, too.
JOY DOLO: [LAUGHS]
TRUMAN: The Count Mobile.
JOY DOLO: The Count Mobile.
TRUMAN: That makes sense.
JOY DOLO: Yeah, and it has purple bat wings.
TRUMAN: That's so cool.
JOY DOLO: Yeah.
TRUMAN: Why is he trying to be like Batman, though?
JOY DOLO: He's copying-- copycat.
TRUMAN: Copycat.
JOY DOLO: The count is a copycat.
TRUMAN: But he's a vampire.
JOY DOLO: He's a vampire copycat.
TRUMAN: He's a vampire copycat.
JOY DOLO: He's a vampire cat.
[LAUGHTER]
TRUMAN: We're just repeating each other.
JOY DOLO: Yeah, we are. But last but certainly not least is Elmo.
TRUMAN: Yey!
JOY DOLO: Elmo-- Elmo wasn't invented until 1980.
TRUMAN: Really?
JOY DOLO: And that was the most recent. Even though he's been around a long time, he wasn't the Elmo we know right away. A few different puppeteers used the Elmo puppet, but he was a minor Muppet until one young puppeteer gave Elmo his falsetto voice and bubbly personality.
[LAUGHTER]
TRUMAN: That's so interesting.
JOY DOLO: Can you do an Elmo voice?
TRUMAN: I would try it, but I would rather not embarrass myself.
JOY DOLO: I honor you and I respect that.
TRUMAN: But would you like to try it?
JOY DOLO: I-- [FALSETTO VOICE]
TRUMAN: [LAUGHS]
JOY DOLO: [FALSETTO VOICE] Elmo.
TRUMAN: My name is Elmo.
JOY DOLO: Yeah, that was really good. So after that, Elmo grew to be one of the most recognizable children's characters of all time. So out of all three of those, what surprised you the most?
TRUMAN: I think the fact that surprised me the most is that I got all of them wrong. Except for Count.
JOY DOLO: Except for Count. You got the Count.
TRUMAN: I got the Count. Right. I'm happy about that, though. But I'm sad about the Count Mobile.
JOY DOLO: Yeah. I feel like you did a really good job, though, because I would think Elmo would be the oldest one because that's the one that's the most iconic.
TRUMAN: Yeah, he's like Elmo.
JOY DOLO: Yeah, he's like-- he is Sesame Street.
TRUMAN: He like-- he's the one that goes on all the interviews.
JOY DOLO: Oh, yeah. Join us next week for a new episode, all about the jobs that don't exist anymore.
TRUMAN: Thanks for listening.
[THEME MUSIC]
TRUMAN: Cool! I'll turn the TV up.
[REMOTE CONTROL BEEPS]
JOY DOLO: Scarlett Johansson, Viola Davis, Timothée Chalamet, Joy Dolo, some of the finest actors in our modern age. But only one offers an acting class taught out of the back of a discount shoe store, and that one is Joy Dolo.
Learn from the actress Time magazine once called late with her monthly subscription payment. And critics say, who? At the Joy Dolo School of Acting, you'll master all the emotions-- happy [LAUGHS], sad [SOBS], angry [GROWLS], confused-- how do I update my payment info in the Time magazine website? By the end, you'll be ready for any role. So call now or I'll be so sad [SOBS]. Aha! Fooled you. Acting!
TRUMAN: That was an awesome commercial, Joy.
JOY DOLO: Thanks.
[DOOR CLOSES]
LETTER E: Hello. Is this the Joy Dolo School of Acting? I just saw your commercial and I need your help.
TRUMAN: Is that--
JOY DOLO: --a giant, green capital letter E?
LETTER E: Yeah, I get that a lot. Mostly because I am a giant, green capital letter E. And right now I need E for experts to help me with my next audition.
TRUMAN: What are you auditioning for?
LETTER E: To play the letter E on Sesame Street.
JOY DOLO: Oh, wow! Well, you came to the right place. Class is about to begin.
LETTER E: Eeee! I'm double E for extremely excited.
[THEME MUSIC]
JOY DOLO: Welcome to Forever Ago from APM Studios. I'm Joy Dolo here with my buddy, Truman from Minneapolis, Minnesota.
TRUMAN: Hello.
JOY DOLO: And also one giant, green Letter E.
LETTER E: Hiyee!
JOY DOLO: Today, we're talking Sesame Street because E here is hoping to land a big part on that show. Truman, do you have a favorite Sesame Street character?
