Sesam Stasjon
Encyclopedia
Sesam Stasjon was a Norwegian
children's television series
that ran on NRK1
based on Sesame Street
. It quickly became the most popular children's show in Norway after its début in 1991, and 198 episodes were made until 1998. Unlike their predecessors from all over the world it is set in a railway station near a town instead of the traditional Sesame Street neighbourhood. Each episode is 30 minutes, of which 15–20 are from the Norwegian production and 10–15 is dubbed from Sesame Street
.
The first episode aired on NRK on February 4, 1991. In the beginning, the plan was to produce 77 episodes all written by Eyvind Skeie. In 1992, Skeie left the production after finishing his contract of 77 episodes. At the same time, NRK told that they wanted to make another 250 episodes to run through 2006. However, the series would not survive that long. NRK decided that the resources used to produce Sesam Stasjon could be used better elsewere, so NRK decided to pay CTW to get out of the contract, that would end in 2001. The last scene was recorded April 28, 1999, bringing the total to 198 episodes. However, Sesam Stasjon stayed on the air in reruns until 2004.
The exterior set was built around Lørenskog Train Station, that was provided from the Norwegian railroads (NSB). The station was built in 1901 by architect Paul Due. A tower was added to the building. The station was modified again in August 1991. This time, the inside of the station was changed and opened for the public, so that kids could walk around inside the station. There were also live appearances by the cast and walk-around characters. In 2003 it was decided to change the station back to the original look.
NSB provided two modified train engines from 1940 of the type EL.10. (El10.2504 and El10.2508), these engines was used on the show. Two other and more powerfull train engines (Di2.827 and DI2.839) were also painted with the Sesam Stasjon colors. These trains were not used on the show but was used as passenger trains around Norway. The passenger cars were painted BFV1 cars, restored Donnerbüchse (Thunderbox) cars that had been abandoned in Norway by the German army after the second world war. There were also some open passenger cars that were used during the summers, these cars were made out of cargo cars also called Gs cars.
Some of the episodes were like mini-series; the storyline would continue where the last episode left off. One of these longer stories was about how Alfa entered a contest to write a television show. She wrote about her life at Sesam Stasjon, and she won the contest. The entire station was invited to NRK, so they could talk about the show. In a later episode, a TV crew from NRK arrived to shoot the TV show using actors to play Alfa and her friends. These "actors" were the walk-around suits, that were built for live appearances.
The whole production went to New York to observe the American production of Sesame Street. By co-operating with the American production, they got the rights to make their own version of the show. It came out as “Sesam Stasjon”. The special puppets used for the show had to be sent to the Children's Television Workshop
(CTW) whenever they had to be rinsed, because the mechanism used to operate them was confidential. Only Geir Børresen was allowed inside Max Mekker.
The Norwegian producers were Herman Gran and Grete Høien. Eyvind Skeie and Lena Seimler wrote the teleplays, the costumes were designed by NRK's Costume Designer Ellen Andreassen Jensen while Sigvald Tveit wrote the music for the songs from the show. Harald Mæle
was responsible for the voiceover
s for the American cuts. (The Cookie Monster
etc.)
Although not a character, the animated Pinball Number Count segments were also dubbed and used in the show regularly, and the melody is well recognized amongst Norwegians who have watched the show, despite most of them not having seen Sesame Street.
that they were going to produce the show until 2001, as well as retaining a right to show reruns the first five years following, they decided to opt out of the production deal prematurely according to an interview with Kalle Fürst in NRK's Department for Children in 1998. Fürst made it clear that NRK had decided to end production due to lowered ratings, and they wanted to free the resources in order to make new and better shows. Fürst stated that the network had to pay CTW a large sum of money to break the contract when he was asked if they were having economical issues. When asked if there was anyone had opposed the decision, the people who had worked on the show were mentioned as the main force, and Fürst showed understanding of their love for the show and the relationship they had developed between each other while making it.
