‘Sesame Street’ Co-Founder Lloyd Morrisett Dead At 93

ByAllie Johnson
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Lloyd Morrisett, the co-founder of Sesame Workshop, has been confirmed dead at 93. What is known about his cause of death? Plus, scroll down to learn more about his life and what exactly the Sesame Workshop is.

Sesame Workshop: The nonprofit behind Sesame Street 

Co-founded by Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett, the Sesame Workshop is a nonprofit organization that is responsible for creating and producing several children’s programs. This includes its first and most well-known program, Sesame Street. Technically, when the organization was originally founded it was called, Children’s Television Workshop.

Lloyd Morrisett: Dead at 93

According to TMZ, Lloyd Morrisett was confirmed to have passed away on Monday of this week. His cause of death, however, has not been made public at this time. Given his age, some Sesame Street fans are speculating he may have simply died of natural causes related to aging.

Joan Ganz Cooney has openly admitted that Sesame Street simply would not exist if it wasn’t for Lloyd Morrisett. Joan explained: “It was he who first came up with the notion of using television to teach preschoolers basic skills, such as letters and numbers.”

The idea of Sesame Street first came to Lloyd Morrisett back in December of 1965. It was at that time that Lloyd realized how engaged his three-year-old daughter, Sarah, was with the family television. This engagement caused him to wonder if it would be possible to use the television as a tool to teach children. Running with this thought, he proposed the idea to Joan Ganz Cooney during a dinner party. Then, Sesame Street was born.

The Sesame Workshop will cherish memories of Llyod describing him as “a wise, thoughtful, and above all kind leader” and a man who was “fascinated by the power of technology and constantly thinking about new ways it could be used to educate.”

His legacy lives on through Sesame Street 

Lloyd Morrisett’s legacy and memory will continue to live on as Sesame Street shows no signs of slowing down any time soon. The series is currently airing new episodes of Season 53. Most consider the longevity of this series to be astonishing as it first debuted back in November of 1969, just four years after Llyod realized the opportunity to use television to teach children.

Rest in peace, Lloyd Morrisett.

Allie Johnson
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