Linda, portrayed by

Linda Bove Linda Bove Waterstreet (born November 30, 1945) is an American actress who performed as (a fictionalized version of) herself in the PBS children's series ''Sesame Street'' from 1971 to 2002. Bove was the first deaf actress to be part of the pro ...

, was a character on the children's program ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) a ...

''. Bove, who is deaf, appeared on ''Sesame Street'' with the

National Theater of the Deaf The National Theatre of the Deaf (NTD) is a Connecticut-based theatre company founded in 1967, and is the oldest theatre company in the United States with a continuous history of domestic and international touring, as well as producing original wor ...

and made her debut on the show in Episode 0243, which aired in April 1971. Initially appearing on a sporadic basis, she became a regular member of the cast in 1975, and continued to appear until 2002. In 2019, Linda returned to the franchise in the television special ''

Sesame Street's 50th Anniversary Celebration ''Sesame Street's 50th Anniversary Celebration'' is a 2019 musical television special to celebrate the 50th anniversary of ''Sesame Street''. Hosted by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, the special aired on November 9, 2019 on HBO, followed by a November ...

'', 17 years after her last appearance. This deaf character communicated only in

sign language Sign languages (also known as signed languages) are languages that use the visual-manual modality to convey meaning, instead of spoken words. Sign languages are expressed through manual articulation in combination with non-manual markers. Sign l ...

but interacted positively with other members of the ''Sesame Street'' community as a normal citizen and resident of

. The person who most often acted as her interpreter was Bob; eventually, he and Linda were portrayed as being in a romantic relationship. Linda made her living as a librarian, and as such she also had an assistant, Micki (Micki Barnett). Micki would read the stories to the children, while Linda communicated them in sign language. The staff writers at ''Sesame Street'' were initially unsure of how to write for her.

explained, "When I joined the cast I found the writers would write about 'How would a deaf person do this?' 'How does a deaf person do that?' And it was just related to my deafness and it didn't feel like they were treating me as a person. I found my character one-dimensional and kind of boring. It showed how brave a deaf person was to do this and that in everyday life. I said it was no big deal. I have a sense of humor; why don't you show that? I can be angry over something. Show that I can have a relationship with another person. Maybe a love relationship with Bob. It's not perfect, but... We do have misunderstandings over sign language, make fun of it, and show the funny side of it. It's OK." Linda also appeared in numerous inserts and sketches, notably the famous silent sketches where Maria (

Sonia Manzano Sonia Manzano (born 1950) is an American actress, screenwriter, author, singer and songwriter. She is best known for playing Maria on ''Sesame Street'' from 1971 to 2015. She received a Lifetime Achievement Daytime Emmy Award in 2016. Her mem ...

) would play

Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is consider ...

and Linda would often play a supporting role, either as a pretty woman or as a second Chaplin if two were required for a particular sketch.

References

Sesame Street human characters Fictional deaf characters Television characters introduced in 1971 American female characters in television Fictional librarians {{tv-char-stub