Author Description

<b>One of the “Best Books” of the year from <i>The Smithsonian, The Washington Independent Review, </i>and more!</b><br> <br><b>From bestselling writer David Kamp, the “fun, fascinating, and surprisingly touching,” (<i>People</i>) behind-the-scenes story of the cultural heroes who created the beloved children’s TV programs <i>Sesame Street</i>, <i>The Electric Company</i>, <i>Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood</i>, <i>Free to Be…You</i> <i>and Me</i>, and <i>Schoolhouse Rock!</i>—which transformed American childhood for the better, teaching kids about diversity, the ABCs, and feminism through a fun, funky 1970s lens.</b><br> <br><b>With a foreword by Questlove.</b><br><br>In 1970, on a soundstage on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, a group of men, women, and Muppets of various ages and colors worked doggedly to finish the first season of a children’s TV program that was not yet assured a second season:<i> Sesame Street</i>. They were conducting an experiment to see if television could be used to better prepare disadvantaged preschoolers for kindergarten. What they didn’t know then was that they were starting a cultural revolution that would affect all American kids.<br> <br>In<i> Sunny Days</i>, bestselling author David Kamp captures the unique political and social moment that gave us not only <i>Sesame Street</i>, but also Fred Rogers’s gentle yet brave <i>Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood</i>; Marlo Thomas’s unabashed gender politics primer <i>Free to Be…You and Me</i>; <i>Schoolhouse Rock!</i>, an infectious series of educational shorts dreamed up by Madison Ave admen; and more, including <i>The Electric Company</i> and <i>ZOOM.</i> It was a unique time when an uncommon number of media professionals and thought leaders leveraged their influence to help children learn—and, just as notably, a time of unprecedented buy-in from American parents.<br> <br>“<i>Sunny Days </i>is full of such nostalgic jolts…it makes the era a pleasure to revisit” (<i>The Wall Street Journal</i>) and capt