The Indianapolis Star from Indianapolis, Indiana • Page 42

E2. THE INDIANAPOLIS STAR FRIDAY, JANUARY 15, 1999 LETItOUT DIG BIRD Continued from Page 1 over the years? A. He's gotten prettier. Early in the show, he had almost no feathers around the eyes. He didn't look very bright.

He was kind of raggedy. Q. We read that you have a monitor inside the costume. Is that true? A. I wear a TV monitor strapped to my chest.

It shows me the show. That allows me to look at Maria when I'm talking to her, because I can't see out. Q. What's it like being an anonymous celebrity? A. It's one of the better things about it.

Once in a while I might be at some event and people will recognize me, and that's nice. Most of the time I can just enjoy my life and walk around and not have people say, "Oh, look who's here!" That gets tiring after a while. Q. Have you ever gotten tired of the role? A. Not at all.

I get to live Big Bird's life, experience his trials and tribulations. If I ever left it, I wouldn't get to feel what it's like to be Big Bird anymore. Whenever I make an appearance, we fix it so I can see out, like through a tie. I can see the children looking at me. It's wonderful.

Q. Any favorite moment or segment from the show? A. The show when Big Bird discovered that Mr. Hooper had died. It was a beautiful and sad introduction to death for little children.

Big Bird had drawn a picture and he wanted to give it to Mr. Hooper. They said, "Big Bird, he died." Big Bird said he would give him the picture when he got back. They said, "Big Bird, he's not coming back." And Big Bird said, "What do you mean he's not coming back?" All the actors, we were all in tears when we finished the scene. We used the first take.

Q. Anything else you'd like to say about Sesame Street? A. I'm glad they watch. Children's Television Workshop WHO LIVES HERE? The Sesame Street Muppets (clockwise from left) Grover, Bert and Ernie, Cookie Monster, Prarie Dawn, Elmo and Oscar the Grouch. Healy says.

"It's unfortunate that our culture doesn't have a clue that this could be bad for kids' brains." Daniel Anderson, a professor of developmental psychology from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, began studying Sesame Street and the hold it had on young children 25 years ago. Since then he has observed more than 5,000 hours of children watching the show. Young kids were paying a lot of attention to Sesame Street, Anderson found, precisely because the show was more understandable to them than anything else produced for children at the time mostly cartoons oriented toward older children. Recently, Anderson was part of a research team that tracked the long-term effects on high-school students who had watched Sesame Street as preschoolers. Released last year, the study found the kids were getting better grades in high school, particularly in English, math and science.

So now at 30, is Sesame Street still worth studying? Yes, says Catherine Snow, chairwoman of human development and psychology at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Snow would like to see more attention paid to considering the difference between kids who watch the show alone and those who watch it with a parent; whether the show could be better designed for non-native English speakers; and the optimum number of shows or segments a child should see. "If Sesame Street is being relied on as a tool in early development, that research is certainly something we should be doing." More about 'Sesame Street' On the Internet, you can find information on the show and Children's Television Workshop at: httpyAvww.ctw.org And quizzes, interviews and lots of links at httpywww.sesamestreetconV For scripts, stories, songs and lore, look for this book: Sesame Street Unpaved by David Borgenicht (Hyperion, 1998, $25) For more about the show's 30th year, look for current issues of: Sesame Street magazine (for kids) Sesame Street Parents national borders with co-productions in 19 countries, including this year's newest, in China. Despite such popularity and all the positive research, there are skeptics of the show. One such critic is Jane Healy, an educational psychologist and author of Endangered Minds: Why Our Children Don't Think.

Healy contends that Sesame Street does more to seduce kids than to educate them; manipulates their thinking process with a sensory onslaught; shortens the attention span and encourages fragmented thinking. But there's not much in the way of research to back up her contentions, and she doubts there ever will be. "It's a dead issue. Sesame Stteet has become a sacred cow," them once, but he lost track. Thousands.

TQ. What's the best thing about being a bird? A. I don't need a feather comforter. I think I have more friends than most birds. In the winter.

Gordon puts out seeds mixed in suet for me. It's good, but it's greasy. That's what suet is. you know: grease. Q.

You have to be careful eating that. Big Bird, can we talk to Caroll Spinney now? A. Sure. Bye. Caroll Spinney is the puppeteer who has played Big Bird since Sesame Street went on the air.

