Roosevelt Franklin question

[Gordon Matt]

Can someone sort a few things out for me regarding Roosevelt Franklin:

Matt Robinson continued to perform Roosevelt for a time after he stopped playing Gordon, right?

Roscoe Orman voiced Hardhead Henry Harris, is that correct? And Orman definitely worked with Robinson, at least on these segments (and the Stepin Fetchit play later, outside of SS).

I am just going by memory, but I recall one of the Noggin "Unpaved" episodes from the Harold Miller era (Seasons 4-5) had a Roosevelt sketch with Hardhead Henry Harris in it. I never really listened to compare character voices and what not, but was that Roscoe Orman doing the voice?

When I was a little kid I remember Roosevelt doing poetry and stuff with his mother, and later the "Roosevelt Franklin Elementary School" stuff. I think one of the cool things about those skits is how they feature some of the "human cast" doing voices. Even though I had no idea at the time.

Anyway, the earliest "Elementary School" skit I have is from after Matt Robinson quit playing Gordon. But when did they start doing those? Did they do any in the first three seasons?

Also, I remember reading that years later, they brought Roosevelt back with someone else voicing him, possibly Jerry Nelson. What was the deal with that?

I sure would like to know more about the business of Matt Robinson leaving the show, but not fully leaving, at least not right away -- in the sense that he continued doing Roosevelt, though I'm not sure for how long. I get that he wasn't really comfortable in front of the cameras and it was the rest of the crew saying he should be Gordon. He probably never thought the show would go on beyond a few years.

 

[fuzzygobo]

Here's what this old coot knows.

The original Gordon (Garrett Saunders) didn't really cut it during the first five pilot episodes. Matt was asked to step in (he was a writer and producer) and test audiences responded well to him, even though he wasn't seeking the attention. He really wanted to stay behind the scenes.

I distinctly remember the earliest skits with Roosevelt Franklin and his mother (Frank Oz as Roosevelt, Jim Henson as his mother, with Matt and Loretta Long's voices dubbed in).

I think the skits with Roosevelt Franklin Elementary School came a few years later, 1974 or so. Matt had long stopped being Gordon, but still pitched in occasionally. Roscoe Orman did voice Hardheaded Henry Harris, and Sonia Manzano (Maria) voiced Smart Tina.

The last batch of Roosevelt skits came around 1976.

Roosevelt Franklin Stadium (actually Shea Stadium, home of the chronically crummy Mets) was the home of Headball games, announced by Showered Roselle (Howard Cosell, for those too young to remember.) These were Matt's last Sesame contributions.

But ten years later he would resurface as a writer and producer for the Cosby Show.