Sesame Street favourite Cookie Monster is going on a diet.
He is aiming to get healthy during the show's new series reports the New Zealand Herald.
Other characters will also get involved in the health drive. Elmo will be shown exercising.
As part of the project, Cookie Monster, who used to sing that "C is for cookie", will be telling viewers that biscuits are occasional treats. He now sings: "A cookie is a sometimes food."
The producers of Sesame Street will now start with a health tip about nutrition, exercise, hygiene and rest.
Producers deny that Cookie Monster has been placed on a diet. "We would never use the word diet with pre-schoolers," said a spokeswoman.
I'd just like to take a moment to say how happy I am that I got to be a kid in the 80's, before the politically correct banshees descended upon everything that's original or even mildly entertaining. Of course, they'd be more effective if Cookie Monster started each show with "Hey, kid. Get off your lazy ass and go outside and play!" But I suppose screwing up the rhyme scheme of children's songs is one thing. Losing viewers (and revenue) is quite another.
From:
About me: “'But I don’t want to go among mad people,' Alice remarked. 'Oh, you can’t help that,' said the Cat. 'We’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad.' 'How do you know I’m mad?' said Alice. 'You must be,” said the Cat, 'or you wouldn’t have come here.'” -Lewis Carroll