Spinney, 64, keeps a low profile outside his 8-foot, 2-inch costume, preferring to let Big Bird be the star. But he does do interviews now and then, and the 30th anniversary is one such occasion: Q. When Sesame Street started 30 years ago, did you have any idea this would be your life's work? A. It seemed like it would last a while. As soon as we taped the first show, I thought this was something different, something quite special.

But I had no idea it would last this long. Q. Big Bird is supposed to be 6 years old. How difficult is it to play a 6-year-old? A. It's kind of easy.

I have a lot of memories as a very young child. I can remember not being tall enough to see over the kitchen table. I find it a wonderful age to visit. 9. Was Big Bird originally conceived as a child? A.

No, at first he was just kind of a goofy bird. As the show progressed, I realized he should be perceived as a child. When he sees something for the first time, many of the children are seeing it for the first time, too. Q. Has the costume changed How often do you get to So, you've been a fan of Sesame Street from the time you figured out how to turn on the TV? OK, lets see how well you know your show.

Here's a baker's dozen in tnvia. I Take a bite 1) What is Elmo's favorite food? 2) Who is Sonny Friendrs favorite contestant for his Traveling Game Show? 3) What is the name of Oscar the Grouch's best friend? I 4) How does Bob make his living? 5) Which two characters rarely appear at the same time? I 6) Who lives at 123 Sesame 7) What job does Gina do? What did she do before? 8) Which Muppet has orange fur, plpk barrettes and loves to play with her doll, Mimi? I 9) Is Mumford's magic assistant a dinosaur, a parrot or a duck? Who is Miles? THE STAR THE NEWS The Center for Pain Management offers Ibe latest in techniques, medications and procedures to treat a variety of pain syndromes. Neck Lower Back Pain Arthritis Joint Pain Fibromyalgia I' Other Pain Syndromes MA.NAGtMK.Ni Edward J. Kowlowilz, M.D. Triple Board Certified Pain Physician 578-PAIN 578-7246 7440 N.

Shack-land Ave. Most Insurances Accepted PAI Sesame Street? A quiz 11) What happened in 1989 that got everybody on the street so excited? 12) What does Athena the Owl aspire to be great at doing? 13) Which of the following will you not find inside Oscar's trash can: a zoo, a Chinese restaurant a bowling alley, a tennis court? luEjnejsaj esau (et jeos (zv peg bub (u eAjidope s.uopjoo pus uesns (oi -'pna (6 -QOZ (9 JOjs siedooH IB uom oj pesn eug jejueo aieo-Aep sunj leieuq -eo pus bub 'sin- puv pue uodjoq 'UBsns puv 'ejuig pus jjeg (g lAeuuids hojeq jopb Aq peABd 9jb qjoq fouj. -nonojQ etR jboso pus pjjg Big (g 'jomoboi oisniM -ajd (e Ibubi (2 lEzzy (i Source: Children's Television's Workshop trivia quiz at httpyAivww.ctw.org Got a comment about life, love, politics, whatever? Call InfoLine, (317) write LET IT OUT, Features, The anapolis Star and The Indianapolis i News, RO. Box 6187, Indianapolis, Ind. 46206-6187.

Or fax us at (317) 630- 9565, attention Lt i uui. comments might be held because of space limitations or questionable taste. The ultimate censure of Bill Clinton: no presidential library. Linda Tripp and Alf separated at birth? OK, enough of the Spy Magazine rinntf "canaratoH at hirth I Rl inHAQt a new, brightly humorous feature, "Night arid Day," where two seemingly similar people by virtue of choice or chance are discovered to be as different as you guessed it night and day. I pro- overpriced-tennis-shoed Michael Jordan and classless, overpaid-convicted-felon Mike Tyson.

I'm a stay-at-home mom, and I think all-day kindergarten is ridiculous. When are kids going to be kids? They don't have that long of an attention span. We live in Johnson County, and. i there are already space limitations. What's next? Are they going to have tcr know their ABC's when they're bom? To the person who asked why lines cancel flights and leave us stranded and yet don't help when we call in advance to change a ticket: (Let It Out, Jan.

13) Delta does not charge an additional fee to change the flight due to weather. Now that Delta Airlines says they'll charge $2 if you don't buy through the Internet, I hope they lose a lot of money. I don't own a computer. That's the last time I'll fly Delta. To the person who suggested make up snow days during spring -break (Let it Out, Jan.

