From bestselling writer David Kamp, the engrossing, behind-the-scenes story of the cultural heroes who created the beloved children’s TV programs Sesame Street, The Electric Company, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, Free to Be...You and Me, and Schoolhouse Rock!—which collectively transformed American childhood for the better, teaching kids about diversity, the ABCs, and feminism through a fun, funky 1970s lens.
In 1970, on a soundstage on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, a group of men, women, and Muppets of various ages and colors worked doggedly to finish the first season of a children’s TV program that was not yet assured a second season: Sesame Street. They were conducting an experiment to see if television could be used to better prepare disadvantaged preschoolers for kindergarten. What they didn’t know then was that they were starting a cultural revolution that would affect all American kids. In Sunny Days, bestselling author David Kamp captures the unique political and social moment that gave us not only Sesame Street, but also Fred Rogers’s gentle yet brave Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood; Marlo Thomas’s unabashed gender-politics primer Free to Be...You and Me; Schoolhouse Rock!, an infectious series of educational shorts dreamed up by Madison Avenue admen; and more, including The Electric Company, ZOOM, and Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids. It was a unique time when an uncommon number of media professionals and thought leaders leveraged their influence to help children learn—and, just as notably, a time of unprecedented buy-in from American parents.
Kamp conducted rigorous research and interviewed such Sesame Street figures as Joan Ganz Cooney, Lloyd Morrisett, Sonia Manzano, Emilio Delgado, Loretta Long, Bob McGrath, and Frank Oz, along with Free to Be’s Marlo Thomas and The Electric Company’s Rita Moreno—and in Sunny Days, he explains how these and other like-minded individuals found their way into children’s television not for fame or money, but to make a difference.
Fun, fascinating, and a masterful work of cultural history, Sunny Days captures a wondrous period in the US when a determined few proved that, with persistence and effort, they could change the lives of millions. It’s both a rollicking ride through a turbulent time and a joyful testament to what Americans are capable of at their best.
David Kamp is an author, journalist, lyricist, and humorist. Among his books are the national bestseller The United States of Arugula (Broadway Books, 2006), a chronicle of America’s foodways; the critically lauded Sunny Days (Simon & Schuster, May 2020), a history of the Sesame Street-Mister Rogers era of enlightened children’s television; and, as collaborator, Martin Short’s bestselling memoir, I Must Say (HarperCollins, 2014), and Ron Howard and Clint Howard’s joint memoir, The Boys (William Morrow, 2021). A longtime contributor to Vanity Fair, he has profiled such figures as Johnny Cash, Sly Stone, Lucian Freud, Kerry Washington, Bruce Springsteen, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, and the Brill Building songwriters. His first outing as a lyricist for the stage, for the John Leguizamo musical comedy Kiss My Aztec!, had its world premiere at Berkeley Rep in the spring of 2019; the show is now New York-bound. David was born and raised in New Jersey. He began his career at Spy, the legendary satirical monthly. He lives in New York City and rural Connecticut with his family.
Sunny Days: The Children’s Television Revolution that changed America by David Kamp is a 2020 Simon & Schuster publication.
What a fun and informative look back at a special time for children’s television!! Because I was right at the perfect age for this creative, and educational explosion of children’s programming, I can’t say I was aware of the behind-the-scenes history of these programs or how they were received by children and their parents.
This book takes us through the early days of children’s educational programming, introducing us to beloved people like Fred Rodgers and Jim Henson before they were household names. The politics, the funding, the complaints and praises- the staples of these programs, how they came into existence and the impressive impact they had on children and our society, is a fascinating journey to take.
I will confess that some portions of the book, especially in the beginning, was a little dry, but it became more and more interesting as it went along.
Because Big Bird appears on the cover of this book, one might presume the book is hyper-focused on Sesame Street, but it isn’t. The book covers many other educational programs- including Schoolhouse rock- which I LOVED- I still know all the words, if that tells you anything.
Personally, Captain Kangaroo was the program I was able to watch most often due to our inability to pick up more than one or two TV stations in the rural area I lived in. Occasionally, I could get ‘Electric Company’ to come in, but I don’t recall being able to watch Sesame Street until later- when I was probably too old for it- but still watched it on occasion, anyway.
