Sonia ManZano-Actress/Educator
Sesame Street
Interview with Sonia Manzano-April 23, 2014
picture taken from soniamanzano.com (hopefully with permission)
picture taken from soniamanzano.com (hopefully with permission)
We are honored today to have Emmy Award winning writer/theater/screen/TV actress, author, philanthropist, mother, and teacher, Sonia Manzano. It goes without saying that Ms Manzano has filled our homes with her values of education, warmth, compassion, and love as Maria on Sesame Street since 1971. I have been a big fan of Sesame Streetever since I can remember. It inspired my love of puppetry, and my adoration for Jim Henson. Ms Manzano and the others on the show were a huge influence on the educational philosophy that I use everyday in my classroom; teaching in an environment of mutual respect and an understanding for the backgrounds the students and the content. I also learned to cherish the diversity that is all around us, a lesson that I have carried me throughout my life from working in an orphanage in St Petersburg, Russia to being a Wyoming native teaching in a classroom in Union,New Jersey. However, Ms Manzano has also done extensive work beyond the Street. She is a published author, humanitarian, and praised stage actress; having performed in such notable shows as Godspell, The Vagina Monologues, and The Exonerated. Her devotion to charities and causes for social justice is beyond admirable! In 1988, she was taking Maria to a new level with her television marriage to Luis, and her personal life to a new level by giving birth to her daughter Gabriela (who even got to play Maria’s daughter Gabriela for the first years of her life).We are so excited that Sonia Manzano has agreed to join us to talk about 1988. Welcome Ms Manzano to the 1988 project.
1988project: What do you remember most about 1988?(film wise, politically, personally, whatever you would like to talk about)
Sonia Manzano: That’s easy. The birth of my one and only child Gabriela Rose Reagan, born 4/6/1988!
1988project: How has educational TV changed since 1988?
SM: There certainly are more shows now than ever before with very specific goals to teach. I wish there were more shows that simply nurtured imagination.
‘88: If you could go back to 1988 and change something? Would you and what would you change?
SM: Women wearing shoulder pads. I would go back in time and make them smaller!
‘88: 1988 was a watershed in the rise of the AIDS virus. It was the year that the government began passing laws and working to educate the public about a disease that had been ignored politically for most of the decade. I also know that the disease struck home on Sesame Street in the late 80’s with the diagnosis of Richard Hunt (who would sadly die from AIDS related complications in 1992 (he was the voice behind my favorite characters). What do you remember about this time in American History and in your professional life, as it seemed to be striking down a lot of famous performers in the last 80’s. Especially, as someone who I would recognize as an advocate of education and social issues..
SM: Richard Hunt’s death was a terrible blow to us. The creative community lost many of its stars at that time.
‘88: What was it like to be able to work with your newborn daughter on a show that you had devoted much of your life to?
SM: Not easy! I was concerned with both our performances so my attention was divided. Ultimately she wanted out and I complied with her wishes.
’88: Sesame Street has always had a great way of dealing with diversity, long before other shows have. Even today, the argument persists that not many shows in the TV landscape today portray African American, Asian Americans, or Latino American characters. Since you have been on television, have you noticed the landscape changing for the better or worse in terms of inclusion? On that note, what can the other shows learn from the success of Sesame Street?
SM: Children have to see people like themselves contributing to society in order to want to follow
suit. Sesame Street was the first children’s show to have a diverse cast. Thankfully, now there is much more diversity on television. We were successful on Sesame Street because people were cast based their character and personality, not only their race or heritage. Television would be richer if more people of color worked behind the camera in jobs such as producing and writing.
