Muppet Time

For dads of a certain generation -- that is to say, the ones who can recall when The Muppet Show aired live or remember fondly the pre-Elmo years of Sesame Street -- there are a number of resources out there that shouldn't be missed. My wife and I don't watch television, but we've been having a good time introducing our daughter to some of the children's culture we grew up with. Much of it is now available on DVD.

Old School Sesame Street, one of our current favorites, is loaded with material from the show's five seasons. It's remarkable how well a lot of the material still works after nearly four decades; for parents who grew up in the early 1970s, you'll also be surprised how much of these shows you'll remember.

It's also important to note that some of the segments are a bit dated -- for example, there are a few bits of early-70s psychedelic animation backed with Indian sitar music -- and a few segments that might actually creep out some younger children. (For reasons I'm not sure I can adequately describe, my daughter slinks away from the TV whenever she sees the skits featuring Alan Arkin or Bill Cosby. There's also a grumpy blue muppet whom she seems to detest as well.)

Somewhat older kids might enjoy The Muppet Show, which has been available on DVD for several years now. We haven't gotten into this as a family yet, but my wife and I watched a few episodes ourselves a couple of years ago and enjoyed the nostalgia factor.

For those parents who -- like me -- are obsessed with trivia, the Muppet Wiki is endlessly interesting. If you're curious (or did not know in the first place) about why Oscar the Grouch was originally orange -- and before that, yellow -- you can find out the details here.

And speaking of Oscar, YouTube and other video hosting sites contain literally hundreds of old Sesame Street and muppet-related clips, including this one, which happens to be my favorite: