Mortality has always been a touchy subject in childhood entertainment, especially the television shows created to teach young kids as they move into school life. Even cartoons for slightly older kids hesitate to pull that trigger, and modern Disney films have backed off the killer instinct they once had. None of these shows have to beGame of Throneslevels of brutality.Still, however devastating it may be, young kids need to have a grasp on the inevitability of death both early and in a safe environment.Some will face it through a pet goldfish, while others will have to grapple with it terribly early and in its worst form: the death of a friend or family member. However, one trailblazing show that celebrates its 55th birthday this year took a different, heart-wrenching approach.
Sesame Streetremains the greatest early childhood show of all time. Other immensely popular entries will come and go, butSesame Streethas remained a television icon for decades. There are many reasons for this, from the familiar characters that appeal to the young and young-at-heart, catchy songs, and endless positive vibes. People feel at home when they visit Sesame Street. It radiates a sense of love and community while teaching something as simple as numbers and letters. However, sometimes, the lessons they teach are a bit more intense.Sesame Streethas addressed serious issues in a way that’s accessible to kids.Sometimes, it is in response to world eventsthat they’d need help processing, like 9/11 or the COVID-19 pandemic. The show is well known for helping kids through their negative emotions in healthy ways, and themost iconic of all happened in 1983 when theSesame Streetcast addressed the death of Mr. Hooper (Will Lee).
Mr. Hooper Was A Sesame Street OG
Other than the muppets that color the world,Sesame Streethassupplemental human characters. Many of them are adult mentors and guardians, those in the community like shopkeepers and teachers.They’re used in the show to explain more complex and adult ideas to the younger muppets, like Elmo or Abby Cadabby, and by extension, the audience.Things like divorce, homelessness, and adoption are issues that young people will need to face in life with guidance from adults.
Harold Hooper, portrayed in the show by Will Lee, had been one of those characters since the show’s 1969 premiere. He was the owner and founder of Hooper’s Store, a general store that remains a key location in the show currently run by Alan (Alan Muraoka).He was a classic cranky old man with a heart of gold, selling soda, making sandwiches, wearing a bowtie and half-rimmed glasses.He had a special connection to his customers, both human and muppet, but most of all, with the innocent and gentle Big Bird (Caroll Spinney), who would always stop by for his birdseed milkshakes. He would even address issues beyond letters and numbers, as he got a GED in night school, which touches on adult education beyond the typical school system.He was a very well-loved character to the children in the audienceand the adults he worked with on the show.
Time moves forward. Lee started on the show in 1969 at the age of 61 and would continue as a recurring character for over a decade. Due to ailing health, he would make his final appearance on Sesame Street in November 1982.Lee would attend the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade with other characters from the show.This was his last hurrah,as he would unfortunately pass away from a heart attack on December 7th, 1982. He was 74.
Goodbye, Mr. Hooper Is One Of Sesame Street’s Most Beloved Segments
In a long-running series such asSesame Street, it’s natural for cast members to leave the show for one reason or another. There are many ways to approach this. There could be somegraceful passing of the baton alaBlue’s Clues, a recasting, or they’re simply never seen or heard from again. In the case of a cast member’s death, you have two options.Either you address the truth of the situation, or you don’t.No one would’ve scolded the showrunners if they said that Mr. Hooper retired and went to a farm upstate. Instead, they used it as a teachable moment, andwith assistance from experts and child psychologists, they created the segment now called “Goodbye, Mr. Hooper.” A scene that can still bring a grown-up to tears to this day.
The episode aired on November 24th, 1983. Thanksgiving is a time when adults are almost guaranteed to be at home with their kids. This was intentional, a way for kids to have that comfort in real life afterward. The lead character in the scene is Big Bird, the muppet who loved Mr. Hooper the most. As the adult characters are chatting, Big Bird offers them all the drawings he created and is hoping to give one to Mr. Hooper as well. The scene gets quiet, and the adults gently explain that Mr. Hooper died, and when someone dies, they don’t come back. Big Bird panics, asking who would make him birdseed milkshakes and look after the store.The writers were told by the experts that who would fill whatever responsibilities the dead person had was a big concern forbereaved children. He’s told that David (Northern Calloway) would be the new owner of Hooper’s Store and was for the next seven years.
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Oscar wasn’t the only green meenie in the episode.
The grown-ups offer Big Bird support and reassurance, but you’re able to see them all tearing up and hear their voices breaking. They explain that this is how things are, “just because,” and even though things are different, they’ll still have their memories of him, but their tears are real. The characters aren’t just processing the death of Mr. Hooper, but the cast is processing the death of their longtime friend and colleague, Will Lee.It’s one of Spinney’s greatest moments as Big Bird.He’s a great stand-in for a young child grappling with the concept of death. As a baby is introduced in the episode’s climax, he observes that people are here, and then they’re not, and people aren’t here, and then they are.
This episode remains one of the best of all time forSesame Street,even as it continued to touch on important issues.Sesame Streethas a common thread of not avoiding sadness or anger, facing pain head-on, and even embracing it.Dealing with death is the most important lesson a child can learn.It’s an inevitable part of life and will help them deal with other big and upsetting changes in their own lives. No television show, whether for children or adults, hashandled the death of a cast memberas beautifully asSesame Street,and Mr. Hooper will be a legend of the show for many years to come.