13): I don't think it would be spent productively everybody will be thinking about what 1 they wanted to do and what they could be doing on spring break. You know, back where I'm from in Alabama, during the few opportunities we had to cancel school because of weather, we just went on Saturdays. Think about it, IPS. The reason the female anchors nod their heads at the male anchors (Let It Out, Jan. 13) is because the te- male anchors don't have a clue what they're doing.

The reason the KKK can rally on the Circle and a Nativity scene is not allowed (Let it Out, Jan. 13)? That's simple. Its freedom for some. Is the National Grand Dragon anything like Godzilla? That's not a bald spot on my head. It's a solar panel for a love ma- chine.

PRICE Continued from Page 1 tionists and other hourly workers would have the same number and length of breaks. My friend is convinced the moti- vating factor In his employer's decision is the cost of medical bene- fits. The firm hopes smokers, worn down by having to leave the high- rise building several times every day, eventually will drop their habit, thereby saving health care costs. Dollars and cents aside, the firm's decision was just. It's unfair to give some employees more breaks simply because they smoke.

And as I wince when I see smokers who obviously have been forced to light up in the cold, I remind myself of the greater good. Hurting others Smokers don't Just jeopardize their own health in the manner say, overeaters or folks who neglect their dental care. The haz-ards of second-hand smoke have -been well-documented during the last 15 years, Also during that period, smokers have felt persecuted. Increasingly persecuted. First, they were banished to smoking rooms usually oppres-sive, stark-looking places in office buildings' netherworlds.

Now they've been ordered outdoors. My only suggestion is they tell themselves that, Just like flu suf-' ferers who stay home rather than expose co-workers to their germs, they're performing a public ser- vice. Here are a few lines of possible interior dialogue: "By bundling up and stepping outdoors to smoke, I'm doing a fa- vor for friends and co-workers. No one else is going to succumb to -emphysema or some other disor- I der on my account." Another warm thought: "Janu-ary doesn't last forever." Nelson Price is a feature writer for The Indianapolis Star and The Indianapolis News. Contact him via e-mail at npricestarnews.com or call (317)-624-4636 and enter category 7181.

spans 30 seasons of prize-winning program (MJ0 STREET Continued from Page 1 grams. Even though it must compete for an audience with shows that it inspired, such as Blue's Clues on Nickelodeon, it still has the power to engage young children. Not to mention older folks. Just ask Lesser. Retired now from Harvard, he remains involved in Sesame Street.

But where he once enjoyed the show in the company of his son, Ted, he now does so with his 11-month-old grandson in the mornings. "He loves the Sesame Street music. He gets out of my lap and starts dancing." But what else besides a sense of rhythm do kids really get from Sesame Street? Just ask researchers. The show is, without a doubt, the most widely studied children's television program. It's been well documented that Sesame Street benefits kids in two categories school readiness and social skills says Ellen Junn, a professor in the child and adolescent studies department at California State University, Fuller-ton.

Not only do kids who watch the show enter school with a knowledge of phonetics, letters and numbers, they also are more considerate and more cooperative, research shows. That's good to know, given the millions who are watching. "It actually reaches about 85 percent of all preschoolers in this country," Junn says. "It has a very powerful effect in encouraging preschoolers and fostering their intellectual development." The show reaches across inter- 'Sesame Street' timeline 1968: Children's Television Workshop is established, with Joan Ganz Cooney as executive director. 1969: The Muppets and Jim Hen-son are signed.

Sesame Street premieres Nov. 10 on NET, the predecessor to PBS, and several commercial stations. 1970: Big Bird appears on the cover of 77me magazine. Among the show's honors for its first season are three Emmys and a George Foster Peabody Award. 1971: Aloysius Snuffleupagus (otherwise known as Snuffy) debuts but is visible only to Big Bird and viewers at home.

1972: Count von Count first appears on the show. (He is a distant relative of Count Dracula, but he thirsts for numbers, not necks, according to his publicists.) 1974: Linda Bove, from the National Theater of the Deaf, teaches signing. Her role as the hearing-impaired librarian is the longest-running television role of any physically challenged person. 1975: Smithsonian Institution exhibits Bert and Ernie. 1977: A Kermit the Frog balloon is added to the Macs Thanksgiving Day Parade.

a higher risk our free seminar and Lloyd will give you the how you can reduce mm 1978: Barkley the dog joins the cast. He is Linda's pet and responds to her sign commands. 1979: Kermit the Frog hosts the Tonight Show. 1980: Sesame Place theme park opens in Langhome, Pa. (International parks in Monterrey, Mexico, and Tokyo opened later.