, which was repainted for the series. Only the station side was repainted in a colourful manner characteristic for Sesame Street, while its backside was yellow and green. The original building was raised in 1901 after drawings by architect Paul Due
, and the architecture is in the direction of Art Nouveau
. A postmodern
clock tower, also painted for the show, was built alongside the station in the 1980s. The station is located on the Trunk Line and is served by the Oslo Commuter Rail. By 2006, after a decision made three years earlier, the clock tower had been taken down and the main building was repainted in its old colours, yellow with brown lists. The actual station has not been operated since 14 June 2000.
Sesamtoget (The Sesame Train) that was used in the show consisted of four parts. Norwegian State Railways
(NSB) converted two old shunters, El 10 no. 2504 and no. 2508, and two Di 2
no. 827 and no. 839. The three carriages used were two earlier German BFV1 carriages, which NSB had taken ownership of after the war
, and a modified goods van
. All of the train parts were painted in the same colourful scheme as the station. El 10 no. 2504 is currently being kept in Grorud
and no. 2508 is stationed in Hamar
, both old and not in regular use. While the Di 2 no. 839 has been repainted, no. 827 is being kept intact by the Norwegian Railway Club in Hønefoss
.
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
children's television series
Children's television series
Children's television series, are commercial television programs designed for, and marketed to children, normally scheduled for broadcast during the morning and afternoon when children are awake. They can sometimes run in the early evening, for the children that go to school...
that ran on NRK1
NRK1
NRK1 is the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation's main television channel. Test broadcasts started on 12 January 1954, regular test broadcasts started on 13 April 1958 and regular broadcasts started in 20 August 1960. It is Norway's oldest and largest television channel...
based on Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
. It quickly became the most popular children's show in Norway after its début in 1991, and 198 episodes were made until 1998. Unlike their predecessors from all over the world it is set in a railway station near a town instead of the traditional Sesame Street neighbourhood. Each episode is 30 minutes, of which 15–20 are from the Norwegian production and 10–15 is dubbed from Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
.
History
In 1987, NRK approached Children's Television Workshop about the possibility to make a Norwegian co-production of Sesame Street. In 1989, an agreement was reached between NRK and CTW, and the production of Sesam Stasjon began in September 1990. As part of the preparation for the show, Kermit Love traveled to Norway in June 1990 to teach the Norwegian puppeteers.The first episode aired on NRK on February 4, 1991. In the beginning, the plan was to produce 77 episodes all written by Eyvind Skeie. In 1992, Skeie left the production after finishing his contract of 77 episodes. At the same time, NRK told that they wanted to make another 250 episodes to run through 2006. However, the series would not survive that long. NRK decided that the resources used to produce Sesam Stasjon could be used better elsewere, so NRK decided to pay CTW to get out of the contract, that would end in 2001. The last scene was recorded April 28, 1999, bringing the total to 198 episodes. However, Sesam Stasjon stayed on the air in reruns until 2004.
The exterior set was built around Lørenskog Train Station, that was provided from the Norwegian railroads (NSB). The station was built in 1901 by architect Paul Due. A tower was added to the building. The station was modified again in August 1991. This time, the inside of the station was changed and opened for the public, so that kids could walk around inside the station. There were also live appearances by the cast and walk-around characters. In 2003 it was decided to change the station back to the original look.
NSB provided two modified train engines from 1940 of the type EL.10. (El10.2504 and El10.2508), these engines was used on the show. Two other and more powerfull train engines (Di2.827 and DI2.839) were also painted with the Sesam Stasjon colors. These trains were not used on the show but was used as passenger trains around Norway. The passenger cars were painted BFV1 cars, restored Donnerbüchse (Thunderbox) cars that had been abandoned in Norway by the German army after the second world war. There were also some open passenger cars that were used during the summers, these cars were made out of cargo cars also called Gs cars.
Some of the episodes were like mini-series; the storyline would continue where the last episode left off. One of these longer stories was about how Alfa entered a contest to write a television show. She wrote about her life at Sesam Stasjon, and she won the contest. The entire station was invited to NRK, so they could talk about the show. In a later episode, a TV crew from NRK arrived to shoot the TV show using actors to play Alfa and her friends. These "actors" were the walk-around suits, that were built for live appearances.
