There wasn’t a Sesame Street calendar this year, and I don’t think there’s going to be one next year. Which is a real shame, cause Sesame Street calendars are the only way to keep track of the really important holidays.
Like Pretend You’re A Bus Driver Day (Feb 7), or Make an Angry Face Day (June 18), or Measure Your Mother Day (Jan 11), or Count The Days in October Day (Oct 1). These holidays were listed year after year in Sesame calendars, creating new traditions that I personally followed to the letter.
Sesame calendars also reminded you about the Sesame characters’ birthdays, which was helpful. The birthdays must have been determined back in the 70’s — because even in 1990’s calendars, you would still see birthdays for Sherlock Hemlock (Apr 17), The Amazing Mumford (June 7), Little Bird (Dec 17), and Sam the Robot (May 23).
What all of this is leading up to is that there are two Sesame holidays that I still celebrate to this day. One is Look for Things Beginning with H Day (Mar 6). That happened to be the day of my first lunch date with my boyfriend, back when I was in college — and I remember it well, because a friend walked up to me in the middle of the date and said, “HI, Danny! HOW are you? HAPPY Things Beginning with H Day!” and then I had to explain to this guy I was on a first date with that I had a Sesame Street calendar in my dorm room. And we’re still together, so that’s memorable for me.
The other holiday that still has a place in my heart is November 2nd, which is Cookie Monster’s birthday. I love Cookie Monster, and I’ve always welcomed the chance to honor him. Plus, it’s a nice event that helps me get over my post-Halloween letdown.
So, in honor of this great and much-loved monster on his birthday, I present to you a celebratory Cookie Monster sketch.
This sketch is from the 1970’s, and features Frank Oz as Cookie Monster, and Jerry Nelson as the Baker.
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Baker
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[ hums to himself: ] If I knew you were comin’, I’d have baked a cake…
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[ Cookie Monster enters. ]
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Cookie
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Dum de dum dum dum… Hi!
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Baker
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Oh, good morning, sir!
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Cookie
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Uh… this the bakery?
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Baker
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Yes, it certainly is!
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Cookie
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You the baker?
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Baker
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That I am.
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Cookie
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You the man I want to see!
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Baker
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Good! How may I help you, sir?
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Cookie
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Well, I want you bake special cookie, for birthday!
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Baker
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Oh, sir… we do a beautiful job with birthday cookies.
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Cookie
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Oh, good. Good.
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Baker
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Yes. May I make a few suggestions.
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Cookie
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Why not? You the baker.
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Baker
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All right… use your imagination if you will, sir…
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Cookie
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Okay.
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Baker
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… And imagine a very, very large cookie.
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[ As Cookie concentrates, a vision of a large cookie appears over his head. ]
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Cookie
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Mmmm… imagining large cookie… Oh! Oh, look at that, I imagined cookie! Mmmm!
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Baker
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Right! But I’m not finished!
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Cookie
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No?
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Baker
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No, that’s not all!
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Cookie
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Oh, boy!
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Baker
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I thought we’d make this cookie, uh, vanilla, with chocolate stripes.
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Cookie
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Oh, I imagine that. I like the way you talk, baker! Imagine… imagine a large cookie… vanilla cookie with chocolate stripes.
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Baker
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Right, but that’s not all!
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Cookie
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Oh! Look at that.
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Baker
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That’s not all!
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Cookie
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Not all?
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Baker
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I’m not finished, no, no.
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Cookie
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Oh.
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Baker
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After that — now use your imagination again —
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Cookie
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Okay. Okay.
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Baker
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After that, we’re gonna put, uh, we’ll add pink and green rosebud frosting around the edges.
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Cookie
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Mmmm! Large cookie… vanilla cookie with chocolate stripes… pink and green frosting… Mmmm! Oh, boy! I see it!
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Baker
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But that’s not all!
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Cookie
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NO?
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Baker
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No, we haven’t finished with it yet.
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Cookie
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Oh, boy!
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Baker
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Use your imagination again —
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Cookie
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Okay.
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Baker
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And now we’re going to add candles all over it.
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Cookie
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Oh boy.
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Baker
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Candles all over.
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Cookie
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Large cookie… vanilla cookie with chocolate stripes… pink and green frosting… with candles! Oh, I see it! It looks so GOOD! Oh! Ohhh! I can’t STAND it! Gotta eat cookie NOW!
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[ Cookie Monster reaches up and gulps down the imaginary cookie in three big bites. ]
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Cookie
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Aaaa-RUM! Aaaaa-RUM! Aaaa-RUM-num-num-num-nummmmm! OH! Even IMAGINARY cookie taste good! ALL COOKIES TASTE GOOD!
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[ With a satisfied growl, Cookie runs out of the bakery. The baker stands behind the counter, stunned. ]
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Happy birthday, Cookie Monster!
… And, if you’re interested in having your own celebration,
here’s a list of all the Sesame characters’ birthdays:
Jan 13: Rubber Duckie
Jan 28: Ernie
Feb 3: Elmo
Feb 23: Gordon
Feb 29: Kermit
March 20: Big Bird
April 17: Sherlock Hemlock
May 3: Susan
May 23: Sam the Robot
June 1: Oscar
June 7: The Amazing Mumford
June 25: Maria
July 1: Guy Smiley
July 26: Bert
Aug 3: Prairie Dawn
Aug 19: Snuffleupagus
Aug 20: Bob
Aug 31: Herry
Sept 19: Slimey
Sept 29: Telly
Sept 30: Zoe
Oct 4: David
Oct 9: Grover
Oct 14: The Count
Oct 29: Betty Lou
Nov 2: Cookie Monster
Nov 14: Luis
Dec 17: Little Bird
