Open Sesame (TV series) facts for kids
Open Sesame is a special TV show for kids. It's made up of short clips and fun parts from the famous American show Sesame Street. Instead of showing the whole Sesame Street program, many countries around the world show these shorter versions called Open Sesame. The name is a clever play on the magic words "Open sesame" from the story of Ali Baba.
The first Open Sesame shows started in 1975 and 1976. They were first seen in Spain, Sweden, France, and Montreal, Canada. By 1979, Portugal and Italy also began showing Open Sesame. Some of these countries later made their own versions of Sesame Street because Open Sesame was so popular.
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Open Sesame Around the World
Australia
In Australia, Open Sesame is a half-hour show. It plays on Nick Jr. and features older Sesame Street clips. The show keeps the original English voices and music.
In 2004, a special Australian Muppet named Ollie appeared. Ollie is Elmo's cousin. He stars in short videos called "Play Along with Ollie." These videos are shown during the regular TV schedule.
Philippines
The Philippines also had its own versions of Open Sesame.
- Open Sesame (Tagalized) was shown on ABS-CBN from 1990 to 1991.
- It later aired on GMA Network from 2000 to 2001, but only on weekends.
Early Sesamstrasse in Germany
The very first seasons of Sesamstrasse, which is the German version of Sesame Street, were a bit like Open Sesame. They used many clips from the American show. However, they also added more local German films and cartoons.
Sesamo Apriti in Italy
Sesamo Apriti means "Open Sesame" in Italian. It is the Italian version of Sesame Street. It first aired in 1971. About 50 episodes of the American show were cut down to 30 minutes. Then, they were translated into Italian. In 1978, a Sesamo Apriti board game and a music album were released.
Italian Voices
The voices of the characters were changed to Italian. Here are some of the main characters and their Italian voice actors:
- Ernesto (Ernie): Dario Mazzoli
- Berto (Bert): Loris Gizzi
- Bob: Pierluigi Zollo
- Maria: Pina Cei
- Luis: Guido Celano
- Linda: Emy Eco
- Susan: Rita Baldini
- Kermit: Leonardo Severini
- Pasticcino (Cookie Monster): Franco Latini
- Rocco Scirocco (Grover): Fernando Cerulli
