Big Bird and gang are turning 40 years old. As the show that changed children's television turns 40, we are learning that some classic Sesame Street episodes are not appropriate for kids.
As CNN reported, the set itself has received a makeover. The street, which was supposed to represent the inner city has been cleaned up.
But, what may surprise you is that even the sketches have been cleaned up.
You can now get the original episodes DVD, and the discs come with this warning "These early 'Sesame Street' episodes are intended for grown-ups, and may not suit the needs of today's preschool child."
Some of the "questionable" content includes Cookie monster smoking a pipe while hosting "Monster Piece Theater." He then of course eats his pipe thinking it is a cookie. That was before we ever heard the words childhood obesity.
As CBS quotes Sherrie Rollins Westin, executive vice president of Sesame Workshop, "In the very first episode, Gordon takes a little girl's hand who he's just met on the street, befriends her and takes her into his home to give her ice cream... That's something we wouldn't do on the show today."
Even Oscar is no longer as mean as he used to be, and of course the kids were allowed to ride bikes without helmets.
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Good grief. We have become TOO politically correct. Those shows were just fine when they were created.
ReplyDeleteLots of poeple grew up on those shows.
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