Sesame Street "Surprise" Song

[Mike74]

Another segment that is sort of a holy grail in english is part 3 of the three-part "Bert and Ernie: Banana in Ear" sketch. I don't know of any episodes with part 3, that's the only part that's not on sesamestreet.org, and it seems many fans only remember parts 1 and 2... But part 3 has shown up online in sweden.

Part of me feels like many of the segments that were pictured/quoted in the Sesame Street Learning Kit books were holy grails before a handful of season one episodes were released on iTunes (and I'm sure more were holy grails before Noggin). Until episodes were added on iTunes, I don't think any of us had sketches like Bert having Ernie guess what happens next, Ernie thinking he has magic glasses, or Cookie Monster using Ernie's phone. Not sure how badly others wanted to see those sketches, but I think the phone segment might have been the biggest "holy grail" of the ones mentioned. Somebody actually posted a video on YouTube asking if anybody had that segment, showing a few pictures from The Sesame Street Book of People and Things.

And there's at least one segment that appears in those books that still hasn't shown up online or in the hands of collectors. In The Sesame Street Book of Puzzles, there's a segment where Ernie is upside-down on the ceiling about to pour a glass of milk. Bert tells him that he can't pour milk when he's upside down, but Ernie does without problem. It looks like a weird segment, and I often wondered WHAT it was supposed to be teaching. The CTW archives "first season show content" mentions it as part of a four-part segment involving Ernie and milk. According to those documents, it was only broadcast once in the first season, and parts 1-3 all led to different segments (including Greeblies and Jaz #8). Concerning all that, I assume it wasn't shown often. Oh, and those files list segments under different educational topics, these milk segments were listed on a page marked "miscellaneous insert tapes", so I guess if it does teach something, it wasn't part of any of the shows main curriculums from the first season.

I wonder if all of the segments from the Sesame Street Learning Kit were rarely if ever shown in the decade before Noggin was introduced. As a kid I had The Sesame Street Book of Puzzles, and the only segments from that book that I saw on the show as a kid are "Ernie and Bert: Before and After" and "Ernie and Bert: Jellybeans". I remember thinking it was cool that those segments were on the show, but hadn't really wondered if the others were on the show or why the book would only contain a few things from the show.

Well, for me, this IS the holy grail clip....just watched Play With Me Sesame with my son and they had Grover demonstrating Surprise with Prairie Dawn and a huge stopwatch....wonder if it was the same episode....any idea who I could contact at SSW for info?

 

[dwmckim]

Well, for me, this IS the holy grail clip....just watched Play With Me Sesame with my son and they had Grover demonstrating Surprise with Prairie Dawn and a huge stopwatch....wonder if it was the same episode....any idea who I could contact at SSW for info?

That's much more recent ('90's) - and you can find that clip here:

http://www.sesamestreet.org/play#media/video_c928e6c5-1648-11dd-995c-3d52ab3e4656

 

[Xerus]

I remember that Surprise song when I was a kid. And there were some scenes I remember too. Maria trying to carve a roast chicken and it levitates in the air,

Bob dressed in a tuxedo with his top hat in his arm and a Muppet Lavender rabbit pops out,so Bob hits him with a pie.

Gordon looking out his window and sees Grover upside down singing to him, then falls.

Grover singing about surprise, then sees himself on Big Bird's head and falls off.

Mr. Hooper in a striped old time bathing suit and pink hat about to open the door to go to the beach and a brick wall was in his way, the wall shouts, "Surprise", in a deep Frank Oz like voice and Mr. Hooper hits the wall with a pie.

Bob trying to put a letter in the mailbox, and a hand reaches out and grabs the letter.

Gordon knocking on Oscar's can, but Maria comes out in a devil costume and says in a deep Frank Oz sounding voice, "Oscar isn't in." (That scene actually sent me running out of the room as a kid for I thought it was kind of scary.)

