i am sassa

When I was a wee child, I wanted to hug Grover. Bad. I remember the feeling in my gut, and it was dead serious. When Sesame Street had special little kid guests, they always hugged Grover and kissed his nose, and if I wasn’t so happy for them I would’ve been green with envy. I couldn’t paint the founder of the Children’s Television Workshop and co-creator of Sesame Street without a little friend, and it was easy to decide who it should be. Painting Grover hugging the badass behind my favorite show as a kid is the next best thing to hugging him myself. I just kept smiling at him.

Joan Ganz Cooney has the most wholesome story of any of my subjects in this series so far. She grew up in an upper middle class family with two siblings in Phoenix, Arizona. She is quoted saying, "I was raised in the most conventional way, raised to be a housewife and a mother, to work an interesting job when I got out of college, and to marry at the appropriate age, which would have been twenty-five". Though her passion was theatre, Joan chose to pursue education in college based on the idea at the time that teaching was an “acceptable” career for women.

After school, Joan was first a journalist, then a publicist, then a television producer. She got that last job despite zero experience as a producer, and may have fudged her way through that a bit. She said, “I’ve never been qualified for any job I’ve been hired for”. Respect. Joan had a high school teacher who instilled in her an interest in civil rights that began to re-emerge around the time of her work as a producer. She produced educational debate shows about current issues as well as short educational documentaries. Her interest in using television as education spawned the idea for the non-profit Children’s Television Workshop, which her background in both education and tv production gave her the cred to get funded. One thing led to another, and Sesame Street was born. The show was on the cover of Time and won three Emmys and a Peabody in its very first season. It is now broadcast in 120 countries.

Joan’s career accomplishments alone are extremely impressive. She was one of the first ever female TV executives, serving as Director of the Children’s Television Workshop. She’s earned the Presidential Medal of Freedom and a daytime Emmy for Lifetime Achievement, among many other awards. She is in both the National Women’s Hall of Fame and the Television Academy Hall of Fame. But to understand the breadth of her badassery, one must look beyond her awards and listen to her speak. Watch the interview linked below. Her reasons for wanting to create educational television for children are unbelievably wholesome and good-hearted. Sesame Street has done so much good in the world, and she is an absolute gem of a person. Worthy of the embrace of my very favorite puppet. AND! I almost forgot. She has a puppet of herself. Excuse me while I go cry tears of joy.

Thank you, Joan Ganz Cooney.