Your Thoughts: Street Gang – The Complete History of Sesame Street

[frogboy4]

Ooooooh! Just got my copy! I've only flipped open the images and thumbed through it a bit. I'll likely read a bit of it every night and on lunch breaks.

 

[CensoredAlso]

Ooooooh! Just got my copy! I've only flipped open the images and thumbed through it a bit. I'll likely read a bit of it every night and on lunch breaks.

Oh great! Can't wait to hear your thoughts, I still need to find a moment to buy it, lol.

 

[frogboy4]

Oh great! Can't wait to hear your thoughts, I still need to find a moment to buy it, lol.

It's a big froggin' book! I didn't think it would be. I'm probably projecting my disappointment in the very thin (but somewhat amusing) photo-less Pepe book that has become a paperweight.

Street Gang, on the other hand, appears to be very thought-out and the endorsement of Frank Oz listed on the back is a seal of approval for me.

 

[CensoredAlso]

It's a big froggin' book! I didn't think it would be. I'm probably projecting my disappointment in the very thin (but somewhat amusing) photo-less Pepe book that has become a paperweight.

Oh I know, it's really impressive. I'm glad Sesame Street is getting this kind of respect.

 

[Super Scooter]

Overall, the book is great! I do have a few minor complaints about the book (including a couple of factual errors), but I'll wait till I'm done reading it to post them here.

I really like his rather diplomatic handling of the "Kermit's name" myth. He stated how many believe the name came from Kermit Scott, but only Jim Henson himself could have verified that.

And, actually, Jim did. According to Karen Falk: "While Jim Henson did have a childhood acquaintance named Kermit, it was not an uncommon name at the time, and Jim always said that the Frog was NOT named for this child from his elementary school. I think Jim just liked the sound of the name - it has nice hard sounds and a sort of nasal quality that make it rather funny. By the way, another Kermit worked in the Muppet Workshop and helped to build the original Big Bird! (Again, no relation to the Frog.) I think Jim did, however, ensure that future generations would not continue using the name for their male children!"

I also loved the stories related about Richard Hunt. He was such a jerk! I love it! Calling Jim a "rich b*****d millionaire." Hehe! Poor Jim.

 

[Ilikemuppets]

Yeah, I found one error in the book that caught my attention... It was when he was describing a Honker her actually described a "Dinger," heh! It's a very minor thing, but they are similar so I can see that mix up...

But I can not wait for other people thoughts and views on the book!

I liked Caroll's reaction to some of the things Richard would say, heh!

Yeah , the book it generously big! I didn't want it to end and I couldn't put it down. I read for like four days non stop minus a lot of sleep just to finish it...By the way, before I read this book I never know that Caroll was going to be an animator for The Walt Disney Company and even saw Walt Disney himself in person hanging in the door way as he was about to be hired. And it's amazing that he turned them down because he could get paid more elsewhere. And it's funny that he had money issues with Henson, The Workshop and Sesames Street when he first come and made him consider his older job because of better financial security. But he ultimately did not turn this job down, heh!

 

[mbmfrog]

I got mine through the Library, and even I didn't know it was that "BIG!"


Still, a lot of things amazed me like the cast mini-bios before they came on the show. The secret origin of Zoe, the fight between SS and Disney, and to think I would have thought that they were to be beautiful music together.

Still, it was a good book, but due to school and work, I might not have enough time to read it. So I just glance through it mostly.

 

[Super Scooter]

I would like to see a book that talks more about the characters and performers. This was one of my complaints, but I realize it would be hard to fit in. He talks about Grover and Bert and Ernie's beginnings very briefly, but the only characters that really get discussed at length are Big Bird, Elmo, Zoe and Cookie Monster (not quite as much as the other 3). There's also a bit on Abby. Now that I'm pretty much through with the book, I think that discussing character origin, development, and why some were ultimately taken out of the show (such as Don Music, Sherlock Hemlock and Lefty) should be in a seperate book. Hopefully a book like that will be released.

There was very little about Telly and nothing about Baby Bear. The same could be said about Marty Robinson and David Rudman. There was very little about Marty Robinson in the book, and (virtually) nothing about David Rudman. They're two performers who have been a huge part of Sesame Street through the 90s and this past decade. There were also a lot of other performers and writers that were overlooked (such as Joey Mazzarino, who is hillarious as Murray Monster, and is both a performer and writer).

Another thing I noticed was, although Jerry Juhl is quoted a couple of times, he received no credit for his involvement in Sesame Street. He wrote alot of Muppet stuff (like Ernie and Bert) during the early seasons.

Again, these are just some minor complaints. The book is fantastic! I love how it focuses on the people truly responsible for the show, people who rarely get the credit they deserve. And after reading it, it made me really appreciate the new format of the show more. It makes sense. But I also agree with Jon Stone in that the show should not have tried to be Barney. It was interesting noting how one reviewer compared the two, praising Barney for being "slow" and "familiar" and teaching the most basic things, and essentially bashing Sesame Street for being too deep. Competing with other children's shows doesn't mean lowering yourself to the other show's level. Kids deserve better than Barney, and Sesame Street, for all the problems older fans may have with it at times, is still the best.

 

[Muppet Newsgirl]

I also loved the stories related about Richard Hunt. He was such a jerk! I love it! Calling Jim a "rich b*****d millionaire." Hehe! Poor Jim.

To say nothing of his calling David Rudman "that (seven letters, starts with A) from Chicago." The book was right; Richard did have a weird way of expressing his love and concern for his fellow cast members from time to time.

About the big purple menace; it's true, Barney's an insult to children's intelligence. It's true that a lot of us have issues with Elmo, but Barney is big and patronizing, while SS is hip and witty.

I remember, back in first grade, one morning our teacher gave us - I kid you not - math worksheets that had Barney on them. Don't ask me why, because 16-17 years later I still don't know. But I thought it was awfully demeaning; I remember thinking, "What is this? Barney's for little kids."

 

[SesameStMuppets]

I can't wait to finish this book! I'm on page 123 (yes, that is a conicidence)... I can't wait to actually get to the 'meat' of the book. The prepatory/ research of the story in intriguing, but I WANT MUPPETS!

I'll have plenty more to say once I'm done reading. If only school wasn't taking up so much of my time!