Cookie Monster may need to change his branding a little bit. Debuting in 1969, Sesame Street boasts 53 seasons of quality time with iconic characters, from Big Bird to Grover, and so many more. Perhaps one of the most relatable remains Cookie Monster with the insatiable sweet tooth. But it’s not actually cookies that he’s always snatching.
Sesame Workshop says of the food-loving muppet, “Cookie Monster is a frenzied yet cuddly character on a persistent quest for more food…especially cookies!” The Muppets creator Jim Henson conceived the character who would eventually become Cookie Monster as a different character called Wheel Stealer. The commercial Wheal Stealer was supposed to be in never aired, and so he ended up on 123 Sesame Street!
The cookies so sought after by Cookie Monster aren’t actually the confections of his namesake
Cookie Monster is often seen with the objects of his affection, cookies, hastily grabbed in fuzzy blue hands and delighting the taste buds soon after. But it’s actually not cookies that have the muppet so enthralled – at least, not the ingredients.
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In reality, instead of cookies, the props department used rice cakes that were then painted to look like chocolate chip delights.
Why? Does this route provide a shortcut that removes the need to whip up all that batter and mix in all those chocolate chunks? Actually, it’s a logistical issue. David Borgenicht’s Sesame Street Unpaved notes the fact that the oil and chocolate in normal cookies would turn the puppet’s fabric greasy. Additionally, using those light, clean rice cakes is helpful for when Cookie Monster eats them; these treats can pass easily through his “mouth” and land harmlessly over – and sometimes on – his puppet master.
A day for ten minutes
Sesame Street turned 50 back in 2019 and in celebration, Reader’s Digest shared a hearty inside scoop of behind-the-scenes secrets to making the show tick. A lot of consideration goes into each puppet. A lot. There is abundant workshopping for how the puppeteers operate their respective characters and even eyes receive close scrutiny.
“It surprises people to learn that it takes a full day to get ten minutes of footage,” revealed the current executive producer, Ben Lehmann. “We function somewhat like a symphony orchestra. It’s really quite an intricate dance between the camera operators, the puppeteers, and the actors.”
In fact, the puppeteers have the toughest job on the block. Former cast member Emilio Delgado said, “It’s easy to have a total suspension of disbelief because of the talents of the puppeteers.” The puppeteers have to operate rather like dancers; they have to move fluidly, in perfect sync with everything else going on around their stage – and they have to make it all look smooth and easy. Right down to making Cookie Monster gobble down his next batch of paint-coater rice cakes, or rather, cookies.
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