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Journey to Ernie is a recurring Sesame Street segment which focuses on Big Bird's hide-and-seek game with Ernie. It premiered in Season 33 and features the Muppet characters interacting with computer-animated backdrops.

The format for the segment would change after its first season on the show. In the original format, Ernie hid inside a box with a striped pattern similar to that of his shirt. Big Bird had to locate Ernie's box, a task he usually accomplished after finding two other, similar boxes which did not contain Ernie. Big Bird's discovery of an incorrect box triggered a non-Ernie sketch or film while the revelation of the correct box launched a segment prominently featuring Ernie.

In season 34, the format was changed. Now the segments begin with Ernie interrupting Big Bird's normal routine with a challenge to play the game. The animated environments in the new format are more fully realized than in the previous incarnation of the segment and Ernie no longer hides in a box. Big Bird now searches based on clues from Ernie, and the Two-Headed Monster appears regularly to offer some not-so-helpful advice. The new format also saw the introduction of a closing song sung by Big Bird and Ernie.

  "It was very popular, especially among the younger children, [Dr.] Rosemarie [Truglio] says. "They loved th game of hide and seek." But however popular the segment was, writers and the producers felt it wasn't 'Sesame' enough, and wasn't a comfortable fit. The look and feel of the animation was too similar to other shows on the television schedule and, while funny, it didn't mesh with the whole show.^[1]  

Matt Vogel performs Big Bird in all of these Journey to Ernie segments.

Sequences from the Original Format (2002)Edit

All of these sequences were repeated in other Journey to Ernie sketches during season 33, in different sequence orders. With the exceptions of the introduction and closing, each sequence ended with Big Bird finding Ernie. These parts were edited from sketches that showed these sequences as the first and second sequences.

Picture	Location	First Appearance	Description
	Intro	Episode 3981	Introduction of Journey to Ernie.
	Space	Episode 3981	Big Bird is in Outer Space, asking a Martian for help.
	Antarctica	Episode 3981	Big Bird follows a penguin pattern at a snowy location.
	The Disco	Episode 3982	Big Bird looks for Ernie at a disco.
	Supermarket	Episode 3982	Big Bird searches at the supermarket.
	Circus	Episode 3983	Big Bird walks the tight rope at a circus.
	Dinosaur Land	Episode 3984	Big Bird asks a dinosaur for help.
	Chicken House	Episode 3984	Big Bird talks to chickens.
	Vortex	Episode 3984	Big Bird looks for Ernie's box by repeating a clapping pattern.
	The Farm	Episode 3993	Big Bird looks for Ernie's box by singing Old MacDonald Had a Farm with the Three Little Pigs.
	End	Episode 3981	Big Bird and Ernie close the segment.

Segments (2003-2005)Edit

Picture	Location	Earliest Known Appearance	Description
	Rubber Duckie Land	Episode 4066	Big Bird goes to a land filled with Rubber Duckies.
	Jungle	Episode 4034	Big Bird looks for Ernie in the jungle.
	Dinosaur Age	Episode 4095	Big Bird goes to the land of dinosaurs. Video: Dinosaurs!
	Beanstalk	Episode 4059	Big Bird climbs a beanstalk. Video: A Magical Halloween Adventure
	Nursery Rhyme Land	Episode 4057	Big Bird meets characters from nursery rhymes. Video: The Street We Live On
	Musical Instrument Land	Episode 4031	Big Bird looks for Ernie in a land that is filled with musical instruments, many of which play "Rubber Duckie."
	Beach	Episode 4039	Big Bird looks for Ernie at the beach.
	Journey to Big Bird	Episode 4058	Ernie and Big Bird switch places and Ernie looks for Big Bird at a circus.
	Barnyard	Episode 4038	Big Bird looks for Ernie at a barnyard by asking questions to the animals there.
	Journey to Bert	Episode 4108	Bert replaces Ernie in the game, and Big Bird looks for Bert in a place where there is a lot of food.
	Shape Land	Episode 4043	Big Bird hunts for Ernie in a land full of floating geometric shapes.
	One of These Things	Episode 4062	Big Bird looks for Ernie in a land full of animated boards for the classic song/game (He learns that sometimes more than one answer is right).
	The Letter B Museum	Episode 4096	Ernie hides in a museum where all the exhibits have names beginning with B. (Bob makes a cameo appearance in this one--not as an exhibit, but as a visitor on his way home.)
	Dancing Land	Episode 4079	Ernie hides in a land full of dancing creatures, plants, and other natural objects; even the sun dances in the sky there.
	Park	Episode 4064	If Big Bird finds something with the words that he saw written in chalk on the pavement, he will find Ernie.
	Chilly, Icy Snowyville	Episode 4071	Big Bird looks for Ernie in the snowy land.
	Transportation Land	Episode 4093	Ernie hides in a land full of transportation vehicles and other things to ride on.

SourcesEdit

1. ↑ Sesame Street: A Celebration - 40 Years of Life on the Street, page 167

See alsoEdit

Ernie and Bert sketches	Cookie Monster sketches	Kermit the Frog sketches

Grover sketches	Herry Monster sketches	Count von Count sketches