Sesame Street has always been a show that’s changed and evolved with the times, and a lot of that change comes from experimentation. But for the show’s 22nd anniversary, fans were given a special that was clearly nothing if not experimental.
Viewers who tuned into their PBS station on the evening of Monday, November 11th, 1991, got to see Sesame Street Presents: Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Culled from outtakes of the musical group’s appearance from 1988’s Sesame Street, Special, the special intrigued long-time fans of the program… until they realized that it only consisted of the group performing. For nearly an hour, the group performed a variety of songs, with the only connection to Sesame Street coming from a title card briefly shown at the start of the special.
Clearly fans were confused at what was billed as an anniversary special not including any characters from the show. Lloyd Gowking, a TV critic from The Boston Sphere, wrote at the time, “While it was certainly daring for Sesame Street to produce a special not featuring any of its iconic characters, the least they could’ve done was include some songs from the show.” In fact, while Ladysmith Black Mambazo did perform a wide variety of songs in their inimitable style, none of their songs were from Sesame Street, not even their performance of “Put Down the Duckie,” which they had recorded as part of that session.
The confusion and ire spilt over into the corresponding pledge drive of many PBS stations around the country. Scores of fans called in to complain about the lack of Sesame Street in their Sesame Street anniversary special. Most famously, local business owner Art Firlisp of Lake Bend, IL famously offered to donate $20,000 to his local station if they would switch to a different Sesame Street episode. While Lake Bend residents enjoyed an encore performance of Tim Robbins’ performance in one of Prairie Dawn’s pageants, the rest of the nation got to hear more from Ladysmith Black Mambazo, including performances of “Isikhathi Siyimali,” “Zulu Khaya Lami,” and “The Yellow Rose of Texas,” as well as what was clearly the camera accidentally being left on as the cast and crew took their lunch break. I think the reviews best sum things up.
“While I enjoy Ladysmith Black Mambazo as much as the next person, I still don’t understand why the folks at Sesame Street needed to put the show’s name on this.” – Rosa Inocente, The Los Angeles Schedule
“Seriously…they couldn’t even sing the Sesame Street theme?” – Ben Aprilvis, The Baltimore Star
“A crowning achievement for Ladysmith Black Mambazo and public television. Move over, Elmo!” – Ruth Cuthaige, The Ladysmith Black Mambazo Fan Club Newsletter
“Still better than the Stephen King special.” – Josh Brielle, The Denver Pillar
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by Matthew Soberman
