Sesame Street: Old School - Volume One (1969-1974)
When the Children's Theater Workshop'sSesame Streetfirst aired on television in 1969, it was a revolutionary new show aimed specifically at preschool children--an audience previously untargeted by television programming.  Exhaustively-researched and tested on real audiences of preschoolers, this "experiment in kid programming" aimed to teach preschoolers the alphabet, numbers, body parts, rhyming, and basic reasoning skills while thoroughly entertaining them.  Through the use of humor, the amazing puppetry of Frank Oz and Jim Henson, animation, the incredibly catchy music of Joe Raposo and Jeffrey Moss, and a fast-action pace borrowed from the television commercial format,Sesame Streetwas, and still is, more successful at educating and entertaining children than anyone initially imagined.  What's more, the lessons learned by generations of preschoolers went far beyond simple school-readiness skills to include values like acceptance, cooperation, and inclusiveness because the urban Sesame Street was a place populated by people and monsters young viewers could identify with, where anything could happen, and where every ethnicity, generation, and species co-existed and interacted harmoniously.Sesame Street: Old School Volume 1 1969-1974offers a sampling of the first five seasons ofSesame Streetand includes the first episode of each season in its entirety as well as a large selection of classic segments from each season highlighting some of the most memorable sketches ("Bein' Green,"  "Rubber Duckie," "Whistle a Happy Tune," and Super-Grover in "Telephone Booth"), favorite human characters like Bob and Mr. Hooper,  and guest appearances by celebrities like Bill Cosby, Lena Horne, Jackie Robinson, Carol Burnett, and Jesse Jackson.  Adult viewers will be transported back in time as they witness Bert's frustration with his ever-noisy roommate Ernie, chuckle at the antics of Grover and his demanding customer in Grover's Restaurant, and wonder if Snuffleupagus will ever show himself to someone besides Big Bird.  Other well-remembered moments include pinball number count, the baker who inevitably tumbles down the stairway with a handful of cream pies, the ever-munching Cookie Monster, "Here is Your Life" segments, Bert "Doin' the Pigeon," and the inevitably grumpy Oscar the Grouch.  Post-Elmo preschoolers and their parents will laugh, learn, grow, and connect with one another as they share this classic compilation ofSesame Streetmoments.  Bonus features include the original sales pitch reel (introduced by Joan Ganz Cooney and hosted by Kermit the Frog and Rowlf the Dog) and a thick booklet rich with history, trivia, and a pullout activity section for children. (Ages 2 and older)--Tami Horiuchi