Hooper's Store

Hooper's Store is located on Sesame Street between what has traditionally been the Fix-It Shop and the yard. Described in early materials as a candy store (and still referred to as late as Episode 2879 in 1991), Hooper's functions largely as a lunch counter and general store, and previously boasted a newsstand. The residents of Sesame Street visit Hooper's regularly, including Big Bird, who often drops by for a birdseed milkshake.
In the season 8 premiere, which aired on November 29, 1976, Hooper's Store celebrated its 25th anniversary, which means that Mr. Hooper opened the store in 1951. However, in an earlier episode from season 6, a flashback shows him running the store in approximately 1943, with his newsstand featuring the July 12, 1943, issue of Life and having a portrait of Franklin Delano Roosevelt hanging in the store. (Episode 1230 also cites the store existing as early as 1943.) He follows in the Hooper family tradition of convenience store ownership as seen through flashback in the song "When I Was as Little as You Are."
In Episode 1168, David states the store closes at six o'clock in the evening. As glimpsed in Bedtime with Elmo, the store's normal hours of operation are 8am to 7:30pm. In Episode 1368, the number on the payphone is shown to be Longacre 5-8234 (or, 565-8234). In Manhattan, where the "Longacre" exchange existed, this number belonged to the Times Theatre, a now-demolished movie house on West 42nd Street & 8th Avenue. During Jim Henson's Musical World in 2012, John Tartaglia calls the store (using the phone number 123-456-78910), where Alan's answering machine states their hours are 7 to 8am (referencing the show's air slot at the time on WNET, the main PBS station in the Greater New York Area).
==Design==
Hooper's Store has gone through a few redesigns over the years: from 1969-1998, the building was green with its trademark yellow- and black-checkered design below the window looking out front with an old-fashioned Bell Telephone System logo on the left side, and a green- and white-striped awning overlooking the front window. Various murals have been painted on the building throughout those years. The store contains a basement for extra storage accessible via a trap door behind the counter.as seen in Episode 0720
In 1991, Biff accidentally damaged the store when he hammered a picture frame to the wall, and Hooper's Store was then rebuilt over the course of several episodes. The construction brought minor, cosmetic changes to the store, most notably a back door accessing the basement and kitchen. In Episode 2923, a new mural was painted on the side of the store by artist Speedy van Gough (played by Robert Townsend).
Later in 1998, when Alan took over, the entire front of the building was repainted a bright blue color and a new red vinyl awning stretching over the front window, and also around the corner of the building to a new side window (that was added that same year) with white letters reading "Hooper's Store" on both sides (no murals on the side of the store now due to the new side window, and the checkered design was dropped). In 2002, the building was repainted again, now a pale orange.
Starting in Season 39, Hooper's got a complete overhaul, interior, and exterior, to give it a modern look. It got a new exterior color (back to blue) and a new tan and red striped awning. The interior is no longer an old-timey soda shop, yet more of a convenience store. It is clad with refrigeration, and magazines and newspapers on a special shelf. The interior is now a light green and the "first dollar" of the business is hanging on the wall.
For Season 46, Hooper's received yet another overhaul, this time recapturing its old-fashioned soda shop roots, complete with repainting the facade framework green, bringing back the classic yellow-and-black checkered design (complete with the old Bell Telephone System logo, in addition to a new free WiFi symbol), and its old-fashioned striped awning. A new feature to the redesigned store is a vertical neon sign affixed to the corner of the building.
0007-Hooper-jellybeans-BW.jpg|An early view of Hooper's Store from the first season, showing some of the items on sale in 1969.
HoopersInt-2016.jpg|Hooper's Store in the 2010s.
==Events==
In Episode 0343, Hooper's Store temporarily became a clinic to administer vaccines. It was nearly destroyed in Episode 0725 when Cookie Monster ate everything inside, and in Episode 0798 when Herry Monster is challenged to physically move the store closer to Maria so that she can read her book in the dark. In Episode 1006, Mr. Hooper came close to selling the store to accept a position as a manager at a supermarket, but ultimately changed his mind when he learned of the developer's plans.
Hooper's Store has occasionally played host to outdoor music performances. In Episode 4031, the store held a karaoke night. In Episode 4067, The Cute But Not So Fuzzy Four gave a musical performance outside Hooper's Store.
In Episode 3843, Alan put up a sign in Hooper's Store, which exclaimed, "Hooper's Store, where you can get what you want just the way you want it." However, this sign led to Telly Monster making an unlimited amount of requests.