And of course, Big Bird's surprise party with everyone in their same costumes. Mr. Hooper hands Big Bird a tiny sweater with BB on it and says, "I hope this is your size."
Then Grover pops out of the cake and all the adults get hit with pies one at a time. But Maria had a mask on protecting her from the pie and says, "Disguise!" But when she lifts her mask, she gets hit with another pie.

 

[Mike74]

I remember that Surprise song when I was a kid. And there were some scenes I remember too. Maria trying to carve a roast chicken and it levitates in the air,

Bob dressed in a tuxedo with his top hat in his arm and a Muppet Lavender rabbit pops out,so Bob hits him with a pie.

Gordon looking out his window and sees Grover upside down singing to him, then falls.

Grover singing about surprise, then sees himself on Big Bird's head and falls off.

Mr. Hooper in a striped old time bathing suit and pink hat about to open the door to go to the beach and a brick wall was in his way, the wall shouts, "Surprise", in a deep Frank Oz like voice and Mr. Hooper hits the wall with a pie.

Bob trying to put a letter in the mailbox, and a hand reaches out and grabs the letter.

Gordon knocking on Oscar's can, but Maria comes out in a devil costume and says in a deep Frank Oz sounding voice, "Oscar isn't in." (That scene actually sent me running out of the room as a kid for I thought it was kind of scary.)

And of course, Big Bird's surprise party with everyone in their same costumes. Mr. Hooper hands Big Bird a tiny sweater with BB on it and says, "I hope this is your size."
Then Grover pops out of the cake and all the adults get hit with pies one at a time. But Maria had a mask on protecting her from the pie and says, "Disguise!" But when she lifts her mask, she gets hit with another pie.

WOW! I mean, just, WOW! The whole Maria, in the devil costume bit, I always thought that was my memory playing tricks on me! Thank you for proving that I remembered that correctly! WOW! OK, I really need to somehow find this scene and see it at least one more time! Who can I contact!?! I must know!!!!

 

[cjd874]

This sounds really interesting. It's not on Sesame Workshop's website, and not on Youtube. I'd love to see it, in all its crazy glory.
And Xerus, you really have a great memory! Those details...god, they would NOT allow that kind of stuff today. Especially the scene with Maria in a devil costume... yikes!!!

 

[Drtooth]

This sounds really interesting. It's not on Sesame Workshop's website, and not on Youtube. I'd love to see it, in all its crazy glory.

I really wish there was a way to request lost clips. I'm sure they have them all somewhere, but I think they need the fans to tell them that they have those skits.

 

[Mike74]

I really wish there was a way to request lost clips. I'm sure they have them all somewhere, but I think they need the fans to tell them that they have those skits.

Are you sure there is no way to request these clips? After seeing that I didn't just dream this up or misplace a memory, I NEED to see this clip!!! How can we get in touch with someone to get this clip????

 

[Twisted Tails]

Are you sure there is no way to request these clips? After seeing that I didn't just dream this up or misplace a memory, I NEED to see this clip!!! How can we get in touch with someone to get this clip????

You got your wish, pal. The quality may not be ehh.. good, but I agree that it was included in the SS's "Surprise" album.

 

[Mike74]

You got your wish, pal. The quality may not be ehh.. good, but I agree that it was included in the SS's "Surprise" album.

Thanx for trying, but this isn't the clip; it's actually a clip that is often mistaken for the clip we've been discussing, hence the confusion. Man, I got all excited! Thank you for trying, tho.

 

[cjd874]

Thanx for trying, but this isn't the clip; it's actually a clip that is often mistaken for the clip we've been discussing, hence the confusion. Man, I got all excited! Thank you for trying, tho.

I once saw a longer version of this Little Jerry song on YouTube...it had Oscar surprising Susan with a can filled with snakes, and a scene with Bert and the blue-nosed Herry, in addition to the party for Herbert Birdsfoot. I think that it has since been taken down from YT, but both songs (Little Jerry's and the pies in the face version) sound absolutely awesome!