Cool Counting Collection: MC Style

[CoolGuy1013]

Well, you guys (mostly @minor muppetz and me) voted, and now, I think we’ve created a better version of SST’s newest DVD, Cool Counting Collection. In order, here’s what I’ve arranged the most popular, most marketable, most likely on Sesame Workshop’s part, and also a few of my favorite segments into (for segments I felt you wouldn’t recognize, I added links):

• Opening Segment: Song of the Count
• Blue Jay Song
• Ernie and Cookie Monster Count 0 Cookies
• Zero Elephants Cartoon
• How Many Cookies NOTD - 1
• Harvey Kneeslapper - Would ya Like 1?
• We’re the Number 1 Cartoon
• Donnie Budd - Toucan 2-Step
• “A Monster Went And Ate My Red 2” (with Elvis Costello)
• The How Many Game
• Juggling 3
• Number 3 Ball Film (cherry ending)
• 3 Blackbirds Lay 3 Eggs
• “I Just Adore Four” (2000 remake)
• “1234” (with Feist)
• Swinging 4s
• “Five People in my Family”
• “Five By” (with Train)
• Arctic 5
• “Six Circus Balls”
• “Six at Sea”
• “Six Soccer Socks”
• Jazz Numbers - 7
• The Count counts 7 flowers and sneezes
• 7 Haircuts
• “Eight Beautiful Notes”
• Wegman Dogs Form the Numbers 1-8
• Little Miss Muffet - 8 (I promise this is the closest thing to a YT Exclusive on here)
• Numerosity - Song of Nine
• “Count Up to 9”
• 9 - Science Song
• Yip Yip NOTD: 10
• “The 10 Commandments of Health”
• Suzie Kabloozie - Judge #10
• “11 Cheer”
• “Lonely 11 Song”
• 11 Masks
• Pinball Number Count: 12 (original version)
• “12 Little Chicks”
• Number 12 Rocks Film
• “Lucky Thirteen”
• Number Creatures - 13
• “Thirteen’s Not So Lucky” (ironic, I know)
• “Sing a Song of 14”
• “14 Carrot Love”
• “Fourteen Desert”
• Number of the Day - 15
• “How Hard It Is to Be 15”
• “15 Rap”
• The Bellhop - 16 Flights Of Stairs
• African Numbers - 16
• “Sixteen Blues”
• 17 Hats Drop on a Balloon
• Worms in Space - 17
• Rubber Stamps - 17
• The Count Counts 18 Jumps
• “Eighteen”
• Dancing Petroglyphs - 18
• Abstract Count - 19
• 19 - Indian Imagery
• Growing Numbers - 19
• “The Number 20 Song”
• “Clothesline Number 20 Song”
• Parade of Numbers - 20
• Closing Segment: Miami Mice Help the Count
• Credits: NOTD Song - 20

If anyone (especially anyone that voted) has questions about the results, don’t be afraid to ask. Also, this might not be the right section to post this in, so if anyone knows a better place, please tell me.

 

[minor muppetz]

Good list. I wondered if you'd still include segments that made it to the DVD (part of me wondered if we should have just added one classic clip for each number).

Considering the Harvey Kneeslapper segment involved him holding a cookie, it is fitting for "do you want one?" to follow "How Many Cookies?"

Too bad there wasn't a voting option for counting segments that are not particularly about a specific number. I think I would have voted for "Count on Me" with Loretta Lynn, or maybe a higher-than-20 segment (particular ones in my mind include Numberella, Monsterpiece Theater: The 400 Blows, and 50 by 10s). Now part of me wonders if maybe it should have started with "Ernie and Bert: The Count sleeps over - part 1" and ended with part 2 (but then would we have to leave out additional segments with Ernie, Bert, and The Count?).

 

[CoolGuy1013]

Too bad there wasn't a voting option for counting segments that are not particularly about a specific number.

I didn’t think about that until it was too late. Since I was nearly out of time when I did, I ultimately just decided on your suggestion for Miami Mice at the end, and picked the most obvious choice for the beginning.

Now part of me wonders if maybe it should have started with "Ernie and Bert: The Count sleeps over - part 1" and ended with part 2 (but then would we have to leave out additional segments with Ernie, Bert, and The Count?).

I’d say I would. Doesn’t make sense for them to be somewhere else when they’re all still at the apartment.

 

[minor muppetz]

I didn’t think about that until it was too late. Since I was nearly out of time when I did, I ultimately just decided on your suggestion for Miami Mice at the end, and picked the most obvious choice for the beginning.

I’d say I would. Doesn’t make sense for them to be somewhere else when they’re all still at the apartment.

Now I’m remembering that there’s a three or four part segment where Grover watches as a girl counts to a high number (I think 100). Maybe that could have been good inter spread across the segments (though what points do each part end and begin at?).

