Bert and ernie

Bert and Ernie (Epi and Blas in Spain, Beto and Enrique in Latin America) are two puppets with regular appearances on the television program Sesame Street, as well as in their co-productions Sesame Street from Spain and < i>Sesame Street from Latin America. For the Spanish version their names were translated by taking the first letter of the names in the English version Bert and Ernie. They appear in many comedic numbers that became one of the show's main attractions. In Germany on RTL there was a humor short about Bert and Ernie with only one eye called Bernie und Ert.

Origin

Constructed by Don Sahlin out of synthetic foam and plush from a simple sketch by Jim Henson, they first appeared on the show in the United States in 1969, being the only two Muppets to appear in the pilot episode ( pitch reel) from Sesame Street among other characters such as Kermit the Frog (known as Kermit the frog in Latin America and Kermit in Spain) as part of an educational program for children along with the rest of the program, which would end up having an international success.

According to the show's writer-director Jon Stone, the relationship between Bert and Ernie is a reflection of the friendship between Jim Henson and Frank Oz. Bert and Ernie's names coincide with the names of two characters from It's a Nice Life, but according to Jon Stone, the coincidence is coincidental.

Personality

According to Frank Oz, the basic personality of the characters was developed by Sahlin himself based on the contrast in their appearance (Ernie is short and horizontal-faced while Bert is tall and vertical), since what was sought for Sesame Street was the interaction between the two. Ernie's character plays a childish and mischievous role and Bert's that of a responsible adult although grumpy and seemingly bored. Scenes in which Ernie comes up with some crazy idea and Bert tries to talk him out of it, usually with little success, ends up losing his temper or even passing out, while Ernie remains oblivious to what is happening. what is happening.

Performers

Jim Henson dedicated himself from the beginning and for years to giving life (movement) and voice to Ernie, until season 21 of Sesame Street in 1990. While the role of Bert was left to Frank Oz. In 1997 the puppeteer Eric Jacobson occasionally assumes the character in some segments of the show. In 2006 after the retirement of Oz, Jacobson takes over the role permanently. After Henson's death in May 1990, Ernie only made appearances on the show, with no speech. In 1993 the puppeteer Steve Whitmire officially assumes the character until 2014, then Billy Barkhurst played Ernie from seasons 45 to 48 and Peter Linz was cast as a performer in 2017.

The voice of Epi in Spain was dubbed by Pepe Martínez Blanco in his first stage (1976-80), and Juan Miguel Cuesta from 1980. The voice of Bert/Beto in Latin America was dubbed by Jorge " The dad" Arvizu in its beginnings and was later dubbed by José Antonio Macías in parts of it.

In popular culture

Bert and Ernie are among a group of Sesame Street-specific Muppets who also appear on The Muppet Show, making occasional cameo appearances as at the end of The Muppets Valentine Show, the 1974 pilot episode of the series. While other Muppets who appeared on Sesame Street, such as Kermit the Frog, would cross over to the other show, Bert and Ernie were mostly limited to an occasional cameo.

Sexual Orientation

Bert and Ernie live together in a basement apartment at 123 Sesame Street. Despite sleeping in separate beds, they share the same bedroom, which has led to some speculation that they are a representation of a gay couple.

This has been repeatedly denied by Sesame Workshop, and some of Bert's interactions with female characters do seem to show that he is attracted to women, such as serenading Connie Stevens in the segment Some Enchanted Evening of an episode of the first season of The Muppet Show, and the recording of a song about his girlfriend, "I Want to Hold Your Ear", which it was published in several albums.

In July 2013, The New Yorker magazine chose an image of Bert and Ernie by artist Jack Hunter, titled Moment of Joy, as the cover of its publication, which features Supreme Court decisions on the Defense of Marriage Act and California Proposition 8. Sesame Workshop is said to have been so incensed by the idea that it is rumored to be considering litigation.

In September 2018, Mark Saltzman, one of the writers and composers of Sesame Street, alleged in an interview with Queerty that Bert and Ernie were analogs of his own intimate relationship with film editor Arnold Glassman, although she did not begin writing for Sesame Street until fifteen years after Bert and Ernie's first appearance.

Sesame Workshop responded by stating that Bert and Ernie have no sexual orientation, because they are puppets. Frank Oz, who previously played Bert, stated that Bert and Ernie were not gay, saying,

"They are not, of course, a gay couple. But why that question? Really matters? Why the need to define people only as homosexual? A human being is much more than straight or gay".

Sesame Street went on to clarify, stating:

No, Bert and Ernie aren't gay: they're 'best friends'.

The Gaystar News reported that fans reacted negatively to this claim, out of apparent homophobia. Frank Oz subsequently tweeted in September 2018,

"One last thought: If Jim and I had created Bert and Ernie as gay characters they would be inauthentic, coming from two straight men. However, I have now learned that many see them as representing a loving gay relationship. And that's wonderful. Thank you for helping me understand it".

In quantum physics

In 2012, those responsible for the IceCube neutrino telescope announced the detection of two super-energetic neutrinos, of more than 1000 teraelectronvolts. Their discoverers named them Bert and Ernie in honor of these characters.