WI Big Bird was on the Challenger Shuttle?

Limabot

I was watching a video on Big Bird's actor, and it mentioned something about him being the one to go on that space shuttle instead of Christa McAuliffe. Obviously, that isn't the case. But what if, using whatever is needed, Big Bird was on the Challenger? What would be the effect of his death on the world?
 

Don Corleone

I can't see it changing much. The Muppet characters can always find a replacement actor.

The human characters (Bob/Maria/etc) are the ones who would be missing from Sesame Street after the disaster.
 

overoceans

Landmass Wave said:
I can't see it changing much. The Muppet characters can always find a replacement actor.

The human characters (Bob/Maria/etc) are the ones who would be missing from Sesame Street after the disaster.
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I think the idea is that it is announced with much fanfare "BIG BIRD GOES ON THE SHUTTLE!!!", so all the little kids know about it and then get excited. Then, the shuttle explodes, so you have to explain to them that Big Bird is dead.

Or was Caroll Spinney supposed to be going into space as himself, not in character? Not sure why anyone would want that, since he was not a professional astronaut.
 

Limabot

overoceans said:
I think the idea is that it is announced with much fanfare "BIG BIRD GOES ON THE SHUTTLE!!!", so all the little kids know about it and then get excited. Then, the shuttle explodes, so you have to explain to them that Big Bird is dead.

Or was Caroll Spinney supposed to be going into space as himself, not in character? Not sure why anyone would want that, since he was not a professional astronaut.
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The reason he wasn't on the shuttle was that the puppet couldn't get in the shuttle right, so he should be in character.
 

overoceans

Limabot said:
The reason he wasn't on the shuttle was that the puppet couldn't get in the shuttle right, so he should be in character.
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But would he have been wearing the costume on the shuttle? I can't see how he'd be able to mesh that with the astronaut outfit.

And if he's not wearing the costume(and sending back images of himself in character), then what would have been the point? Does he give a bunch of interviews in character before the takeoff, then get on the shuttle out of character, and then return to Earth and speak as Big Bird about what happened up there?

I'm trying to imagine how network news reporters would feel about going on national TV for a space launch, and having to interview Big Bird. In terms of professional degradation, it would be like those Xmas Eve local reports about Santa's sled, multiplied by about 100.
 

Limabot

overoceans said:
But would he have been wearing the costume on the shuttle? I can't see how he'd be able to mesh that with the astronaut outfit.

And if he's not wearing the costume(and sending back images of himself in character), then what would have been the point? Does he give a bunch of interviews in character before the takeoff, then get on the shuttle out of character, and then return to Earth and speak as Big Bird about what happened up there?

I'm trying to imagine how network news reporters would feel about going on national TV for a space launch, and having to interview Big Bird. In terms of professional degradation, it would be like those Xmas Eve local reports about Santa's sled, multiplied by about 100.
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They could just simply make a new costume custom for this mission.
 

overoceans

Landmass Wave said:
I assume most kids (except very young ones) know he's a guy in a costume, so the costume and actor can still be replaced.
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Yeah, but this is Sesame Street we're talking about, not the Electric Company(for example). So there likely would have been a hefty contingent of "very young ones" who didn't know he was just an actor. Even if they're not a majority of the fan base, it's still probably gonna be a pretty big PR headache for PBS and the CTW.

I remember watching a local kids show when I was about three or four, and being a little bit confused about why there were people inside the TV. By the time I actually went on the show myself, I was old enough to have figured it out, but that does kind of demonstrate the wide range of cognitive levels in that age bracket.
 

overoceans

And, my God, you know how it's a rite-of-passage for older kids to make fun of younger kids for liking "baby" shows that the older kids were themselves watching a couple of years earlier? Can you imagine the torment they'd be inflicting upon their younger siblings after the Big Bird Celestial Barbecue? If you thought the OTL Christie McAuliffe jokes were nasty...
 

Limabot

overoceans said:
Yeah, but this is Sesame Street we're talking about, not the Electric Company(for example). So there likely would have been a hefty contingent of "very young ones" who didn't know he was just an actor. Even if they're not a majority of the fan base, it's still probably gonna be a pretty big PR headache for PBS and the CTW.

