"Sesame Street" says farewell to its senior cast members Bob McGrath, Emilio Delgado who portrayed as Luis, and Roscoe Orman who portrayed as Gordon in the long-running children's series.
According to Los Angeles Times, the 84-year-old cast member Bob McGrath who portrayed as Bob of the "Sesame Street" series confirmed on July 2 that he together with his longtime co-stars Emilio Delgado who portrayed as Luis and Roscoe Orman who also portrayed as Gordon had to let go of the long-running children's series.
As the departure of Bob, Luis, and Gordon in the "Sesame Street" series, two original casts remain in the series. These are Loretta Long, who plays as Susan Robinson, Gordon's wife, and the legendary puppeteer Caroll Spinney, who plays as Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch. Bob added in an audio interview from The Muppet Cast, which is a site and podcast dedicated to the work of Jim Henson and The Muppets, that Alan Muraoka and Chris Knowings will still remain in the series since they are still young. He also said that the changes are a part of the popular series' revision as it moves to HBO. The series is also said to have shortened episodes.
The independent production company Sesame Workshop announced back in August 2015 a five-year partnership with the premium cable channel after years of financial struggle. It was agreed that HBO will provide the funding to continue the production of "Sesame Street." However, the long-running series will exclusively launch only in HBO and is still currently in PBS, the traditional home of the show. Chief Executive Paula Kerger of PBS was asked about the issue during a press tour in Beverly Hills and said that HBO has nothing to do with the changes in the production. She also said that Sesame Workshop produced the series and retains the sole creative control over it, making them solely decide on the casting.
To respond on the criticisms, a statement from "Sesame Street" was released on July 28 via Twitter that confirms the changes but stressed out that the three men will always remain as a beloved part of the "Sesame" family, as E! Online reported. Bob had been with the show since 1969, Luis since 1971, and Gordon since 1974, making them the foundational characters since at the beginning of the show.
Here is the video of one of the episodes of "Sesame Street."