88: The Lightning fun round:It is 1988, you are listening music on the set. The song you don’t mind
hearing over and over is
a. George Michael’s “Faith”
b. Whitney Houston “I get so Emotional”
c. Beach Boys “Kokomo”
d. Debbie Gibson “Foolish Beat”
e. Bobby McFerrin “Don’t Worry Be Happy”
f. Guns N Roses “Sweet Child of Mine”
g. None of the above, I preferred to listen to
SM: Bobby McFerrin “Don’t Worry Be Happy”
’88: It is 1988, you want to catch a movie. What are you most likely to watch out of the top 10 movies that year?
a. Who Framed Roger Rabbit
b. Rain Man
c. Cocktail
d. Big
e. Twins
f. Crocodile Dundee II
g. Naked Gun
h. Beetlejuice
i.Coming to America
j. None of the above, I preferred to watch
SM: Rain Man
’88: It is 1988, you have downtime. You were most likely to read
a. Tom Clancy’s “Cardinal of the Kremlin”
b. Stephen Hawking’s “A Brief History of Time”
c. Stephen King’s “The Tommy Knockers”
d. Tom Wolfe’s “Bonfire of the Vanities”
e. None of the above, I was reading
SM: Tom Wolfe’s “Bonfire of the Vanities”
’88: It is 1988, you manage to catch some other TV when you are not on TV. Would it most likely be?
a. Roseanne
b. The Cosby Show
c. Cheers
d. The Wonder Years
e. None of the above, I was watching___________________
SM:The Wonder Years
1988: Bonus Questions ; What are you currently working on?
SM: My first young adult novel, The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano was published by Scholastic September 2012. It is about the impact a political group called the Young Lords had on a fourteen-year old girl and her family in 1969 Spanish Harlem here in New York. By the way 1969 is another great year to examine. (It is right at the top of our list, along with 1994)My memoir and a Christmas picture book will be published in 2015. I like to keep busy.
(1988project comment: if you have not picked up a copy of this book, it is magnificent. In a world that is saturated by YA titles, this one really stands out for us as a fresh take on the genre)
The Amazon Link to purchase The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano and her other titles No Dogs Allowed, and A Box Full of Kittens
’88: More of a personal observation—-why didn’t Maria marry David? I remember as a kid sensing a relationship between the two of them and not so much with Luis?
SM: You are right. David and I had a romantic relationship on the show and it was started by Northern [Calloway, who passed away in 1990] and I. We had gone to The High School of Performing Arts together and were old friends. We kind of started to hold hands and the writers picked up on it. Then two things happened, I got married in real life and Northern became too ill to continue being on the show. When I got pregnant in real life the producers decided to develop a romantic relationship between Luis and I (Maria) instead. We were the first reality show. Ha! Ha!
’88: Wow! Thank you! It has truly been an honor to speak with someone who has been such a huge influence on the lives of educators like myself. I tell you what, if I had a time machine I would head back to my childhood self while he was learning how to say “gracias” from you and say, “Hey, one day you are going to talk with her, and she is super nice and super generous with her time”. As a teacher, I always wonder if anything I have said made a difference. I will tell you, as my teacher, you have made a difference. Gracias!
1988project: What do you remember most about 1988?(film wise, politically, personally, whatever you would like to talk about)
Sonia Manzano: That’s easy. The birth of my one and only child Gabriela Rose Reagan, born 4/6/1988!
1988project: How has educational TV changed since 1988?
SM: There certainly are more shows now than ever before with very specific goals to teach. I wish there were more shows that simply nurtured imagination.
‘88: If you could go back to 1988 and change something? Would you and what would you change?
SM: Women wearing shoulder pads. I would go back in time and make them smaller!
‘88: 1988 was a watershed in the rise of the AIDS virus. It was the year that the government began passing laws and working to educate the public about a disease that had been ignored politically for most of the decade. I also know that the disease struck home on Sesame Street in the late 80’s with the diagnosis of Richard Hunt (who would sadly die from AIDS related complications in 1992 (he was the voice behind my favorite characters). What do you remember about this time in American History and in your professional life, as it seemed to be striking down a lot of famous performers in the last 80’s. Especially, as someone who I would recognize as an advocate of education and social issues..
SM: Richard Hunt’s death was a terrible blow to us. The creative community lost many of its stars at that time.
‘88: What was it like to be able to work with your newborn daughter on a show that you had devoted much of your life to?
