PERFORMER | various |
DEBUT | 1971 |
Grover's Mommy plays an integral but often unrecognized role on Sesame Street. She has been seen almost exclusively in print, including the many illustrated books starring her son Grover, in many different incarnations. She was also occasionally seen in photographs, as a photo puppet, such as on the cover of The Sesame Street Treasury Volume 4. Over the course of time, her appearance has fluctuated greatly.
In her first appearance in puppet form, she was gray-green in color (similar to the first Grover puppet). In later appearances, she has blue fur like her son.
Performances
- Her earliest known appearance as a Muppet is a 1971 sketch in which Grover speaks to the viewer about being afraid of the dark. At the end of the sketch, his mom (Frank Oz) enters his room to kiss him good night.
- Another early appearance (in the early 1980s) involves his mother (Kathryn Mullen) coming into the bathroom while Grover is telling the audience about how to take a bath.
- She appears in the home video Five Sesame Street Stories, animated in illustrations from The Exciting Adventures of Super Grover, with an unknown voice actor.
- An animated version appears in the computer game Grover's Travels (voiced by Alice Dinnean).
- In Elmo's World, she appeared (performed by Stephanie D'Abruzzo) in the "Families" episode with Super Grover as her own alter-ego, "Super-Mommy". Grover crashlands, screaming "Moooommy!" and his mom follows yelling "Soooonny!" crashing on top of him. They recover, acknowledge each other, and both faint. (Super Grover also refers to his mother — "Her name is Super Mommy!" — in a sketch with two boys fighting over an apple.)
- In A Celebration of Me, Grover (performed by Eric Jacobson), she attends a benefit dinner in her son's honor.
- She appears in the cold open of Episode 4618 (again performed by D'Abruzzo).
Book appearances
- Big Bird's Busy Book (1975)
- The Exciting Adventures of Super Grover (1978)
- The Sesame Street Bedtime Storybook (1978)
- The Sesame Street Dictionary (1980)
- Grover's New Kitten (1981)
- Prairie Dawn's Upside-Down Poem (1981)
- City (1982)
- A Day at School (1982)
- First Day of School (1982)
- Grover Goes to School (1982)
- A Sesame Street Christmas (1982)
- The Sesame Street Treasury volumes 4 and 8 (1983)
- I Can Dress Myself (1983)
- The Adventures of Grover in Outer Space (1984)
- Grover Sleeps Over (1984)
- Two Wheels for Grover (1984)
- Big Bird Says... A Game to Read and Play (1985)
- Christmas Is Coming (1985)
- Ernie's Finish the Picture (1985)
- Grover's Book of Colors (1985)
- Sign Language ABC (1985)
- A Visit to the Sesame Street Hospital (1985)
- When Grover Moved to Sesame Street (1985)
- ABC (1986)
- Count to Ten (1986)
- Find the Shapes (1986)
- Grover's Bad, Awful Day (1986)
- Sesame Street ABC (1986)
- Through the Year (1986)
- Why Are You So Mean to Me? (1986)
- Are We Almost There? (1987)
- Don't Be Shy (1987)
- Good Night, Little Grover! (1987)
- Grover Takes Care of Baby (1987)
- A New Baby on Sesame Street (1987)
- A Rainy Day on Sesame Street (1987)
- Shape Up! (1987)
- The Sesame Street ABC Book of Words (1988}
- Let's Get Dressed! (1989)
- Come As You Are (1989)
- Great Monsterpieces (1989)
- Happy Mother's Day! (1989)
- Splish-Splashy Day (1989)
- Big Bird Flies Alone (1989)
- Grover's Lucky Jacket (1989)
- Cookie Soup and Other Good-Night Stories (1990)
- Grover's Book of Cute Things to Touch (1990)
- Halloween Party (1991)
- I Want to Be a Fire Fighter (1991)
- Friends & Family Lace-Ups (1992)
- Happy and Sad, Grouchy and Glad (1992)
- Imagine... A Wish for Grover (1994)
- Me Cookie! (1994)
- Grover's Mommy (1994)
- Ready, Set, Go! A Counting Book (1995)
- Grover's Farm (2001)
- Listen to Your Fish (2003)
- Fun with Friends (2004)
- Grover Stays Up Very Very Late (2004)
- Be a Friend (2006)
- Fly Away with Big Bird (2006)
- Rosita's Easter on Sesame Street (2007)
- My Big Book of Firsts (2009)
- Murray's First Book of Words (2010)
- Elmo's Christmas Picture Puzzles & Songs (2011)
- Elmo Doodle Dandy (2011)