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The question of Bert and Ernie’s sexuality has made the headlines once again.

This time Sesame Street writer Mark Saltzman brought up the issue, saying the puppets are, in fact, gay.

Saltzman tells the LGBTQ blog Queerty the characters are a couple and their relationship was a reflection of his partnership with film editor Arnold Glassman.

Saltzman, who joined the show in 1984, said, “I was Ernie. I look more Bert-ish. And [Arnold] as a film editor — if you thought of Bert with a job in the world, wouldn’t that be perfect? Bert with his paper clips and organization? And I was the jokester. So it was the Bert and Ernie relationship, and I was already with Arnie when I came to Sesame Street.”

A spokesperson for Sesame Workshop denies the claim, telling TMZ, “As we have always said, Bert and Ernie are best friends. They were created to teach preschoolers that people can be good friends with those who are very different from themselves.”

Back in 1994, Sesame Street Workshop head Gary Knell also denied the rumors, and in 2011, producers said Bert and Ernie were just “best friends” and “do not have a sexual orientation.”

Fasho Thoughts:

  • Saltzman joined the show in 1984, but Bert and Ernie have been around since 1969.
  • He may have written them as a gay couple, but that doesn’t make them a couple.
  • Does it matter if they’re gay or not?
Don Juan Fasho

Source: CS / CS