What would happen if Sesame Workshop retired Elmo?

[beaker]

Let me preface this by saying Kevin Clash's craft is absolutely astonishing, and I'm glad I got to meet him.

But I'm just going to say what I'm sure many of you already feel.
And that's that "Elmo" is a worthless, valueless, distracting character who I know at least with me evokes a sickening feeling of despair and annoyance. I have literally always hated that character, and by the late 90's was just hoping the Elmo hype would go away.

Nope. In fact by the turn of the millennium Sesame Street ending up being shorn by quite a bit to make room for "Elmo's World".
La la la la, la la la, please die already.

There are so many genuine and great characters. Baby Bear, Murray Monster, Telly, Rosita, etc. We don't need this guy who just eats up all the time and hogs the spotlight.

So just for arguments sake, how detrimental to sales and the overall company would it be if Sesame Workshop gently retired the Elmo character?

I personally feel Sesame has been dragged down and tainted by the putrid smell of that banshee and reminds me of the kind of mindless garbage we see with Barney and Telletubbies.

I refuse to even consider "Elmo" a Muppet character at this point.
Elmo's dad gets injured fighting Iraqis or something in that military special. It should have been
Elmo getting shot up overseas. Maybe we can get Elmo together with Takalani Sesame's Kami.

And am CONVINCED that Elmo alone has sullied the name of the Muppets and Sesame Street much like Bush did with the name of America after 8 years.

 

[mikebennidict]

Isn't it kind of obvious what would happen?

 

[Oscarfan]

If you read "Street Gang", you'd know that if Elmo's World hadn't been put in, kids would've lost interest and the show would most likely be off the air now.

 

[dwmckim]

On the one hand, i can understand the anger and frustration that comes from the original post. On the other hand, as much as we adult Muppet fans like to believe that the show is just as much for "us" as it is the preschooler's (because the whole idea was to provide childrens' programming that adults could sit through with their kids), we do need to keep in mind that at the end of the day, it is about the kids. (And with all the 40th anniversary hooplah that's easier said than done considering how much of the celebration is for those who were around for the majority of those 40 years.)

But we're talking about kids that don't yet really know what an "anniversary" is or years away from being fully able to grasp concepts like loss or scarcity...they're still learning the a-b-c's that make up words that in turn represent concepts and ideas that will take some time for them to be able to "get"

These are troubled times for adults and their families...kids are faced with the very real prospects of daddy (and mommy both) losing and not finding work, not always having adequate food on the table, etc. Sesame Street in general and Elmo in particular is a fuzzy constant feeling of security. As much as we may wish he was there less, the kids need him more than ever.

I've seen the power he has - my nephews' children are just enchanted my him and sometimes Elmo is the only way to capture/keep their attention. We ... and maybe even SW ... may want to reduce his screentime and try to spread the wealth among the other characters but to a 3 year old, Sesame Street without Elmo is like The Muppet Show without Kermit (to fans of any age). In order for them to even do so, it would have to be a veeerrrry slow process. Literally season by season - reducing the number of episodes (days per week) Elmo's World comes on...they would have to do so a little bit at the time so kids waiting for what may be their favorite part of the show to come on can start to understand Elmo's World is a "sometimes" not "every day" thing while not disgruntling them altogether.

And of course that's just the psychological aspect. Financially, as has been touched upon...as again the economy has already taken its toll on SW (layoffs) and less public/government support for PBS, they need that bread n butter to keep them going instead of "experimenting" with reducing the things that are saving their budgets/revenue.

It's a very delicate balancing act akin to the effects the loss of a vital part of the ecosystem has on the planet when an important part of that process becomes an endangered species. I'm sure SW and Kevin Clash himself is well aware of the power of "the red menace" and want kids to accept its myriad of other cast members with the same degree as Elmo. It's not just us on this side of the screen that would like to see that happen. The anniversary is a great opportunity for them to play around a little more with doling out classic material on the show, merchandise, and online content. But it is still a fragile balance that they can't afford to have backfire too dramatically.