SM: Not easy! I was concerned with both our performances so my attention was divided. Ultimately she wanted out and I complied with her wishes.
’88: Sesame Street has always had a great way of dealing with diversity, long before other shows have. Even today, the argument persists that not many shows in the TV landscape today portray African American, Asian Americans, or Latino American characters. Since you have been on television, have you noticed the landscape changing for the better or worse in terms of inclusion? On that note, what can the other shows learn from the success of Sesame Street?
SM: Children have to see people like themselves contributing to society in order to want to follow
suit. Sesame Street was the first children’s show to have a diverse cast. Thankfully, now there is much more diversity on television. We were successful on Sesame Street because people were cast based their character and personality, not only their race or heritage. Television would be richer if more people of color worked behind the camera in jobs such as producing and writing.
88: The Lightning fun round:It is 1988, you are listening music on the set. The song you don’t mind
hearing over and over is
a. George Michael’s “Faith”
b. Whitney Houston “I get so Emotional”
c. Beach Boys “Kokomo”
d. Debbie Gibson “Foolish Beat”
e. Bobby McFerrin “Don’t Worry Be Happy”
f. Guns N Roses “Sweet Child of Mine”
g. None of the above, I preferred to listen to
SM: Bobby McFerrin “Don’t Worry Be Happy”
’88: It is 1988, you want to catch a movie. What are you most likely to watch out of the top 10 movies that year?
a. Who Framed Roger Rabbit
b. Rain Man
c. Cocktail
d. Big
e. Twins
f. Crocodile Dundee II
g. Naked Gun
h. Beetlejuice
i.Coming to America
j. None of the above, I preferred to watch
SM: Rain Man
’88: It is 1988, you have downtime. You were most likely to read
a. Tom Clancy’s “Cardinal of the Kremlin”
b. Stephen Hawking’s “A Brief History of Time”
c. Stephen King’s “The Tommy Knockers”
d. Tom Wolfe’s “Bonfire of the Vanities”
e. None of the above, I was reading
SM: Tom Wolfe’s “Bonfire of the Vanities”
’88: It is 1988, you manage to catch some other TV when you are not on TV. Would it most likely be?
a. Roseanne
b. The Cosby Show
c. Cheers
d. The Wonder Years
e. None of the above, I was watching___________________
SM:The Wonder Years
1988: Bonus Questions ; What are you currently working on?
SM: My first young adult novel, The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano was published by Scholastic September 2012. It is about the impact a political group called the Young Lords had on a fourteen-year old girl and her family in 1969 Spanish Harlem here in New York. By the way 1969 is another great year to examine. (It is right at the top of our list, along with 1994)My memoir and a Christmas picture book will be published in 2015. I like to keep busy.
(1988project comment: if you have not picked up a copy of this book, it is magnificent. In a world that is saturated by YA titles, this one really stands out for us as a fresh take on the genre)
The Amazon Link to purchase The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano and her other titles No Dogs Allowed, and A Box Full of Kittens
’88: More of a personal observation—-why didn’t Maria marry David? I remember as a kid sensing a relationship between the two of them and not so much with Luis?
SM: You are right. David and I had a romantic relationship on the show and it was started by Northern [Calloway, who passed away in 1990] and I. We had gone to The High School of Performing Arts together and were old friends. We kind of started to hold hands and the writers picked up on it. Then two things happened, I got married in real life and Northern became too ill to continue being on the show. When I got pregnant in real life the producers decided to develop a romantic relationship between Luis and I (Maria) instead. We were the first reality show. Ha! Ha!
’88: Wow! Thank you! It has truly been an honor to speak with someone who has been such a huge influence on the lives of educators like myself. I tell you what, if I had a time machine I would head back to my childhood self while he was learning how to say “gracias” from you and say, “Hey, one day you are going to talk with her, and she is super nice and super generous with her time”. As a teacher, I always wonder if anything I have said made a difference. I will tell you, as my teacher, you have made a difference. Gracias!