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| Sesame Street | |||||||||
| Close Encounters of the Worst Kind | |||||||||
| Air date | May 15, 1981 | ||||||||
| Season | Season 12 (1980-1981) | ||||||||
| Written by | Judy Freudberg | ||||||||
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| Picture | Segment | Description |
|---|---|---|
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SCENE 1 | Oscar is having a boring day, until he sees something in the sky. Oscar exclaims, "It's a bird, it's a plane, it's... a trash can?!" |
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SCENE 1 cont'd |
Sure enough, a trash can-shaped contraption lands on the ground next to him. The top hatch opens, and a silver creature wearing a helmet peers out. "That was a great landing!" he mutters before catching a glimpse of Oscar. They both realize, to their delight, that they are both Grouches! The silver Grouch introduces himself as Othmar, from the planet Zircon. |
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SCENE 1 cont'd |
Linda, Olivia and Luis arrive on the scene, and realize that a Grouch from Outer Space just landed. Linda shows them how to sign "get lost," and Othmar suddenly feels optimistic about his surroundings. |
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Cartoon | "L" for "Large" and "l" for "little" (First: Episode 1455) |
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Muppets | Maria reads "The Legend of Lord Lester." Lord Lester and his wife, Lady Lulu, love the letter L so much, they send their loyal lackey Louie to fetch things that start with L. He returns with a multitude of items, becoming so exhausted, he quits and decides to live in a lighthouse. (First: Episode 1149) |
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Cartoon | The man is only afraid of one thing: FEAR. (First: Episode 0816) |
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Film | A man shows a boy how to make a wheelbarrow. (First: Episode 1488) |
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Cartoon | "The Little Letter L: A Poem By Louise" Artist: Bruce Cayard (First: Episode 1526) |
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SCENE 2 | Oscar tells Olivia that he's going to the Moon with Othmar in the giant trash can, and asks her to help them with the countdown from 10 to 1. They close the lid of the trash can and prepare for takeoff. Olivia begins the countdown, but Oscar interrupts after realizing he forgot to pack their lunch. Olivia hands it to them and begins another countdown. She covers her ears as the trash can shoots into the air. |
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SCENE 2 cont'd |
As the giant trash can rises further and further into space, Olivia remarks, "Well, now I've seen everything." |
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SCENE 2 cont'd |
Oscar and Othmar notice how different the Earth looks from above (seen via film footage). They pass through the space dump, and then get closer to the surface of the Moon while they eat their sandwiches. Oscar wants to get back to Sesame Street later on, because "I haven't insulted Olivia all day -- she's gonna think I don't care." |
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Cartoon | A rolling circle becomes a square, then a triangle, and various other shapes. (First: Episode 1465) |
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Film | Four Song (Song of Four) (First: Episode 0006) |
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Muppets | Mr. Johnson has been served a bowl of soup, but flags down his waiter to make a complaint. He asks Grover to inspect the fly that's in his soup, but Grover looks under; next to; and above the soup before he agrees to bring out a new bowl. The kitchen is all out of what Mr. Johnson ordered, so he brings him Cream of Mosquito. (First: Episode 1134) |
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Cartoon | Four elephants at the circus Artist: Owe Gustafson (First: Episode 1489) |
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Film | A film of two kids and a goat riding a turtle at a petting zoo is narrated in English and Spanish. Music: Joe Raposo (First: Episode 0486) cut from the Max version |
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Cartoon | How many legs does a horse have? (First: Episode 1523) |
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Muppets | Muppet & Kid Moment — Michelle teaches Herry Monster how to say the name of several body parts in Spanish. (First: Episode 1052) |
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Film | Lizards (First: Episode 0047) |
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Muppets | Two-Headed Monster: RUN (First: Episode 1446) |
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SCENE 3 | Olivia and Linda are doubtful that Oscar and Othmar went to the Moon. While they wait, Linda shows some kids how to sign "moon," "rocket," and "stars." Olivia stages a game where they pretend to be each of the things they signed, and count down from 10 to 1. Olivia, meanwhile, wonders where Oscar is. |
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Cartoon | X in EXIT: Animals sing as they exit a building. (First: Episode 1184) |
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Muppets | Polly Darton sings "Wavin' Goodbye to You with My Heart." (First: Episode 1475) |
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Film | The Alphabet Dancers make a letter X. (First: Episode 0456) |
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Cartoon | A boy counts while erasing things and people. (First: Episode 0008) |
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Song | "Look Around, Look Around", a song about seasons. (First: Episode 0556) |
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Cartoon | The Typewriter gets a check-up with help from an x-ray. (First: Episode 0787) |
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Muppets | Grover watches The Amazing Mumford practice a trick, making a rabbit come out of his hat. Mumford has trouble getting a rabbit to come out of the hat, and both are oblivious to the fact that Grover is turning into a rabbit. (First: Episode 0407) |
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Cartoon | The Story of Cowboy X, with the voices of Jean Shepherd (First: Episode 0325) |
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SCENE 4 | Olivia and Telly Monster explain to Luis about Oscar's trip with Othmar, and that they've drawn a circle in the street for them to land on when they return. Upon their descent, the Grouches squabble over who's really driving and miss their target. |
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Animation | Sand X/x (First: Episode 0638) |
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Muppets | Ernie & Bert — While Bert is reading, Ernie tries to scare him by dressing up as a ghost. When Ernie notices that Bert left his chair while he fetched a white sheet, Ernie sits down in the chair and relaxes, until Bert enters the room and startles him. (First: Episode 1448) |
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Cartoon | Rocks aren't alive, so it must be a turtle. (First: Episode 1519) |
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Muppets | Big Bird sings "Without People." |
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Cartoon | A man sees a giant OUT, yells the word, and everyone runs out of it. (First: Episode 0550) |
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Film | Flamingos Music: Joe Raposo (First: Episode 0450) |
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Animation | The mountains make a snack for a bird, but he forgets to brush his teeth afterward. (First: Episode 1429) |
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Insert | Various things in a kitchen become CERRADO. (Luis voice-over) (First: Episode 1343) |
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Cartoon | In Spanish, a man makes everything in the room cerrada, and considers making the basket abierto if only for the guitar band inside. (First: Episode 0771) |
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SCENE 5 | Othmar announces it's time for him to return to planet Zircon, "Sailing through the stars, across the vast universe... Carl Sagan, eat your heart out." The cast counts down his blast-off, but his ship collapses. Othmar asks Oscar to call him a taxi. "Okay, you're a taxi!" Luis announces the sponsors, and the credits roll. |
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CLOSING SIGNS | Kermit holds the Sesame Street sign, while two kids hold the CTW sign. |
Notes[]
- Behind the scenes footage of the episode, including the story meeting and shooting, appears on 40 Years of Sunny Days. A graphic erroneously labels it as coming from season 14, in reference to its repeat that year.
- Oscar would launch into space again in Episode 1714.
Gallery[]
Behind the scenes footage:
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| Episode 1569 | Episode 1571 |