Sunny Days: The Children’s Television Revolution that changed America by David Kamp is a 2020 Simon & Schuster publication.

What a fun and informative look back at a special time for children’s television!! Because I was right at the perfect age for this creative, and educational explosion of children’s programming, I can’t say I was aware of the behind-the-scenes history of these programs or how they were received by children and their parents.

This book takes us through the early days of children’s educational programming, introducing us to beloved people like Fred Rodgers and Jim Henson before they were household names. The politics, the funding, the complaints and praises- the staples of these programs, how they came into existence and the impressive impact they had on children and our society, is a fascinating journey to take.

I will confess that some portions of the book, especially in the beginning, was a little dry, but it became more and more interesting as it went along.

Because Big Bird appears on the cover of this book, one might presume the book is hyper-focused on Sesame Street, but it isn’t. The book covers many other educational programs- including Schoolhouse rock- which I LOVED- I still know all the words, if that tells you anything.

Personally, Captain Kangaroo was the program I was able to watch most often due to our inability to pick up more than one or two TV stations in the rural area I lived in. Occasionally, I could get ‘Electric Company’ to come in, but I don’t recall being able to watch Sesame Street until later- when I was probably too old for it- but still watched it on occasion, anyway.

Mr. Rodgers was also difficult for me to see very often- but later in life- younger cousins and my own children, who adored Fred Rodgers, gave me a second chance to fully enjoy his lovely, gentle way of teaching children.

Despite being aware of these programs -some of which I sampled growing up- and then fully enjoyed later with my own children, I never fully grasped the impact these shows had on our nation overall. Children were not the only ones who benefited from these programs- adults learned to read because of them, as well!!

Yes, these shows opened an entirely new world for children. It was healthier than watching blatant advertising geared towards kids or watching silly shows with no valuable content. These shows dared to introduce diversity and realism, appealing to kids from all walks of life and for the most part, these progressive steps were embraced by parents from all political stripes, while teaching children important lessons and preparing them for school and for success, no matter their personal backgrounds.

While I don’t always agree with everything these shows teach and have questioned some issues addressed from time to time-especially considering the age of the viewing audience, I have to look back now and think- What a great achievement!!

Sadly, times have changed, politics has affected federal funding, which has waxed and waned since the late seventies, but the effects these shows had on our country has been a long lasting one and continues to impact future generations, even though the formats have changed and we’ve lost so many of the important figures that helped create positive, educational options for children.

This is a wonderful bit of history to explore, it’s full of nostalgia and feel-good inspiration, I wish we could have bottled it up back then! It’s a spirit lifter, but it also shows we have some key elements missing today that need to make a comeback…

4 stars

For readers who, like me, were children in the ‘70s, Sunny Days is a delightful opportunity to revisit some halcyon hours spent … in front of the television. Today, we’re bemoaning how much screen time young people are racking up, thanks to streaming services and mobile devices, but four and five decades ago, just one screen was the interloper in homes, and it wasn’t 70 inches, UHD, 4K, or smart; some homes still had yet to upgrade from black and white to color. But the programming available on three major networks was sometimes decried as “a vast wasteland,” and plenty wondered if it was damaging impressionable young minds.

So a number of individuals and groups independently decided to create programming for children that would help them learn and speak to them on their level. David Kamp explores how varying factors came together in a “unique political and social moment” that was the perfect incubator for beloved programs such as “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” “Sesame Street,” “The Electric Company,” and “Schoolhouse Rock.”

Thanks to many hours of interviews with people involved in these efforts, Kamp brings to life this era and the optimism of those who hoped to use this fairly new medium to do good in children’s lives. The people who created “Sesame Street” and, later, “The Electric Company” aimed to level the educational playing field, knowing that many disadvantaged children were starting public school already behind their more privileged peers. They did extensive research as they designed the set, filled it with human and Muppet characters (it’s fun to learn a bit about Jim Henson and what he was doing in those early days of his career), and figured out what format it should take, patterning it short skit-style after “Laugh-in.” (Who knew?)

Fred Rogers’ story is probably more familiar now, thanks to recent documentaries and a Tom Hanks film about him. He wanted to reach out and help children feel cared about and able to explore, talk about and manage their emotions. Famously, his plea to a Senate committee about this goal kept the Corporation for Public Broadcasting’s budget from getting cut in half.

Marlo Thomas’ “Free to Be” was a “gender-politics primer” (oddly enough, even though I vividly recall almost all of the programs mentioned in Sunny Days, this is one I do not remember at all); “Fat Albert” was a fun program Bill Cosby (yep…) envisioned to help teach kids about “morality and decency” (yep…) and was “notable for being, like ‘Sesame Street,’ a TV show where African American children could recognize a version of themselves on screen.”

Overall, Sunny Days is educational and entertaining for us now-middle-aged kids of the 1970s, much like the television shows it talks about. I can only say “Bravo!” to the big-hearted trailblazers who made such a difference in the lives of millions of young people at a crucial time in their development.

