Your childhood will be available on streaming starting this fall, thanks to a new deal between HBO and “Sesame Street.”
The beloved children’s show will be broadcast on the premium cable channel for five seasons starting this fall. The deal will allow Sesame Workshop, the show’s nonprofit production arm, to produce 35 episodes a year starring Big Bird, Elmo, and the rest of the gang, up from 18 each season. The financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed.
The show is know for its celebrity guest spots, and everyone from Tina Fey and James Gandolfini to Billy Joel and Ray Charles have made appearances during its inimitable 45-year run.
Following an exclusive nine month run on HBO, the episodes will again be available for free on PBS, where “Sesame Street” has resided since its 1969 debut.
Sesame Workshop will also create a new Muppets spin-off series, along with another educational children’s show under the deal.
As the internet is wont to do, the news quickly became fodder for (mostly) bad jokes on Twitter, many envisioning puppet crossovers with HBO hits.
“cooookiessss” pic.twitter.com/4ySpP6lqkn
— darth™ (@darth) August 13, 2015
#TrueDetectiveSeason3 http://t.co/SKcqZVNkPD pic.twitter.com/gYlgRew9jI
— Anthony De Rosa (@AntDeRosa) August 13, 2015
Finally, we’ll get the profanity, gritty realism, and graphic sex scenes this show has been missing. pic.twitter.com/nwA7Azutgd
— Nick Confessore (@nickconfessore) August 13, 2015
Sesame Street now brought to you by the letters “H”, “B” and “O”
http://t.co/0X5qPD020J pic.twitter.com/qNyqIuL892
— Carol Roth (@caroljsroth) August 13, 2015
Sesame Street on HBO pic.twitter.com/3n3nKy3DE9
— BuzzFeed (@BuzzFeed) August 13, 2015
Sesame Street on HBO be like pic.twitter.com/5De6PDZhCR
— Brian Ries (@moneyries) August 13, 2015
The statute of limitations on HBO/Sesame Street jokes has now passed. Thank you for your interest.
— Lizzie O’Leary (@lizzieohreally) August 13, 2015
Can you tell me how to pay, how to pay for “Sesame Street” http://t.co/5zlK6j85G3
— Patrick LaForge, NYT (@palafo) August 13, 2015
#SesameStreet is moving to @HBO I can't wait for the new season of @girlsHBO @lenadunham @sesamestreet pic.twitter.com/bWnmMxmR8j
— Stephanie Jacobson (@citizengirl) August 13, 2015
This post has been updated.
People forget that “Fraggle Rock”, a Muppets show, was an HBO original series at one time, so what’s the big deal?
It is hard to see the connection. Does HBO want the TV tuned to its channel from 7:00 am to midnight?
I’m just glad that we can finally hear them cuss. That always bothered me.
Bert and Ernie would never be allowed to come out on PBS…
That would put the nail in the coffin for public financing.