Characters
- Max Mekker: a big blue monster who works at the train station called “Sesam Stasjon”. Good at fixing things, hence the name “Mekker” (about the same as “handyman”). Max Mekker always talks in rhyme. Played by Geir Børresen.
- Alfa: a female yellow muppet resident of the train station. Played by Hanne Dahle.
- Bjarne: a pink muppet who owns a ticket booth. Very fond of numbers and having system in his stuff. Allergic, and therefore doesn't like summer. Played by Åsmund Huser.
- Py: a red muppet with yellow and red hair and the youngest at the station. She was seen hatched from a humongous blue egg that appeared with a train. Played by Christine Stoesen.
- Stasjonsmester O. Tidemand: station master. Played by Sverre HolmSverre HolmSverre Holm Gundersen was a renowned Norwegian stage and film actor. He is probably best known for playing "Benny" in the Olsenbanden-movies , and the leader of the Norwegian child's program Sesam Stasjon with characters based on those from Sesame Street.Sverre Holm was born in Drammen and was...
. - Leonora Dorothea Dahl: a lady working at the train station. Likes to sing and cook. Played by Sidsel Ryen.
The whole production went to New York to observe the American production of Sesame Street. By co-operating with the American production, they got the rights to make their own version of the show. It came out as “Sesam Stasjon”. The special puppets used for the show had to be sent to the Children's Television Workshop
Sesame Workshop
Sesame Workshop, formerly known as the Children's Television Workshop , is a Worldwide American non-profit organization behind the production of several educational children's programs that have run on public broadcasting around the world...
(CTW) whenever they had to be rinsed, because the mechanism used to operate them was confidential. Only Geir Børresen was allowed inside Max Mekker.
The Norwegian producers were Herman Gran and Grete Høien. Eyvind Skeie and Lena Seimler wrote the teleplays, the costumes were designed by NRK's Costume Designer Ellen Andreassen Jensen while Sigvald Tveit wrote the music for the songs from the show. Harald Mæle
Harald Mæle
Harald Mæle is a Norwegian television presenter and voice actor. He made a name in the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation, where he gave the Norwegian voice to the US sitcom Soap , and presented the popular science show Magnus. He has later worked as a voice actor on numerous animated films, such...
was responsible for the voiceover
VoiceOver
VoiceOver is a screen reader built into Apple Inc.'s Mac OS X, iOS and iPod operating systems. By using VoiceOver, the user can access their Macintosh or iOS device based on spoken descriptions and, in the case of the Mac, the keyboard. The feature is designed to increase accessibility for blind...
s for the American cuts. (The Cookie Monster
Cookie Monster
Cookie Monster is a Muppet on the children's television show Sesame Street. He is best known for his voracious appetite and his famous eating phrases: "Me want cookie!", "Me eat cookie!", and "Om nom nom nom" . He often eats anything and everything, including danishes, donuts, lettuce, apples,...
etc.)
Although not a character, the animated Pinball Number Count segments were also dubbed and used in the show regularly, and the melody is well recognized amongst Norwegians who have watched the show, despite most of them not having seen Sesame Street.
Voices
- Magnus Nielsen as ErnieErnieErnie is a fictional character, a Muppet on the Public Broadcasting Service's long-running children's television show, Sesame Street. He and his roommate Bert form a comic duo that is one of the program's centerpieces, with Ernie acting the role of the naïve troublemaker and Bert the world-weary foil...
(Erling) - Harald MæleHarald MæleHarald Mæle is a Norwegian television presenter and voice actor. He made a name in the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation, where he gave the Norwegian voice to the US sitcom Soap , and presented the popular science show Magnus. He has later worked as a voice actor on numerous animated films, such...
as Bert (Bernt), GroverGroverGrover is a Muppet character on the popular television show Sesame Street. Self-described as lovable, cute and furry, he is a monster who almost never uses contractions when speaking or singing....
(Gunnar) and Cookie MonsterCookie MonsterCookie Monster is a Muppet on the children's television show Sesame Street. He is best known for his voracious appetite and his famous eating phrases: "Me want cookie!", "Me eat cookie!", and "Om nom nom nom" . He often eats anything and everything, including danishes, donuts, lettuce, apples,...