Mr. Rodgers was also difficult for me to see very often- but later in life- younger cousins and my own children, who adored Fred Rodgers, gave me a second chance to fully enjoy his lovely, gentle way of teaching children.
Despite being aware of these programs -some of which I sampled growing up- and then fully enjoyed later with my own children, I never fully grasped the impact these shows had on our nation overall. Children were not the only ones who benefited from these programs- adults learned to read because of them, as well!!
Yes, these shows opened an entirely new world for children. It was healthier than watching blatant advertising geared towards kids or watching silly shows with no valuable content. These shows dared to introduce diversity and realism, appealing to kids from all walks of life and for the most part, these progressive steps were embraced by parents from all political stripes, while teaching children important lessons and preparing them for school and for success, no matter their personal backgrounds.
While I don’t always agree with everything these shows teach and have questioned some issues addressed from time to time-especially considering the age of the viewing audience, I have to look back now and think- What a great achievement!!
Sadly, times have changed, politics has affected federal funding, which has waxed and waned since the late seventies, but the effects these shows had on our country has been a long lasting one and continues to impact future generations, even though the formats have changed and we’ve lost so many of the important figures that helped create positive, educational options for children.
This is a wonderful bit of history to explore, it’s full of nostalgia and feel-good inspiration, I wish we could have bottled it up back then! It’s a spirit lifter, but it also shows we have some key elements missing today that need to make a comeback…
"Cherishing children is the mark of a civilized society." -- TV writer/producer Joan Ganz Cooney
It's possible that we, as a viewing audience, just sort of take it for granted now that television shows for youngsters (that is, the pre-school and early elementary school years) are dually supposed to be entertaining AND educational. That wasn't always the case, however, but a startling thing happened between 1968 to 1975 - a small line-up of disparate series (some quiet and gentle, but others swift and colorful) hit the American airwaves - mostly on public television stations, though occasionally on the big networks - influencing at least a couple of generations of children so much so that a teacher commented in 1971 that "Besides the knowledge about letters and numbers, the kids seem to have a different attitude about schooling - as if they've already learned what school is for, and what to do there."
Author Kamp's Sunny Days - despite that lyrically-inspired title and Big Bird head shot on the cover art - does not concentrate merely on Sesame Street, although that series understandably receives a large slice of the attention here. The book also examines Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, The Electric Company, Schoolhouse Rock!, plus a handful of other series, with the who/what/where/why/how of their creation and eventual influence. Certainly one of the common themes running through these productions was the use of music as a learning tool for memorization and/or grasping certain concepts, whether it was warbling the cheery 'alphabet song' (Sesame Street) or setting various grammatical/historical ideas to the tune of an upbeat composition (Schoolhouse Rock!). I loved reading about how such a talented group of diverse and eclectic folks (including actors, writers, musicians, psychologists, and even those working in advertising) - often with genuine concerns for a child's well-being at the forefront, which is unusual as TV is frequently a profit-driven business - worked together to bring something just a little bit different to the screen, and these shows ended up truly making a mostly positive impact. This is the type of book that exerted the inexorable pull of happy nostalgia for me, and it likely will for other readers who also lived through that time as faithful viewers. And if you DON'T appreciate it . . . well, I guess then you're Oscar the Grouch. :-)
I grew up on Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers, so this look at the “Sunny Days” era of kids TV - the late 60’s/early 70’s, when the federal government was spending the money to jumpstart and put these and other kids’ TV shows into homes around the country - was right up my alley. Well written with a lot of great stories. 80’s toddlers like me owe a lot to the men and women who correctly thought this was a good use for federal tax dollars.
This book is 70% Sesame Street but the highlight was Fred Rogers. Such a great man with a heart of service. He truly loved people. The best story in the book is how Rogers wasn’t a Sesame Street fan and the Sesame Street people mocked him behind his back, but when showed up to visit them he went out of his way to show them kindness and it completely disarmed them.
The books drags a bit in the last couple of chapters but this was a great read.
