Jon Stone

"We set out to make a show that children and adults could watch together, and children could ask questions." -- Jon Stone

Stone directing Michael Earl as Mr. Snuffleupagus.

Jim Henson and Jon Stone on set of one of Kermit's lecture sketches.

Stone (r.) with Henson and Frank Oz in 1969.

Stone directing Northern Calloway, Anthony Daniels and R2-D2 on the set of Sesame Street.

Jon Stone (April 13, 1931 - March 30, 1997), was an Emmy-winning writer, director, and producer who was involved in the creation of Sesame Street and continued to work on the show until shortly before his death.

Born in New Haven, Connecticut, Stone graduated from Williams College in 1952. He received a master's degree from the Yale University School of Drama in 1955, at which time he joined a CBS training program. Before helping to create Sesame Street, he worked on the popular children's television show Captain Kangaroo for CBS. He also worked on several other Muppet projects before and during his time on Sesame Street, and was the author of several books, including the popular The Monster at the End of This Book. He was married for 9 years to actress Beverly Owen.

Stone's earliest association with Jim Henson came in 1965, working on fairy tale projects, along with writer Tom Whedon, such as a proposed Snow White series. This was turned into a Cinderella pilot, which was shot in October of that year but never aired, and eventually became Hey Cinderella!. Stone also appeared in Henson's 1967 short film Ripples, as an introspective architect.

In 1968, Stone brought Henson and Joe Raposo to the attention of CTW president Joan Ganz Cooney when she started putting together Sesame Street. Stone wrote the pilot script, and was one of the three original producers of the program in addition to serving as head writer for the first season. He later became executive producer for seasons 4 through 9.

During a 1980 trip to Sesame Street's German co-production Sesamstrasse, Stone appeared on the show's 750th episode, together with Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, Kermit Love and Caroll Spinney's wife Debra Spinney.

In a 1999 article, Children's Television Workshop Director of Research Edward L. Palmer recalled how Stone approached writing for Sesame Street in the early days of the production:

“One member of the CTW staff became terribly agitated when he first saw the curriculum statement. His concern was that if this document, with all its educational jargon, set the tone for the series, Sesame Street would be terribly dull instead of light and lively. However, head writer Jon Stone spoke for all of the key producers in his response to the concern; he said, first, that the curriculum document did not set the tone for the entertainment concent of the program, and second, that in sitting down to write a script, he would far rather start with a curriculum goal at the top of the page than with a totally empty page. What Stone understood was that stating a curriculum goal did not limit creativity, because there were still an infinite number of ways in which to express it on the screen.”

Stone was the show's principal director until 1996. Working with Jim Henson, he helped to create many of the Muppet characters, including Big Bird and Cookie Monster. He was also responsible for the show's format and setting. Stone contributed occasional announcer voices (such as the soap opera promo spoof "School in the Afternoon"), and served similar duty on two Muppet Meeting Films. In April 1990, Stone hosted and directed a television special titled Sing! Sesame Street Remembers Joe Raposo and His Music. The special was created as a tribute to Joe Raposo, who passed away from lymphoma in February 1989.

The 2021 documentary Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street focuses a good amount of time on the show's founding members. One segment features Jon Stone's two daughters Kate and Polly, as well as Joan Ganz Cooney, Sharon Lerner, Christopher Cerf, and Brian Henson all providing personal anecdotes and insight into the man, specifically.

Jon Stone died of complications from Lou Gehrig's disease on March 30, 1997, two weeks before his 66th birthday. In his New York Times obituary, Joan Ganz Cooney describes Stone as "probably the most brilliant writer of children's television material in America."

Memorial Bench

Following Stone's death, a bench on the Literary Walk in Central Park was dedicated to him. The bench is directly to the right of the bench dedicated to Jim Henson.

Central Park Benches dedicated to Jim Henson and Jon Stone.

Credits

Jon Stone with Cookie Monster, circa 1986.

Stone with Frank Oz and Super Grover.

A dedication to Stone at the end of Episode 3785 (1998).

Executive Producer:

• Sesame Street - seasons 4-9
• Christmas Eve on Sesame Street
• Big Bird in China
• Getting Ready for School
• Learning to Add and Subtract
• Sing Along
• Big Bird's Story Time
• The Alphabet Game
• Count it Higher: Great Music Videos from Sesame Street
• The Best of Ernie and Bert
• Big Bird's Favorite Party Games
• Big Bird in Japan
• Sing! Sesame Street Remembers Joe Raposo and His Music

Producer:

• Sesame Street - seasons 1-3
• The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence - co-producer

Director:

• Youth 68 (1968)
• Sesame Street (1969-96)
• Christmas Eve on Sesame Street (1978)
• Don't Eat the Pictures (1983)
• Big Bird in China (1983)
• My Sesame Street Home Video
• Big Bird in Japan (1988)
• Sesame Street, Special (1988)
• Sing! Sesame Street Remembers Joe Raposo and His Music (1990)
• Monster Hits! (1990)
• Sing Yourself Silly! (1990)
• Elmo's Sing-Along Guessing Game (1991)
• Big Bird's Birthday or Let Me Eat Cake (1991)
• Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree (1995)

Writer:

• Sesame Street Pitch Reel (1969)
• Sesame Street Pilot Episodes
• This Way to Sesame Street (1969)
• Sesame Street - head writer seasons 1, 5, 7-9
  • script writer for episodes 2271, 2428, 2706, 2729, 2843, 2864, 3060, 3140, 3156, 3179
• Hey Cinderella! (1970)
• Julie on Sesame Street (1973)
• The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence (1975)
• Christmas Eve on Sesame Street (1978)
• Sesame Street Live: A Sesame Street Mystery: The Case of the Missing Rara Avis (1980)
• Sesame Street Live: Big Bird's Super Spectacular Totally Amateur Show (1981)
• Rocky Mountain Holiday (1982)
• Big Bird in China (1983)
• Learning to Add and Subtract (1987)
• Getting Ready for School (1987)
• Big Bird's Story Time (1987)
• Sing Along (1987)
• Big Bird in Japan (1988)
• The Best of Ernie and Bert (1988)
• Big Bird's Favorite Party Games (1988)
• Sesame Street Live: Big Bird's Sesame Street Story (1988)
• Sing! Sesame Street Remembers Joe Raposo and His Music (1990)

Creative Consultant:

• Sesame Street - seasons 10-15, 25-26

Author:

• The Sesame Street Storybook (1971)
• The Monster at the End of This Book (1971)
• Would You Like to Play Hide & Seek in This Book With Lovable, Furry Old Grover? (1976)
• The Sesame Street Library (1978-1979)
• Christmas Eve on Sesame Street (1981)
• The Songs of Sesame Street in Poems and Pictures (1983)
• Lovable Furry Old Grover's Resting Places (1984)
• Another Monster at the End of This Book (1996)

Lyrics:

• "ABC-DEF-GHI"
• "Bats in My Belfry"
• "Best Friends"
• "Big Bird's Beautiful Birthday Bash"
• "Danger's No Stranger"
• "Everybody Wash"
• "Get Along"
• "One of These Things"
• "Point Your Fingers"
• "Sesame Street Theme"
• "Wet Paint"

See also

• Jon Stone cameos