Biff and Sully: Construction Workers?

minor muppetz

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Just recently I've had an observation on Biff and Sully. While they are construction workers and have the hard hats to prove it, it seems like they rarely do any construction work on the show. It seems a lot of their work can just as easily be done by any handyman, not necessarily a construction worker. There have also been times when they have moved things, like a piano, blocks for Johnny Cash, and various luggage for the trip to New Mexico... Do construction workers actually move things? I also recall an episode where Biff did some plumbing at Hooper's Store (and as a result I thought they were plumbers for many years).

They have rarely been shown at construction sites. The sketch where Sully built a piano would be one exception (and do construction workers build pianos?). Another would be the "This is My J" number. Sully was also shown at a construction site in the sketch where Grover ran a newsstand.

Of course there have also been quite a few times when they used drills. That would be realistic for construction workers. And it seems like in many books they are actually shown doing the stuff I associate construction workers with doing.

It's also interesting how they are rarely seen without their hardhats, yet it seems they're rarely in any situations where hardhats are necessary. It's a wonder they didn't also wear safety goggles... Though now that I think about it, they would look cool in goggles.
 

fuzzygobo

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Yes, in their first episode on the construction site, Maria works with them. (Jerry Nelson is dressed as a construction worker as well, helping her up onto a beam, but that's all you see of him).
It established Biff as loudmouthed and not-too-bright, and Sully has to bail him out. Biff's crowning achievement that day was riveting his lunchbox to a girder. As they show the closing credits, Sully is trying to help Biff pry it loose with a hammer and chisel, and smacks Biff's hand. If I was Biff, I'd file for Workman's Comp.
 

minor muppetz

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I had no idea that they worked with Maria in the episode (episodes?) where she was a construction worker. I don't think Muppet Wiki has a page for that episode.

Was Maria a construction worker for more than one episode? It seems there are interviews where Sonia Manzano talks about the evolution of Maria, mentioning the construction worker job, but aside from a clip that appeared in an early 1980s episode where she told Big Bird her life story, I don't think there's any video footage of that among collectors. In fact there are also interviews where she says Maria went through a period of being a feminist. Are there any known instances of her feminism? And is that something to promote on a children's educational show?

Another thing that I remember is that in the Songs from the Street booklet, when the timeline mentions the introduction of Biff and Sully, it says that they were created to simplify difficult things. But what segments are there where they are shown simplifying something?
 
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