Season 27 (1995-1996)

Sesame Street
Premiere November 20, 1995 (3396)
Finale May 17, 1996 (3525)
Episodes 130
3396e
Big Bird's friends try to cure him of the "memory flu" in the season premiere.
Alphaboy
"Hey everybody, it's time for further adventures with... Alphaboy!"
3397-05
Big Bird joins Gina at her new day care center.
AfricanAnimalAlphabet
"The African Animal Alphabet"
3421a
The gang celebrates Snuffy's birthday.
Song.twoprinces
"Two Princes" (with the Spin Doctors)
3423c
Telly auditions for the titular role in Walt Dizzy's The Chicken King.
Littlethings-tonybennett
Tony Bennett sings "Little Things" with Lexine.
3735d
The kids cheer Big Bird up when he comes down with the Birdy Pox.
3508shpritzer
The Shpritzer Honker Splasher device, which pumps out water when played as a musical instrument.
3671c
Downtown Julie Brown hosts the Worm World Music Festival live in the park.
4134zf
"Get On Up (Everybody Move)"
3721f
Big Bird attempts to take ballet lessons to get into Swan Lake.
3990p
"Library Song"
Ep3457-Cast
Michael Jeter (as bird impressionist Michael Tweeter) with Hoots the Owl and the cast.
Wegman.KingCole
William Wegman's dogs appear in new segments about nursery rhymes.
3470e
The Readers and Writers of the Open Range help a little cowpoke in writing his name.
Telly.EverythingGoes
Telly makes sure that "Everything Goes" in his backpack before a hike.
3474-SuperbabyDream
Humphrey and Ingrid witness Superbaby (alias their daughter Natasha) tackling a giant bottle of milk.
3976zh
Another season, another reason for "Eating Cookie."
3486g
Baby Bear and Goldilocks confront the past on the Sally Messy Yuckyael show.
RayCharles-SusanGordonBob
Ray Charles visits to perform "Believe in Yourself" with the Sesame Street gang.
3501e
Zoe practices writing her name so she can get a library card.
Animalsinthebedroom3
Steve Whitmire returns to perform Ernie in new segments with Bert (Frank Oz).
3525b
Lamb Chop and Shari Lewis meet Big Bird on their visit to Sesame Street.
Coming Soon on Sesame Street
Each episode ends with a "Coming Soon on Sesame Street" teaser, offering a sneak preview of the next episode.
The Robinsons 1995
The Robinson family (including new cast member Imani Patterson) with Elmo and Zoe in a publicity still for season 27.
Chris Cerf season 27 shirt
Christopher Cerf wearing a Season 27 crew t-shirt.

Sesame Street Season 27 aired from November 20, 1995 to May 17, 1996.

Overview

The show's 27th "experimental season" is "increasingly presenting its lessons in overlapping ways, to reach those whose learning may be more closely tied to musical or mathematical abilities than linguistic ones."[1] Even in the season opener, songs are used more frequently in teaching lessons, with helping Big Bird remember the alphabet, Count von Count explaining how "Counting Is Wonderful," and the street residents expressing joy by singing the "Sesame Street Theme." Other instances include Slimey participating in the Worm World Music Festival, Zoe joining the "Sesame Street Almost All Kazoo Band," and Oscar the Grouch teaching baby worm Sloppy how to wiggle and crawl. A more subtle example uses a sound effect at the end of each episode when the letter and number of the day are announced.

Valeria Lovelace of the production staff describes a change in the show's insert format, using an early edit of one episode as an example: "Lessons on one topic are to be clustered during an hour rather than spread out through the show as they have been. One show in January, for example, will portray the letter "D" in three consecutive segments: first it's marked out in candles, then it's depicted in a sand animation, and finally it's shown growing out of the ground. This will be followed by three segments on another topic, rain. First, Ernie and the Twiddlebugs go out in the rain, then there is a rain dance in clay animation, and finally rain and wind are rendered in Chinese calligraphy. In addition to being clustered, these segments are in tune with the new approach because they stress not only the visual and the verbal but also musical, interpersonal and spatial relationships."[1] Researchers found that this method worked very well, as Lovelace explains: “We were very surprised at how children in our research responded. By the second segment, they are more animated. By the third, they are very much engaged.”[2] The choice to feature only one Letter of the Day per new episode is a deliberate one, as research had shown that kids were able to retain the lessons when two segment clusters featuring the day's letter and inclusion during the street story gave a 50% increase in letter recognition among the preschool viewers. It was also useful when emphasizing the literacy goals presented.[3]

The show continues its second in a three-year lesson plan on increasing literacy and reading awareness. Typical cases include Oscar attempting to write a grouchy story, an inspired Prairie Dawn using her surroundings to come up with a new pageant, and the Readers of the Open Range becoming the "Readers and Writers of the Open Range." As mentioned above, interpersonal communication is also emphasized[2], such as Big Bird receiving a time out for his behavior and Baby Bear and Goldilocks putting aside their feud on the Sally Messy Yuckyael show.

