The humans' last names on the show

[Katzi428]

You know,when I watched Sesame Street as a kid, I never heard the humans' last names being mentioned (with the exception of Mr. Hooper) Then sometime in the '80s when I was watching S.S. w/one of my younger siblings,I heard Gina call Gordon "Mr. Robinson" When did iit start?(I read that they gave Gordon the last name "Robinson" in honor of Matt Robinson -the man that first played Gordon) So OK...that explains that. But what about the others?

 

[D'Snowth]

I guess because Sesame Street is such an informal atmosphere, I think the object was to make the humans not just adults, but friends for the kids as well, hence why we all grew to know them on first name basises; there are virtually no parents to the Muppet characters on the show (for the most part) to tell them calling grownups by their first names is impolite, and that they should be addressed as Mr. or Mrs. or Miss, etc. Heck, I remember when I was in a dance class as a kid (yes, I was in a dance class, shut up), the instructor encouraged us to call her by her first name, and all the kids did except me, because my mom told me it was impolite to do so. PBS was different though, because it was more of a working atmosphere, so I was free to call everyone there by their first names.

Since all the kids I know in my life are basically relatives (nieces and nephews mostly), I never hear anyone refer to me as "Mr. Scarbrough", lol. We all know Steve calls me "Joe" instead of Joseph since he has no respect for me, but ever since then, every new person in my life calls me "Joe" too. Frankly, I could care less if a kid calls me by my first or last name - I'll be formal for formal occasions, but I'm not a formal person by nature.

But back to the original topic - I don't recall ever actually hearing Robinson on the show, but I do know that that is Gordon, Susan, and Miles's last name, as it says so in Sesame Street Unpaved (and yes, it also mentions that Robinson was probably in honor of Matt Robinson). I remember when the fire broke out in Hooper's Store, Maria called 911, starting with "Hello, I'd like to report a fire. My name is Maria Rodreguez, I live on Sesame Street, and there's a fire in Hooper's Store". When Gina had her vetenary office, the name plate on her door read "Dr. Gina Jefferson". Also, getting back to SSU, it seems to me that anyone who share their name with their character is basically playing themselves - both Bob and Linda's full names are the same as in real life (McGrath and Bove, respectively), so one can only assume that Alan shares his last name with his character as well.

 

[mr3urious]

Bob's name on the show is Johnson, actually.

And Maria's maiden name is Figueroa.

 

[D'Snowth]

Bob's name on the show is Johnson, actually.

And Maria's maiden name is Figueroa.

True about Figueroa, though Sesame Street Unpaved DOES cite that Bob's last name on the show is also McGrath, but I think I do remember reading somewhere that it was Johnson now that you mention it...

 

[Katzi428]

True about Figueroa, though Sesame Street Unpaved DOES cite that Bob's last name on the show is also McGrath, but I think I do remember reading somewhere that it was Johnson now that you mention it...

Yeah...me too. And I looked up Gordon on Muppet Wiki last night. Roscoe Orman had suggested in 1991 that Gordon be given a last name since he was a teacher.

 

[Daffyfan4ever]

True about Figueroa, though Sesame Street Unpaved DOES cite that Bob's last name on the show is also McGrath, but I think I do remember reading somewhere that it was Johnson now that you mention it...

Yeah. I saw that on Muppet Wiki, but I don't recall any actual episodes where he was called Bob Johnson, so I sort of wonder about that. I think Maria and Luis had their last names established during the time they were engaged since they were introducing their relatives. I remember Ms. Figuerau (or however you spell in) and Luis' uncle, something Rodriguez.

 

[The Count]

No, Bob's last name hasn't been spoken on air... But it was confirmed as Johnson in an SST trivia quiz, look it up at the Wiki.
And Luis's uncle is named Jose.

Hope this helps.

 

[D'Snowth]

No, Bob's last name hasn't been spoken on air... But it was confirmed as Johnson in an SST trivia quiz, look it up at the Wiki.

So why does Sesame Street Unpaved cite he shares his last name with his character (same for Linda)?

FULL NAME: Bob McGrath
PLAYED BY: Bob McGrath
BORN IN: Indiana
VOCATION: Private Music Teacher
BEST FRIEND (HUMAN): Linda
BEST FRIENDS (MUPPET): Big Bird and Oscar
SUNNY PAST: Was a featured "singalong guy" and tenor soloist on the Mitch Miller show
DEEP, DARK PAST: Author of Uh Oh! Gotta Go! and Oops! Excuse Me Please!
ALBUMS: "Sing Me a Story," "If You're Happy and You Know it - Sing Along with Bob," "The Baby Record," and many more.

On that note, SSU says David's full name is just David, though some speculate that it too is Robinson, but I don't remember David being related to Gordon and Susan.

 

[The Count]

Well, now I'm not so sure, as even the Wiki states it needs citation to evidence the character's full name as Bob Johnson.

As for David, that's baseless rumoring started by his association with Olivia who is Gordon's sister, and thus she shares the last name Robinson. But not David.

 

[D'Snowth]

I'm really surprised to see THIS site is STILL up...

http://www-cs-students.stanford.edu/~csilvers/muppet-characters.html

It doesn't list a last name for Bob though.