Franchise / Sesame Street

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Sesame Street is a children's franchise whose base installment is a TV show of the same name, aired by PBS Kids (and later by HBO/HBO Max and Netflix) and produced by Sesame Workshop (formerly Children's Television Workshop). The show, which is still running to this day, has proved popular enough to spawn numerous films, video games, and other derivative works - among them international adaptations of the original series. Primetime television specials featuring the show's characters have premiered on every "Big Four" commercial network in the U.S. — a rare enough accomplishment^note shared at least by the Peanuts specials and, oddly enough, Get Smart — but also on its home at PBS, a mark which will probably never be duplicated.^note Three of the classic Peanuts specials have made their annual airings on PBS, but none have premiered there.

This series used to be a part of the Muppets franchise since it uses puppets created by Jim Henson as main characters; the Sesame Street puppets have appeared in mainline Muppets franchise installments multiple times. However, after Sesame Workshop purchased the puppets from The Jim Henson Company in 2000 and Disney purchased The Muppets in 2004, the two franchises have become legally separated. Despite this, Sesame Workshop has a license that allows them to continue referring to the puppet characters as "muppets" via Grandfather Clause, and the two still make occasional crossovers.

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Main series:

Base series

• Sesame Street (1969-present)

Segments^note Some of these have aired as standalone shows in some international markets.

• Elmo's World: Running from seasons 30-42, this 20-minute segment stars Elmo as he teaches about a specific topic, from frogs to noses to the concepts of fast and slow. In season 47, the segment would be heavily retooled.
  • Elmo the Musical: What can be considered a Spiritual Successor to Elmo's World. Beginning in season 43, this segment also involves Elmo as he stars in musicals about whatever comes to his mind; ranging from iguanas to tomatoes to alien pizza delivery companies.
  • Furry Friends Forever: Elmo and Tango's Mysterious Mysteries: A 2D-animated segment introduced in season 52 starring Elmo and his dog Tango solving mysteries around a dog park.
• Monster Clubhouse: A segment that ran during seasons 32-34 where a group of energetic, young monsters follow a basic routine of events in their clubhouse.
• Journey to Ernie: A segment running from seasons 33-36 involving Big Bird playing a worldwide game of hide-and-seek against Ernie.
  • Bert and Ernie's Great Adventures: A stop-motion animated segment from seasons 39-43 about Bert and Ernie's strange adventures at night.
• Abby's Flying Fairy School: A CG-animated segment that ran from seasons 40-45 starring Abby Cadabby's time in the titular Fairy School.
  • Abby's Amazing Adventures: A 2D-animated segment starting in season 49 starring Abby, her stepbrother Rudy, and their magical basket as they take up a series of jobs.
• Global Grover: A segment from seasons 34-39 that stars Grover as he explores the different cultures of the world.
  • Super Grover 2.0: Beginning in season 41 and running through the following seasons, this segment stars Grover's new-and-improved superhero alter-ego using his powers of investigation and observation to solve problems.
• Cookie's Crumby Pictures: Running in seasons 44 and 45, this segment is about Cookie Monster starring in parodies of popular films.
  • Smart Cookies: Continuing the concept of film parodies starring Cookie Monster, this season 46 segment puts the monster in a spy thriller parody where he and a group of anthropomorphic cookies deal with issues caused by their arch-nemesis, the Crumb.
  • Cookie Monster's Foodie Truck: Starting in season 48, this segment involves Cookie Monster and a small, pink, monkey-like creature named Gonger running a food truck.
• Murray Has a Little Lamb: Running from seasons 39-41, this segment involves Murray and his best friend, a Spanish-speaking sheep named Ovejita, going to schools of varying topics.
• Sesame Street Nature Explorers: A 2D-animated segment from season 54 starring Elmo, his dog Tango, and a human Muppet named Gabrielle as they explore nature.
• Tales from 123: A 2D-animated segment from season 56 that follows the Sesame Street residents' adventures inside the 123 apartment building.

International versions

• Sesame Square (Nigeria)
• 1, Rue Sésame (France)
• Iftah Ya Simsim (Kuwait)
• Plaza Sésamo (Latin America)
• Rechov Sumsum (Israel)
• Sesamstraße (Germany)
• Sesamstraat (Netherlands)
• Takalani Sesame (South Africa)
• Vila Sesamo (Brazil)

Spin-Off series:

• Play With Me Sesame (2002-2007)
• The Furchester Hotel (2014-2017)
• The Not-Too-Late Show with Elmo (2020-2021)
• Mecha Builders (2022-2023) ^note  Starting in season 55, shorts based on the Mecha Builders would begin appearing on the series.