TRUMAN: I think, for sure, Rocco.
JOY DOLO: Rocco? OK, can you-- if someone has never seen Rocco, would you describe what Rocco is?
TRUMAN: So Rocco is Elmo's friend Zoe's pet rock.
JOY DOLO: Yeah. And Rocco drives Elmo nutty.
TRUMAN: Because Zoe thinks Rocco is real. But Elmo knows that Rocco is a rock.
JOY DOLO: Do you think that Rocco is a rock, or do you think that Rocco is real?
TRUMAN: I think Rocco has a beautiful personality.
JOY DOLO: [LAUGHS] He's just very calm.
TRUMAN: Yes, just a very like-- kind of shy, but very funny when you get to know him type of guy.
JOY DOLO: I have a-- I have an embarrassing question for you. Can you do an impression of Rocco?
TRUMAN: There's my impression.
JOY DOLO: [LAUGHS] Spot on. Spot on. Do you think that TV shows are capable of changing the world?
TRUMAN: I think so.
JOY DOLO: Yeah?
TRUMAN: If they have the space, if they have the people who will watch them that can teach good morals, teach to not lie, teach to not cheat, they could change the world.
LETTER E: Ooh, I want to change the world to empower. I've got to be on Sesame Street.
JOY DOLO: Well, Letter E, we're going to help you get that part. And the Joy Dolo School of Acting Methods says to truly understand a part is to immerse yourself in the history, in this case, the history of Sesame Street.
LETTER E: Eee-- Exciting.
JOY DOLO: We're also going to work on your range of emotion. Show me happy.
LETTER E: Aah! I'm elated.
JOY DOLO: Show me mad.
LETTER E: Grr-- I am enraged.
JOY DOLO: Show me sad.
LETTER E: Um, sad? That's a tough one for an E. Um, how about engrossed or-- or entertained? Or even envious?
TRUMAN: Wait, can you only do feelings that start with the letter E?
LETTER E: Uh, no. Well, maybe. Ah, yes. Hah, I can only emote in letter E. And I can't think of a word for sad that starts with E.
JOY DOLO: Hmm, that'll definitely limit you. Let me think about it. For now, back to history.
TRUMAN: You might Sesame Street as a cute show with talking puppets like Elmo, Big Bird, and Oscar the Grouch.
JOY DOLO: Plus friendly humans who interact with the puppets.
TRUMAN: But Sesame Street actually started as a wild experiment to see if a TV show could help kids become successful adults.
JOY DOLO: It's a story full of big gambles, wild ideas, haters and doubters, and ultimately, a huge win.
LETTER E: Oh, elaborate, please. I'm all ears.
JOY DOLO: To understand why anyone would think a TV show could change the world, we need to go waaay back [REWIND] to America in the 1960s.
[ROCK MUSIC]
TRUMAN: Rock and roll was pretty new.
JOY DOLO: Ford released the iconic Mustang muscle car.
TRUMAN: People called each other on phones that were attached to the wall with a long, curly cord.
JOY DOLO: Americans were about to send the first humans to the moon.
[WHOOSH]
There was a feeling that American smarts could solve anything.
TRUMAN: But there was a lot that needed solving.
JOY DOLO: One big problem was that even though lots of people had plenty of money, others were struggling to pay their bills. And researchers discovered that kids who grew up poor struggled later in life.
TRUMAN: They often fell behind in school.
JOY DOLO: And they didn't make as much money when they were adults. Then their kids would grow up with less money, too. It was a cycle.
TRUMAN: But some people thought, hey, if we could just help get those kids ready for school earlier in life, they'd break the cycle.
JOY DOLO: They'd do better in school, get better jobs, make more money, and their kids would be better off. Problem solved.
LETTER E: Oh, E for enticing idea. But how do you execute such an all-encompassing plan?
TRUMAN: That's where TV comes in. Lots of people had TVs back then. In fact, more Americans had TVs in their homes than toasters or telephones.
JOY DOLO: Speaking of which, I just found this old 1960s TV in my closet. [BLOWS] [COUGHS] Let's switch it on and see what TV was like back then.
[STATIC]
TRUMAN: Color TV was still new in the 1960s. But there were only a few channels you could watch.
JOY DOLO: And unlike today, where you can watch pretty much whatever you want whenever you want, back then, there were set TV schedules. A show would come on at a certain time and that was it. You either watched it at that time or you missed it.
