Little Jerry

PERFORMER	Jerry Nelson
DEBUT	1971
PATTERN	Green

Little Jerry is the lead singer of Little Jerry and the Monotones and has performed several songs on Sesame Street, including "Four," "Telephone Rock," "Proud," and "Mad."

He was named after his performer Jerry Nelson, who recalled in a 2009 interview:

“Little Jerry was Jeff Moss’ thing. I think deep in his heart he wrote that because he loves to sing bass. They were wonderful pieces. They were so much fun to do.^[1]”

Little Jerry originally wore a hippie dashiki through the early 1980s. By Episode 2452 (1988), in which the Monotones visit Sesame Street, Little Jerry began wearing a flashy white and black leather jacket with a chain necklace. For the band's concert performance in Episode 3898 (2000), he also sports a pair of sunglasses.

In the song "Mad," Little Jerry mentions having a naughty little brother and a mother who blames him for the former's misbehavior. They're brought up again in Episode 2452, which makes him mad again.

Evolution

Little Jerry's design evolved from the Anything Muppet hippies that frequently appeared in the early seasons of Sesame Street, particularly in the first season. These nameless utility players had no consistent performer but did sometimes share wardrobe or hair aesthetics with the eventual Little Jerry. While the earliest example was a drummer in "Spinning Wheel," the one that most closely relates to the final character is in "Surprise" (a black haired Lavender AM who sings lead vocals, already performed by Jerry Nelson). "Mad" marked the first definitive appearance of the Monotones, and Little Jerry's design would remain mostly consistent from this point forward.

Notes

• In the Shalom Sesame episode "The People of Israel," Mandy Patinkin uses the pronoun "she" when referring to Little Jerry, whose name is spelled "Jeri" for the music video credit.

Video appearances

• Rock & Roll! (1990)

Book appearances

• Grover and the Everything in the Whole Wide World Museum (1974)
• The Sesame Street ABC Storybook (1974)
• Big Bird's Busy Book (1975)
• The Sesame Street Block Party (1977)
• Who's Who on Sesame Street (1977 and 1989 editions)
• The Sesame Street Library Volume 9 (1978)
• The Sesame Street Cookbook (1978)
• The Sesame Street Dictionary (1980)
• City (1982)

Sources