Bert and Ernie

Ernie and his rubber duckie with Bert.

Bert and Ernie are two roommates on the long-running television show Sesame Street. The two appear together in numerous skits, forming a comic duo that is one of the centerpieces of the program. Originated by Frank Oz and Jim Henson, the characters are currently performed by Muppeteers Eric Jacobson and Steve Whitmire, with Oz performing Bert occasionally since 2000.

History of the duo

Bert and Ernie were built by Don Sahlin from a simple design scribbled by Muppets creator Jim Henson. According to Frank Oz, Sahlin also defined their characters on the basis of their physical appearance: Ernie was an orange and Bert was a banana. In a classic pairing, Ernie appears chubby while Bert appears quite skinny (in a similar way to Abbott and Costello or Laurel and Hardy).

According to A&E's Biography, Ernie and Bert were basically the only Muppets to appear in the Sesame Street pilot episode, which was screen tested to a number of families in July 1969. Their brief appearance was the only part of the pilot that tested well, so it was decided that not only should Muppet characters be the "stars" of the show, but would also interact with the human characters, something that was not done in the pilot.

Bert

Main article: Bert (Sesame Street)

Bert was originally performed by Frank Oz. Since 2001, Muppeteer Eric Jacobson has been phased in as Bert's primary performer.

Bert, though intelligent, is also grumpy, boring and easily frustrated. He enjoys activities such as paper clip and bottle cap collecting, cooking oatmeal and watching pigeons. In one sketch, Bert reads a book called "Boring Stories" and chuckles, "Boy, these Boring Stories are really exciting!" In the book Sesame Street Unpaved, Frank Oz says, "I was never really happy with Bert's character until about a year in, when I realized... that he was a very boring character, and I'd use that weakness as a strength for him."

Bert is good friends with a pigeon named Bernice, and has even created a dance called "Doin' the Pigeon". Bert serves as President of the National Association of W Lovers, a club dedicated to the letter W. Two conventions held by the W Lovers have been shown on the show. Bert also has pet goldfish, two of whom are named Lyle and Talbot, a reference to the actor Lyle Talbot. A third goldfish is Talbot's wife, Melissa. Bert has a twin brother, Bart; a nephew, Brad; and an Aunt Matilda.

The age of Bert and Ernie is regularly discussed on forums. Nothing official has ever been said, but most consider the duo adults, as they do not appear to be highly dependent on others. Helping suggestions of the characters being young is a comment by Sesame Street Live performer Taylor Morgan. Morgan said to the Macon Telegraph that "I just kind of try to think like a 6-year-old or 7-year-old, because that's how old Bert is."

Ernie

Main article: Ernie

Ernie was originally performed by Jim Henson. Since 1993, Muppeteer Steve Whitmire has taken on the role of Ernie (following the death of Henson in 1990).

Ernie is well-known for taking baths with his Rubber Duckie, and for having trouble trying to learn to play the saxophone because he would not "put down the duckie". Children can visit Ernie at Sesame Place in Langhorne, Pennsylvania.

Ernie is a "live-hand puppet", meaning that while operating the head of the puppet with his right hand, the puppeteer inserts his left hand into a T-shaped sleeve, capped off with a glove that matches the fabric "skin" of the puppet, thus "becoming" the left arm of the puppet. A second puppeteer usually provides the right arm.

Ernie's performance of "Rubber Duckie," wherein he sings affectionately about his squeaking toy duck and the joy it brings him during bathtime, became a modest mainstream hit, reaching No. 16 on the Billboard Hot 100 in September 1970.

Comedy routines

A typical Bert and Ernie skit follows one of two similar patterns, both beginning with Ernie devising a hare-brained idea and Bert calmly attempting to talk him out of it. Usually this ends with Bert losing his temper and Ernie remaining oblivious to his own bad idea. Sometimes Ernie's idea miraculously turns out to be correct, much to Bert's evident frustration.

An example of a Bert and Ernie skit is the banana in my ear joke:

Bert: "Hey, you've got a banana in your ear!"

Ernie: "What?"

Bert: "I said, YOU'VE GOT A BANANA IN YOUR EAR!"

Ernie: "What? I can't hear you; I've got a banana in my ear!"

Bert: "Hey, you've got a banana in your ear!"

Ernie: "I know, I'm keeping the alligators away."

Bert: "But there aren't any alligators on Sesame Street!"

Ernie: "I know, it's working!"

