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
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."