BEFORE he discovered Sesame Street last year, Associate Editor Stefan Kanfer, like many parents, had little faith in the educational value of television. "My first reaction whenever I saw my kids in front of the set," he recalls, "was to distract them somehow until I could shut it off. Then I noticed what they were watching, and pretty soon I found I was watching Sesame Street with them. When they peeled off to play from time to time, I was still there watching it. Now I even watch it when the kids aren't home."
Kanfer who wrote this week's cover story on TV s best children's program relied for much of his inspiration on Daughter Lilian, 9, and Son Ethan 6. "I took them along to the studio for a show," he says They'd been to TV shows before, even backstage. They were fairly blasé this time, too, until the Muppets came on. Then it was as if they were in the presence of a genie. They were enchanted!"
Equally Muppet-struck are Correspondent Mary Cronin and Researcher Patricia Beckert, who did the reporting for the story. Cronin set out to interview the puppeteer who manipulates Garbage-Can Resident Oscar the Grouch, but ended up conducting a canside dialogue with Oscar himself "In your off hours, do you ever talk to any kids?" she asked him. "Once I met a blind boy and he had heard the show," Oscar recounted "He felt my hair and I bit him. But I don't have any teeth so I can't hurt anyone. So we shook hands and we talked. Beautiful kid." Beautiful Grouch Naturally Cronin watches the show whenever she can. As for Beckert she has become so entranced that "I've been getting up every morning for weeks to watch the show before coming to work."
What is it that makes a children's program so addictive for adults? "It takes you back to childhood," says Cronin. "Yet much of it is really geared to adults. There are double-entendre puns and jokes but they don't get in the way of the children's enjoyment." Adds Kanfer: "Deep down we're all culturally disadvantaged. Because there's not enough irony, humor and liberated nonsense for all us kids. There's a profound wit that we've all lost track of since Edward Lear and the Alice books."
Whatever the attraction, Sesame Street's proven effectiveness in teaching basic skills to youngsters indicates that it will be a favorite of parents for years to come. "I've learned to count to ten," says Kanfer, "and I'm much better at recognizing letters now." The Cover: Photograph of Sesame Street's Big Bird by Bill Pierce.