Veggie Monster

[snopes]

http://www.snopes.com/radiotv/tv/veggie.asp

Comment: So, we were in the grocery store and there was Cookie Monster on
a magazine cover. The mother told her daughter that they're going to
rename him Veggie Monster and he won't eat cookies anymore. Her mom said
(and I'm qouting here) 'Snopes didn't say it was false, so it must be
true.' See, your reputation is iron clad! Of course, one google search
proved this to be false. But you know how it is -- it ain't false until
Snopes says it's false (I'm not sure whether to congratulate you on this
or not). Want to save a lot of kids heartache and tell 'em they're not
going to lose their Cookie Monster?

[Ana Ng]

Oh, God. I'm seeing a trend here.

Is "snopes didn't say" the new rallying cry of the rumormongers?

[Wicked Tinkerbell]

Originally Posted by snopes

{SNIP} -- it ain't false until Snopes says it's false (I'm not sure whether to congratulate you on this
or not).

They haven't visited the "Mr. Ed was a Zebra" page.

[Radical Dory]

And according to "Sesame Street Unpaved", Cookie Monster rarely eats real cookies anyway, since the grease and sugar in them can ruin the puppet. He's actually been chowing down on painted rice cakes this whole time!

[Four Kitties]

linkie to old (April 2005) BBC article

The blue-furred muppet who used to sing "C is for Cookie" will now tell viewers that "A Cookie is a Sometimes Food".

"We are not putting him on a diet, and we would never take the position of no sugar," said Dr Rosemarie T Truglio, the show's vice president of research and education. "We're teaching him moderation."

Four Kitties

[snopes]

It is an urban myth that Cookie Monster was turned into Veggie Monster to appease nutrition Nazis, however — that was a blogosphere rumor in the Paul-Is-Dead school of whispering campaigns. But Cookie Monster’s palate was refined during Season 36 as part of the show’s “healthy habits for life” campaign. He now also gobbles fruits and vegetables, which are labeled by the show as “anytime” foods while cookies are held in reserve as “sometime” food. And almost every episode has a subliminal message about exercise and nutrition, along with a fruit bowl.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/08/ar...on/08stan.html

[NorthernLite]

Rather than checking all the papers and magazines let's just ask him.

Cookie Monster interview

[Mateus]

I'm the world's greatest lover and runner-up for world's greatest lawn care expert. Snopes didn't say it was false so it must be true.

[TheLazenby]

Sesame Street itself actually lampooned this rumor in a great skit (which is on YouTube) where Matt Lauer harasses Cookie Monster about eating a bowl of fruit, because that's not what he's supposed to do.