Memoirs of a Muppets Writer: (You mean somebody actually writes that stuff?) by Mr. Joseph A. Bailey
Authors: Mr. Joseph A. Bailey
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torn clothes with a raggedy beard struggling up a beach. 3. In longer beard and more ragged clothing climbing a mountain.
As the music fades, we cut to a forest clearing, where Kermit the Person is playing Kermit the Hermit. In a still longer beard and tatters, Bob crawls in on his hands and knees.
“Are you Kermit the Hermit, Wise Man of the Forest?”
“Yes, my son.”
“I’ve crossed the wildest jungle, swum the deepest ocean, and climbed the highest mountain to get here. Tell me, oh Wise Man, What is the secret of life?”, asks Bob.
“The secret of life,” Kermit replies, “is A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-l-J-K-L-M-N-O-P-Q-R-S-T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z.”, as the letters appear on the screen.
“A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-I-J-K-L-M-N-O-P-Q-R-S-T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z!”, Bob exclaimed, with the letters appearing again. “I didn’t cross the wildest jungle, swim the deepest ocean, and climb the highest mountain to hear A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-l-J-K-L-M-N-O-P-Q-R-S-T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z. That’s the alphabet!”
“A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-l-J-K-L-M-N-O-P-Q-R-S-T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z, is the alphabet? Are you sure?”
“Sure, I’m sure.”
As Kermit exits, he hands Bob his staff and says, “Well, I guess that makes you the next Wise Man of the Forest.”
Another Sesame Street “remote” was shot on City Island, a small nautical community that actually is a small island and a part of New York City. City Island is best known for its sail makers. City Island sails can be seen on sailboats around the world. But I remember City Island for another reason.
We had incorporated a multi-generational Puerto Rican family into our City Island story line. The grandfather of the family had been a farmer in Puerto Rico before coming to New York. And he never really lost his passion for farming in all his years in the city. So, the family had enclosed the generous back yard with a greenhouse.
And as the women in the family traveled back and forth to the island, they brought back small clippings of Puerto Rico’s tropical flora in their pocketbooks. The tips were wrapped in wet cotton with tin foil on the outside. This kept them alive just long enough to make the trip from San Juan to City Island, where the grandfather rooted them.
Over the years, the grandfather had multiplied the plants until the entire back yard was a little piece of glassed in tropic paradise. I remember having coffee on the deck and looking over and through coffee plants, banana trees, bougainvillea, and coconut palms - another little hidden New York gem.
Chapter 18
Taos, New Mexico
A fter the success of the local remotes, in 1976, Sesame Street planned and budgeted two weeks of remote shows, shot in a completely different part of the country. I was appointed the writer for the project.
After much research, it was decided that Taos, New Mexico would be the ideal destination. Its western, mountain location was as far as you could get from Sesame Street’s urban setting. It was culturally diverse, with a combination of white and Hispanic populations and a nearby Indian pueblo. And, the scenery was just plain gorgeous.
We created a story line around Luis, Sesame Street’s resident Mexican-American, going to Taos to visit his uncle, who was building a new adobe house. A suitably beat up pick-up truck was procured for the trip. Bob, Maria, Gordon, Buffy St. Marie and Big Bird decided to go along for the ride. A large Hispanic family was recruited in Taos to play Luis’ relatives, along with a few local actors to handle the occasional speaking roles.
We shot for about ten days in and around Taos in some of the most beautiful scenery in the world. What I remember most was how beautiful Big Bird looked in all his yellow grandeur against that blue western sky.
One of the benefits of location travel is that you get to spend an extended period of time in a place you would probably never go, otherwise. And, since the location is an integral part of the production, you really get a sense of the place. New Mexico is
As the music fades, we cut to a forest clearing, where Kermit the Person is playing Kermit the Hermit. In a still longer beard and tatters, Bob crawls in on his hands and knees.
“Are you Kermit the Hermit, Wise Man of the Forest?”
“Yes, my son.”
“I’ve crossed the wildest jungle, swum the deepest ocean, and climbed the highest mountain to get here. Tell me, oh Wise Man, What is the secret of life?”, asks Bob.
“The secret of life,” Kermit replies, “is A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-l-J-K-L-M-N-O-P-Q-R-S-T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z.”, as the letters appear on the screen.
“A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-I-J-K-L-M-N-O-P-Q-R-S-T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z!”, Bob exclaimed, with the letters appearing again. “I didn’t cross the wildest jungle, swim the deepest ocean, and climb the highest mountain to hear A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-l-J-K-L-M-N-O-P-Q-R-S-T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z. That’s the alphabet!”
“A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-l-J-K-L-M-N-O-P-Q-R-S-T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z, is the alphabet? Are you sure?”
“Sure, I’m sure.”
As Kermit exits, he hands Bob his staff and says, “Well, I guess that makes you the next Wise Man of the Forest.”
Another Sesame Street “remote” was shot on City Island, a small nautical community that actually is a small island and a part of New York City. City Island is best known for its sail makers. City Island sails can be seen on sailboats around the world. But I remember City Island for another reason.
We had incorporated a multi-generational Puerto Rican family into our City Island story line. The grandfather of the family had been a farmer in Puerto Rico before coming to New York. And he never really lost his passion for farming in all his years in the city. So, the family had enclosed the generous back yard with a greenhouse.
And as the women in the family traveled back and forth to the island, they brought back small clippings of Puerto Rico’s tropical flora in their pocketbooks. The tips were wrapped in wet cotton with tin foil on the outside. This kept them alive just long enough to make the trip from San Juan to City Island, where the grandfather rooted them.
Over the years, the grandfather had multiplied the plants until the entire back yard was a little piece of glassed in tropic paradise. I remember having coffee on the deck and looking over and through coffee plants, banana trees, bougainvillea, and coconut palms - another little hidden New York gem.
Chapter 18
Taos, New Mexico
A fter the success of the local remotes, in 1976, Sesame Street planned and budgeted two weeks of remote shows, shot in a completely different part of the country. I was appointed the writer for the project.
After much research, it was decided that Taos, New Mexico would be the ideal destination. Its western, mountain location was as far as you could get from Sesame Street’s urban setting. It was culturally diverse, with a combination of white and Hispanic populations and a nearby Indian pueblo. And, the scenery was just plain gorgeous.
We created a story line around Luis, Sesame Street’s resident Mexican-American, going to Taos to visit his uncle, who was building a new adobe house. A suitably beat up pick-up truck was procured for the trip. Bob, Maria, Gordon, Buffy St. Marie and Big Bird decided to go along for the ride. A large Hispanic family was recruited in Taos to play Luis’ relatives, along with a few local actors to handle the occasional speaking roles.
We shot for about ten days in and around Taos in some of the most beautiful scenery in the world. What I remember most was how beautiful Big Bird looked in all his yellow grandeur against that blue western sky.
One of the benefits of location travel is that you get to spend an extended period of time in a place you would probably never go, otherwise. And, since the location is an integral part of the production, you really get a sense of the place. New Mexico is
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