TRUMAN: And if you felt like turning the TV on at a random hour, you had to watch whatever was playing at that time.
JOY DOLO: Oh, like this show.
[SWITCH FLIPS]
[SHOW MUSIC]
SQUIGGLES: [LAUGHS] Hey, kids, it's Squiggles the Clown here on Topsy Turvy Town, the show where fun is always on tap. [LAUGHS] In a little bit, I'm going to throw a pie in mean old Mr. Beansworth's face. But first, have you seen these nifty Topsy Turvy Town toys? Available now. This one of me has real pie throwing action. [LAUGHS]
JOY DOLO: Geez, that's a toy commercial wrapped in a show. Let's change the channel. [SWITCH FLIPS]
RUGGED RUSTLER: It's the Rugged Rustler, an outlaw turned sheriff.
OUTLAW: Look, Rustler, I'm taking the snoot and riding off and you can't stop me.
RUGGED RUSTLER: Oh, yeah? My fists of fury and my lasso of the law have something to say about that. Get back here. [FIST POUNDS] Whoa, hey. [FIST POUNDS] [GRUNTS]
LETTER E: Egads, there was a lot of advertising and fighting on TV back then. Where were the educational shows?
JOY DOLO: Back then, there were only a handful of educational shows. And they usually weren't popular. Still, kids in the late 1960s were watching a ton of TV.
TRUMAN: By some estimates, preschoolers were watching an average of 54 hours of TV a week. That's like eight hours a day.
JOY DOLO: Which leads us to a fateful morning, when one little girl was watching TV and it would inspire something huge.
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]
The little girl was a three-year-old named Sarah Morrison. It was around 6:30 in the morning. Back then, TV didn't even have shows until 7:00 AM. Before that, it just showed a single image called a test pattern. Usually, a test pattern was just a picture of some circles and squares. Sarah didn't care. She stared at the TV screen, glued. Her dad, Lloyd, found her like this.
LLOYD: Sarah, what are you doing?
SARAH: Watching.
LLOYD: But there's nothing on right now.
SARAH: I know.
JOY DOLO: Lloyd thought to himself, wow, TV can really grab a kid's attention. What if we could use that power for good?
TRUMAN: A few days later, he told that story to a woman named Joan Ganz Cooney, and it sparked an idea in her that would change the world.
LETTER E: Wow, this reminds me of the time I was eyeing an elephant who was entertaining an exasperated eel.
TRUMAN: Um, Letter E, how is this like watching an elephant trying to entertain an eel?
LETTER E: Both experiences had me at the edge of my seat. [LAUGHS] So, what eventually happened?
JOY DOLO: Oh, you'll find out right after we play a round of--
KIDS: (SINGING) First Things First.
JOY DOLO: So this is the game where we take three things from history and try to put them in order of which came first, second, and most recent in time. Today's three things are characters from Sesame Street. So we've got Elmo, the lovable red monster, Snuffleupagus, the furry elephant creature, and the Count, a vampire who loves numbers. Uh, 1-- hahaha, 2, hahaha, 3 characters. Hahaha.
TRUMAN: [LAUGHS]
JOY DOLO: That was a good impression, huh?
TRUMAN: That's a great impression.
JOY DOLO: Thank you so much. Truman, which do you think started on the show first, which was second, and which showed up most recently?
TRUMAN: So, I know that Elmo is a big part of Sesame Street and a face seen throughout the world.
JOY DOLO: Yep.
TRUMAN: So, I'm guessing that Elmo came first.
JOY DOLO: OK.
TRUMAN: That's my first guess.
JOY DOLO: That's good. That's an educated guess.
TRUMAN: Yeah. And then I remember Count very, very well from lots of things. And so I'm guessing he came second because I see-- I saw him more on the show. And then I'm guessing Snufflelorus?
JOY DOLO: Snuffleupagus.
TRUMAN: Snuffleupagus?
JOY DOLO: Have you seen Snuffleupagus? Do you know the big, furry elephant?
TRUMAN: I know I've seen him.
JOY DOLO: Yeah.
TRUMAN: But I don't remember where.
JOY DOLO: It was probably on Sesame Street.
[LAUGHTER]
You didn't see him at the grocery store.
TRUMAN: Yeah. Yeah, that's where I saw him. That's sure.