International-exclusive spin-offs/mini-series

• Open Sesame
• Sesame English
• Super Healthy Monsters
• Best Friends
• Count TV
• I Heart Elmo
• 3, 2, 1 Let's Go!
• Bert's Experiments
• Sesame Street Friends
• Choose Wisely Challenge
• Playtime with Basma and Jad
• Abby's Advice
• Mae's Minute
• Watch, Play, Learn
  • The Big Feelings Explorers
  • Elmo and Zoe's Math Adventures
  • Let's Find Out
  • Caring Friends Circle

Direct-to-Video series:

• My Sesame Street Home Video (1986-1996)
  • Sesame Street Home Video Visits (1990)
  • Sesame Street Home Video (1996-2001)
• Sesame Street Start-to-Read Video (1987-1991)
• Sesame Songs Home Video (1990-1995)

Films and specials:

• This Way to Sesame Street (1969)^note A preview show that aired on NBC two days before the series debuted
• Christmas Eve on Sesame Street (1978)^note A PBS special produced by CTW featuring the entire cast
• A Special Sesame Street Christmas (1978)^note A CBS special produced by the makers of The Carol Burnett Show that only featured a handful of characters—Big Bird, Oscar, Barkley, Bob, Maria, David, Mr. Hooper—alongside an All-Star Cast of guest performers, which aired five days after Christmas Eve debuted
• A Walking Tour of Sesame Street (1979)^note A 10th anniversary Clip Show
• Big Bird in China (1983)^note Co-produced by CTW and CCTV, and it debuted in the US on NBC
• Don't Eat the Pictures (1983)
• Sesame Street Presents: Follow That Bird (1985)
• A Muppet Family Christmas (1987)^note Produced by Jim Henson Productions and features the Sesame Street Muppets as co-stars
• Sesame Street, Special (1988)^note This special was released on home video in 1994 with the alternate title "Put Down the Duckie", and a number of additional alterations, including removing the pledge break segments.
• Big Bird in Japan (1988)^note Co-produced with NHK
• Sesame Street: 20 Years and Still Counting (1989)^note A 20th anniversary Clip Show that aired on NBC, which was produced for The Jim Henson Hour, but aired as a separate special a week before The Jim Henson Hour's debut, in the same time slot; it's still usually included with The Jim Henson Hour
• Big Bird's Birthday or Let Me Eat Cake (1991)^note This special later aired as a regular Sesame Street episode nearly a week after its initial airing, albeit with the pledge break segments removed and several non-Muppet segments added in.
• Sesame Street Stays Up Late! (1993) ^note Retitled Sesame Street Celebrates Around the World for home media until the Amazon Prime release in 2017.
• Elmo Saves Christmas (1996)
• Elmopalooza (1998)
• CinderElmo (1999)
• The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland (1999)
• Elmo's Musical Adventure: Peter and the Wolf (2001)
• The Street We Live On (2004)
• Elmo's Christmas Countdown (2007)
• Abby in Wonderland (2008)
• The Cookie Thief (2015)
• Once Upon a Sesame Street Christmas (2016^note It premiered first on HBO in 2016; it aired on PBS in 2017)
• The Magical Wand Chase (2017^note Aired on HBO in 2017 and on PBS in 2019)
• When You Wish Upon a Pickle (2018^note Aired on HBO in 2018 and on PBS in 2020)
• Sesame Street's 50th Anniversary Celebration (2019)
• Elmo's Playdate (2020)
• Elmo's World News (2020^note Co-produced with the LEGO Foundation, released online in the United States and aired on television internationally)
• Elmo's Playdate: Scavenger Hunt (2020)
• The Power of We (2020)
• The Monster at the End of This Story (2020^note Animated adaptation of the iconic book, The Monster at the End of This Book. Premiered first on HBO Max in 2020 and aired on PBS in 2022)
• Furry Friends Forever: Elmo Gets a Puppy (2021)
• See Us Coming Together (2021)
• The Nutcracker Starring Elmo & Tango (2022)
• Cookie Monster's Bake Sale (2023)
• Oscar's Handmade Halloween (2023)
• Elmo and Tango Holiday Helpers (2023)
• Cookie Monster's Bake Sale: Back to School (2024)
• Cookie Monster's Bake Sale: Block Party (2025)
• Elmo and Mark Rober's Merry Giftmas (2025)
• Untitled theatrical film (TBA)

Albums:

• The Sesame Street Book & Record (1970)
• Sesame Street Grover Sings The Blues (1974)
• Sesame Street Ernie And Bert Sing Along (1975)
• Sesame Street Signs (1977)
• Sesame Street Fever (1978)
• Sesame Street Sing Along (1982)
• Sesame Street Born To Add (1983)
• Sesame Street: Platinum All-Time Favorites (1995)

Video games:

• Sesame Street (page contains list of games based off of the series)

Comic books:

• Sesame Street Jr. Cine-Mangas (2005-2009) Tokyopop
• Sesame Street (2013-2016) Ape Entertainment
• Sesame Street (2024-) Oni Press

Books:

• The Monster at the End of This Book (1971)
• Another Monster at the End of This Book (1996)
• Some Friend!

Related media:

• Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey
• I Am Big Bird

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