Big Bird's Nest (Play Area)

1980 Image from YouTube

Big Bird's Nest is a play area that has been at Sesame Place since opening day. It is recessed and circluar with steps that surround it (they double as seats for parents.)

 Image from Google Street Views

Children can romp around on the padded ground and play with large padded objects. The type of objects have changed over the years.

1985 Image from YouTube

The area is considered part of Big Bird Court.

Teleidoscope Temple

 Images from eBay

The "Teleidoscope Temple" was one of the science exhibits at Sesame Place that opened with the park in 1980. You would enter a small room of mirrors and your image would be repeated to infinity. This was located in Sesame Studio and existed (at least) until the late 1990s.

Monster Maze

Monster Maze is an attraction at Sesame Place that has been there since opening day in 1980.

1985 Image from YouTube

Kids run through a maze of 40 lightweight punching bags.
Faces and monster horns have been added to the bags since opening day. 

 2012 Image

In the 1980s the signage featured Sesame Street character Frazzle:

1986 Image from YouTube

The current sign emphasizes safety and declares "no punching bags".

2012 Image

However in 1980 punching was allowed. 

The opening day brochure said "Youngsters can punch, push, shoulder and dodge their way through a forest of 40 six-foot-high lightweight punching bags to get to the other side."

Image from Henson

The attraction is located right in front of Ernie's Bed Bounce.

Posted by Guy Hutchinson

Twiddlebug Hop

Twiddlebug Hop was a rope swing attraction located behind "The Computer Gallery".

Image from Mid Cities Daily News

Kids would swing on a rope across a series of small hills (that resembled speed bumps.)

1983 Image from Flickr

At some point the attraction got a green tarp roof:

Image from the Sesame Place Facebook page 

The kids could push off on each hill to propel themselves to the other side.

Image from Picasa

Today the footprint of Twiddlebug Hop is a walkway between Sesame Playhouse and Mr. Hooper's Emporium.

Image from Google Street Views

Many thanks Jeff Davis, VP of Operations at Sesame Place, who was able to tell us the title for this attraction after some speculation yesterday.

The grand opening of Big Bird Bridge

Here are a series of images that show Big Bird (decked out in a bow tie and cuff links) helping some kids pull a rope to unveil Big Bird Bridge.

The giant Big Bird head is revealed as employees pull off the covering and balloons float up to the sky.

 Images from YouTube

Another Super Grover's Cable Glide?

UPDATE: Thanks to Jeff Davis, VP of Operations at Sesame Place, the name of this attraction is now known. This was called Twiddlebug Hop.

Image from Flickr

Here's an undated shot of a rope swing attraction that went over top of some "speed bumps". Was this was a later version of Super Grover's Cable Glide? The building in the background (then the Computer Gallery, now Cookie's Cafe) would put it near the right location.

Image from Google Street Views

Here is another shot that appears to be from the other side.

Image from Flickr

In the past we have uncovered two different Super Grover's Cable Glide attractions. Is this a third one? I'm not sure.

The two Super Grover's Cable Glides we know of include one that was very high:

Images from YouTube

and a smaller version that appeared to be further from the buildings:

Image from Flickr

Perhaps the "speed bumps" were put in to keep kids from being able to fall as far if they let go of the rope.

Any idea? Let me know in the comments!

The Bert and Ernie Show

The Bert and Ernie Show was a stage show that starred the two Muppet pals and two Honkers. The show opened in 1983, the year when all four characters debuted at Sesame Place.

Image from Flickr

The show was on a stage that was setup in front of Mr. Hooper's Emporium.

Image from Google Street Views

Today, benches and potted trees occupy that space.

Pet Pals

Pet Pals was a stage show that opened in the Paradise Theater in 1999.

 Images from Panoramo

The show featured dogs, cats, rats, pigeons, ducks and parrots, all rescued from shelters.

The star of the show was a pig named Hammy.

The Paradise Theater, which has been somewhat redesigned since 1999, is currently called Abby's Paradise Theater.

Rich Sommer at Sesame Place

Image from Twitter

Rich Sommer from AMC's Mad Men visited Sesame Place on July 23, 2012.

The Sesame Construction Company

The Sesame Construction Company (sometimes listed as The Sesame Construction Co.) was a play area where kids used over-sized building blocks to create structures.

In 1980 it was located next to the Sesame Slides (where Grover's World Twirl is currently housed.)

1981 Image from YouTube

At some point (between 1982 and 1985) it was moved to replace the short lived attraction Herry's Hand Above Water.

1985 Image from YouTube

Today that area is home to Big Bird's Balloon Race.

 Image from Google Street Views.

Signs outside 1-2-3 Dine With Me

It's interesting to see changes in the park, even minor ones.