JOY DOLO: Well, that's cool, too, because if it's probably the most recent, then it probably wouldn't be like in your memory storage. So--
TRUMAN: Yeah, that's why I'm guessing order number one, Elmo came first. Number two, Count. Number three, Snuffleupagus.
JOY DOLO: OK, Elmo, one, Count, second, and Snuffleupagus, third.
TRUMAN: Correct.
JOY DOLO: OK, we'll hear the answers at the end of the episode right after the credits.
TRUMAN: So, stick around.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
JOY DOLO: We're working on an episode all about jobs that people used to have in the past but don't exist anymore today. But we want to know, what job do you think will exist in the future that doesn't exist today? Like a mechanic for flying cars-- Truman, what do you think? Any ideas about jobs of the future?
TRUMAN: I think that we're going to automate a lot of jobs, so I think we're going to have jobs that help AI in like proofreading AI's work.
JOY DOLO: Aah, to make sure the AI is getting it correct.
TRUMAN: Yeah.
JOY DOLO: I see. That's a really good guess. And that's probably going to happen. Listeners, record yourself describing what job you think will exist in the future and send it to us at foreverago.org/contact. And while you're there, you can send us episode ideas, questions, and drawings. Like maybe you want to draw a picture of your favorite Sesame Street character or me hugging a Sesame Street character. Me and Elmo, best friends, draw that picture. It's exciting!
MOLLY BLOOM: Brains On! Universe is a family of podcasts for kids and their adults. Since you're a fan of Forever Ago, we know you'll love the other shows in our universe. Come on, let's explore.
[PLANE RUMBLES]
ALIEN: Forever Ago. I'm their biggest fan. I also love Smash Boom Best, a fun debate podcast for kids and families. Listen, I will play you Smash Boom Best. You will love.
[DEVICE BEEPS]
NARRATOR: To refresh your memory, the ugly duckling goes like this. A bunch of duck eggs hatch and the cute little ducklings go, quack, quack, quack, quack.
[DUCKS QUACKING]
Mother duck is super happy with her eggs when crack, [EGG CRACKS] the last one explodes, and out comes a--
ALIEN: [GASPS] Zorg, where did the signal go?
[DEVICE BEEPS]
Must find Smash Boom Best now.
[PLANE RUMBLES]
MOLLY BLOOM: Listen to Smash Boom Best wherever you get your podcasts.
[THEME MUSIC]
JOY DOLO: This is Forever Ago. I'm Joy.
TRUMAN: I'm Truman.
LETTER E: And I'm a giant, green, capital letter E. Joy is educating me about acting so I can land a role on Sesame Street.
JOY DOLO: Hmm, I still need to teach you to act sad. Let's try this. What's the saddest memory you have?
LETTER E: Oh, probably the time I unexpectedly elbowed Ed Sheeran at an Earth Day event. I was so embarrassed.
JOY DOLO: Good. Channel that into acting sad.
LETTER E: I am feeling entirely-- gyah! I can't do it.
JOY DOLO: Oh, don't worry, E, we'll keep working on it. But back to Sesame Street. So far, we learned that researchers in the 1960s wanted to help kids from poorer homes do better in school.
TRUMAN: And TVs were everywhere. So people started wondering if you could use TV to teach these kids. That's where the mastermind of Sesame Street stepped in.
JOY DOLO: Her name was Joan Ganz Cooney. Joan was a go-getter TV producer who had many important documentaries for grownups, but nothing for kids. She wanted to test the idea that TV could teach.
LETTER E: Oh, E for an experiment. I love it. What happened next?
JOY DOLO: Well, to make a difference, this new show had to do three things. One, it had to be educational. Two, it had to show kids a world that looked like theirs. After all, if they couldn't relate to it, they'd be less likely to watch. And three, it had to be super fun or else they definitely wouldn't watch.
TRUMAN: Three simple things, but no easy task.
LETTER E: Sounds like the time I tried to enter an eggplant into an envelope and enshrine it on Mount Everest.
JOY DOLO: Uh, sure. So first step, educational. Joan rounded up the top experts in child development. Together, they figured out how to best teach kids basic things like counting and letters.
TRUMAN: Next, make it relatable. Joan and her team wanted to reach kids who lived in cities, so they set the show on a typical New York City street.
JOY DOLO: At the time, cities like New York were struggling. Lots of families living in the city were poor. And the schools there often didn't have enough money to spend on high quality resources.
TRUMAN: But Joan wanted kids to see cities in a positive light.
