UW-Madison officials filed a federal lawsuit Monday against Sesame Street for the use of the letter 'W,' claiming the program teaches children copyright infringement at an early age.
University officials said the lawsuit is necessary to continue the fight for the Wisconsin name and property.
Casey Nagy, special assistant to Chancellor John Wiley, said the public's association of 'W' with the University of Wisconsin was an obvious reason for seeking legal action.
People can say all they want about the oddity of the situation, but we have a serious problem here and we have to protect our name and logo's trademark,"" Nagy said of the second federal lawsuit the university has filed to protect a 'W' in the past year.
Bert, an actor on the show since 1969 and president of the National Association of 'W' Lovers, said he is ""devastated"" at the possibility of losing his ability to use his favorite letter.
""'W' is one of the best letters in the alphabet,"" he said while sniffling. ""If you take away 'W,' you ruin words - I mean Wisconsin is just isconsin without the 'W.'""
Kermit the Frog, a retired Sesame Street actor since 2001, came back Monday to inform the cast and viewers alike when he announced it on Sesame Street News.
In addition to monetary damages for every time 'W' was used in the show's nearly 40-year run, UW-Madison will ask the show to immediately stop using the letter completely. This means the alphabet on the show would not include 'W.'
Big Bird, for the most part a quiet member of the cast, has been the most politically active in mobilizing a child petition to combat the lawsuit.
""Usually, I tell kids to ask a lot of questions to get an answer, and that's what we need here. We need to ask why the college wants children to stop learning the letter 'W.'""
Oscar the Grouch, usually unpleasant on the set, actually spent the entire day Monday smiling.
""You know what 'W' is for? Worthless. We doesn't need it,"" Oscar said. ""Bert can just turn it upside down and love the letter 'M' instead.""
University of Michigan officials did not immediately return calls Monday to comment on whether they would sue.
