Talk: Gordon

Template:Talk

Proto Gordon (Gordon #0/Gordon #1/Gordon #4)

Anyone object to a Proto Gordon page being created? -- Zanimum 21:43, November 12, 2011 (UTC)

Well, if we ever find out the name of the actor, he would get his own page, and the text on the page would include the casting process, and the fact that the actor in the pilot got replaced by Matt. I'm not sure what else would be included on a Proto Gordon page that we don't already have now, other than his name. -- Ken (talk) 04:41, November 13, 2011 (UTC)

I guess it depends on what the contents of the page will be. Do you have something in mind that can't be covered in a section on Gordon? And ditto Ken's remarks; if/when SW finds out who it is, it will certainly be best handled in a section here anyway. —Scott (message me) 04:48, November 13, 2011 (UTC)

I created Who played Gordon in the Sesame Street test pilot? to track the mystery. -- Brad D. (talk) 05:12, November 16, 2011 (UTC)

Gordon #4

Apparently the 1968 test pilot (seen in Sesame Street Biography on the History Channel) had another person playing Gordon before Matt Robinson. Is this true? Who is it? -- Brad D. (talk) 05:26, 30 October 2006 (UTC)

Where'd you hear? And which parts in the 68 test pilot show up in Biography? I can check it out. — Scott (talk) 05:36, 30 October 2006 (UTC)

A Muppet Central forum post [1] , so take the claim with a grain of salt. -- Brad D. (talk) 06:02, 30 October 2006 (UTC)

Are you talking about the clip where Gordon says that Dance is another D word? I always thought that was Hal Miller. --Minor muppetz 15:41, 30 October 2006 (UTC)

According to IMDB, the person's name is Carl Gordon. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1026193/ --Awkwardboyhero 19:05, 12 July 2008 (UTC)

IMDb isn't trying to claim that (and isn't the best source on its own anyway). Carl Gordon guest starred in one episode a couple of seasons ago as "Mr. Robinson," Gordon's dad, which is why he's listed further down, not for the pilot. -- Andrew Leal (talk) 19:48, 12 July 2008 (UTC)

I might be able to contact Bob McGrath, since he works at a Music School I go to. I'll bring up the question to him. User:TenCents 12:02, 26 March 2009 (UTC)

Street Gang talks about how Robinson seemed to always be showing the cast how to act, so they decided to use him, rather than the more wooden actor. Something along that line, someone who actually owns the book could likely find it. -- User:Zanimum 16:27, 26 March 2009 (UTC)

Nick, Michael Davis has gone on record to say that everyone he's asked doesn't remember who played the first Gordon. So the answer doesn't lie that way.

TenCents, if you've got an oppurtunity to as Bob McGrath, that would be great! Davis might not have asked him. —Scott (talk) 18:27, 26 March 2009 (UTC)

Maybe Mike Davis should ask the person in charge of residuals for the A&E Biography and Old School: Volume 2. I'm sure they would have to know who to pay for the use of that Gordon actor.--Minor muppetz 14:39, 27 March 2009 (UTC)

For the record, residual systems applying to home video or clip excerpts (still a tricky area) wouldn't have existed at the time, and they definitely weren't usually applicable to pilots and test films, which weren't generally expected to be rerun anyway; it's likely none of the actors involved in the test pilots had residual contracts until the series proper launched. -- Andrew Leal (talk) 17:40, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

I am sad to say that Bob left the board of my music school before I had a chance to speak. "The Mystery of Gordon" is going to remain a mystery for a while. User:TenCents 19:47, 28 July 2009 (UTC)

New news. Apparently Bob and Lorretta Long have been asked about the original Gordon. Unfortunately, not even they can remember. I think that's why 40 years of Life on the Street doesn't have his name. --Rankin (talk) 02:29, April 24, 2010 (UTC)

Gordon's parents?

