November 10th is Sesame Street Day, the most widely viewed childrens’ show in the world, as of 2024. Meant to simply be fun and educational, the show has evolved into an international cultural phenomenon.

Sesame Street was conceived in 1966 by television producer Joan Ganz Cooney and Carnegie Foundation vice president Lloyd Morrisett. Their goal was to create a children’s television show that would “master the addictive qualities of television and do something good with them,” such as helping young children prepare for school. After two years of research, the newly created Children’s Television Workshop (CTW) received a combined grant of $8 million from the Carnegie and Ford Foundations, along with the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the U.S. federal government to create and produce a new children’s television show.

Sesame Street was officially announced at a press conference on May 6, 1969, with CTW executive director Cooney stating that Sesame Street would use the techniques of commercial television shows to educate young children. In the long-running series, live shorts and animated cartoons teach children the alphabet, numbers, vocabulary, shapes and basic reasoning skills. Celebrity guest cameos helped attract older children and adults.

According to Cooney, the name Sesame Street was derived from the saying “open sesame,” which gives the idea of a place where exciting things happen. The show was given an initial six-month run in order to determine whether it was effective and would continue on air.

Sesame Street premiered on public television stations on November 10, 1969. It was the first preschool educational television program to base its contents and production values on laboratory and formative research. Initial responses to the show included positive reviews, some controversy, and high ratings.