Sesame Park

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Image:Tv sesame park basil the bear.jpg Sesame Park was a Canadian version of Sesame Street. In its first format, it was referred to as Canadian Sesame Street and was a re-edited version of the American series; it adopted a new format and the Sesame Park title in 1996.

In 1972, the bulk of Sesame Street's content was licensed out to CBC Television, originally as a 15 minute program but a few years later became a full hour program. The CBC then added live action and animated segments teaching about Canadian culture and French bilingualism, replacing segments on Spanish and American history on the original program. (Some Spanish segments still aired in Canada, although fewer in number.) Most of the production of the Canadian segments took place in Winnipeg and in Quebec. Between 1972 and 1995, this hybrid of American and Canadian production was known as Canadian Sesame Street and became an institution for preschool Canadian children.

In the 1980's, a series of specially made Canadian Muppet characters were introduced, including Basil the Bear (played by Bob Stutt), French-Canadian Louis the Otter, Dodi a bush pilot, Katie a paraplegic child, Barbara Plum (a parody of CBC broadcasting legend Barbara Frum), and Beau Beaver.

In 1996, the CBC cut the show to a half-hour and removed most of the American segments, instead airing mostly Canadian content. Added to the cast was a cat puppet named Chaos and a human character named Ray. Many guests made appearances on the series, including Red Green, a Canadian situation-comedy character played by Steve Smith, and Eric Peterson as Old King Cole.

In 1999, the series received its nomination and win from the Gemini Awards, for Best Pre-School Program or Series (Wendy Smith, Susan Sheehan, Duncan Lamb). Bob Stutt was nominated that year for Best Performance in a Pre-School Program or Series. In 2000, the Sheila McCarthy won Best Performance in a Pre-School Program or Series, for her role in an episode of the show, beating out fellow guest star Pier Kohl, as well as others. In 2001, the series won Best Pre-School Program or Series (Wendy Smith, Susan Sheehan, Duncan Lamb), beating out Land O' Hands and The Nook Counting Network. Guest Eric Peterson won again for Best Performance in a Pre-School Program or Series, beating out Pier Kohl, James Rankin, Natasha LaForce, and Gisèle Corinthios.

However, the show performed poorly in the ratings after this major revamp. Many families, some of which having parents who grew up on Canadian Sesame Street, chose instead to watch the original American series on PBS, which is widely available via cable in Canada. Sesame Park was cancelled in 2002.

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