Sandbox:Economy of Sesame Street

Elmo earns his keep.

Hoots counts his loot

The economic aspects of Sesame Street are often not discussed on the show, perhaps being too advanced a concept for the show's target audience or irrelevant to the series. Topics of the characters' income or paying rent are not addressed. Frequently as well, payment for the goods and services of Hooper's Store and the Fix-It Shop are not shown, leaving many to wonder how the businesses sustain themselves. For example in episode 4142, Alan places an order of bananas to the store. Not only is he not shown paying for the delivery services, the stock is quickly depleted by customers, who do not pay for them as they leave. In Christmas Eve on Sesame Street, a barter system is at work. Meanwhile, while Grouches do pay (when they want to), they use their own trash-based currency (torn pieces of newspaper for an auction in Episode 2320, bags of garbage for real estate deals in Episode 2399).

Despite this, the subject of money and finance has often been mentioned on the show in select street stories and resource projects.

References to currency

Hooper's Store

• In the first test show, Bob puts a dime into a can by the news stand at Hooper's when buying a paper. After Mr. Hooper sees that Bob has shared the last paper, Bob points out that he put money in, but Mr. Hooper points out that the last paper is his. Similarly, in the first scene in the first episode, Bob tells Mr. Hooper he picked up something from his store and left the money for him.

• In Episode 0003, Big Bird chooses a can of paint for 35 cents. He gives Mr. Hooper ten cents on account -- "On account of, that's all I've got," he says.

• In Episode 0849, when Cookie Monster arrives, David immediately tells him that he will not be getting any free cookies from David this time, to which Cookie claims to be there to raise money for endangered species. After convincing everyone to donate, Cookie asks for twenty cents worth of cookies, reasoning that since he's the only Cookie Monster, he's an endangered species.

• In Episode 3003, Big Bird, Elmo, Telly Monster, Rosita, and some of the kids put their money together, for a total of three dollars, to buy something that they can share, deciding to settle for either juice or crayons, which they can't all buy both of for three dollars, so they decide to vote on which to buy. Telly, the tie breaker, is indecisive on which to vote for, but ultimately votes for the crayons. However, they get back fifty cents in change, which ends up being enough for one glass, which they share using seven straws.

• Episode 3312 focuses on Joey and Davey Monkey's quest to find a job in order to pay for bananas at Hooper's Store. Apparently, one dollar is enough to purchase an entire bunch.

• In Bert & Ernie Sing-Along, when Mr. Hooper brings ice cream and cookies to the titular sing-along, Ernie asks Bert to pay, but Mr. Hooper says he can pay later.

• In When You Wish Upon a Pickle, Bert contemplates whether to buy the detergent that costs less or the detergent that has more in it, concluding that the box with more would be the better deal.

The Fix-It Shop

• Mr. Quincy is seen paying for his toaster repair in episode 3017.

• Episode 3130 features a man named Charles (played by Victor Garber) getting his toaster fixed. Barkley does damage to his briefcase, which he later responds to by saying he'll buy a new one. Despite this, he leaves the Fix-It Shop without paying for their services.

Charlie's Restaurant and other Grover services

• Charlie's Restaurant is one of the few establishments of the street that charges for their services, as Waiter Grover is typically able to remind frequent-customer Mr. Johnson (especially if a tip is involved). According to the "Russian Restaurant" sketch, "Charlie's" does not include gratuity in their final bill. In a sketch where Mr. Johnson eats outside the restaurant, the wind blows his food away, but Grover still brings him the bill, expecting payment despite the fact that Mr. Johnson did not get to eat.

• Outside of the restaurant, in one sketch, Mr. Johnson goes to the concession stand to buy pop corn, where Grover tries to get him to buy the biggest bucket of pop corn, telling him that he'd get more for his money, which Mr. Johnson doesn't want. In the "Spider-Monster: The Musical" segment, Mr. Johnson tells Grover that he paid a lot of money for almost-premium seats.

• Money sometimes comes up in segments where Grover provides a service to Kermit the Frog. When Grover failed to sell Kermit a weather machine, he succeeded in selling him an umbrella (due to the rain produced by the machine), initially charging seven dollars, but after Kermit questions the price, he lowers the price to a nickel, which Kermit pays. At the beginning of that same sketch, when Kermit remarks that he didn't know Grover was a door-to-door salesman, Grover remarks "you've got to do something to pay the cookie bill". Years later, when Grover appeared with Herry Monster and another monster as a monster fix-it team, as they leave from doing their repairs, Grover tells Kermit that he'll mail him the bill.