(Kakemonsteret)
End of the show
Although NRK had written in a contract with CTWSesame Workshop
Sesame Workshop, formerly known as the Children's Television Workshop , is a Worldwide American non-profit organization behind the production of several educational children's programs that have run on public broadcasting around the world...
that they were going to produce the show until 2001, as well as retaining a right to show reruns the first five years following, they decided to opt out of the production deal prematurely according to an interview with Kalle Fürst in NRK's Department for Children in 1998. Fürst made it clear that NRK had decided to end production due to lowered ratings, and they wanted to free the resources in order to make new and better shows. Fürst stated that the network had to pay CTW a large sum of money to break the contract when he was asked if they were having economical issues. When asked if there was anyone had opposed the decision, the people who had worked on the show were mentioned as the main force, and Fürst showed understanding of their love for the show and the relationship they had developed between each other while making it.
Train and station
The outdoor scenes for the show were filmed at Lørenskog StationLørenskog Station
Lørenskog is a railway station on Hovedbanen in Lørenskog, Norway. The station itself lies just outside of Oslos city limit, but when it comes to fares, it is included in the price paid for a Oslo-ticket...
, which was repainted for the series. Only the station side was repainted in a colourful manner characteristic for Sesame Street, while its backside was yellow and green. The original building was raised in 1901 after drawings by architect Paul Due
Paul Due
Paul Due was a Norwegian architect and significant contributor to the stations built by the Norwegian State Railways.-Biography:...
, and the architecture is in the direction of Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau is an international philosophy and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that were most popular during 1890–1910. The name "Art Nouveau" is French for "new art"...
. A postmodern
Postmodern architecture
Postmodern architecture began as an international style the first examples of which are generally cited as being from the 1950s, but did not become a movement until the late 1970s and continues to influence present-day architecture...
clock tower, also painted for the show, was built alongside the station in the 1980s. The station is located on the Trunk Line and is served by the Oslo Commuter Rail. By 2006, after a decision made three years earlier, the clock tower had been taken down and the main building was repainted in its old colours, yellow with brown lists. The actual station has not been operated since 14 June 2000.
Sesamtoget (The Sesame Train) that was used in the show consisted of four parts. Norwegian State Railways
Norwegian State Railways (1883–1996)
The Norwegian State Railways was a state-owned railway company that operated most of the railway network in Norway. The government agency was created in 1883 to oversee the construction and operation of all state-owned railways in Norway...
(NSB) converted two old shunters, El 10 no. 2504 and no. 2508, and two Di 2
NSB Di 2
NSB Di 2 was a diesel-hydraulic locomotive used by the Norwegian State Railways . The 54 delivered locomotives had three axels and were used as shunters throughout the entire NSB system.-History:...
no. 827 and no. 839. The three carriages used were two earlier German BFV1 carriages, which NSB had taken ownership of after the war
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and a modified goods van
Covered goods wagon
A covered goods wagon or van is a railway goods wagon which is designed for the transportation of moisture-susceptible goods and therefore fully enclosed by sides and a fixed roof. They are often referred to simply as covered wagons, and this is the term used by the International Union of Railways...
. All of the train parts were painted in the same colourful scheme as the station. El 10 no. 2504 is currently being kept in Grorud
Grorud
Grorud is a borough of the city of Oslo, Norway.The borough contains the Ammerud, Grorud, Kalbakken, Rødtvet, Nordtvet and Romsås areas. Traditionally a borough inhabited by the working class, Grorud has in the last few decades had a great influx of immigrants. 40% of the population are first or...
and no. 2508 is stationed in Hamar
Hamar
is a town and municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Hedmarken. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Hamar. The municipality of Hamar was separated from Vang as a town and municipality of its own in 1849...
, both old and not in regular use. While the Di 2 no. 839 has been repainted, no. 827 is being kept intact by the Norwegian Railway Club in Hønefoss
Hønefoss
Hønefoss is a city in Buskerud county, Norway, and the center of the municipality of Ringerike.In 1852, Hønefoss received town status and was separated from Norderhov. Hønefoss celebrated its 150th year of township in 2002...
.