Can you tell me how to get to Ulitsa Sezam? That's the name for Sesame Street in Russian, a street paved by the end of the old Soviet Union. American TV producers seized on the opportunity to bring the muppets and their pals to a new audience, providing early childhood education and a positive view of the west.
Sounds simple in concept, but it was anything but.
Natasha Lance Rogoff, who executive produced the show in its early years, tells of the dark adult situations faced by the staff putting on a lighthearted children's show, in the book Muppets in Moscow: The Unexpected Crazy True Story of Making Sesame Street in Russia. The author looks back on her time on Ulitsa Sezam in a visit to the JX.