Lloyd Morissette, the co-creator of "Sesame Street", the children's program on which millions around the world grew up and were educated for decades, passed away at the age of 93.
Word of Morissette's death was published yesterday (Tuesday) on the official Twitter page of the "Sesame Street" workshop, the non-profit educational organization he founded.
The cause of death has not yet been revealed.
Sesame Workshop mourns the passing of our esteemed and beloved co-founder Lloyd N. Morrisett, PhD, who died at the age of 93. pic.twitter.com/I9cSez95Px
— Sesame Workshop (@SesameWorkshop) January 23, 2023
"Sesame Street Workshop mourns the passing of our esteemed and beloved co-founder, Lloyd Morissette, who passed away at the age of 93," the tweet read.
"Lloyd leaves behind a huge legacy among generations of children around the world with 'Sesame Street,' a tribute to a lifetime of good work and lasting impact."
Morissette was born in 1929 in Oklahoma and was trained to be an educator with a background in psychology.
Over the years he looked for experimental and innovative ways to provide education to children from difficult backgrounds and was active in the educational philanthropic organization "Carnegie", where he met the producer Joan Ganz Cooney.
Lloyd Morissette surrounded by "Sesame Street" dolls, photo: Reuters
Together with him, Connie would establish in 1968 the workshop "Sesame Street" whose purpose was to produce educational workshops for children.
From the idea grew, in the end, the successful children's program.
"He was wiser and more considerate than any kind leader of the workshop for decades," Connie was quoted as saying in the media in the obituary for her partner.
"Without him, there would be no 'Sesame Street'. He has been a loyal partner and dear friend to me for more than fifty years and I will miss him greatly."
Lloyd Morissette, photo: Reuters
In 1969, the first episode of "Sesame Street" was broadcast, when the program managed to reach more than half of the population of children between the ages of 3-5, which then numbered about 12 million children in the US at the end of its first season.
Today, the program, which has won more than 200 Emmy awards over the years, is considered the largest source series for informal education in the world, with tens of millions of viewers worldwide in 140 countries, including of course Israel, which in addition to the American version, also enjoyed its own local version.
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