Non-fiction is not normally my thing, but...goodness gracious this book warms my heart.
In part, I think it has to do with the fact that programs like Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers always have a special place in my heart: the sheer positivity of both of them is infectious. This book does a great job of showing their origins, showing how the times they were in impacted their genesis and how the flow of time affected them to change ever so slightly.
Anyone who cares about public television, children's programming, or just likes some of the old television from 'back in the day' will appreciate this.
I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
This book was incredibly informative while also being completely heart-warming. It took what could have been really dry material, and brought a lot of warmth and life to it. It ended up being a very enjoyable read.
I had previously read The Good Neighbor that focused on Mister Rogers's Neighborhood and Fred Rogers exclusively, so I already knew some of the information. But this book gave a much broader scope and a lot more context. I had never considered the social and political climate in the US that surrounded the debut of Sesame Street and Mister Roger's Neighborhood. Learning that brought so much into perspective.
I enjoyed that this book also addressed all of the spin off shows, how different presidents and their administrations affected SS and MRN as well as all of public television. The passion that the founders of these shows and this wave of educational TV for children was truly amazing.. Reading about the results they brought to that first generation of kids to watch was so moving.
Overall, a great non-fiction read for anyone who grew up watching these shows!
A walk back through Memory Lane with a behind-the-scenes look at some of the very first television shows the people of my generation will ever remember watching. As said in the well-written introduction, the reader will "see all the faces... hear all the songs... feel all the things..." as they travel into the past for a nostalgic visit into a more innocent era (innocent, at least, as a viewer).
I thoroughly enjoyed the first 2/3 of the book as I gained insight into the history of the beloved personalities of Sesame Street and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, especially those characters that were prominent during the late 1970s and early 1980s when I was regularly tuned in. The passion of the creators of each of those shows that comprised early public television was admirable, whether their shows became hits or not. The impact of those pioneers both behind and in front of the camera will continue to ripple outward for decades to come. I feel that all of my generation, especially, owes a debt of gratitude to those people. Because of their efforts, we were able to enjoy quite a jump start on learning that has heavily influenced who each of us were eventually able to become. In the understated words of one of those pioneers, Joan Ganz Cooney, they "did something."
What disappointed me as an adult reader was the discovery of how much Sesame Street, in particular, was criticized by parents and political activists in the beginning of that era. As a child, I took the show at face value. It was educational, and I felt like was learning while I was being entertained by the characters in the show. The amount of negative letters that the creators received by viewers who thought the characters on the show were either too diverse or not diverse enough is quite surprising. That never even crossed my mind as a kid. There were too many critics on both sides of the issue. Why couldn't those parents and activists just enjoy the show for what it was? (An opportunity to learn and grow that otherwise would not have been available to children. Would that have been better?)
Other viewers thought that Sesame Street was either too progressive or too traditional with the gender roles of the characters. This, too, never crossed my mind as a young viewer. I was happy to be learning and I never thought anything odd about the gender roles of the puppets or the actors on the show. How frustrating it must have been to work on the show and be constantly called out by activist groups who were missing the mission of the show. I'm thankful that the writers, producers, directors, and actors persevered and did not lose heart in their efforts to positively impact the kids, the true target audience.
The last 1/3 of the book was lost on me. I've never enjoyed reading, watching, or listening to political arguments, left or right, and the latter portion of the book was reduced into just that. Politics have always been a turnoff for me as a reader. Perhaps the history of The Children's Television Workshop can't be told without a political slant, and if so, maybe that was the true intent of this publication after all. I get that the shows were publicly funded by taxpayers. Regardless, the end of the book is not in the same spirit of nostalgia as the early parts of the book are presented to be. Still, there's enough good within these pages to recommend this one as a solid read to all who watched these shows.
This ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
3.5 stars. Aside from the nostalgia factor (literally singing the songs in my head as they mentioned different shows and skits), Sunny Days was interesting in that it pulled back the curtain and showed how our favorite childhood worlds were created. The book focused mostly on the business and politics of it all, and slightly less on the creative aspect I'd been hoping for. Still, what a wonderful walk down memory lane.
