TheSesame Streetactor radiated the warmth and acceptance many young viewers wouldnt have otherwise received.
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But nothing about Bob McGrath was forced.
Less was more onSesame Street.
(He returned for a reunion special in 2019.)
The adults performances didnt just sell the puppet slapstick and character work.
Bob was a slender, middle-aged man with a reedy voice.
And he didnt make a big show of being nice.
They were fully dimensional people with needs, dreams, fears, and problems that deserved full attention.
Characters like Bob didnt treat uncomfortable emotions as bad, much less as inconveniences.
learned how to behave with children.
And maybe with other adults too.
This is an important aspect ofSesame Streets legacy.
And they showed us how to give others what they needed when they were troubled or struggling.
Many of us wouldve never seen that kind of behavior without shows likeSesame Street.
As incarnated bythe great puppeteer Caroll Spinney, Big Bird didnt know or understand much.
His emotions were meant to mimic a 6-year-olds; his grief was delicate.
Big Bird says that, without Mr. Hooper, Sesame Street wont be the same.
He delivers a brief eulogy thats a model of sincere, unforced emotion.
His voice catches as he speaks, and it feels wholly organic.
But you know something?
Its a tricky balancing act, and we see Bob managing it imperfectly.
The imperfections make the moment indelible and profound.
We all have them.
Its okay to show them, and its okay not to know what to do with them.
Thats what Bob communicates in this scene to Big Bird and to viewers of all ages.