Having followed the history of the Muppets, CTW, and children's television in general, there wasn't much new information here for me. That being said, it was very well written and I liked how the author put the historical context to what was going on with Sesame Street. Would highly recommend this in conjunction with Street Gang.

3.5 stars. Aside from the nostalgia factor (literally singing the songs in my head as they mentioned different shows and skits), Sunny Days was interesting in that it pulled back the curtain and showed how our favorite childhood worlds were created. The book focused mostly on the business and politics of it all, and slightly less on the creative aspect I'd been hoping for. Still, what a wonderful walk down memory lane.

I Love Sesame Street!! This book was a great read and brought back so many memories of when I was a kid watching the show. Highly recommend.

Sunny Days is a nice haunt down memory lane.A behind the scenes look at iconic and groundbreaking individuals that forever changed television platforms.

Here's my highly positive review
http://www.washingtonindependentreviewofbooks.com/index.php/bookreview/sunny-days-the-childrens-television-revolution-that-changed-america

This book was around 3.5 stars for me.

It's a nostalgic read for anyone familiar with Sesame Street. This book delves into now just how the show was created and those behind these characters, but it's initial reception and changes to the show over time. I had no idea how much of the show was intended to be outreach for Black children and how much criticism it faced. Sesame Street tried to be before its time in terms of gender and race and class and has made way for the show it is today.

This book is broken into three district parts focusing on the creation of the show, its reception, and the politics of having a publicly funded educational show. The book talks about Mr. Rogers and the Electric Company saying the TV landscape for the time.

Overall it's an interesting read. I would have liked more behind the scenes anecdotes and a clearer pathway to the show that Sesame Street is today. But this is an interesting look at the show's history and how it became so popular.

David Kamp has written a remarkable book. I found myself at all times enthralled by its unique combination of the whimsical and the contemplative. As a law professor teaching, among other things, in the area of children’s rights, and as a civil rights attorney, I found particularly poignant the descriptions of the pushback Sesame Street contended with when it came to some of its more progressive content, especially when one considers that the whole concept of Sesame Street is progressive in itself. Having been born in 1988, I was enchanted by the view of the other programs referred to in the book, although I am too young to have been around for all but Sesame Street, Mr. Rogers, and the second incarnation of Zoom, all of which conjure fond memories. One wishes, for example, that Fred Rogers were around to explain, in his special way, the present realities of the pandemic to young children now.

Sunny Days deserves a prominent place on course adoption lists in programs in the areas of broadcasting, education, child psychology, and in law school courses on government-private sector partnerships, children’s rights, policy studies, and communications/First Amendment law..

More importantly, I sincerely believe it belongs on every bookshelf in America as a reminder of what we can do when we, as a society, make a decision that our children are worth it.

This book was incredibly informative while also being completely heart-warming. It took what could have been really dry material, and brought a lot of warmth and life to it. It ended up being a very enjoyable read.

I had previously read The Good Neighbor that focused on Mister Rogers's Neighborhood and Fred Rogers exclusively, so I already knew some of the information. But this book gave a much broader scope and a lot more context. I had never considered the social and political climate in the US that surrounded the debut of Sesame Street and Mister Roger's Neighborhood. Learning that brought so much into perspective.

I enjoyed that this book also addressed all of the spin off shows, how different presidents and their administrations affected SS and MRE as well as all of public television. The passion that the founders of these shows and this wave of educational TV for children was truly amazing.. Reading about the results they brought to that first generation of kids to watch was so moving.

Overall, a great non-fiction read for anyone who grew up watching these shows!

I received a copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for my honest review.

This book takes at look at the birth of children’s educational television programs in a way that is not too dry or bland to read.

David Kamp wrote a book that starts with the lack of quality television shows at the medium’s inception, and how key individuals saw a need and/or answered the call to change that. He touches on beloved classics such as Mister Roger’s Neighborhood and Captain Kangeroo, trailblazers like Sesame Street and The Electric Company, and follow ups like Zoom or Free To Be...You and Me, walking us from concept to development, highlighting both push back and accolades experienced by the teams that brought these shows to life.

I did not expect this book to be about so many children’s television programs when I picked it up. I really expected it to be a sort of feel good, memoir-esque book about Sesame Street, but it was so much more than that. Mr. Kamp showed a well researched knowledge of many of the political and cultural nuances that shaped the shows that so many of us grew up with.



I was born in 1970, so this book was like a stroll down memory lane for me. While I was a few years too young to remember the earliest days of Sesame Street, I vividly recall many of the sequences related in the book. Some of the shows referenced were either gone before I was old enough for them, or regional shows unavailable to me, but most of them were staples in our house, and I found it interesting to read all of the behind the scenes production information.

As a child of the 70s who grew up with PBS as the only channel I was allowed to watch, reading this book gave a great insight into what it took to build children’s television programming. The text is informative, though dry, and I wasn’t as engaged as I hoped to be.