Or maybe the segment where a girl tells Grover she can count “millions and millions”
And Grover let’s her only to stop at 40 would have been a good way to close it out.
Would be fun to try a few more things like this. Not entirely sure how to go about things, though.

 

[minor muppetz]

One thing I didn’t think about until this week: Miami Mice does involve 20, but it’s counting backwards from 20 (kinda fitting for a numbers collection to end with a lesson on counting backwards), but it seems like it’s not as about 20 as I had thought. Going by the Muppet Wiki description and what fans had said, I did not realize that a lot of it has more to do with planning, as the mice have to figure out a way to get The Count to stop counting and get into the car. Until it came to YouTube, I did not know that a large portion of the segment was The Count going their their closet (I was expecting The Count to show up, say he needs a ride, then they drive him and he makes the countdown - basically eliminating at least a minute of the segment).

 

[CoolGuy1013]

I thought he counted backwards from 10 to launch the rocket.

 

[minor muppetz]

Huh. All this time I thought he counted backwards from 20 (maybe other people’s false memory?). I guess I subconsciously continued to assume that after seeing it online.

 

[CoolGuy1013]

Now for a few post-fic notes:

• Almost everything from the trailer and description is still included, to look as accurate as possible. Luckily, not too much was spoiled by that stuff.
• Unlike the real Cool Counting Collection, only one of each NOTD song is included. One single digit, one low double digit, and one high double digit.
• The original version of “One” from A Chorus Line being sung by Muppet Numbers was recommended a lot, but I felt it was to similar to the “We’re the Number 1” cartoon. I chose the latter because I liked it more.
• The “powder” ending to the Number 3 Ball Film was recently included on the 50th anniversary DVD. I personally found that ending (for the lack of a better term) too tragic and would’ve preferred the cherry ending. Now, I got what I want.
• In addition to its use in the trailer, I have 3 major reasons for keeping “Five By” in particular.
  1. Historical Value - This was Jerry’s final Number segment as the Count, airing a month after his death.
  2. (Hypothetical) Profit Value - Celebrities are often promoted in SST compilation DVDs to appeal to adults.
  3. Sentimental Value (aka Bias) - Both Sesame Street and Train were big parts of my childhood. I wasn’t watching the show when “Five By” premiered, but I’m sure 7-year-old Me would’ve loved it.
• 6 is the only single digit number with no HD segments. But given how the real CCC featured a Sesame Studios video as a 6 segment, it’s only fair.
  • 7 nearly was almost entirely classic material, but I couldn’t find a good way to end it until I saw the 7 Haircuts cartoon.
• I had to make a few tough decisions along the way:
  • For 8, I was debating on including either “Eight Beautiful Notes” Or “Eight is Great” (which is on the real CCC). I nearly picked the latter as a tribute to both Jerry and songwriter Adam Schlesinger, but I thought two HD segments for the same number would seem hypocritical to this idea.
  • A similar decision was made on the song for 9. I couldn’t decide on “Count Up to 9” or “Cloud Nine” (again, on the real CCC). I nearly picked the latter because it seemed more rare, but I decided against it for some reason.
• In general, most HD clips included are not on the real CCC. I mostly picked ones I felt they snubbed hardest.
• I don’t know if “The 10 Commandments of Health” is officially a number 10 segment, but there’s a first time for everything...
• Likewise, if this were real, it’d be the first official release of “Eleven Cheer”.
• I had to clarify the Pinball #12 as the original version due to the real CCC using the remake.
• Like the real CCC, all of Mary J. Blanchard’s counting cartoons are included. I love them all too much to not use even one.
  • On a related note, yes, it’s very funny I included both “Lucky 13” and “Thirteen’s Not So Lucky”. I personally side more with the former, but I like the latter segment more.
• The minute I thought of this idea, I knew I wanted the 2002 NOTD segment to be the 15 one, as it’s my favorite. Luckily, it got more votes than any other ones.
• Many Bellhop sketches were recommended for the draft (mostly 12, 14, and of course 16). They all got 2 votes, so I chose the one for the number I couldn’t decide on segments for.
• The segments from many recurring series where all installments are basically the same were decided on at random. Abstract Count and Parade Of Numbers went to their maximum amounts, while others (like Number Creatures) weren’t so lucky.
• The credits segment being the season 45 NOTD song for 20 was actually used on another (real) SST DVD. I did it myself because I couldn’t find anywhere else to put one.

 

[minor muppetz]

I didn't see the last post about how some choices were made until now.

Good points on the number 8 segments involving The Count. On one hand, the real Cool Counting Collection is the first home video release of Eight is Great and Cloud 9, on the other, I do like Eight Beautiful Notes and Count Up to Nine better and if I was involved with the actual video would have probably included at least one of those (even though they've both been released on video... but the video releases do cut the establishing shots of the castle).