And it was wildly influential, leading to dozens of imitators, from "Baby Looney Tunes" to "The Flintstone Kids." Henson even expanded into animation in 1984 with "Muppet Babies." The show provided yet another version of how the Muppets met, depicting their childhood with the watchful but never-seen Nanny, and showed Henson's creativity by combining animation with live action cut and pasted from classic movies. But Kermit continued to be an active participant, taking on the role of Sesame Street's roving reporter or singing his trademark song, "Being Green." Kermit was downgraded to a "guest star" as Henson, who retained full ownership of him, began shopping the frog around for his own show. In the early years, Kermit was a core member of the cast, teaching lessons in reading and counting through his shenanigans with Grover, Cookie Monster, and the show's cast of real kids, including one memorable sketch where a little girl sabotages his attempts to run through the alphabet. When Rowlf the Dog despairs over his failure to come up with a title (his producers' suggestions include "Hey, Stupid!" and "The Itty-Bitty, Farm and City, Witty Ditty, Nitty-Gritty, Dog and Kitty, Pretty Little Kiddy Show"), Kermit comforts him and suggests the name "Sesame Street." That pitch is a perfect example of the earnest kindness Kermit would bring to the series. Their involvement goes back even before the first episode aired: Henson helped create a pitch reel starring Kermit in 1969 to sell "Sesame Street" to schools and TV stations.
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