Sesame Street Ep #276
Big Bird and Zombie Snuffy
This immediately transitions to another truly watershed Sesame Street moment: the debut of Big Bird’s best friend in the whole world, Mr. Snuffleupagus! Or almost. That is to say there is a huge, woolly mammoth type creature who appears as Big Bird is about to water his flowers, and he calls himself Snuffleupagus, but…let’s just say he isn’t quite yet the Snuffy he will later be.
Although Snuffy would always be a bit more downbeat than Big Bird, this one is practically clinically depressed, with a voice that would make Eeyore sound cheerful by comparison. His body also seems a bit droopier, looking more like a baggy costume than the more beautifully articulated body we’re used to. That, however, isn’t the truly jarring difference, which are his huge, sickly yellow eyes which make him look like an undead zombie mammoth. It’s kind of a wonder that Big Bird doesn’t jump out of his skin right there, because this guy is terrifying to behold.
But anyway, our ever-friendly bird offers to cheer Snuffy up and thinks that watering plants together might be a good way. Snuffy responds by lifting his trunk and spraying water all over them, which delights Big Bird to no end, although since we don’t see Snuffy lift the water from anywhere first, it comes across as a little disturbing. Does he store the water in his trunk? Is this not water at all? Ewwww.
Then, we get to the classic Big Bird/Snuffy scene set-up. Big Bird tells him to wait right there so he can fetch his friends to introduce them to him, but by the time he’s called Gordon, Susan, David, and Rafael over there, Snuffy has disappeared, leaving them all to assume that the bird’s lost his mind. No, not really. They actually just think he has an overly active imagination and that Snuffy is his imaginary friend, but the way they literally laugh in his face is insensitive to say the least. At the time, Big Bird’s continual frustration at Snuffy always disappearing before anyone else could see him was a running gag.
Later, however, the Children’s Television Workshop people worried that this was sending a bad message to kids. After a number of child abuse/molestation cases came to light in the early ’80s, they realized that there was a problem with making light of adults repeatedly disbelieving a child’s seemingly outlandish stories. They wanted children to rest assured in knowing that their parents would take them seriously. Why, even when it is make believe, it’s better child psychology to engage in their imagination with them rather than to just write it off like this. But that’s still 14 years to go (1985) at this point! It’s fascinating to observe an earlier era’s approach to child psychology, however, particularly given how well-researched by top experts of the time it was.
Up next, a short film of gibbons screeching because why not? and then another sketch they were still playing in the 80s, “The Great Cookie Thief”! All the way back in my first Sam and Friends post, I talked about how parodies of old Westerns were a staple running throughout Jim Henson’s career, also cropping up in his Tale of Sand screenplay and the big Kermit vs. Doc Hopper showdown in The Muppet Movie. I’m not sure whether or not this is the first Western parody Sesame Street did, but it’s the first I’ve come to so far, and there are many more to come, particularly once they add the cowboy character, Forgetful Jones.
The Great Cookie Thief
Either way, this is a really fun sketch that teaches how to compare things that are the same via a Wanted Poster hanging on a saloon wall that depicts “the Great Cookie Thief,” naturally played by Cookie Monster, who is also standing right next to it, wearing the same black cowboy hat as he is in the picture. A group of frightened cowboys across the bar suspect it might be him so continue to send one of their own over to him to make sure. At first, the man points out that Cookie and the Thief have the same googly eyes. Then he confirms that they have the same blue far. Finally, he notices they both have the same hat, and therefore is convinced. When the group approaches Cookie to confront him, however, he says, “But not have same mustache,” and then immediately afterwards distracts them by pointing away and saying, “Look over there!” and as their heads are turned, he draws a mustache on the picture. When they refocus their attention on him, they reiterate that he doesn’t have a mustache. He points to the picture, saying, “But he does!” And they fall for it, apologizing profusely…until he takes off his hat and dozens upon dozens of cookies fall out!