This was so uplifting and joyful I could hardly stand it! I couldn't read three pages without looking something up on YouTube like Schoolhouse Rock's 3 Is a Magic Number or Morgan Freeman as Easy Reader on The Electric Company. Get ready to live.
I teared up a little bit listening to this book. To think that a foundational show like Sesame Street could have never happened or failed early on is unthinkable to me. I grew up loving those characters, especially Ernie, and relating to the kids wearing inexpensive 80s clothes on the screen, a variety of races, living on a street that wasn't in a rich neighborhood. As a kid from a low-income family who never had cable until I moved out, PBS was a godsend and a station we watched all the time (WOSU TV 34), even when I became a tween and a teenager and developed a love for history, watching 1900s House, American Experience, Antiques Roadshow and black and white classics like Gaslight. If I hadn't fallen in love with PBS as a kid I doubt I would have turned to it later in life.
This book really illuminates the state of civil rights and racial equality in the late 60s and how much has changed, how much has stayed the same since then. The use of black figures as guests on Sesame Street like James Earl Jones and Jessie Jackson was revolutionary at the time, and there is a letter from a dissonant viewer complaining about Jackson's presence on the show, stating that his two-year old yelled "No!" at the screen when he appeared. To me, this is an encapsulation of the way racism is handed down from parent to child. That kid didn't know why he didn't like seeing him on the screen, but his feelings began from an early age, and his parent's letter to the Children's Television Workshop confirmed the sentiment's roots.
Another reviewer described this as "breezy," which feels like an apt description for this account of the children's television boom in the '60s and '70s. I'm fascinated by the ways in which children learn to read and engage their imaginations, and I think we'd be remiss to ignore the contributions of Sesame Street and co. into that. I have some minor qualms about language use (particularly around race and gender), but all in all, my Electric-Company-loving heart finished very pleased :)
This is probably a great and nostalgic book for those who grew up in the 60s and 70s (maybe even the 80s).
I initially picked up this book because I had previously read The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell, which included really interesting facts about Sesame Street and its impact on educational programming. I grabbed this book when I saw the cover, mistakenly thinking it would be focused on the history of Sesame Street.
This book was actually about the history of educational TV programming in general. Possibly because I'm Canadian (and most of these shows probably weren't televised up here), but the only two TV shows that I knew of that were mentioned in this book were Sesame Street and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.
I was a bit disappointed that this book didn't focus solely on Sesame Street, but I did learn a lot about the history of children's television. I loved that Sesame Street was created with the sole focus of bridging the "achievement gap" between advantaged and disadvantaged kids, and providing disadvantaged kids an opportunity to learn and prepare for school.
I also thought it was quite funny that in the early days of Sesame Street the pitch for the show was so out there, people worried that the staff/creators were on drugs. Another interesting fact was that in its first season, "Sesame Street was the blackest show on national television" and that the lighting designer won "an award for learning how to light interracial groups of people" (because of the way light bounced off Big Bird and make the black actors appear even darker and hard to see). Finally, my favourite fact that I learned was finding out that the terms "rubber duckie", "one of these things is not like the other" and "which came first, the chicken or the egg" where terms and phrases that originated from Sesame Street.
Overall, a pretty good book. Recommended for people into television history, educational children's shows, and those who grew up in the 60s-80s.
I didn’t grow up watching Sesame Street. When I was in their target audience, our TV only had one channel that worked (long live PAX 16). By the time I could watch PBS, I was more interested in the shows that played after school. But since HBO made all seasons available to stream and since the birth of my daughter, I started watching it from the beginning and I was honestly surprised by just how progressive and groundbreaking it was! But about the book, I loved learning about the show’s beginnings and about the original cast and puppeteers. I definitely preferred the first half of the book that focused mostly on Sesame Street. The second half goes into other shows that were inspired by Sesame Street and while I liked learning about The Electric Company and Zoom, I skimmed through a few of these chapters. But overall, it was a nice, heartwarming, and informative read.