A fourth park in Sao Paulo, Brazil, is scheduled to open next year.) Sesame Street Live! goes on tour. 1982: Big Bird visits China. 1983: The actor who portrayed Mr. Hooper, Will Lee, dies. Rather than replace the actor or write him out of the show by having him move away, Sesame Street explains death to its young viewers.

This program wins an Emmy. 1984: Elmo and Telly Monster join the show. 1985: Viewers learn about adoption when Susan and Gordon adopt a son, Miles. Follow That Bird, a film featuring Big Bird, is released in movie theaters. 1988: Maria and Luis get married.

1989: Maria and Luis have a baby girl named Gabriela. Composer Joe Raposo, a co-creator and musical director of Sesame Street, dies of cancer at 51. He wrote the show's theme song, Sunny Day, and other memora ble tunes. 1990: Muppets creator and Sesame Street co-creator Jim Henson dies of pneumonia. He was 53.

His funeral opens with the Sesame Street theme song played on a church organ. 1991: A Latina Muppet named Ros-ita is introduced. She is from Mexico and speaks Spanish and English, often mixing words from both languages. 1992: Research indicates that Sesame Street reaches 92 percent of white, Hispanic and African-American preschoolers living below the poverty line. 1993: Sesame Street celebrates its 25th anniversary.

The U.S. Department of Education says that 77 percent of all preschool children watch the show at least once a week. 1996: Female Muppets Rosita, Betty Lou and Zoe start the Girls, Girls, Girls Club. 1998: The 30th season premiered Nov. 16.

The show has a new opening; a new cast member Alan, the new owner of Mr. Hooper's updated store, played by Alan Muraoka; a self-contained 15-minute segment called Elmo's World; and the show will send Slimey the Worm, Oscar the Grouch's pet, to the moon. Who's in it? What's it about? Call (317) 624-4636 Enter the four digit category 7461 The Siege (R) 7448 Something About Mary 7464 Star Trek: Insurrection (PG) 7400 Stepmom (PG13) 7427 T-Rex IMAX (G) 7433 Urban Legend (R) 7467 The Waterboy fPG73) 7431 The Wizard of Oz (G) 7424 You've Got Mail (PG) 3 17-624-463 wnuuriM vwvki wjrwm immm LOCATIONS Fishers Speedway Noblesville Anderson ovieLine like night and day, but the night is forever. New Releases 7442 At First Sight (PG 13) 7407 A Civil Action fPG73; 7446 In Dreams (R) 7453 The Thin Red Line (R) 7441 Varsity Blues (R) 7425 Virus (R) 7416 Waking Ned Oevine (PG) LASHMET SPITZBERG DENNY ABRAMS i LLOYD 4 7452 Down in the Delta (R) 7455 Elizabeth (Ft) 7465 Enemy of the State (R) 741 5 The Faculty (R) 7457 Home Fries (PG13) 7430 1 Still (fl; 7471 Jack Frost (PG) 7414 Meet Joe Black (PG13) 7443 Mighty Joe Young (PG) 7408 Patch Adams (PG13) 7470 Practical Magic (R) 7432 The Prince of Egypt (PG) 7418 Ringmaster (R) 7440 The Rugrats Movie (G) 7434 Rush Hour (PG13) 7439 Shakespeare in Love (R) Free Seminar Screening "Glaucoma Your Eyes" Thursday, January 21, 1999 Lashmet, Spitzberg, Denny, Abrams Lloyd, M.D.'s 6850 Parkdale Place Eagle Highlands Outpatient For Reservations: 926-6699 Ongoing Releases 7406 A Bug's Life (G) 7422 Antz (PG) 7426 Babe: Pig in the City (PGJ 7401 Bride of Chucky (R) MANY GREAT Glaucoma will claim the vision of some 120,000 Americans this year alone and and another 900,000 will experience some form of vision loss or impairment. glaucoma can strike without warning, those at African-Americans Individuals over age 40 Diabetics Family history of glaucoma If you are at risk for developing glaucoma, plan to attend screening to learn how you can protect your vision.

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