Fact Check: 'Sesame Street' Has Been Parodying Donald Trump Since the 1980s?

Claim:

Since the 1980s, PBS's "Sesame Street" has parodied Donald Trump through the villainous character "Ronald Grump," a trash-loving real estate developer.

Rating:

True ( About this rating? )

The character "Ronald Grump," a parody of New York real estate mogul Donald Trump, has appeared sporadically on the Public Broadcasting Service children's television series "Sesame Street" since the late-1980s, long before the businessman was elected U.S. president in 2016.

Over the years, social media discussions have frequently featured this "Donald Trump" character, such as on X in 2015 and on Reddit in 2017 ( archived ), where a post on the r/television subreddit highlighted the character's history: "Sesame Street has aired several episodes about the villainous and trash-loving real estate developer 'Ronald Grump' since the 1980s."

Sesame Street has aired several episodes about the villainous and trash-loving real estate developer "Ronald Grump" since the 1980s
by u/greedo4president2016 in television

Notably, Academy Award-winning actress Mira Sorvino also tweeted about the character in 2020, expressing nostalgia for "Sesame Street's goodness" in response to a detailed series of posts from writer and filmmaker Ted Geoghegan about the character's history on the show:

(Mira Sorvino/X)

To clarify, while it's true that "Sesame Street" has parodied Donald Trump with the villainous character "Ronald Grump" since the 1980s, there have been four "Sesame Street" characters based on Donald Trump: two Muppet characters named Ronald Grump and Donald Grump, who belong to the Grouch family of Muppets; the human character Ronald Grump, played by actor Joe Pesci; and a dedicated Trump Muppet called Donald Trump Muppet, who had a more humanoid appearance than the two Grump characters of the Grouch family.

Snopes reached out to the Sesame Workshop — formerly known as the Children's Television Workshop, the nonprofit organization that has produced "Sesame Street" since it premiered in 1969 — to discuss the inspiration of the Ronald/Donald Grump character but they did not immediately respond.

The First Appearance of Ronald Grump the Grouch

In 1988, the Muppet character Ronald Grump, a notable Grouch builder, debuted in Episode 2399 of "Sesame Street." Ronald Grump, a parody of Trump, reflected the ostentatious persona and bombastic style of the real estate mogul.

In this episode, likely nodding to Trump's New York skyscraper Trump Tower, Ronald Grump proposed building "Grump Tower" on Oscar the Grouch's property. Grump offered Oscar residence in the new building along with a small amount of trash in exchange for his compliance. Oscar agreed, and construction of Grump Tower began.

However, the arrangement turned sour when Oscar learned he could not keep his pets, Slimey the worm and Fluffy the elephant, in the new tower. Opting out of the deal, Oscar then faced Grump's demand for 40 bags of trash to relocate the structure. Lacking the necessary "currency," Oscar received help from the other residents on Sesame Street to fulfill Grump's demand, outmaneuvering him.

In the 1994 TV special " Stars and Street Forever ," part of the 25th anniversary celebration of "Sesame Street," the character Ronald Grump reappeared in human form, played by "Goodfellas" actor Pesci. Portrayed as a villainous real estate developer, Grump intended to demolish Sesame Street to construct Grump Tower, a plan that faced opposition from the beloved residents of the neighborhood.

In 2005's Episode 4104 of "Sesame Street," during the height of Trump's reality TV show "The Apprentice," the show introduced a second Grouch character named Donald Grump parodying Trump. This character had a familiar shock of orange hair flopping across his head and boasted about having more trash than any other Grouch in the world, to the extent that it spilled out of his trash can.

Characterized by his excessive trash and frequent bragging, this Donald Grump searched for a Grouch apprentice to help him sort through his enormous pile of trash. The chosen apprentice would even get to keep some of the sorted trash. Several characters competed for the job, which the Muppet character Elmo ultimately won by performing all tasks correctly. However, in a twist, Donald Grump immediately fired Elmo for being too efficient, as Grouches traditionally preferred things to be done poorly. Despite being fired, Elmo received Grump's hairpiece as a consolation prize.

Additionally, according to Muppet Wiki , another Muppet caricature of Trump was created for the episode and was meant to appear as a taxi driver. However, this particular scene did not make it to the final broadcast and the character appeared only in promotional photos.

Any Plans for More Donald Trumps on 'Sesame Street'?

In 2017, The Washington Post received the following statement from Lizzie Fishman, a spokesperson for Sesame Workshop regarding the future of the character:

It's been over ten years since we featured the Donald Grump character and we have no plans to bring him back… As you know, our content has always been politically agnostic. We've parodied many pop culture icons and television shows such as Game of Thrones, Law & Order, and the Voice, as well a range of news organizations including CNN and Fox News, and newsmen Walter Cronkite, Dan Rather, and Bill O'Reilly.

Following reports of then-President Trump's potential funding cuts to PBS , the network released the following statement in 2017:

Sesame Street was created to provide early access to education for all children. Research shows that high quality preschool educational experiences are a key determinant in an individual's lifelong learning outcomes. PBS makes Sesame Street available to all Americans, and thereby continues to play a major role in helping less privileged kids gain access to preschool education that has proven and enduring value. While Sesame Workshop currently receives no direct funding from CPB or PBS, we stand firmly and passionately in support of the vital public investment that allows them to continue this important work.

The claim "Sesame Street" has parodied Donald Trump since the 1980s with characters named "Ronald Grump" or "Donald Grump" was true. Ronald Grump, along with subsequent parodies, has been a part of "Sesame Street" lore for decades, humorously reflecting Trump's brash New York persona long before he took political office.

Snopes has previously reported on "Sesame Street," including the true claim the series introduced a family with two dads , and the true claim the Cookie Monster character's "real" name is Sid .

Sources:

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