It’s probably my lack of imagination, but I never even considered that Bert and Ernie were in a gay relationship until I read some references to that possibility a few years ago. I can see why gay men might want to think that and also how the two muppets fit certain stereotypes about gay couples, but I don’t know that it’s cool to appropriate them as symbols of the struggle for gay rights. It’s not that muppets shouldn’t be sexualized. After all, Miss Piggy and the Swedish nurse are intentionally sexualized. But Bert and Ernie are not intentionally sexualized. They appear to me to be more like Felix Unger and Oscar Madison than a couple in physical love with each other. They are close friends that suffer compatibility issues. They drive each other nuts but get along anyway. And I think that is the point that the creators wanted to convey to young children.
Still, there is something silly about people arguing about muppets, teletubbies, and other made-up characters.
Bert and Ernie were clearly modeled after the Odd Couple, which was a hit movie shortly before Sesame Street was launched.
On the other hand, Tinky Winky’s story is more involved ….
I always thought Bert and Ernie were modeled after Bert and Harry Piel, animated characters for Piels Beer commercials in the 1950s. Played by the famous comedy team of Bob Elliott and Ray Goulding (better known as Bob & Ray), the characters were modeled on the actual Bob & Ray, who, as far as I know were not gay. In both cases, one character is tall with a long head, the other is short with a round head. With Bert & Harry, it’s the short one that’s irascible and the tall one that’s phlegmatic; with Bert & Ernie it’s the opposite.
Sheesh. Jim Henson laid this to rest years ago. Bert and Ernie don’t have a “down there”.
You last sentence applies. It really is a rohrscharch test of their minds.
Most folks thought they were brothers who had to share the same room.
But I can understand why some folks would be appropriating the intended slander for their own political uses.
The sistas on my black women’s group on Facebook were teeheeing about this one. We also wondered whether Tinky Winky would be coming out shortly.
Frankly, I think that the New Yorker would have had to consult some people before they would have published this cover. The late Jim Henson himself said that Bert and Ernie aren’t sexual beings yet; they were strictly a creation of himself and Frank Oz. It’s no secret though that a couple of the early puppeteers (particularly the guy who performed Big Bird) were gay. As Disney owns the Henson menagerie, I am sure that the appropriate okays were gotten.
But you cannot stop some people from thinking that a cigar is not just a cigar.
Bert and Ernie strike me as one of those things that made sense at the time, but in retrospect is sort of unintentionally funny. I’ve heard the jokes for years. I mean, they take baths together…
A lot of kids characters are like this, really. Weirdly out of context, fragmented, dreamlike. Think Snuffleophagus (sp?), Barney, Teletubbies, anything with Pee Wee herman, those odd Australian guys. They’re designed to fit into the world of the child, which is also out of context, confusing, colorful, and weird.
So it’s not surprising that to adults, some of this stuff is a little funny. We aren’t part of that world.
Totally disagree.
One thing that differentiated gay rights from other civil rights issues is that no one knew who was gay or not until they started coming out in the last two decades. Eventually, Americans have become surprised that certain people are actually gay.
Just like Bert and Ernie.
Bert and Ernie reminded me of my grandparents–who also slept in twin beds and were married for 62 years.
Booman, please counsel us on the Batman-Robin quandary.
The animated version is totally gay.
Agree that Bert and Ernie do not have the vibe.
Peppermint Patty and Marcy, however, are another story.
…but that would lead to charges of bestiality.
Not for nothing, but what about the cover of the NYer say “gay,” or for that matter, “not gay.” Maybe they are happy and tired. Maybe they fell asleep drunk. Maybe its Rick Santorum and his dog in costume . . .
Exactly. If you don’t read anything sexual in them bathing together, cuddling on the couch shouldn’t be a problem.
Those searching for strange and bizarre Muppet life need look no further than the Land of Gorch.
They’re on the couch together, watching the SCOTUS on TV. Yes, it implies — with tongue clearly in cheek — a same-sex relationship.
But it’s no more “sexualized” than a family picture on an office desk. You know the type. The one that’s pretty much taken for granted … unless it depicts a same-sex couple, n which case they’re flaunting their sexuality.
No, as a child I didn’t think about their lifestyle. I wasn’t bothered by Oscar living in a trash can, either. But it was probably the earliest example I had of two men who lived together and loved each other. Using them as a symbol of the gay rights movement just strikes me as sweet. Bert and Ernie are old friends of mine. That cover made the victory so much more personal. It brought tears to my eyes. I loved it.
Couldn’t Bert and Ernie be in a same-sex relationship that’s beyond sex?
“Still, there is something silly about people arguing about muppets, teletubbies, and other made-up characters.”
Like, for example, Jesus. I couldn’t agree more.
Okay – who wants to know about MY sex life?
Remember, I am a fictional character – it might be a long trip and a long story.