JOY DOLO: She also wanted to have actors on the show who were Black and actors that were white. So Black and white kids would see themselves in the characters.
TRUMAN: This seems normal to us now, but having actors of different races on a kid's TV show was a big deal back then.
JOY DOLO: In the 1960s, Black Americans were fighting to be treated the same as white Americans. This became known as the Civil Rights Movement. Joan hoped kids would see Black and white people in the show treating each other as equals, and they'd learn to do the same.
TRUMAN: So that leaves the last goal, make a show that's entertaining.
JOY DOLO: Luckily, Joan had a secret weapon.
LETTER E: An egg? Oh, an eagle. No, an engine.
JOY DOLO: It wasn't an E word. It was a man who made some of the most entertaining puppets ever-- Jim Henson.
TRUMAN: At first, Jim Henson didn't want to do a kids show. His dream was to make puppet shows for grownups. But Joan was super convincing.
JOY DOLO: He agreed to be a part of her experiment. Jim worked with writers and puppeteers to dream up all kinds of characters for the show.
TRUMAN: From a fuzzy Grouch living in a garbage can to a 7-foot tall, fluffy, yellow bird. Joan also enlisted the help of songwriters, musicians, and animators to make cool cartoons, catchy songs and skits.
SESAME STREET CAST: (SINGING) A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z. A, B, C, D--
SESAME STREET MAN: Just put it right there, Dudley.
DUDLEY: OK.
SESAME STREET MAN: Today I would like to show you the letter D. Now, this is the capital D and-- where's the small D, Dudley?
DUDLEY: Uh, I ate it for dinner.
SESAME STREET MAN: Well, get me another one.
DUDLEY: Yeah, OK. Here you go.
SESAME STREET MAN: Thanks. Now, as Dudley suggested, the word dinner begins with a D.
[CHEWING LOUDLY]
Dudley, mind your manners. Don't chew with your mouth open.
DUDLEY: It ain't so.
[LAUGHTER]
TRIANGLE: Oh, boy, are you square. You don't move. You're always the same. All four sides the same length. 1, 2, 3, 4. All four corners square is a box. I have three sides, and I can make them as long or as short as I want.
JOY DOLO: Then they tested it over and over again. They'd play the show for kids and notice the exact spots kids got bored.
TRUMAN: Then they'd go back and redo those parts to make them even more fun.
JOY DOLO: And then they'd play the new version for kids to see if it had worked. By the end, they had created the most well-researched, most tinkered with, most elaborate kids TV show ever.
TRUMAN: And they called it Sesame Street.
LETTER E: Wow! What an exceptional tale. But I got to say, when you talk about all this tinkering and studying, all these people weighing in, it sounds like too many cooks in the kitchen. A recipe for an e-- epic fail.
JOY DOLO: A lot of people thought it would fail. It cost millions of dollars to make. And remember, the people who made Sesame Street didn't just want it to be good. It had to be so good it would change lives.
TRUMAN: The first episode of Sesame Street aired on November 10th, 1969.
GORDON: Sally, you've never seen a street like Sesame Street. Everything happens here. You're going to love it. They're playing play games and-- say, hi, Bob.
BOB: Hi, how are you?
GORDON: Say hello to Sally. She just moved into the neighborhood.
BOB: Hi, Sally. How are you?
GORDON: That's Bob.
BOB: Nice to see you. Greetings, my friend.
JOY DOLO: Lots of people tuned in, almost 2 million households.
TRUMAN: And guess what, they loved it. Critics loved it, too.
JOY DOLO: The team could have easily made a flop, but instead they made magic.
LETTER E: I knew it. I wasn't worried at all.
TRUMAN: There was pushback, though.
JOY DOLO: Some parents and teachers said the show was too fast paced and too flashy, that it was bad for kids' attention spans.
TRUMAN: Others didn't like that the show had white and Black actors working together.
JOY DOLO: In Mississippi, officials banned the show for that reason. But the officials got so much pushback from the public, they quickly changed their minds.
LETTER E: Yeah, but the people who created Sesame Street weren't just trying to make a good show. You said it was an E for experiment. Did it do what they wanted it to do? Did it help poorer kids do better in school?
JOY DOLO: Actually, it helped all kids who watched it do better in school, regardless of how much money their families had, which was a big win for them.
TRUMAN: But it did not break the cycle that led to some families struggling more with money and jobs.