Are these Gordon's parents? I know in episode 4061 (season 35), Carl Gordon appeared as "Mr. Robinson", but I didn't think that they had appeared before then. -- Zanimum 14:56, 28 August 2006 (UTC)

No, that's the late Ossie Davis and his wife Ruby Dee. Whether they even appeared on the series (though Davis provided narration for a video sketch) or just for the publicity photo, as pioneering black actors/activists, is unclear. Gordon's father did appear in earlier seasons, played by a different actor. -- Andrew Leal (talk) 18:39, 28 August 2006 (UTC)

Last Name

Sesame Street Unpaved tells a different story about Gordon's last name. It says this: "Gordon and Susan never had last names until baby Miles came along. When they adopted Miles, they needed a last name for the adoption certificate. That's when they selected "Robinson", in honor of Matt Robinson, the first Gordon on the show."--Alex (talk) 19:20, 24 August 2006 (UTC)

True, but to be frank, I'm more likely to accept Orman's version, inasmuch as he actually plays the role, in contrast to a writer hired to cover the series in a glossy and useful but not wholly infallible coffee table book. If you care to list the alternate explanation, though, feel free to add it. I like to think that at some point, we'll have info on both the episodes mentioned, and can thus fully determine which came first. -- Andrew Leal (talk) 19:18, 24 August 2006 (UTC)

Was this in his auto-biography, or somewhere else that he said this? -- Zanimum 17:36, 26 August 2006 (UTC)

The source is already cited on the page. The Williams book. -- Andrew Leal (talk) 21:28, 26 August 2006 (UTC)

So wait, what Williams book? — Scott (talk) 03:34, 23 September 2006 (UTC)

I meant Lance. The one cited on this page. Written Out of Television. That's all. -- Andrew Leal (talk) 03:52, 23 September 2006 (UTC)

I recently read a post at Muppet Central from somebody who remembers Gina's first appearance being one where she was one of Gordon's students. It was said that she came to Sesame Street looking for him for some reason, and asking everybody if they had seen Mr. Robinson, but they only knew him as Gordon, and didn't know who she was talking about. This could be proof, but of course that's a fans memory, and no episode number was cited. But that would definately be before 1991. --Minor muppetz 16:30, 29 March 2007 (UTC)

Unfortunately, we can't use message board posts as evidence. People's memories can get foggy or confused without even realizing it; it happens all the time. -- Danny (talk) 16:48, 29 March 2007 (UTC)

Yeah. Orman's memory might also have failed him, but the quote in Written Out of Television, which uses "around" as a qualifier, is the best source we have, until we actually uncover the specific episode. -- Andrew Leal (talk) 20:21, 29 March 2007 (UTC)

I was going to write about this myself. Are we certain that we got the story on the main page from Roscoe Orman. He was the one suggested the last name Robinson, but it could have for either reason. Maybe we should indicate the alternative on the main page as well. Garrettk41 23:20, 2 November 2008 (UTC)

Read this whole discussion, Garrett, and see the citation on the article. It was an interview with Orman so we're certain it came from him. It's his memory versus Sesame Street Unpaved, and it's not an alternative as to why the name was suggested (in both versions, it's after Matt Robinson), just a claim that it happened earlier, and the Unpaved book has been mistaken in various areas. -- Andrew Leal (talk) 02:35, 3 November 2008 (UTC)

Street Gang has a paragraph abbout that episode I read about at Muppet Central, so we know that it exists. However, it doesn't say anything about Gordon's last name being mentioned. --Minor muppetz 22:41, 12 January 2009 (UTC)

Teaching level

I know Gordon is a science teacher, but which grade level? Is it elementary school, is it middle school, or, is it high school? Glickmam 08:37, 26 February 2007 (UTC)

I'd rule out elementary school based on two things: (1) Gina (who began as a teenager on the show) was one of his students; and (2) the classroom that Telly visits includes some chemistry equipment that no grade-school teacher would let kids use. -- Ingeborg 20:20, 10 February 2008 (UTC)