Ernie And Bert

Bert and Ernie are two Muppet s on the long-running PBS Children's Television Show '' Sesame Street ''. The two appear together in numerous skits, forming a comic duo that is one of the centerpieces of the program. In the tradition of many movie comic duos, notably Abbott And Costello , their humor is based on the interaction between a mischievous innocent (''' Ernie ''') and his world-weary partner (''' Bert ''').

HISTORY OF THE DUO

Ernie and Bert were built by Don Sahlin from a simple design scribbled by Muppets creator Jim Henson . According to Frank Oz , Sahlin also defined their characters on the basis of their physical appearance: Ernie was an orange and Bert was a banana.

Ernie was originally performed by Jim Henson until his death in 1990. Muppeteer Steve Whitmire inherited the character. Bert was originally performed by now-director Frank Oz .

When Henson died, Frank Oz commented that he "couldn't imagine doing Ernie and Bert without Jim." Despite this, Steve Whitmire took over performing Ernie. Beginning around 2001, Eric Jacobson took over as Bert's primary performer, although Oz still occasionally performs Bert.

Ernie's rendition of the song '' Rubber Duckie '' was released as a single in 1970 and reached #16 on the Billboard Charts .

RUMORS AND MISCONCEPTIONS

Throughout the history of the duo, rumors have claimed that one (usually Ernie) would die accident or illness. In 1997, the parody website " Bert Is Evil " displayed Bert in a number of doctored photographs, implicating him in crimes ranging from the John F. Kennedy Assassination to those of Jack The Ripper . A similar image from another source and featuring Bert conferring with Osama Bin Laden was mistakenly included by a Bangladeshi print shop on a series of protest signs in late 2001 and 2002. BBC News - Bert in the frame with Bin Laden

Characters named Bert and Ernie appear in the film ''

Ernie and Bert share an apartment in the basement of 123 Sesame Street. Although they sleep in separate beds, this has led some to suggest that they are representations of

Some of Bert's interactions with female characters appear to show that he is attracted to women. Bert serenades ", which was released on several albums.

TRIVIA

Bert and Ernie are seen to have a number of relatives on-screen, with similar names:

---Bert's twin brother Bart, who resembles Bert in every physical way, including, as Ernie puts it, "the same pointy head, cucumbery nose and no-shoulders". Bart's personality is diametrically opposite to that of Bert; he constantly makes weak jokes and imitates a comedy-routine trumpet ("Bart's the name, selling's the game, waah-waah-waah!"). On one occasion Bert's absence from a skit is explained as a visit to his brother.

---Bert's quiet nephew Brad, whose bath is interfered with by Ernie and a number of bath toys.

---Ernie's young cousin Ernestine , whom Ernie encourages to speak by teaching her her own name. To his dismay, the first word she says is actually "Bert!".

Comedian Frank Caliendo refers to renowned broadcasters John Madden and Pat Summerall as "The Bert and Ernie of Football" and how they were broken up by the broadcasting stations.

According to A&E's ''Biography'', Bert and Ernie were the only Muppets to appear in the ''Sesame Street'' pilot episode, which was screen tested to a number of families in July 1969. Their brief appearance was the only part of the pilot that tested well, so it was decided that not only should Muppet characters be the "stars" of the show, but would also interact with the human characters, something that was not done in the pilot.

Bert and Ernie are parodied as Rod and Nicky, respectively, in '' Avenue Q ''.

COMEDY ROUTINES

A typical Bert and Ernie skit follows one of two similar patterns, both beginning with Ernie devising a hare-brained idea and Bert calmly attempting to talk him out of it. Usually this ends with Bert losing his temper and Ernie remaining oblivious to his own bad idea. Sometimes Ernie's idea miraculously turns out to be correct, much to Bert's evident frustration.

An example Bert and Ernie skit is the banana in my ear joke:

:Bert: "Hey, you've got a banana in your ear!"
:Ernie: "What?"
:Bert: "I said, YOU'VE GOT A BANANA IN YOUR EAR!"
:Ernie: "What? I can't hear you; I've got a banana in my ear!"

INTERNATIONALLY

Arab World, '' Iftah Ya Simsim '', Bert is "Badr", and Ernie is "Anis". They're referred to as "Anis w Badr"

Brazil, '' Vila Sésamo '', Bert is "Beto", and Ernie is "Ênio". They're referred to as "Ênio e Beto".

France, '' 1, Rue Sésame '', Bert is "Bart" and Ernie is "Ernest". They're referred to as "Ernest et Bart".

Germany, '' Sesamstraße '', they are referred to as "Ernie und Bert".

Israel, '' Rechov Sumsum '', Bert is "Bentz", a common short-form for the name "Ben-Tzion", and Ernie is "Arik".

Mexico, '' Plaza Sesamo '', Bert is "Beto", while Ernie is "Enrique".

Netherlands, '' Sesamstraat '' they are "Bert en Ernie". Paul Haenen provides Bert's voice, and Wim T. Schippers provides Ernie's.

Norway, '' Sesam Stasjon '', Bert is "Bernt", while Ernie is "Erling". Usually they are referred to as "Erling og Bernt"

Portugal, '' Rua Sésamo '', Bert is "Becas" and Ernie is "Egas". They're referred to as "Egas e Becas", in the opposite order.

Russia, ''''' Ulitsa Sezam ''''', Bert is Vlas and Ernie is Yenik. They're referred to as ''Yenik i Vlas''

Spain, '' Barrio Sésamo '', Bert is "Blas", and Ernie is "Epi". Also, they're always referred to as "Epi y Blas", in the opposite order.

Turkey, '' Susam Sokağı '', Bert is "Büdü", while Ernie is "Edi". They are commonly referred to as "Edi ile Büdü".

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Ernie And Bert