I picked this up because I really wanted behind the scenes stories and really the TV history it made. And the book did touch on that, but there was just a little bit too much of the business side of it all. I struggled but finished. If you don't mind the business stuff, you'll get both that and the nostalgia aspect as well.
Kamp's book is an excellent chronicle of the golden age of children's TV, tracing such shows as Sesame Street, Electric Company, Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood, Schoolhouse Rock, and Free to Be You and Me (among others) from their embryonic state up through their time on the air and, in most cases, eventual demise at the hands of Reagan era greed and the moral majority (pronounced "bigots") who were threatened by shows validating the existence of women, other races, and boys who showed their feelings. The amount of dedication and talent among the creators and performers of these children's shows was staggering. More disturbing was the pushback from within of various groups who felt what was happening "wasn't enough." (Let no good deed go unpunished.) Kamp's work is well-researched with much primary source material from those still living which adds to its strength. Having grown up with Romper Room, Howdy Doody, and Garfield Goose, the shows on which Kamp focuses were all after my childhood, but I was well aware of the power and presence of some while totally unaware of the existence of others. They existed in a time of unparalleled support for leveling the playing field between the privileged and those who were not. It's wonderful to relive the days of these shows, although one can't help but mourn the loss of people with money and influence who were truly interested in the success of all children, instead of being threatened by the very essence of those who do not look and act like they do. Highly recommended.
This was an excellent and thorough overview of the revolution in children’s television that took place from around the late 60s to around the late 70s. Kamp did a terrific job describing the landscape of children’s television prior to the advent of the Children’s Television Workshop and the world Sesame Street created, including details on the tensions between CTW and Fred Rogers. I learned so much! The ending made me cry as Reagan becomes President, the airwaves are deregulated, and the creative spirit behind so much important children’s programming begins to fizzle. Though Kamp leaves hope for the future! I know there are great people making great children’s television but almost fifty years later it doesn’t feel like there’s an incentive to innovate. I am enjoying learning about children’s television and I hope to continue doing so.
Sunny Days gives a well written behind-the-scenes look at public television at its best- when educational children's shows such as Sesame Street, Mr. Rodgers' Neighborhood, The Electric Company, School House Rock and Zoom got their starts. The late 60s and the decade of the 70s was a unique social and political era, in which like-minded educators and producers created timeless programming. As a woman in her 40s I grew up on these shows, so finding out the background on how they came to be, and being reminded of characters and scenes from these shows was a treat. In fact, because Sesame Street still endures, I got to have some fun dinner conversations with my husband and children when I asked them all what their favorite memories of SS were, and I later enjoyed a YouTube search for some of these remembered skits from different decades. As the (longer) title states, it truly was a revolutionary time for children's television, and now several generations of television watchers are the better for it!
This was a really good book. Dragged on for a bit and covered a couple shows I didn’t watch as a child. However, it was mostly about Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers and I loved both of those shows as a kid. It’s too bad shows like this aren’t part of children’s daily lives anymore. I really enjoyed the Mr. Rogers part of the book as I think that man was one of the greatest men to ever walk this planet. You can’t find a better human being! I would have given this 5 stars but the part that dragged on and the shows I don’t remember really lost me for a while. Other than that, this was a great book and a huge part of my childhood memories.
Sunny Days is a nonfiction book focusing on early childhood television. A good chunk of it looks into the making of Sesame Street but many other shows are discussed such as Captain Kangaroo, Mr. Roger's Neighborhood, Electric Company, Schoolhouse Rock!, etc. It was a fascinating look at the rise and decline of educational TV of the period - most of the shows mentioned are long off air and even Sesame Street only survived with HBO backing and getting rights to it. I grew up with many of these shows so the nostalgia level was high when reading this book.
Sunny Days is an endearing overview of the revolution in TV’s educational programming for kids in the poptimist days of the late 60s and early 70s. Sesame Street, of course, takes center stage, but there are the origins of pioneering shows such as Schoolhouse Rock, The Magic Garden, and The Electric Company, too. Kamp also lays out the social and political forces behind this transformational wave of content, not to mention the determination and creativity of the women and men who worked on the shows. Most importantly we get the backstory of Bernadette Yao’s “arm thing,” which, for Zoom viewers of a certain age, was one of the Seven Wonders of the TV World.
