– Sesame Workshop announced renaming Roscoe Orman’s character “Gordon” to “Gordon Robinson”
– Fans on social media criticize the decision as an attempt to erase TV history and tokenism
– Orman played the character for over four decades, starting in 1973
Sesame Workshop recently revealed that it would rename the character “Gordon” to “Gordon Robinson” in honor of Roscoe Orman, who portrayed the character for more than 40 years. However, the decision has been met with widespread criticism from fans on social media, accusing the organization of trying to erase television history and labeling the move as tokenism.
Orman began playing the character in 1973, and during his tenure, “Gordon” became one of the most well-regarded characters on Sesame Street. Upon announcing the name change, Sesame Workshop stated that the character would officially be known as “Gordon Robinson” in new episodes and existing episodes of the children’s program, and that this change was in commemoration of Orman’s “extraordinary contributions to Sesame Street.”
However, Twitter users were quick to express their disapproval. One user wrote, “This is a bizarre and unnecessary thing to do,” while another commented, “This feels like an attempt to rewrite TV history.” Some users criticized the decision as an example of tokenism, with one Tweeting, “This is tokenism at its finest,” and another echoing the sentiment by writing, “This is tokenism. Total disrespect.”
While reactions to the name change have been largely negative, some fans have defended the decision. One supportive viewer argued, “It doesn’t erase anything, it simply honors the actor who played the character for so many crucial years,” while another pointed out that “Gordon” and “Gordon Robinson” are virtually the same name.
Regardless of the differing opinions on the name change, there’s no denying that Roscoe Orman’s time on Sesame Street left a lasting impact on countless young viewers and many in the entertainment world alike.