Little things we've noticed

[Daffyfan4ever]

Recently I saw the "Waiter Grover" sketch where it is Charlie's birthday", and I'd always noticed that the sketch began with a shot of the outside of the restaurant, but hadn't really wondered why until recently (after all, that's the only sketch I know of where it's shown). But then it hit me why it was in this particular sketch: The neon "Charlie's" sign had the "CH" part flashing on and off, to put emphasis on the "CH" lesson of the sketch.

Also, today while watching the sketch where Danny Devito waits at the bus stop with Oscar and Bruno, I noticed that after Oscar says "This is a grouch bus stop. Right, Bruno?", Bruno actually makes a grunting sound in agreement. I've been watching this on youtube for the past five months, and I hadn't noticed it before (maybe I didn't have the volume turned up loud enough 'til now?). I think I also heard Bruno make a few other similar grunt sounds in the sketch, but I'm not sure.

Yeah. I think Bruno's usaully mute so Carroll Spinney can perform both him and Oscar at the same time. He did have a line in 'Follow that Bird.' I don't think it's Carroll who voices Bruno the few times he speaks. I think someone else dubs the line in, I'm just not sure who.

 

[minor muppetz]

Yeah. I think Bruno's usaully mute so Carroll Spinney can perform both him and Oscar at the same time. He did have a line in 'Follow that Bird.' I don't think it's Carroll who voices Bruno the few times he speaks. I think someone else dubs the line in, I'm just not sure who.

I think it is. Here's a clip where his voice is more heavily heard: http://www.sesamestreet.org/video_p...6de-4d8c-9d89-0bc0822dc61c/bruno_the_trashmen

To me it sounds a bit like Oscar, almost as if Spinney's trying to do a bad impression of one of his characters. And Spinney is the only known performer to have been inside the character (though I didn't know until the 40th anniversary book came out that while Martin Robinson is usally the only performer cited with performing Slimey, the voice is actually provided by sound editor Dick Maitland).

 

[minor muppetz]

I was just watching the "cha-cha palace" sketch (okay, so it's lsited as "Bring Your Own Can Night" on DVD... I'll just refer to it by a more obvious title), and after having it on DVD for 10 months I just now noticed that there's background music playing throughout the segment. I guess I just hadn't had the TV volume turned up loud enough before. But there's music playing (the only music I had previously noticed was the music that plays at the very end).

I also noticed in the "I Wish I Had a Friend to Play with Me" segment that at the end, when Ernie informs Bert that they're playing hide and seek, Ernie tells Bert that he's now "it" after supposedly finding Ernie. But Bert didn't find Ernie, Ernie snuck up on Bert before loudly squeaking Rubber Duckie. Bert didn't even know they were playing hide and seek.

 

[Daffyfan4ever]

I think it is. Here's a clip where his voice is more heavily heard: http://www.sesamestreet.org/video_p...6de-4d8c-9d89-0bc0822dc61c/bruno_the_trashmen

To me it sounds a bit like Oscar, almost as if Spinney's trying to do a bad impression of one of his characters. And Spinney is the only known performer to have been inside the character (though I didn't know until the 40th anniversary book came out that while Martin Robinson is usally the only performer cited with performing Slimey, the voice is actually provided by sound editor Dick Maitland).

Thanks for pointing that out. I'm wondering if maybe it's Marty doing the voice there. That Bruno sounds a bit like Snuffy. I might want to listen to his voice in 'Follow that Bird' again for comparison.

 

[Muppet Frog]

I can tell that the song Don't Throw That Trash on the Ground was Jim's last performance as Ernie because he sounded weak and run-down in this one. When Zoe first wore her tutu in 2002 it was white instead of pink or pale purple.

 

[minor muppetz]

At the end of the Sesame Street News sketch where Kermit interviews Cookie Monster on his first day of school, the teacher mistakes Kermit for a student, but he must not have noticed the camera crew in the classroom (and Kermit did speak to an off-camera crew member at the beginning).

 

[minor muppetz]

This may not count in the same way as others, but in James Taylor's "That Grouchy Face" and "Up on the Roof", I noticed that the drummer looked a lot like Caroll Spinney, with a black beard and afro. I'm sure that was probably Talor's regular drummer at the time. I think there was another musician in those numbers (I'm thinking keyboard/piano player) who resembled Spinney as well.

And in "Sharing", it seems to have good staging. Grover and Prairie Dawn sit on a bench, and there's a small amount of grass/bushes underneath. Presumably, those are to hide the puppeteers arms, but they look kind of far behind the bench as well. It's also good staging at the beginning, when Grover walks to Prairie Dawn, and then it cuts to a close-up of Prairie when Grover sits on the bench.

And maybe it's just me, but I noticed that Prairie's sandwich in that scene looks like it has a seam across half of it, although it never comes apart in the scene. Makes me wonder if they planned on having the sandwich come apart after Prairie decides to share it with Grover and then chose not to show Grover getting the sandwich (though Prairie still offers to share it).

 

[minor muppetz]

Recently when watching the celebrity version of "Monster in the Mirror", when the various celebrities first appear and all sing together, we actually hear the bridge of the song sung by Grover and the monsters, as heard in audio recordings of the song (but not in the broadcast version of the non-celebrity version). I never noticed this before, but considering that the celebrities were all tapped seperately, I guess this is an easy way for all the singing to sound simultaneous.

Also, when watching "Put Down the Duckie", I noticed that Hoots actually doesn't wear his vest. All this time I thought he did. I'll have to check and see if he wore it in "Follow That Bird" and "Wake Up/Goodnight".

Also, I noticed that in the non-celebrity version of "Put Down the Duckie", at the beginning he says "Come in, Ernie!", while in the celebrity version he says "Come in, Ernie, my man!". Watching the scenes closely, they are actually different takes (I had to check and see if maybe the "my man" part was dubbed).

 

[minor muppetz]

I just realised... Most of the "celebrity montages" feature pretty much every celebrity who appeared on the show that (or the previous) season. The season 25 version of A New Way to Walk appears to have guests from season 25... But as far as I can tell, it doesn't include any appearances by Marylin Horne, Little Richard, or Aaron Neville. I wonder why they were left out. I have seen official sources for Neville and Horne's appearances that season, but Little Richard being on the show in season 25 is just an assumption of mine.

 

[Mary Louise]

In this clip, just before Grover delivers Monty's chair, Monty is taking the lid off a basket. If you look closely, it seems to contain white, roundish objects. Monty is smacking his lips, so they could be sweets—maybe those hard white ones with anise seeds in the middle.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEgLAfNWVcs