'sesame Street' Turns 35 With Vids, Merch

Generations of families who grew up singing "Can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street?" will soon have a new tune to hum.

Sony Wonder's April 6 home video release, "What's the Name of That Song?," will see parents and children warbling along with "Sesame Street" favorites Grover, Big Bird and Elmo as they try to find one song that the whole world can sing. The 50-minute video—which features appearances by the Dixie Chicks, Gloria Estefan, Diana Krall and Patti LaBelle and also includes a sing-along book—sells for $9.98 on VHS and $12.98 on DVD.

Also on April 6, Sony Wonder releases two new-to-DVD sing-alongs, "Sing, Hoot & Howl with the Sesame Street Animals" and "Fiesta!" The latter includes performances by Linda Ronstadt and the late Celia Cruz. Both DVDs cost $12.98.

The new videos are part of a year-long celebration of "Sesame Street," whose 35th anniversary is Nov. 10.

The celebration kicked off in September with Sony Wonder's release of the three-CD set "Songs From the Street." The CD featured 63 classic songs from the program and contained a special commemorative booklet with liner notes and photos of celebrity participants of the show. So far, the set has sold 16,500 units, according to Nielsen SoundScan (Billboard, July 12, 2003).

The 35th season of "Sesame Street" will officially launch April 4 with a primetime "Sesame Street" special on PBS. Throughout the year, the creators of the show—Sesame Workshop—will release new "Sesame Street"-themed merchandise created through multiple toy, clothing and food partnerships.

BIG TV PUSH

Sony Wonder and Sesame Workshop are conducting separate promotions; the marketing campaigns for both are extensive.

Jovi Crooks, director of marketing for Sony Wonder, says that Sony will support "What's the Name of That Song?" with a multimillion-dollar TV ad campaign that will last eight weeks from the title's release date. The campaign will not encompass the two DVD sing-along titles.

"We are plastering cable and broadcast. We will have spots on NBC, ABC Family, Lifetime and others," she says. "We will run ads during shows like 'Oprah,' 'Everybody Loves Raymond,' 'The View,' 'Just Shoot Me' and 'Live With Regis and Kelly.' This TV campaign is definitely our big push."

Sony Wonder is also working on in-store promotions with mass retailers such as Wal-Mart, Kmart and Target.

Online retailers expect strong sales for the title. " 'Sesame Street' is one of our top franchises," says Cynthia Lin, spokeswoman for the Brisbane, Calif.-based walmart.com. "We expect 'What's the Name of That Song?' to do well on the site when the consumer advertising starts hitting around street date."

Crooks adds that the DVD will make for "great opportunities for parents and kids to bond. Because it's a DVD and sing-along book, it's very interactive."

Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organization that created "Sesame Street" (formerly known as the Children's Television Workshop), started releasing new merchandise during the 2003 holiday season as part of the 35th-anniversary celebrations.

In an exclusive deal with Fisher- Price and Toys "R" Us, customers received a new Elmo plush when they purchased $100 of merchandise at the retailer last November. In December, Toys "R" Us offered the Elmo plush (valued at $30) for $5 if consumers purchased $75 of merchandise.

"That was the first time that Toys "R" Us had done something like that," says Heather Hanssen, director of marketing for Sesame Workshop.

TV promotional spots in support of the upcoming "Sesame Street" season are airing, Hanssen says. The April 4 special, titled "The Street We Live On," focuses on Elmo as he learns more about where he lives. The hour-long program features numerous flashback moments in "Sesame Street" history.

CELEBRITY MOMENTS

The first regular show of the season, which will air April 5, will debut the new "Sesame Moments" feature added to each program. "We have celebrities coming in and talking about their 'Sesame' memories," Hanssen says. "Some celebrities have been on the show, and some haven't. The segment will include everyone from Seth Green to Kelsey Grammer to Cher. We'll have more new things happening throughout the year that we aren't ready to announce yet."

A number of companies are launching new product lines. Pez bows Sesame Street Pez product this year, marking the first Pez ever revolving around the franchise. USAopoly will issue Sesame Street Monopoly this fall.

American Greetings has created a line of holiday ornaments, while Rix Products has a collectible line of tin products including lunchboxes and wastebaskets debuting this year.

Sesame Workshop has also teamed with General Mills to offer a new line of "Sesame Street"-themed fruit snacks.

Sesame Workshop and Random House will reissue "The Sesame Street Dictionary" this August for $19.99. It will include a new CD sampler of classic "Sesame Street" songs.

Additionally, several clothing manufacturers such as SBH Intimates and MJC have created new lines of loungewear with a "Sesame Street" theme.

"There are 70 million graduates of 'Sesame Street,' " Hanssen says. "We are targeting all of these promotional programs to parents to tie in to that nostalgia."