1-2-3 Dine With Me is a sit down restaurant that opened for the 2006 Season. Outside there are 6 long signs. Below is how they looked in 2006 and how they look today:

2006 Image 

2012 Image 

Sesame Place Water Tower

When I hear the name Sesame Place Water Tower, I always think of the large water tower off route 95 with the Sesame Street characters on it:

Image from Signs and Graphics

However, long before the water tower first got a Sesame Place face lift in 1993 there was a attraction called Sesame Place Water Tower.

The Sesame Place Water Tower was described in the opening day brochure as:

SESAME PLACE WATER TOWER:

Youngsters pump water to the top of a 20-foot tower 

and then let it tumble down to turn a wheel; 

children also can direct streams of water at targets.

1980 Image from YouTube

At 20 feet tall, the Water Tower was a wonderful place to over see the park.

Image from Facebook

The very top of the tower featured a bunch of colorful orbs. The top one featured Big Bird's picture.

Image from YouTube

Big Bird Bridge passed through the Water Tower, so it's likely that the tower actually was necessary to stabilize Big Bird Bridge.

Image from Henson

The Sesame Place Water Tower likely was removed Flying Fish was built in 2006..

Image from Cardcow

Today the area houses the Flyin' Fish attraction.

Zoe

 Image from nickandemma

Zoe is a walk-around character that debuted at Sesame Place for the 1996 season.

She debuted on the Sesame Street TV series in 1993 as Elmo's best friend. 

Who's Your Daddy?

Here's an odd little article from 1990:

Spokane Chronicle - Jun 15, 1990

So many questions! Was this multiple choice? How did the NKOTB voting go? Was it like 8% for Joey Joe, 15% for Donny Don and 0.5% for Danny Dan?

Who knows.

It's interesting that this poll was conducted at Sesame Place.

Send me your pictures, video & memories!

I see the stats on this site and I am always surprised how many people want to read this site.

It's interesting to know that every day dozens of people search terms like "Herry's Hand Over Water" and wind up here.

But virtually all of you flip through the articles (sometimes spending up to 20-30 minutes on the site) but don't click the email link (on the right sidebar) to send me your photos or post memories in the comments.

I know, we are all busy. I'm guilty of this too. I "lurk" in plenty of sites... but I want you all to contribute here!

Here is an example why:

My sister in law sent me this picture. That's me standing in front of the Big Bird Steps in 2004. I was a chaperone on a day trip to Sesame Place and I remember some of the details of the day, but I don't remember posing for this picture.

It's very cool to see a picture of me standing in front of the long gone remnants of Big Bird Bridge and it offers another bit of trivia:

In the background we can see the old, circular Sesame Food Factory sign. This means that the named didn't become Elmo's Eatery until at least 2005.

The other thing I noticed is that I still wear that T-shirt. I should probably update my wardrobe.

The point about this is, little details like a sign- way in the background - that only 4 letters of are only HALF visible, can be very helpful when archiving the history of an ever changing theme park.

Please: pull out your old pictures, digitize that old video and let me know what you remember about the Sesame Place of days gone by!

Big Bird's Rambling River Sign

Here is something interesting about this old Sesame Place picture:

Image from Facebook

Despite all the changes in the years since this was taken (the amount of open space in the photo, the ability to see nearby buildings from inside the park, hairstyles etc) the sign (or a very similar one) is still at Sesame Place:

 Image from Google Street View

The sign has likely been relocated as the landscape around the sign changed, but the sign still exists and may be the same one that was with Big Bird's Rambling River when it opened in 1990.

Sesame Place wedding

Image from AP Images

In 1999 there was a wedding on the Big Bird Steps at Sesame Place. Sesame Place entertainment supervisor (at the time) Silveria Galvan married Walter Mastalsz in a wedding that involved Big Bird, Elmo, Cookie Monster, Elmo, Ernie, Bert,  Telly, The Count and a Twiddlebug.

The wedding took place at 8am on Friday August 20, 1999 (the park then opened at 9am.) Langhorne mayor Christopher J. Blaydon officiated the ceremony.

Bert's Balance Beams

NOTE: Because the Reading Eagle listed this as "Oscar's Balance Beams" I assumed that was correct. I have now learned it was Bert's Balance Beams and also sometimes listed on signage and printed materials as Bert's Balance Boards.

Image from Photobucket

A 1983 Reading Eagle article refers to it as Oscar's Balance Beams and writes:

Oscar's Balance Beams provide a chance for skillful adventurers to make their way across the balance beams over gentle geysers of water.

The image above looks like it could certainly be this attraction. The background looks like it would put this attraction in area behind Rubber Duckie Pond (now Elmo's Cloud Chaser.)

In the background we see a sign that reads Bert's Balance Boards. The signs would often be swapped out as they faded in the sun.