Who could ever forget the most popular educational series Sesame Streets in the 1960s? Of course, you might miss one-half of your childhood life if you have not seen even one of its series.

Sesame Street has produced more or less 5,000 episodes since 1969 and won a gigantic 193 awards. In addition to that, the educational hit TV series was broadcast in 150 different countries. Its existence in television for 50 years says so much about its success. 

The first airing of the show was on November 10, 1961 where millions of children have grown up hearing the classic tune of the show "Can you tell me how to get, how get to Sesame Street?". And through the Sesame Street, it changed the early childhood education around the world. 

Sonia Manzano played Maria for 44 years, the most-loved person on TV, was a young actress from South Bronx when she was cast in the new relatively show Sesame Street. 

According to the NBC News, the show celebrates its 50th year on Saturday night with star-studded prime-time special. It will be celebrated in different ways including the representation of Latino characters on the television.

Manzano told the NBC reporters that as a child of 50s, she loved to watch TV and during those days she felt that Latinos were invisible and she felt that she is the only Puerto Rican in the world. When she got into the Sesame Street, she thought that maybe there are also other Puerto Ricans who like her is just looking for moment of recognition and sanctuary. Manzano added that she is very proud and honored to be part of the show because back then if you saw a Latino in the TV you have to expect for a taco joke but in Sesame Street it let the Latinos to show their culture and their dreams like everybody else.

One of the remarkable moment in the Sesame Street is when her character Maria married Luis who was then played by a Mexican-American actor Emilio Delgado. Meanwhile, during an interview, Delgado said that many adults told him that Sesame Street is an important part of their life. The show also helps immigrants to learn English language and what is most amazing is sometimes Maria and Luis are using Spanish.

In the long run of the educational show, it let its audience to understand different societal issues like homelessness, autism, Afro-Latino Identity and grief. Aside from Maria and Luis, there are also other Latino and Hispanic characters in the show like Raul Julia who appeared in the 1971 season, Carlo Alban who appeared in 2011 and unknowingly he is undocumented while in the show and Ismael Cruz Cordova who casted in 2013.

How did the Sesame Street begin?

Lloyd Morrisett and Joan Ganz Cooney, co-founders of the Sesame Street, approached the Graduate School of Education in Harvard University in the early 1960s with a novel approach to teaching American Children.

In an article from BBC News, a team led by a developmental psychologist worked with the Sesame Street to analyze child's psychology and harness the relatively medium of learning by creating entertainment shows. They then tapped Muppets puppeteer Jim Henson to create different characters like Big Bird. To make it more realistic, the set looks like an urban street rather than a magical place and four human characters were included with multi-racial identities which is another landmark for the show.

Harvard Education Professor Joe Blatt said that the show used powerful media strategies like jingles, repetitions, and helps kids learn instead of making them lazy. 

Other countries also did a franchise of the show like Mexico, Germany, Egypt, Bangladesh, Israel and many more.

Read more:
'L' is for Latino: Sesame Street's 50 years of positive Latino characters and Sesame Street at 50: Five defining moments