This book was absolutely fascinating! The history and intentionality of children's educational tv programming makes this educator's heart so happy. I loved reliving the nostalgia of beloved shows such as Sesame Street, The Electric Company, and Zoom (even though I grew up with the remakes!) I have such respect for the creator's of Sesame Street and their worthy goals to try and close the achievement gap with educational television, as well as teach children to love all kinds of people. I highly recommend this book!
I love Sesame Street so I'll read anything about it. The first half is almost exclusively about Sesame Street so it doesn't add much if you've read Street Gang. The second half branched out more into shows that were influenced by Sesame Street.
Everyone grew up on Sesame Street. Not the Elmo-fied Sesame Street of now, but the Sesame Street when it wasn't owned by the Children's Television Workshop. When you still had some of the creative cast on board that had been there since the beginning.
I learned what I could from reading Jim Henson's biography and Street Gang, but I wanted to know more about the life of PBS or Children's Television Workshop. Where did they begin? Why did they set out to do what they had to do? What was it like being famous for Sesame Street? What else were they popular for?
This book gives you that. It lets you understand the 60's and what people were looking for in terms of: education beyond the classroom.
I felt that the beginning of the book was well done, but then it started to fall apart by the 80's. For some reason it was like, someone had told the author to hurry it up, and boom, it was the end of the book.
I felt that the book was light of drama, and places where it could have dived a bit deeper it didn't. It focused on Mr. Rogers Neighborhood, which wasn't part of Children's Television Workshop. So, why wasn't this book called PBS? It talked about other shows that weren't part of CTW, too.
So. Enjoy the first half of the book, but the book will die out once it hits the 80's.
I tend to love most things pop culture, but this missed the mark a bit for me. It was dry at times, so I found myself skimming a little bit. Also, I blindly dove into this assuming it was all about Sesame Street when in fact it discusses many popular children’s shows of the 60s/70s, of which I have no knowledge. Had I been familiar with the other shows referenced in the book I think I would’ve enjoyed it more.
I can see why this book would be appealing and nostalgic for the right reader!
Fact and story filled book that demonstrates the IMPORTANCE OF GOOD children's TV and the dedicated people behind it. Far beyond just a nostalgic journey. Thank you David Kamp!
We went to Sea World because my daughter loves Sesame Street. And I too, fell in love with it through her eyes and enthusiasm. I get even more excited than her whenever the program comes on. So when I came across Big Bird peeking out from the front cover with ‘Sunny Days’ as its title, I couldn’t resist; I had to read it!
I had such a fun time going behind-the-scenes of Sesame Street – learning about how the idea was sparked over dinner by two friends, Joan Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett, and that the name of the show was picked (it was one of the staff writers’ contribution) because there weren’t any other better choices. And Sesame Street definitely set its bars high, an act that would be tough to follow, thanks to great leadership and passionate, talented individuals who were driven by the goal to educate, the underprivileged especially.
I was blown away by how much its leaders fought fearlessly in defending what they believed in. The success of Sesame Street definitely came with its own set of challenges despite its positive ratings and acceptance, but that didn’t stop the creators from continuing to grow and improve the show, and they were always open to feedback from its cast.
And I couldn’t resist going to YouTube to view their very first episode launched in 1969! Wow, Big Bird wasn’t as ‘fluffy’ as she is today, and she was a little ‘greenish’ too!
I didn’t grow up watching American TV shows so I’m definitely new to some other TV shows mentioned such as Zoom, Schoolhouse Rock! (brainchild of 2 admen, just like Dr Seuss!) The Electric Company, New Zoo Revue and The Magic Garden. Of course I went on YouTube to check them out! And I can see why many fell in love with them, especially The Electric Company and Zoom. Love those kids in Zoom! I even checked out the ‘arm thing’ by Bernadette in the book, and I still have yet to get it right! Here, you try 🙂
This is an eye-opening, well-researched book that went behind the scenes of important and influential TV shows which made a difference in the lives of many children – children of different races, gender, ages, class, but of course not without their own challenges like seeking federal funding, finding the right people to work with, audience to please, parents and children, educators and harsh critics. Criticisms such as these shocked and appalled me: Sesame Street was accused of ‘pervasive anti-feminism’; Mr Rogers, seen ‘through an adult lens, a total weirdo’ in his TV program, and was portrayed as a ‘wimp’ in comedian’s send-ups.
