Ernie (Sesame Street) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Ernie |
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| Sesame Street, Play with Me Sesame, Bert and Ernie's Great Adventures, The Not-Too-Late Show with Elmo character | |
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| First appearance | Sesame Street Test Pilot 1 (July 21, 1969) |
| Voiced by | Jim Henson (PC games) Steve Whitnire (video games) |
| Performed by | Jim Henson (1969–1990) Steve Whitmire (1993–2014) John Tartaglia (2003) Billy Barkhurst (2014–2017) Peter Linz (2017–present) |
| Information | |
| Aliases | Caveman Ernie, Sir Ernie, John Adams, Old King Cole, Robin Hood, Tweedle Dum, etc. |
| Species | Muppet |
| Gender | Male |
| Nationality | American |
Ernie is a fun-loving orange Muppet character from the famous children's TV show Sesame Street. He is best known for being friends with his roommate, Bert. Together, they are one of the most popular duos on the show. Ernie often acts like a playful trickster, while Bert is usually the more serious one.
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All About Ernie
What Makes Ernie Special?
Ernie has a super funny, chuckling laugh. He also says the word "again" in his own special way, like "ay-gain"! He is a very kind friend to Bert, who he lives with.
Ernie looks a bit different from Bert. He is shorter and rounder. He wears a shirt with horizontal stripes, while Bert wears vertical ones. Ernie also has no eyebrows, but Bert has one big eyebrow!
Ernie's Favorite Things
Ernie loves taking baths with his favorite toy, Rubber Duckie. He even sang a famous song about it! He also likes to try playing the saxophone.
Sometimes, Ernie keeps Bert awake at night. He might want to play the drums, count sheep, or watch a blackout. He even waits for his upstairs neighbor to drop their shoes!
Ernie's TV Adventures
On Sesame Street
Many times, Ernie and Bert's skits involve Ernie wanting to play a game. Bert usually wants to do something else, like read. Ernie will keep bothering Bert until Bert finally joins the game. But then, just when Bert starts having fun, Ernie gets tired of it and wants to do something new!
They also have skits where they share food. If one gets a little more, Ernie humorously eats the extra piece to make it even. He keeps doing this until all the snack is gone!
Ernie also appears in skits without Bert. He often teams up with other characters like Grover, Cookie Monster, Sherlock Hemlock, and Lefty the Salesman.
Journey to Ernie
From 2002 to 2005, Ernie and Big Bird had their own daily part of the show called "Journey to Ernie". Ernie was also one of the hosts of Play with Me Sesame. He even hosted a game called "Ernie Says," which was like "Simon Says".
Ernie in Movies and Specials
The Famous "Rubber Duckie" Song
Ernie sang about his love for Rubber Duckie in a skit during the first season of Sesame Street. The song, called "Rubber Duckie," became very popular! It even reached number 16 on the Billboard music chart in September 1970.
Big Screen Adventures
Ernie has been in both Sesame Street movies. In Follow That Bird, he and Bert flew a plane to find Big Bird. Ernie even flew the plane upside-down while singing "Upside Down World"!
Ernie and Bert also hosted a TV special called Out to Lunch. Ernie also helped teach counting in the special 123 Count with Me.
Special Holiday Stories
In Christmas Eve on Sesame Street, Ernie wanted to buy Bert a cigar box for his paper clips. Since he had no money, he traded his own Rubber Duckie for it! At the same time, Bert wanted to get Ernie a soap dish for his Rubber Duckie, so it wouldn't fall in the tub. Bert traded his paper clips for it. Luckily, Mr. Hooper realized they both missed their special items and gave them back as presents.
Ernie also narrated a Christmas play called Twas the Night Before Christmas in A Muppet Family Christmas. In that special, Ernie and Bert even talked to Doc, which was a rare moment for Sesame Street characters!
How Ernie Comes to Life
Ernie is a special kind of Muppet called a "Live Hand Muppet." This means that the puppeteer uses one hand to control Ernie's head. Their other hand goes into a sleeve to become Ernie's left arm! Sometimes, a second puppeteer helps by controlling Ernie's right arm.
In one rare moment, during the song "I Don't Want To Live On The Moon," Ernie's whole body was shown. It took three puppeteers to make this happen! Jim Henson controlled Ernie's head and left hand, while two other puppeteers moved his right hand and feet. Other Muppets like this include Cookie Monster, Fozzie Bear, Beaker, and Bunsen Honeydew.
Ernie Around the World
Sesame Street is shown in many different countries, and sometimes Ernie's name changes!
- In Portugal, he is called Egas.
- In Brazil, he is Ênio.
- In Spain, he is Epi.
- In Latin America, he is Enrique.
- In Egypt, he is Shadi.
- In Russia, he is Yenik.
- In Turkey, he is Edi.
- In Israel, he is Arik.
- In Norway, he is Erling.
