It was on this day in 1891 that the amazing Carl Stalling was born. You may not know him by name, but I guarantee you know his work!

Carl is probably best known for arranging and composing music for cartoons and animated films.  If you have ever watched a Looney Tunes or Merrie Melodies cartoon, you have heard his music. While at Warner Brothers, he averaged one complete score each week, for 22 years!

As a young man, he played organ accompaniment to silent films.  It was about this time he met Walt Disney. Walt had him arrange some music for a few of the early shirts.  He even had Carl do the voice of Mickey Mouse in 1929’s The Karnival Kid. He worked with Disney for two years.

In 1936, he began working on music for Warner Brothers. From 1936 onwards, Stalling was the film score composer for almost every theatrical animated short released by the company until he retired.

Director Chuck Jones was asked about Stalling:

A few years back, Carl’s music was released on an album called The Carl Stalling Project.  A year or so later, they released a second volume.  It is actually very cool to listen to!

You can listen to the amazing soundtrack on YouTube!  Some of the cuts have studio chatter, which I always love listening to.  Here is a link to the albums:

Back in 1969, a childhood staple premiered on National Educational Television, a precursor of PBS. 55 years later, Sesame Street continues to entertain and teach children everywhere!

I grew up watching the show.  I always got a kick out of Ernie and Bert.  I even had an Ernie hand puppet.

Kermit the Frog was the newsman I trusted most as a kid.  I loved watching Grover mess up that one guy’s order at the restaurant.  I remember that artist who painted the number of the day on whatever he could find.  Guy Smiley seemed to host whatever show was happening and Cookie Monster couldn’t get enough cookies!  I loved Count Von Count and the fact that there was always a thunder clap and lightning when he laughed! 

They were my first TV friends.  Oscar the Grouch, Big Bird, the Martians, the Twiddle Bugs, Mr. Hooper, Susan, Bob, Gordon, Maria, and Luis kept me company and helped me learn so much. I remember having the Sesame Street Little People, too!

We played, we learned, and we sang songs!  Who can forget the Pinball Song?  The Lady Bugs Picnic?  “C” is for Cookie? I Love Trash?  The People In Your Neighborhood?  Sing? The Alligator King? It Ain’t Easy Being Green? I Don’t Want To Live On The Moon? Rubber Duckie? I had Rubber Duckie on a 45 and played it on my portable record player! 

The format has changed a lot and so has the cast.  Additional Muppets have been added, and some new humans have replaced old ones.  The show has been shortened to 30 minutes, and it is mostly Elmo now.  The number and letter of the day are just throwaways now and only get a brief mention.  It lacks so much of what it had, but it is still going!

I could always count on Sesame Street to do exactly what its theme song said it would do – chase “the clouds away!” Great memories for sure!