Other locales and situations

• In Christmas Eve on Sesame Street, Ernie and Bert, who are seemingly able to afford a one bedroom-one bath basement apartment, are unable to afford Christmas gifts for each other. They exchange their most prized possessions (Rubber Duckie and Bert's paper clips) at Hooper's for suitable presents for the other.

• In Episode 1553, Oscar the Grouch and Bruno the Trashman go to the Cha-Cha Palace, with the humans and Barkley stowed away inside Oscar's trash can. After they each count themselves so the clerk will know how many tickets to sell, the total comes to eight dollars (one dollar per ticket), which Oscar does not have and therefore they can't get in.

• The educational resource video, For Me, For You, For Later, is based the themes of earning, saving and spending, as Elmo attempts to earn enough money to purchase a Stupendous Ball.

• In a sketch where Bert plans to go grocery shopping but can't find his key and asks Ernie to listen for him when he knocks, after Bert has locked the door, he realizes that he forgot his money and knocks on the door so he can get back in.

• In CinderElmo, after figuring neither of them was chosen to marry Princess Charming, Ernie and Bert decide they can cheer up by going to the zoo and buying ice cream, after which Ernie tells Bert to pay.

• Lefty the Salesman normally charges a nickle for the items he sells. When he attempts to sell Ernie a U, he initially charges ten cents, lowering his price to a nickel only because that's all Ernie has. In a sketch where he sells an invisible ice cream cone, Ernie ends up paying with an invisible nickel.

• In Follow That Bird, Sam and Sid Sleaze are entirely motivated by money. In an early scene, they leave a boy on the ferris wheel until he drops them a nickel, after he'd paid a nickel to get on. Sam figures that people would pay money to see Big Bird and states that "if we had that bird, those nickels will become dollars". After Big Bird's first and only night of performance at the fun fair, Sam happily counts the money made because of him.

• In Big Bird in Japan, after Big Bird and Barkley get separated from their tour bus in Japan, Big Bird mentions that they do have a little bit of money on them. Upon seeing a restaurant, Big Bird asks Barkley if they should spend their money there.

• When Buffy invites the gang to visit her family in Hawaii in Episode 1076, they soon realize that it'll be an expensive trip. After Big Bird talks about selling birdseed to raise money, the others decide to sell their things as well to raise money for the trip.

• In an old west sketch, Clementine announces that Bad Bart is coming to "give somebody what he deserves". When he shows up, he goes to the bartender, reminds him of a recent time when the bartender was out of what he wanted, went to another city to get it, kept Bad Bart waiting... and Bad Bart had forgotten to pay him for it, at which he gives the bartender the money that he deserves. (First: Episode 1940)

• In Episode 4136, Chris looks for a job because he needs money to buy books for school. One of the jobs he considers is being a dance partner with Horatio the Elephant, which he ends up turning down because it literally pays peanuts instead of money.

(sandbox) Needs Expansion

1968 Gordon owes money

Episode 1968

• Episode 0013 — how a store works
• Episode 0036 — Big Bird trying to raise money
• Episode 0084 — Rufus opens a lemonade stand; Mr. Hooper has to come after him for the money he's owed
• Episode 0088 — Oscar tries to get a job to make enough money to take his grouch friends to the movies
• Episode 0090 — the neighborhood holds a block party so they can hire a tree doctor
• Episode 0149 — Explaining money
• Episode 0265 — Mr. Hooper competes to put an ice cream vending machine out of business
• Episode 0725 — Cookie Monster describes how a cash register works
• Episode 0832 — Fix-It Shop doesn't charge for repairs
• Episode 0973 — imagining winning the lottery
• Episode 1866 — Oscar sells ice cream under the pretense of "No Cash Refunds"
• Episode 2134 — Dr. Nobel Price cheats David out of some ice cream.
• Episode 2712 — Hoots the Owl is seen counting the evening's cash from Birdland
• Episode 2722 — Gordon wins the lottery
• Episode 3321 — Big Bird earns a dollar

Further Reading

• Kermit Culture
• Make Art Make Money: Lessons from Jim Henson on Fueling Your Creative Career