TV programs aired during that period also strove to address sensitive issues such as death and loss (Mr Hooper, FDR’s assassination) and fear (going to the hospital), race (controversy when using Roosevelt Franklin, the black muppet on Sesame Street) and even facing those issues themselves:
Mobley, a crew from Zoom, was asked once during a bathroom break, if his sperm was black; and when the creators of Free to Be…You and Me were trying to find a major record label, one music executive said, “What would I want with a record produced by a bunch of dykes?”, Hart recalled.
And a lot of research have gone into making these TV programs, from the use of jingles and music and animation, hiring professionals, to the movement of camera (Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood), and camera lighting on colored people (Sesame Street). It gave me a new perspective on children TV program, and I’m going to be watching them in a whole new different light now. It’s such a shame that Sesame Street have been bought over by HBO and wouldn’t be as accessible as before.
I’d recommend this book to those who love to learn more about children TV programming in the late 60’s and 70’s. Ezra Jack Keats and Mauric Sendak made some cameo appearances too! Overall an eye-opening, informative read – not too heavy that you’d feel overwhelmed with information, and not too light that you’d feel its just fluff.
Thank you Simon & Schuster and Netgalley for a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.
I thought this was a pretty enjoyable read- not my typical genre.
The book was about the cultural Zeitgeist that was educational children's programming in the 70s. Its focus (as the cover suggests) is mostly Sesame Street, but other children's educational shows were highlighted as well.
I would say that the book sticks pretty well to the theme that the creators of the kid's TV shows were motivated by a higher calling and progressive values. It is somewhat refreshing given that many books are a bit meandering. I especially liked how they described how Sesame Street did an honest job trying to reach and appeal to children of low socioeconomic classes and the critiques they received. Outside of Sesame Street, I enjoyed the parts about feminism's reach into children's programming.
The book could have been a little tighter with actual statistics about how educational programming helped children. It was mostly anecdotal, though the author does mention that the creators didn't completely match its anticipated goals, while complimenting their candor. It also name checked so much it was hard to keep up with everyone.
It is rather disappointing to read about the failure of new administrations in letting go of the goals of educational programming (particularly their reach), though the author leaves off any programs that are created exclusively on streaming platforms. Still, I thought it was inspirational how the creators were genuinely trying to help children learn and how committed they were to these goals.
Recommend this book if- you are a fan of Sesame Street, you are an educator (particularly of early childhood education), or perhaps if you are a parent of young kids.
4.5 stars. I remember being told one day in preschool (they called it nursery school at the time) to be sure to watch this brand new show they were putting on just for 4-year-olds, beginning that afternoon on Channel 11 (chicago). They told us how important it was that we watch it with our parents and be prepared to talk about it in class the next day. I don’t remember much about the first episode, but i do remember i loved it. Sesame Street’s characters, both human and muppet, became like family to me. The show was a huge influence in my life for a couple of really formative years. Right place, right time, i suppose. (I still have the album i got for xmas the next year.)
I was expecting this book to be all about the making of Sesame Street. And it was, but not quite the way i expected. The book covers the times - from a historical and creative and political perspective. So it’s not limited to the one show. Many of my other favorites from my childhood are here, as well, along with the explanation for why and how some lasted and others didn’t.
There is more attention paid to the politics and history of children’s tv than to the mechanics of producing the various shows. If it’s not already, this book should be classified as sociology or history, rather than film/tv. It’s a serious and informative discussion of the late-60s/early-70s programming environment and who its influencers were.
I listened on audio, but i suspect the printed book probably has cool pictures. The audio narrator was sort of mediocre, too. So I recommend the print version, if you can get your hands on it. I think anyone who has fond memories of early children’s tv will really appreciate this read.