Claudia Black saw "Sesame Street" for the first time from a 12-inch TV in Ethiopia. She lived there on a military base with her husband, Bill, and young son, Ed, for 2½ years in the early 1970s.

"MASH" reruns and days-old American sporting events took up most of the six-hour TV broadcast day. "Sesame Street" was the only children's programming available. But it was more than good enough, Mrs. Black said.

"The conversations, the music, the characters and their behaviors, the positive messages and teaching shared through this production meant a great deal to me," she said.

When the Blacks returned home to Rushville, Mo., they had two more children who grew up to the sounds of "Sunny days, sweepin' the clouds away!"

Mrs. Black liked the "Sesame Street" songs so much she used them in her elementary school music class. She also liked the racial and economic diversity on the show. She felt that was an added benefit for her children.

"My husband and I feel really strong about pluralistic society, of many people getting along," she said.

Cookie Monster, Oscar the Grouch and Big Bird are all approaching middle age now. "Sesame Street" turned 40 years old this month.

When the show first aired on Nov. 10, 1969, it was touted as innovative and ground-breaking for its cross-cultural and multi-generational appeal and its diverse characters. It used splashing, colorful images and addictive sing-along rhymes to help teach preschoolers their numbers, ABCs and how to get along. And it all took place on an urban street that was a mix of Harlem, the Bronx and the Upper West Side neighborhoods of New York. The integration of the neighborhood extended beyond just black and white actors; it included their green, yellow, purple and bright cherry red "Muppet" neighbors as well.

A diverse group of celebrities have also made guest appearances through the years. Maya Angelou, Tony Bennett, Barbara Bush, Michelle Obama, Johnny Cash, Spike Lee, Ralph Nader and others mingled among and sang along with the likes of Oscar, Big Bird and the Count.

There was nothing before on TV like "Sesame Street." Up to that point, children's TV mostly consisted of clowns, animated mice and middle-aged men wearing cowboy gear, introducing cartoons to all-white studio audiences.

"Children's TV, before 'Sesame Street,' was not very clever and hardly noticed by adults," said Ken Hines, a local psychologist. "'Sesame Street' bridged a gap and created characters that children could relate to, as well as parents."

The show also focused more on education than entertainment. It not only provided the rote repetition that helped children learn their ABCs and numbers, but taught tolerance.

"Even the 'Let's all get along and be tolerant and accepting of differences' message was an improvement on the slapstick and competitiveness of the cartoon world," Mr. Hines said.

Although the show was widely applauded, it had its detractors. It was banned in Mississippi in 1970, with officials saying the state wasn't ready to see black and white cast members sharing a neighborhood. The ban was quickly reversed.

Others thought the show's fast-moving images and short, jumpy segments contributed to attention deficit disorders and hyperactivity in children. But it was never proven.

"I think a lot of things are contributing factors (for attention deficit disorder and hyperactivity)," said Debbie Kunz, Parents as Partners coordinator for the St. Joseph School District. "It's just not one particular program."

In trying to keep current, the show has undergone changes through the years. Cookie Monster now eats celery. It recently launched a new program called "My World is Green and Growing" to promote environmental awareness. There's an HIV-positive character named Kami in the South African version of the show.

Even the familiar and brightly innocent "Sunny Day" theme song got a hip-hop makeover.

Many changes have come and gone in children's TV since "Sesame Street" changed the rules of the game. Some good, some not-so-good, according to local sources.

Julie Bravo, a fifth-grade teacher at Coleman Elementary School, grew up watching "Sesame Street." Her three children watched the show as well. She said "Sesame Street" is still good and educational, but many of the newer children's shows seemed more geared toward adults.

"At times, I think there's too much information in some of the kids' shows. They're exposed to a lot of adult issues early on," Ms. Bravo said. But many of the shows on Nick Jr. and the Disney Channel are good, she added.

"I think shows like 'Drake and Josh' are good shows because they instill family values," she said.

Mr. Hines said children's TV today seems governed more by its commercial side. More emphasis is put on the marketing of characters through dolls and video games.

"The one aspect of 'Sesame Street' that deserves more props is the craft - the talent involved in making puppets work, and the invention of the characters, many of whom will be around for a hundred years," he said. "Not as many people remember Howdy Doody and Kukla, Fran and Ollie as will remember Elmo and Kermit."

A recent Slate.com article claimed the most engaging television show today is Nick Jr's "Yo Gabba Gabba." It, too, uses live action and animation to instill certain values in preschoolers. And it features musical performers such as the Roots and has guest stars such as Elijah Wood and Tony Hawk singing along to encouraging songs like "It's OK, Try Again."

Ms. Kunz said that while some children's TV shows might be better than others, too much is not a good thing - especially for younger children. In fact, she added, the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests children under the age of 2 should watch no TV at all.

"They need human interaction, nothing else," Ms. Kunz said. "When we hear parents say they watched this great show and it increased their vocabulary ... no, it doesn't."

Ms. Kunz said there are some good shows for children on TV, such as "Dora the Explorer" and "Blue's Clues," which allow interaction with the characters. She also likes "Sesame Street" and "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" because they are human-oriented. But parents should watch these shows with their children.

"What we don't want are shows like 'SpongeBob' and other Nickleodeon cartoons that do nothing to promote community cooperation," she said.

Alonzo Weston can be reached

at alonzow@npgco.com.

How did we get to Sesame Street?

The idea was hatched at a dinner party hosted by the show's co-creator, Joan Ganz Cooney, near Gramercy Park in New York City. She got the idea from watching the young daughter of a guest at the party sit before a TV test pattern and wondered if the television could be used to educate children.

Designer Charles Rosen fashioned the "Sesame Street" set from a mix of streets in Harlem, the Bronx and the Upper West Side.

The show was first filmed at Teletape Studios, at 81st Street and Broadway.

Big Bird, Kermit, Bert, Ernie, Oscar, Grover and Cookie Monster were all original characters. Snuffleupagus showed up in 1971, the Count in 1972, Elmo in 1980, Zoe in 1993 and Abby Cadabby in 2006.

The first episode aired on Nov. 10, 1969, and was sponsored by the letters W, S and E and the numbers 2 and 3.

Correction

A reporter incorrectly listed Claudia Black's husband in Sunday's Page A1 story about Sesame Street turning 40. Mrs. Black's husband's name is Gray Black. The St. Joseph News-Press apologizes for the error.

- From nymag.com