Japanese Stories

In the early 1970s, a series of Sesame Street sketches aired, telling stories from ancient Japan. Relying on traditional Japanese music, punctuated by a ringing gong, the tales were told by a stoic, seated storyteller. Recurring characters within these stories included The Emperor of Japan and The Evil Prime Minister.

Individual sketches
Picture	Title	Earliest Known Appearance	Description
	The Mystery of the Four Dragons	Episode 0355	An aged emperor offers the throne to his son if he can find four dragons hidden in the room before midnight. The Evil Prime Minister thinks that the son will never find the dragons in time. The son defies expectations and succeeds.
	The Emperor's New Gong		The Emperor is dissatisfied with the sound his gong makes. His servants present different gongs for his approval. They're either too loud or too soft, however, until one servant uses his own head as a gong.
	The Unhappy Empire		Japan is being victimized by the evil Prime Minister, who boasts that he will relinquish his post to anyone who shows him something unique. Villagers bring flowers, fans, and hats, identical to those owned by the minister, but a young girl is able to prove that she herself is different from anything else.