In Episode 3981, Alan's fried chicken special ignited a grease fire that nearly caused the store to burn down. (This episode was written in response to the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.)
==Staff==
===Owners===
* Mr. Hooper (1951-1982)
* David (1982-1989)
* Mr. Handford (1989-1998)
* Alan (1998-present)
===Employees===
* Tom (1971-1972)
* David (1972-1982)
* Piri (1984-1986)
* Gina (1987-1995)
* Carlo (1995-1998)
* Gabi (2004)
* Miles (2006)
* Chris (2007-present)
===Helpers===
* Gordon — Episode 0004
* Bob — Episodes 0004, 0456, 1194
* Susan — Episodes 0004, 0917, 2817
* Big Bird — Episodes 0013, Episode 0127, 0579, 0690, 0701, 0748, 0850, 0871, 1082, 1870
* Jennie — Episode 0116
* Oscar — Episodes 0088, 0147, 0442, 2090
* Cookie Monster — Episodes 0227, 0406, 0471, 0570, 0725
* Ernie — Episode 0539, Street Mission
* Count von Count — Episodes 0637, 0718, 1067, 1201, 2339
* Linda — Episodes 0901, 1173
* Luis — Episodes 0582, 0917, 1134
* Mrs. Sharp — Episode 0965
* Geraldo Ortiz — Episodes 1098, 1497, 1783
* Olivia — Episode 1207
* Honkers — Episodes 1651, 1776, 3614, 3853, 3858, 3881, Let's Make Music, 3969, 4034, 4055, 4084, 4098, 4178, Bedtime with Elmo, 4707, 4713, The Magical Wand Chase, 4810, 4812, 4814, 4825, 4828, 4905, 4914, Sesame Street's 50th Anniversary Celebration, 5031, See Us Coming Together, 5305, 5309, 5329, 5428
* Telly Monster — Episodes 1696, 1906, 2063
* Arnold Hooper — Episode 1806
* Bert — "Bert and the Broken Teapot", Street Mission
* Grover — Follow That Bird, Episode 3809, Episode 5025
* Lindsay — Episode 2339 
* Grandma Grace — Episode 2354
* Fat Blue AM — Episode 2500
* Mike — Episode 2801
* Savion — Episode 2967
* Dingers — Episodes 4055, 4810, 4825 
* Natalie — Episode 4060
* Norbert the Robot — Episode 4709
* Elmo — When You Wish Upon a Pickle
In The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland, an unidentified curly-haired man can be seen tending to customers and patrons dining outside the store.
==Goods==
See also: Brands sold at Hooper's Store
During the show's early seasons, Hooper's Store was often stocked with items that could be found in any other store. Sometimes real-world branding could be seen, such as magazine titles and comic books from the likes of DC Comics (and others). Eventually, the props department took to altering brand logos on items seen in the store, and later, began developing original in-world brands.
In seasons 43 and 44 alone, consumer products seen on the shelves of Hooper's have included Goober Face Babyfood Mashed Thanksgiving Dinner, NoLogo Cruisers diapers, SPAM parodies SLAM and CRAM, Flochman's Yellow Mustard, Hinee Poo 99¢ Bathroom Tissue, and Glup It cups, spelling error represented on the package. Some brands reference in jokes; Sonia's Toaster Bread Plain Bread Crumbs references the fact that the Fix-It Shop regularly repairs toasters.
One episode of Sesame Family Robinson featured some of the various brands. 
==Recreations==
The store has been recreated many times for various exhibits and theme parks, as early as the late 1980s for the "Sesame Street: The First 20 Years" exhibition at the Smithsonian Institution. Other museum-based recreations were made for the Strong National Museum of Play and the traveling exhibition, "Sesame Street Presents: The Body."
In theme parks, Hooper's Store appears as a part of the Sesame Neighborhood area of Sesame Place. The similarly named "Mr. Hooper's Emporium" operates nearby, selling Sesame Street merchandise. Hooper's Store is a main fixture of the Sesame Street at SeaWorld area opened in 2019, with access to the area's shopping section.
==Merchandise==
The store has been depicted in several Sesame Street playsets, including the Fisher-Price Little People set. "Hooper's Store" also appears as a property on the Monopoly: Sesame Street Edition game board, in place of Park Place.
==Sources==
==See also==
*Hooper's Store (book)
==External links==
*"19 Wonderfully Silly Items Stocked at Hooper's Store on 'Sesame Street'" at Mashable.com
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Category:Sesame Street Locations