Characters and segments

The child cast, consisting of Gabi, Miles (now played by Imani Patterson), Carlo, Tarah, and Lexine among others (such as Michael Bundy) begin to appear more frequently with the adult cast and Muppets. Carlo in particular gets a job working at Hooper's Store, taking over Gina's old job when she opens up a day care center around the corner. Additionally, Big Bird makes continuing appearances in insert material and Muppet-only segments, re-used for later episodes.

Muppet characters are presented as superheroes in a couple of lessons, which would continue the following year. Baby Natasha makes her debut as Superbaby, while the foursome of Elmo, Zoe, Rosita, and Telly form the non-violent Super Morphin Mega Monsters. The human Alphaboy teaches letter recognition in film inserts, with other segments utilizing a karate class, a farm landscape, kids on a safari, and a unique device called the "Shpritzer Honker Splasher" to teach letters, counting, and relational concepts.

In order to entice viewers to keep tuning in, a special preview is included at the end of each episode with Big Bird announcing, "Coming soon on Sesame Street..." followed by a brief excerpt. This would continue until season 30.

Episodes

Episodes 3396 - 3525 (130 episodes)

Notes

  • Starting with this season and lasting through Season 33 (2002), the music that concludes every episode is a remix of the original Sesame Street opening theme from 1969 (replacing the calypso-flavored rendition heard at the end of episodes for the past two seasons). This version retains the sung verses by The Kids, featuring a previously unheard harmonica solo for longer uses, and closes out with the ending from Toots Thielemans's original closing theme performance.

Cast

Cast
Carlo Alban, Alison Bartlett-O'Reilly, Lexine Bondoc, Linda Bove, Michael Bundy, Ruth Buzzi, Desiree Casado, Annette Calud, Emilio Delgado, Loretta Long, Sonia Manzano, Bob McGrath, Roscoe Orman, Imani Patterson, Tarah Schaeffer, David L. Smyrl
Muppet Performers
Caroll Spinney, Frank Oz, Jerry Nelson, Martin P. Robinson, Kevin Clash, Fran Brill, David Rudman, Joey Mazzarino, Carmen Osbahr, Pam Arciero, Camille Bonora, Peter Linz, Noel MacNeal, Judy Sladky, Jim Martin, Bryant Young, Lisa Buckley, Bruce Connelly, Louise Gold (Uncredited: Stephanie D'Abruzzo, Alice Dinnean, John Kennedy, Rick Lyon, Steve Whitmire)
Guest Stars
Tony Bennett, Downtown Julie Brown, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Ray Charles, Ellen DeGeneres, Laurence Fishburne, Julie Hagerty, Michael Jeter, Shari Lewis and Lamb Chop, David Robinson, Spin Doctors, Patrick Stewart

Characters

Humans
Gordon, Susan, Maria, Luis, Gabi, Miles, Carlo, Celina, Gina, Mr. Handford, Bob, Linda, Ruthie, Lexine, Tarah, Michael
Muppets
Alice Snuffleupagus, The Amazing Mumford, Anything Muppets, Baby Bear, Baby Natasha, Baby Tooth and the Fuzzy Funk, Barkley, Betty Lou, Benny Rabbit, Bert, Big Bird, Cookie Monster, The Count, Cyranose de Bergerac, Dinger, Elmo, Ernie, Grouches, Grover, Grundgetta, Guy Smiley, Herry Monster, Honkers, Hoots the Owl, Humphrey, Ingrid, Irvine, Joey and Davey Monkey, Kermit the Frog, Kingston Livingston III, Mama Bear, Monty, Mrs. Grouch, Mommy Snuffleupagus, Oscar the Grouch, Papa Bear, Prairie Dawn, Rosita, Sally Messy Yuckyael, Sherlock Hemlock, Slimey, Mr. Snuffleupagus, Stinky the Stinkweed, Telly, Uncle Talbot, Walt Dizzy, Wolfgang the Seal, Zoe

Credits

Sources

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 The New York Times: TELEVISION; Curriculum Update For 'Sesame Street'
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Education Week: Sesame Street Incorporates Theories on Cognition
  3. ↑ Truglio and Fisch. G is for Growing. p. 67-69


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Season 26 (1994-1995) Season 28 (1996-1997)

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