3.
“Conservations with My Father”/Conversations with My Father (play): A papa
4.
Dr. No (film): A doctor named No cures his patient by instructing him to recognize
monster teaches his son how to conserve energy and water.
the word “no.”
5.
Fiddler on the Roof (musical): Russian peasants sing about addition, which helps
them keep track of how many fiddlers are on the roof.
6.
Gone with the Wind (book): In order to survive a terrible windstorm, two puppets try
their hand at subtraction, in turn teaching children a basic math skill.
7.
Guys and Dolls (musical): A male and female monster demonstrates that it is okay
for boys to play with dolls and girls to play with trucks.
8.
Lethal Weapon 3 (film): Danny Glover and Mel Gibson guest star to introduce the
dangerous number “3,” which is then followed by number “4.”
9.
“Monsters with Dirty Faces”/Angels with Dirty Faces (film): A police monster is given
the dangerous task to advise the dirty gangster monsters that they must wash their
faces, in turn teaching children the importance of hygiene.
10.
Much Ado About Nothing (play): A restaurant patron orders a hearty meal only to be
told, ingredient by ingredient, that the restaurant is out of everything; in turn teaching
the number “0” and the concept of "nothing.”
11.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (book): Literal translation of the book title, where
children are taught several numbers, including “1” that flies over the cuckoo’s nest.
12.
The Sound o f Music (musical): A monster sits on top of a mountain waiting to hear
the sound of music, but ends up illustrating other types of sounds such as a cow and
ambulance siren.
13.
“The 400 Blowsn/Les Quatre Cents Coups (film): A monster celebrating his birthday
takes 40 blows in order to blow out all of the birthday candles on the cake.
Sesame Street parodies are in no way tied only to Monsterpiece Theatre; in fact, there are a
number of different types of stand-alone parodies on the show - some involve popular musical
stars parodying their own song (e.g., Feist’s 1234), while others parody an artist (e.g., The
Beatles), and there are even Sesame Street characters parodying each other (e.g., Oscar the
Grouch reinvents a Kermit song). These parody segments are about three or so minutes in
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