 

[frogboy4]

Kids like what they like. Elmo is like sugar to them, but SW has overloaded the show with the furry red guy. I work in a shop that carries Sesame toys and Elmo's the one that kids most identify with 3 to 1.

Elmo serves a purpose and amazingly helped the show, however let's face it - Sesame Street wasn't really headed for cancellation. The Barney and Teletubby fads are over. Dora and Bob the Builder are fizzling out too. Sesame has stood the test of time and will continue to for decades to come. Sure, the format will change multiple times and how and where it is viewed might too. There might be fewer shows or the running length might change but that's due to the medium of television.

I would like to know what would have happened if SW producers had been more thoughtful about including more characters rather than slimming down the show to an Elmo and friends experience. I think there's more to be explored in the Sesame world than just Elmo's World and that hasn't been given a quality chance. Journey to Ernie was just a weird facsimile of Dora in its mild condescension of the audience members.

Frank Oz has said that Sesame Street used to be a hip show for kids and their families where the performers were just fooling around with puppets. Education was there, but it wasn't as pasteurized and clinical. The PC crowd along with psychologists and educators geared the show away from what made it sparkle. The shine is still there, even with some Elmo moments, but it's not the same.

It could be great again if they went back to the Street's roots and geared that to the modern day audience rather than using this copy of a copy of a copy. The 40th anniversary is a perfect time to do so. I hope this year is filled with special moments and throwbacks to the golden (or canary yellow) era of Sesame Street.

 

[CensoredAlso]

I'm with Jon Stone. If some kids don't want Sesame Street the way it ought to be, then they don't deserve it.

 

[frogboy4]

I'm with Jon Stone. If some kids don't want Sesame Street the way it ought to be, then they don't deserve it.

I can agree with the sentiment, but not necessarily its application.

Sesame Street was built on the idea of advertising letters and numbers to children in order to educate them. Television and the advertising medium are in a constant state of change and so should Sesame Street. However, some foundations should never change and there will always be lower and higher "avenues" to take. SS isn’t slumming it. I liken Elmo’s saturation to leveling Mr. Hooper’s store to build a strip mall because that’s “what the people want.” I sincerely believe that.

There are always preferred characters in ensemble programs, but it’s the balance that makes each show shine.

 

[CensoredAlso]

Honestly though, I think Television is on its way out and I wouldn't be surprised if it's gone in a few years. Programming has not kept up in quality and the Internet just has more advantages that are attractive to people.

 

[mikebennidict]

I don't know what gives you that idea.


Most of TV is what it is because people are enjoying it.

 

[mikebennidict]

Kids like what they like. Elmo is like sugar to them, but SW has overloaded the show with the furry red guy. I work in a shop that carries Sesame toys and Elmo's the one that kids most identify with 3 to 1.

Elmo serves a purpose and amazingly helped the show, however let's face it - Sesame Street wasn't really headed for cancellation. The Barney and Teletubby fads are over. Dora and Bob the Builder are fizzling out too. Sesame has stood the test of time and will continue to for decades to come. Sure, the format will change multiple times and how and where it is viewed might too. There might be fewer shows or the running length might change but that's due to the medium of television.

I would like to know what would have happened if SW producers had been more thoughtful about including more characters rather than slimming down the show to an Elmo and friends experience. I think there's more to be explored in the Sesame world than just Elmo's World and that hasn't been given a quality chance. Journey to Ernie was just a weird facsimile of Dora in its mild condescension of the audience members.

Frank Oz has said that Sesame Street used to be a hip show for kids and their families where the performers were just fooling around with puppets. Education was there, but it wasn't as pasteurized and clinical. The PC crowd along with psychologists and educators geared the show away from what made it sparkle. The shine is still there, even with some Elmo moments, but it's not the same.

But you also gotta remember if not the PC crowd or phychologists the SW has always got their imput from educators.

Even in its early years there were those who doubted SS and were critical of it.