JOY DOLO: Right. It didn't stop poor kids from struggling altogether either. Since the 1960s, we've learned a lot more about why some kids have a harder time than others. Turns out, there are a lot of complicated reasons for this, and there's no simple fix.
TRUMAN: But still, Sesame Street did a lot of good and it's still doing good today.
LETTER E: OK. Wow. I feel E for energized.
JOY DOLO: I know. Imagine if the show was a flop. We'd never get to know Bert and Ernie. Imagine if Cookie Monster was canceled after one season.
LETTER E: Not Cookie!
JOY DOLO: Imagine if-- dare I say it-- the most popular E Muppet never existed.
LETTER E: Elmo?
JOY DOLO: Yes. Imagine no Elmo.
LETTER E: I feel so emo just thinking about it. [GASPS] Wait, I found my sad word. Emo. Emotional. Joy, you're a genius.
JOY DOLO: That's what my resume says. And my business cards and the vanity license plate on my car.
LETTER E: Thanks, Joy and Truman. I am ready to give this audition E for everything I've got. See you tomorrow after I get this part. Eeee--
[DOOR SLAMS]
[THEME MUSIC]
BIG BIRD: Sesame Street has been brought to you today by the letter A--
JOY DOLO: [SIGHS] what a great episode of Sesame Street.
TRUMAN: Yeah, it's so fun to think that the show was such a huge gamble when it started.
JOY DOLO: For sure. Researchers wanted to find a way to teach preschoolers basics like numbers and letters before they got to school, especially kids living in poorer homes in cities who needed a little extra help. It took a visionary like Joan Ganz Cooney to figure out that a TV show could do that.
TRUMAN: Yeah, and it's amazing how they took ideas from scientists and teachers and entertainers to make something that was both fun and educational.
JOY DOLO: Totally. Speaking of Sesame Street, I wonder how our pal E did at that audition today.
[DOOR CLOSES]
LETTER E: Joy, Truman, E for exciting news.
TRUMAN: You got the part of E on Sesame Street?
LETTER E: Sadly, no, but I did get a part. Get this. I am playing the number three. Yeah, look, I may be a capital E, but if I turn this way, I look just like a three. The casting director thought I was so convincing, they gave me a recurring role. I'm going to be a number.
TRUMAN: That's amazing.
JOY DOLO: Way to show range as an actor.
LETTER E: Thanks. Now I have to go home and practice getting into character. Three is me. I am three. Three, you see, not an E. Ee-tee-tee tee-tee-tee.
[DOOR SLAMS]
JOY DOLO: Oh, and when you're famous, don't forget to tell them who trained you. I take coupons.
[PHONE RINGING]
I bet that's another actor who wants my help. [GASPS] Hello, Joy Dolo School of Acting. Joy Dolo speaking.
[GARBLED REPLY]
Time Magazine.
[GARBLED REPLY]
I told you the check is in the mail.
[THEME MUSIC]
This episode was written by--
SANDEN TOTTEN: Sanden Totten.
JOY DOLO: It was produced by--
NICO GONZALEZ WISLER: Nico Gonzalez Wisler.
JOY DOLO: And--
RUBY GUTHRIE: Ruby Guthrie.
JOY DOLO: It was edited by--
SHAHLA FARZAN: Shahla Farzan.
JOY DOLO: Fact checking by--
NICO GONZALEZ WISLER: Nico Gonzalez Wisler.
JOY DOLO: Engineering help from Alex Simpson with sound design by--
RACHEL BREES: Rachel Brees.
JOY DOLO: Original theme music by--
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
JOY DOLO: We had additional production help from the rest of the Brains On! Universe team.
MOLLY BLOOM: Molly Bloom.
ROSIE DUPONT: Rosie duPont.
ANNA GOLDFIELD: Anna Goldfield.
LAUREN HUMPERT: Lauren Humpert.
JOSHUA RAY: Joshua Ray.
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
CHARLOTTE TRAVER: Charlotte Traver.
ANNA WEGGEL: Anna Weggel.
JOY DOLO: And--
ARON WOLDESLASSIE: Aron Woldeslassie.
JOY DOLO: Beth Pearlman is our executive producer and the executives in charge of APM Studios are Chandra Kavati and Joanne Griffith.
OK, Truman, are you ready to hear the answers for First Things First?
TRUMAN: Yes, I am.
