Jason English
Oscar the Grouch Used to Be Orange
by Jason English - January 5, 2010 - 4:40 PM

oscar-orange

One thing I learned watching the 40th anniversary of Sesame Street DVD: Oscar the Grouch was originally orange. Jim Henson decided to make him green before the second season of Sesame Street. How did Oscar explain the color change? He said he went on vacation to the very damp Swamp Mushy Muddy and turned green overnight.

[Actually, our own Stacy Conradt discussed Oscar's color switch last year. For more Muppet tidbits, check out "The Stories Behind 20 Muppet Favorites."]

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Comments (7)

  1. Whew – I was afraid the day would end without a useless fact. ;)

    posted by B on 1-5-2010 at 5:06 pm

  2. I’ve known for years that Oscar used to be orange. This, however, was the first time I’d ever seen a photo.

    It was sort of alarming. Not as alarming as those porkchop sideburns, but pretty alarming nonetheless.

    posted by clint on 1-5-2010 at 11:22 pm

  3. Ernie’s nose was purple in the 1970s. It’s red now.

    posted by Lauren on 1-6-2010 at 2:13 am

  4. Evidently, Gordon used to be black, as well

    posted by ee the c on 1-6-2010 at 8:39 am

  5. Oscar looks so werid I guess I am so use to seeing him green. He was so funny in Night at the Museum 2.

    posted by Kari on 1-6-2010 at 1:54 pm

  6. That might not be Gordon in the above pic, ee the c. According to SesameStreet.org, the current Gordon (Roscoe Orman) is the third actor to play the character.

    “Orman joined the Sesame Street cast in 1973. He is the third actor to play Gordon; Matt Robinson had the role from 1969 to 1971, and Hal Miller from 1971 to 1973.”

    So, depending on the year of that photo, it could be somebody else. Although, if it is the current Gordon, he had some hair back then!!

    It is nice to see an actual photo of the orange Oscar. He reminds me of Kraft Mac and Cheese.

    posted by Tamsyn on 1-6-2010 at 2:23 pm

  7. The original Gordon (Matt Robinson) was one of the co-creators of ‘The Cosby Show’. He’s also the father of Holly Robinson Peete.

    posted by Chris on 1-6-2010 at 3:30 pm

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