Fay Ray

Fay Ray (1984-June 7, 1995) was the Weimeraner dog most often used by photographer/filmmaker William Wegman in segments on Sesame Street.

Wegman, who had had success with his dog Man Ray in the 70s, acquired Fay as a puppy, when she had previously been named "Cinnamon Girl," in 1985, three years after the death of his first dog. Wegman slowly began photographhing Fay in 1986, and made her screen debut in Wegman's 1986 short Dog Baseball.

In November of 1987, Wegman was contacted by Sesame Street producer Arlene Sherman, who invited him to supply short films for the series. Fay was the natural choice to star. Wegman, in voice-over, would narrate and give instructions, and Fay would demonstrate everything from math skills to letter concepts. Beginning in 1993, Fay was joined by her three pups, all born in 1989: Batty (aka Battina), Crooky, and Chundo. This year brough a number of sketches based on fairy tales and rhymes, and the "Farmer McFay" series (amongst the first in which the fogs' heads were posed over a man's arms and body). Other segments, such as "ABC," let the dogs be dogs. The dogs also starred in a series of Sesame Street sponsored videos, both compiling earlier sketches and new material, notably Alphabet Soup (1995) and Fay's Twelve Days of Christmas (1995). In the latter, Fay, in a wig and posed over an apron clad model, serves as a loving mother preparing Christmas meals and presents for her family.

In late summer 1995, Fay suddenly contracted leukemia, and passed away at the age of 11 on June 7. Her children, however, have continued to appear on Sesame Street.

Sketch Segments
Fay demonstrates subtraction by removing blue balls from a table.
 * Subtraction (1988)-


 * Frog (1988)- Fay disguises herself as a frog, aping an early Wegman photograph with Man Ray.


 * Farmer McFay (1993)- Actual a series of shorts in which Fay, posed in overalls over Wegman assistant Jason Burch's arms, demonstrated numbers using fruits and vegetables from her crop. Chundo played her son.


 * The McDoubles' (1993)- A subset of the "Farmer McFay" series, Fay's female pups Batty and Crooky, dressed in overalls joined at the waist, demonstrate the number 2.


 * Goldilocks (1993)- The dogs re-enact the classic tale, with Crooky in a wig as goldilocks, and the other three as the bears.


 * Dog Alphabet (1993)- All four dogs form various letters, from A-Z.


 * Dog Numbers (1993)- Similar to the above, the dogs form the numbers 1-9.


 * ABC (1994)- Fay demonstrates the first three letters of the alphabet by balancing letter blocks.