I remember watching a local kids show when I was about three or four, and being a little bit confused about why there were people inside the TV. By the time I actually went on the show myself, I was old enough to have figured it out, but that does kind of demonstrate the wide range of cognitive levels in that age bracket.
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And to add to your point, BB had been around for 16 years at that point. Kids that were 2 year old when he first went on the air were 18 at the time. So a lot of people would be saddened, not just kids.
 

overoceans

Limabot said:
And to add to your point, BB had been around for 16 years at that point. Kids that were 2 year old when he first went on the air were 18 at the time. So a lot of people would be saddened, not just kids.
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Yeah, a lot of teens and young adults wouldn't even conceptualize it as Spinney dying, they'd just skip the middle-man and go straight to saying stuff like "Jesus Christ, Big Bird got killed on the Challenger!" Which would further complicate the process of explaining to kids that, no actually, it was just an actor.
 

Arkenfolm

Would they have to retire Big Bird from Sesame Street? There would be so much "Big Bird blew up with the Challenger!" everywhere they'd have to do some explaining to kids.
 

overoceans

metalinvader665 said:
Would they have to retire Big Bird from Sesame Street? There would be so much "Big Bird blew up with the Challenger!" everywhere they'd have to do some explaining to kids.
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I think the Big Bird character is a write-off after this.

Fred Rogers used to openly talk about the Neighborhood Of Make Believe as being....well, make-believe, even take his cameras behind the scenes to show the puppeteers handling the characters etc. So maybe if King Friday XIII had gone onto the Challenger and got himself blown up, Rogers could have rolled with the punch and done a show about the death of the puppeteer, but also about how we can still enjoy King Friday, because he was never real to begin with. As far as I remember, Sesame Street never went for that sort of anti-magical realism, and basically expected their younger fans to take the characters as real.
 

Limabot

overoceans said:
I think the Big Bird character is a write-off after this.

Fred Rogers used to openly talk about the Neighborhood Of Make Believe as being....well, make-believe, even take his cameras behind the scenes to show the puppeteers handling the characters etc. So maybe if King Friday XIII had gone onto the Challenger and got himself blown up, Rogers could have rolled with the punch and done a show about the death of the puppeteer, but also about how we can still enjoy King Friday, because he was never real to begin with. As far as I remember, Sesame Street never went for that sort of anti-magical realism, and basically expected their younger fans to take the characters as real.
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I think BB is too beloved to just simply be written of. Especially with his death involving a gigantic televised explosion.
 

overoceans

Limabot said:
I think BB is too beloved to just simply be written of. Especially with his death involving a gigantic televised explosion.
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Well, by written off, I don't necessarily mean ignored, as if he never existed. But I don't think he'd be able to function as a character on the show anymore, mostly for the reason you cite in your second sentence.

It's announced that BB is going into the Challenger. A lot of kids probably watch him waddling onto the shuttle with the other astronauts. Then, bang, the Shuttle explodes. Even if parents try to shield their kids from the reality, everyone else is going to be talking about it, and not always with genteel solemnity, for a the next month or so.

So where does PBS go from there? I guess they could try for a repeat of of Mr. Hooper's death, though that ultimately was about an old man dying off-screen of natural causes, almost certainly an easier "sell" than a character who is essentially a child himself getting incinerated on international television.

One thing I could see resulting from all this would be a backlash against "crossover" appearances by characters geared at children. Producers might not want to run the risk of having other beloved icons meet a tragic end in full view of the public. Even stuff like appearances in Ice Capades might be eyed with some trepidation(eg. what if the rink collapses and Snoopy gets crushed?) Not that all such appearances would halt, but the people who make these decisions might be a lot more careful about licensing and stuff.
 

Carl Schwamberger

Sorry, unable to take this seriously enough. Imangining a SNL skit with masses of feathers raining down...

... roast BB carcasses...

Jokes about astronauts and their grill....

Appoligise for this bad tate moment, but had to say it.
 

overoceans

Carl Schwamberger said:
Imangining a SNL skit with masses of feathers raining down...
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I'm not sure if SNL ever got that dark when treating current events, or at least, I think they might be a tad more restrained due to the particular event's proximity to children.

But those Truly Tasteless Jokes people would be having a field day.
 

overoceans

^ Also, joking about the untimely death of a muppet actor would probably be a good way to get yourself blacklisted from TV and movies. If Eddie Murphy were involved in the Big Bird jokes, for example, it would likely kill his chances of ever working with Frank Oz, or anyone who cares about what Frank Oz thinks.
 
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