Well, not just me. He owed lots of kids an apology, starting with Big Bird. Bob was one of the grownups on Sesame Street, and Big Bird was kind of the big, yellow, avian stand in for every kid.
Some history here: when I was a little kid, I didn't find the way no one ever believed Big Bird about Snuffleupagus very funny at all. In fact, I can remember being six or seven years old, and flying into an apoplectic rage every time one of these moments would happen.
Every time, I would feel bad for Big Bird because his friend made him look stupid. And all the grownups would dismiss him. It felt callous, cruel, and awful to me.
Today, I stumbled across an article about why the Children's Television Workshop decided to change this, which was for a damn good reason. At the time there was a rising epidemic of child abuse at day care centers, and the producers felt that the joke of no adult ever believing Bird was not only no longer funny, but actually possibly dangerous.
So they did something about it.
I had long past graduated away from watching Sesame Street at the time, so while I heard about this I had never seen it before.
Until today.
I'm not ashamed to admit that even now, at 45 years old, as I watched, when it looked like it was happening all over again, I teared up.
And then it finally happened. I'm going to say too, that I have never liked Phil Donahue or Elmo more. I honestly have always found Elmo to be kind of an annoying little git. But not anymore.
See for yourself.