We went to Sea World because my daughter loves Sesame Street. And I too, fell in love with it through her eyes and enthusiasm. I get even more excited than her whenever the program comes on. So when I came across Big Bird peeking out from the front cover with ‘Sunny Days’ as its title, I couldn’t resist; I had to read it!

I had such a fun time going behind-the-scenes of Sesame Street - learning about how the idea was sparked over dinner by two friends, Joan Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett, and that the name was chosen (one of the staff writers’ contribution) because there weren’t any other better choices. And Sesame Street definitely set its bars high, an act that would be tough to follow, thanks to great leadership and passionate, talented individuals who were driven by the goal to educate, the underprivileged especially. I was blown away by how much its leaders fought fearlessly in defending what they believed in.

The success of Sesame Street definitely came with its own set of challenges – backlashes and negative reviews despite its positive ratings and acceptance, but that didn’t stop the creators from continuing to grow and improve the show. And I couldn’t resist going to YouTube to view their very first episode launched in 1969! Wow, Big Bird wasn’t as ‘fluffy’ as she is today, and a little ‘greenish’ too!

I didn’t grow up watching American TV shows so I’m definitely new to the other TV shows mentioned (I’m only familiar with/heard of Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood and Sesame Street) such as Zoom, Schoolhouse Rock! (brainchild of 2 admen, just like Dr Seuss!) The Electric Company, New Zoo Revue and The Magic Garden. Of course I went on YouTube to check them out! And I can see why many fell in love with them, especially The Electric Company and Zoom. Love those kids in Zoom! I even checked out the ‘arm thing’ by Bernadette in the book, and I still have yet to get it right!

This is an eye-opening, well-researched book that went behind the scenes of important and influential TV shows which made a difference in the lives of many children – children of different races, gender, ages, financial status, but of course not without their own challenges like seeing federal funding, finding the right people to work with, audience to please, parents and children, educators and hushing its harsh critics. Sesame Street was accused of ‘pervasive anti-feminism’, Mr Rogers, seen ‘through an adult lens, a total weirdo’ in his TV program, and portrayed as a ‘wimp’ in comedian’s send-ups, which appalled and shocked me.

TV programs aired during that period also strive to address sensitive issues such as death and loss (Mr Hooper, FDR’s assassination) and fear (going to the hospital), race (controversy when using Roosevelt Franklin, the black muppet on Sesame Street) and even facing those issues themselves. Mobley, a crew from Zoom, was asked once during a bathroom break, if his sperm was black; and when the creators of Free to Be...You and Me were trying to find a major record label, one music executive said, “What would I want with a record produced by a bunch of dykes?”, Hart recalled.

And a lot of research have gone into making these TV programs, from the use of jingles and music and animation, hiring professionals, to the movement of camera (Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood), and camera lighting on colored people (Sesame Street). It gave me a new perspective on children TV program, and I’m going to be watching them in a whole new different light. It’s such a shame that Sesame Street have been bought over by HBO and wouldn’t be as accessible as before.

I’d recommend this book to those who love to learn more about children TV programming in the late 60’s and 70’s. There were also brief mentions of authors too like Ezra Jack Keats and Maurice Sendak! Overall an eye-opening, informative read - not too heavy that you'd feel overwhelmed with information, and not too light that you'd feel its just fluff.

Thank you Simon & Schuster and Netgalley for a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.

Read if you: Want an entertaining overview of the children's television movement in the 1970s.

If you've read Street Gang : The Complete Histor of Sesame Street by Michael Davis (published 2008), The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Maxwell King (published 2018), and/or Brian Jay Jones's biography of Jim Henson (published 2013), some of this material might be well-known to you. However--most readers probably have not, so this is a great overview for those readers (especially since those other titles are rather lengthy). . For those of you who have--the material on The Electric Company, Zoom, Free to Be--You and Me, and the other shows that came in the wake of Sesame Street is more than enough to warrant a read. This is a fun, eye-opening, and positive tribute to the pioneers of the modern children's educational television revolution.

Librarians and booksellers: Purchase for your Gen x patrons/customers!

Many thanks to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for a digital review copy in exchange for an honest review.

I'm a child of the late '80s and the early '90s, so Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers were a steady part of my diet as pre-preschooler. It's only now that I can look back at the impact these shows had on me.

I currently live in New York City, which was my dream since I can remember. I used to think that Seinfeld, Saturday Night Live and Night Court were the shows that attracted me to this place, but now I know that the seed was planted by Sesame Street. The griminess, the eccentric characters, the family that's made up of people that aren't connected by blood. Some don't even have blood, just Felt.

This book doesn't just cover the well known shows. It also gives great information on lesser known programs like Electric Company and Zoom, a Boston based show that has a fascinating history that I would definitely read more about. Kamp definitely has an affection for these types of programs and for a time when people believed humanity could be perfected. I hope we can get back there some day soon.

I plan to "swoon" about this book on my podcast Learning The Tropes closer to the release date.