And right after that we have what is easily the best “One of These Things…” so far, largely thanks to Kermit, making his triumphant return to Sesame Street. And they actually play two rounds, the first of which features 3 tools and 1 shoe, but the second of which is the truly outstanding one. This poster depicts 3 birds and 1 frog. Afterwards, Kermit–who gives a very uncharacteristically-for-him Ernie laugh for a split-second, making me wonder whether Jim got the two similarly voiced characters momentarily confused–says that the difference between them is that “the 3 birds are kind of oogy and feathered-looking, but the frog…is lovely and handsome and a beautiful thing to behold.” Susan innocently tells him, though, that the frog doesn’t belong. “The frog doesn’t belong?” Kermit asks. “Well, if I don’t belong, excuse me!” and he marches off in a classically offended-Kermit huff. Beautiful. Also of note is that they still haven’t quite figured out how to finish the song at this point. It starts out strong, but once they get to the “if you guessed which thing…” part, it still trails off awkwardly.
Then we have two songs, in quick succession, a film with footage of chickens and eggs set to a song about which came first, and then another installment of “People in Your Neighborhood,” with a pair of teachers and a newsdealer. And then another one of the all-time classic sketches set in Bert and Ernie’s bedroom at night. Ernie wakes Bert up while telling him he’s having trouble sleeping, and so Bert suggests he count sheep, which Ernie tries, as Bert falls back asleep. He must have been practicing his “Visual Thinking,” however, because as he counts them, drawings of sheep actually jump over his and Bert’s beds, each one making a “baaa!”-ing noise, which wakes Bert up. Soon afterwards, however, Ernie decides to start counting fire engines, each of which comes with a siren that’s so realistic and loud, they wake up Bert even more violently than before. When Bert asks him why he switched to fire engines, Ernie told him that he was finding sheep-counting boring, which is funny, because that is of course the point: to lull yourself to sleep. Finally, he agrees to count something that won’t make any noise. Bert goes back to sleep and Ernie starts to count a balloon, however said balloon grows bigger and bigger, as it continues to inflate until finally it bursts with such a huge explosion that it shakes the entire apartment building! Bert screams and faints.
What I love most about this sketch is its another one that proves that the very Sesame Street universe shifts to Ernie’s whims and often works against Bert. It’s one thing when Ernie deliberately pranks Bert, but in cases such as this and the blackout that occurred when Ernie was taking a bath, events that seem outside of Ernie’s control conspire to help Ernie drive Bert crazy. The only other logical explanation is Ernie actually having magical powers, which…maybe.
Ernie counts sheep.
This is followed by an…erm…riveting scene in which Tom shows 3 different kinds of brushes to some kids. Sheesh. Can you believe they didn’t keep this character longer? And then we have a documentary film/song about a whale having his teeth brushed, which I vaguely recall from childhood, and then the final official sketch of the day. After a full season with none, we finally have another Kermit Lecture! Yaaaaaaaay! *kermitflail* Kermit starts off by saying he’s going to speak about long vs. short, and then who should arrive but our fuzzy little pal, Grover, greeting Kermit with his typical, “Heyyyyy, froggy baby!” greeting, followed by “How are you doing, little froggy?” Grover’s such a sweetie pie.
And Kermit practically braces himself for what his “help” will entail, but as it turns out, Grover actually does a good job this time, at first bringing on a very short ladder to demonstrate the first word, and then a very long one for the second. And although it seems like Grover has bitten off more than he can chew in attempting to drag the huge ladder on screen, the sketch ends with a terrific comedic twist when, after Grover has marched off screen holding the top of the ladder and we continue to see the ladder move behind him, who should be at the very end of the ladder but Grover again?!
We close on Undead Snuffy reappearing to Big Bird–you couldn’t have come when the others were around?!–and the two waving goodbye to us. “Where did you go?” Big Bird asks, and he responds, “I suppose so…” What do you even mean, Snufflupagus? Stop evading the question!
And please come back on Thursday for our first set of Sesame Street Season 3 clips!