JOY DOLO: Oh, my gosh. Roll up your socks and put a napkin in your lap. Here comes the answers. As a reminder, your order was Elmo and then the Count--
TRUMAN: Yes.
JOY DOLO: And then Snuffleupagus is the most recent, correct?
TRUMAN: Totally.
JOY DOLO: All right, let's see what is going on. OK, you did pretty good. You did pretty good.
TRUMAN: I did.
JOY DOLO: First up was actually Snuffleupagus.
TRUMAN: Really?
JOY DOLO: Yeah, so Snuffleupagus was from 1971.
TRUMAN: Interesting.
JOY DOLO: Yeah. Mr. Snuffleupagus is also called Snuffy. And he's not an elephant even though he has a trunk. He's just like a made up creature. For a long time, people on Sesame Street thought he was just Big Bird's imaginary friend because Snuffy would hide whenever Big Bird tried to bring other people over to see him.
TRUMAN: Yeah.
JOY DOLO: But finally, other people saw him, and he soon became a key part of the Sesame gang.
TRUMAN: That's awesome.
JOY DOLO: So yeah, Snuffleupagus was first. You did great. [LAUGHS]
TRUMAN: Completely biffed it.
JOY DOLO: But I'll tell you what you didn't biff, you got number two right.
TRUMAN: Yes!
JOY DOLO: It was the Count. Count Von Count is from 1972, so like a year later from Snuffleupagus.
TRUMAN: Really?
JOY DOLO: Yeah, so he's a vampire-like Muppet who loves counting. And he lives in a creepy castle with some bats. And he drives a wicked cool, purple convertible car called-- do you know the name of his car is?
TRUMAN: I don't. Wait, wait. Is it like the Counter or something?
JOY DOLO: That's a really good guess, the Counting. It's called the Count Mobile.
TRUMAN: Oh, uf-- yeah, I could have gotten that, too.
JOY DOLO: [LAUGHS]
TRUMAN: The Count Mobile.
JOY DOLO: The Count Mobile.
TRUMAN: That makes sense.
JOY DOLO: Yeah, and it has purple bat wings.
TRUMAN: That's so cool.
JOY DOLO: Yeah.
TRUMAN: Why is he trying to be like Batman, though?
JOY DOLO: He's copying-- copycat.
TRUMAN: Copycat.
JOY DOLO: The count is a copycat.
TRUMAN: But he's a vampire.
JOY DOLO: He's a vampire copycat.
TRUMAN: He's a vampire copycat.
JOY DOLO: He's a vampire cat.
[LAUGHTER]
TRUMAN: We're just repeating each other.
JOY DOLO: Yeah, we are. But last but certainly not least is Elmo.
TRUMAN: Yey!
JOY DOLO: Elmo-- Elmo wasn't invented until 1980.
TRUMAN: Really?
JOY DOLO: And that was the most recent. Even though he's been around a long time, he wasn't the Elmo we know right away. A few different puppeteers used the Elmo puppet, but he was a minor Muppet until one young puppeteer gave Elmo his falsetto voice and bubbly personality.
[LAUGHTER]
TRUMAN: That's so interesting.
JOY DOLO: Can you do an Elmo voice?
TRUMAN: I would try it, but I would rather not embarrass myself.
JOY DOLO: I honor you and I respect that.
TRUMAN: But would you like to try it?
JOY DOLO: I-- [FALSETTO VOICE]
TRUMAN: [LAUGHS]
JOY DOLO: [FALSETTO VOICE] Elmo.
TRUMAN: My name is Elmo.
JOY DOLO: Yeah, that was really good. So after that, Elmo grew to be one of the most recognizable children's characters of all time. So out of all three of those, what surprised you the most?
TRUMAN: I think the fact that surprised me the most is that I got all of them wrong. Except for Count.
JOY DOLO: Except for Count. You got the Count.
TRUMAN: I got the Count. Right. I'm happy about that, though. But I'm sad about the Count Mobile.
JOY DOLO: Yeah. I feel like you did a really good job, though, because I would think Elmo would be the oldest one because that's the one that's the most iconic.
TRUMAN: Yeah, he's like Elmo.
JOY DOLO: Yeah, he's like-- he is Sesame Street.
TRUMAN: He like-- he's the one that goes on all the interviews.
JOY DOLO: Oh, yeah. Join us next week for a new episode, all about the jobs that don't exist anymore.
TRUMAN: Thanks for listening.
[THEME MUSIC]
Transcription services provided by 3Play Media.
