I was preparing for work one day and was flipping channels and happen to come across Sesame Street, the legendary children’s program. Everyone knows about Sesame Street, so no explanation is needed. I was watching an episode where Big Bird was hanging out with Snuffeupagus (yeah, I had to look it up to spell his name properly because he deserves that), the large brown elephant, and Snuffy wanted to fly. So Big Bird and his child friends decide to get some balloons, tie them to Snuffy and let him fly. You can probably figure out what happened next as Snuffy got too high and got lost but eventually found his way back to Sesame Street. In between this story were segments teaching you how to read, count and other stuff.
It reminded me of my childhood, when I was a huge fan of Sesame Street. I liked that show so much, especially Oscar the Grouch and of course, Burt and Ernie. I was on team Ernie because Burt was too uptight. I couldn’t have a roommate like Burt because even though things would be clean, he would be just too anal for me. Ernie would be a little messy but would be a little more laid-back. However, Ernie looked like a partier and would have some loud nights with alcohol, drugs and women at the house all hours of the night. Burt looked like he was in med school and would want to study all the time.
But Oscar was my man because he was so cynical and would tell people off in the most G-rated style possible because it was a kid’s show. People who liked Big Bird were the type of people who were always happy with life and those people are cool to be around but not all the time.
Personally, I think I identified with Snuffy because I was a bigger kid and get picked on and had low-self esteem like Snuffy. I never tied balloons around myself to feel better, but after watching the show as a kid, I would feel better.
As much as I loved Sesame Street, the show that would make me stop what I was doing in a second was Mr. Rogers Neighborhood. I would be a hyper kid at times and the one show that I would just sit and stare at without moving was Mr. Rogers. It’s like stoners who watch a Pink Floyd Laser Show. I would just watch this man take off his shoes and feed his fishes and send his train to Make Believe Land and think that was the best thing ever. I would even take my shoes off like him when I went into my home. The show was also more educational, which I liked because I was a book worm and a major dork even as an elementary school student. I would read all the time and watch the evening news, ABC with Peter Jennings was my choice, even as a first and second grader. So Mr. Rogers was chill for me with a lot less noise than Sesame Street, which I appreciated.
Another show that I recently watched and was mortified by was the Teletubbies. My goodness, the person who made this show must have been high, I’m sorry. I didn’t understand what was going on, none of these creatures talked but made these weird noises to communicate and they worshiped some baby head that was the sun. I was confused and I’m 26. I couldn’t imagine these little kids watching this show and getting any enjoyment out of it.
I liked the shows I watched because they were fun, but I also learned something. I learned nothing from Teletubbies.
I’ll expand on this idea with my views of cartoons from back in the day and now.
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