Rumors and misconceptions

File:Bert and Ernie Married.jpg

Bert and Ernie shown as being married at the 2008 Chicago gay pride parade.

In 1997, the parody website "Bert is Evil" displayed Bert in a number of doctored photographs, implicating him in crimes ranging from the John F. Kennedy assassination to those of Jack the Ripper. A similar image from another source and featuring Bert conferring with Osama bin Laden was mistakenly included by a Bangladeshi print shop on a series of protest signs in late 2001 and 2002.

Characters named Bert and Ernie appear in the film It's a Wonderful Life as a policeman and a taxi driver, respectively, but those behind Sesame Street claim that it's merely a coincidence. Jerry Juhl, a writer on many Henson-related projects, said that "Despite his many talents, Jim had no memory for details like this. He knew the movie, of course, but would not have remembered the cop and the cabdriver". Karolyn Grimes, the actress who played Zuzu Bailey, has publicly claimed that the two Muppets were named after the characters "because the movie was Jim Henson's favorite".

Ernie and Bert live together in an apartment in the basement of 123 Sesame Street. Although they sleep in separate beds, they share a bedroom, which has led some to suggest that they are representations of gay lovers. This is denied by Sesame Workshop, and some of Bert's interactions with female characters appear to show that he is attracted to women: serenading Connie Stevens in the Some Enchanted Evening segment of a first-season episode of The Muppet Show, and recording a song about his girlfriend, I Want to Hold Your Ear, which was released on several albums. But the idea of Bert and Ernie as a couple is sufficiently widespread that it has been used as the basis of jokes on the shows Saturday Night Live, Family Guy, Supernatural, Friends and American Dad!. The puppet characters Rod and Nicky in the musical Avenue Q are roommates in the style of Bert and Ernie, and their plot in the musical concerns Rod being a closeted homosexual and having unrequited feelings for Nicky.

Internationally

• Arab World, Iftah Ya Simsim, Bert is "Badr", and Ernie is "Anis". They're referred to as "Anis w Badr"
• Brazil, Vila Sésamo, Bert is "Beto", and Ernie is "Ênio". They're referred to as "Ênio e Beto".
• Egypt, Alam Simsim, Bert is "Hadi", and Ernie is Shadi. They are known as "Shadi w Hadi".
• France, 1, Rue Sésame, Bert is "Bart" and Ernie is "Ernest". They're referred to as "Ernest et Bart". It is also interesting to note that in the French version, when Bert's brother Bart comes to visit, he is called "Bert".
• Germany, Sesamstraße, they are referred to as "Ernie und Bert". The duo were also subject to an adult parody on RTL Germany's show Freitag Nacht News (Friday Night News). There were 27 skits entitled Bernie und Ert, which figured the pair engaged in a variety of criminal behaviours and/or sexual practices, with Ert always getting hurt.
• Israel, Rechov Sumsum, Bert is "Bentz", a common short-form for the name "Ben-Tzion", and Ernie is "Arik", short-form for "Ariel".
• Italy, "Sesamo apriti", Bert is "Berto" and Ernie is "Ernesto". They're referred to as "Ernesto e Berto".
• Mexico, Plaza Sésamo, Bert is "Beto", while Ernie is "Enrique". In addition, Ernie's cousin Ernestine is referred to as "Enriqueta".
• Netherlands, Sesamstraat they are "Bert en Ernie". Paul Haenen provides Bert's voice, and Wim T. Schippers provides Ernie's.
• Norway, Sesam Stasjon, Bert is "Bernt", while Ernie is "Erling". Usually they are referred to as "Bernt og Erling"
• Portugal, Rua Sésamo, Bert is "Becas" and Ernie is "Egas". They're referred to as "Egas e Becas", in the opposite order.
• Russia, Ulitsa Sezam, Bert is Vlas and Ernie is Yenik. They're referred to as Yenik i Vlas
• Spain, Barrio Sésamo, Bert is "Blas", and Ernie is "Epi". Also, they're always referred to as "Epi y Blas", in the opposite order.
• Turkey, Susam Sokağı, Bert is "Büdü", while Ernie is "Edi". They are commonly referred to as "Edi ile Büdü".

See also

• Sesame Street
• Bert
• Ernie

External links

• Sesame Street at PBS Kids
• Sesame Workshop
• Muppet Wiki: Ernie and Bert sketches
• Tough Pigs Anthology Transcripts of Ernie and Bert sketches