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wiley207
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I noticed that some of the long-running recurring Sesame Street sketches that used title cards had them replaced or modified over time. I will list the ones I know...
SUPER GROVER
1973-1992 title card:
The most well-known intro, where we start on a close up of the "G" shield as we zoom out and a drumroll is heard as Jerry Nelson announces "Presenting the further adventures of everybody's favorite hero... the man who is faster than lightning, stronger than steel, smarter than a speeding bullet, it's SUPER-GROVER!" As we hear the announcer, we can see someone trying to get out from the logo. Then it bursts open and Super Grover comes out as his fanfare is heard and "SUPER GROVER" appears above him. Grover says "And I am cute, too!" "Now on to our story," the announcer says, and Grover responds "Yes, on to our story!" and flies off.
The "Boxes" segment had this intro, but it was a bit different; the "SUPER GROVER" text did not fade up and there was no fanfare.
The "Carrying the Grocery Bags" segment had NO title card at the beginning!
1992-late 1990s?
The updated version with "THE ADVENTURES OF SUPER GROVER" on a cloud background, and it does not zoom out at the beginning. The soundtrack is redone, with "man" replaced with "monster," and when the announcer says "Faster than lightning" we hear a thunderclap, and "Stronger than steel" we hear a clanging sound, and "Smarter than a speeding bullet" we hear a ricochet. Plus when Super Grover crashes through it, it breaks like a wall, and does not tear like paper like the old title card. The rest of it is pretty similar though.
SESAME STREET NEWS
This series probably went through the most title card modifications, but they all had the same theme music and announcer (once again voiced by Jerry Nelson). In most cases, the announcer said "We take you now to Kermit the Frog in another fast-breaking news story!" (there were some exceptions, the Princess and the Cookie segment had the announcer saying "News item! We are told there is a story breaking at the palace. So we take you to Kermit the Frog at the scene." and the Monster Day Care segment had the announcer saying "We take you now to Kermit the Frog for this slow-breaking human interest story."
1971-1974
STANDARD LOGO: The cloud outline is pink, and the lightning bolt, stars, wind lines and "NEWS FLASH" text is white, all on a black background.
VARIANTS: On the segment about the Princess and the Cookie (1971), the logo starts like normal but then suddenly it cuts to the castle setting with Kermit talking to someone offscreen and the News Flash logo is now superimposed over the footage. And on the segment with the Count counting the Three Little Pigs (1972), the original version had the scene already there with Kermit in front of the pigs' house and it had a flashing black-and-white version of the NEWS FLASH logo flashing over the footage. And on occasion, the logo would be completely black-and-white (such as the Old Mother Hubbard segment) or would be sepiatoned (such as the Christopher Columbus segment).
The Miss Muffet segment (from either 1971 or 1972) had a different title card with "news bulletin" in white letters with yellow stars on top and bottom on a blue background, but the theme music remained the same.
The "Sesame Street Sports: Tortoise and the Hare" and "What Makes People Angry?" skits did not use a News Flash logo.
1974-1984
This one had the logo slightly enlarged a bit, and it had the cloud outline and wind lines and "NEWS FLASH" text white, but two of the stars are now yellow and the lightning bolt is now red.
NOTE: The "Hey Diddle Diddle" and "Aladdin" segments originally did not start with a News Flash logo, but they probably had one of the newer logos plastered onto the beginning in reruns of these skits in the 1980s and 1990s. Similarly, the Dr. Nobel Price segments featured this logo at the beginning with the same theme music but the announcer would instead report Kermit the Frog being on the remote island lab of Dr. Nobel Price and then it would fade to an exterior shot of the lab as it zooms in as the music and announcer continues.
1984-1986
The logo is now smaller, and the lightning bolt is now blue, and all the stars are now yellow, and the "NEWS FLASH" text is red and it flashes on and off. The segment where Kermit and Telly interview each other uses a still shot of this logo. Also, in most cases there is now just one recording of Jerry's announcer line used for all newer News Flash sketches from here on.
1986-1994
Similar to the 1974 logo but it is not as enlarged, and all the stars are now yellow instead of only two of them. This was often used to plaster older News Flash title cards.
1996 ("Elmo Saves Christmas" only)
A map of the world background is seen as the yellow "NEWS FLASH" text slides in and a red blotch appears underneath. The theme music is the same, and the announcer (Jerry Nelson again) says "We interrupt this program for a special news bulletin! We take you now to Kermit the Frog for a fast-breaking news story!"
MONSTERPIECE THEATER
1979/1980-1992
We zoom out on a Union Jack flag that is part of the P in the title "MONSTERPIECE THEATER" in white letters on a blue background. On "Upstairs, Downstairs," it takes longer to zoom out as the theme plays, and we then hear an announcer (voiced by Jerry Nelson yet again) saying "Good evening, and once again it is time for another episode of Monsterpiece Theater. And here is your host, Alistair Cookie." And at the end of the skit, the final section of the theme plays as we slowly zoom back into the Union Jack flag. Some segments end with a brief still shot of this logo.
1992-1995
This is the infamous longer intro where it pans around the various books and photos and sweets as we hear a reorchestrated heater theme play with sound bytes of Cookie Monster eating (taken from a sketch where he eats shapes), and then at the end it comes up to a paper reading "Monsterpiece Theatre - hosted by Alistair Cookie." This sketch was often used to plaster the Union Jack logo on older pre-1992 Monsterpiece Theater segments.
1995-2001
Just a green curtain with "Monsterpiece Theater" wiping onto the curtain. Like the previous logo, this was often used to plaster older Monsterpiece Theater title cards. It should also be noted that the print of "Waiting for Elmo" with this intro has the theme playing throughout the entire Alistair Cookie intro scene!
SUPER GROVER
1973-1992 title card:
The most well-known intro, where we start on a close up of the "G" shield as we zoom out and a drumroll is heard as Jerry Nelson announces "Presenting the further adventures of everybody's favorite hero... the man who is faster than lightning, stronger than steel, smarter than a speeding bullet, it's SUPER-GROVER!" As we hear the announcer, we can see someone trying to get out from the logo. Then it bursts open and Super Grover comes out as his fanfare is heard and "SUPER GROVER" appears above him. Grover says "And I am cute, too!" "Now on to our story," the announcer says, and Grover responds "Yes, on to our story!" and flies off.
The "Boxes" segment had this intro, but it was a bit different; the "SUPER GROVER" text did not fade up and there was no fanfare.
The "Carrying the Grocery Bags" segment had NO title card at the beginning!
1992-late 1990s?
The updated version with "THE ADVENTURES OF SUPER GROVER" on a cloud background, and it does not zoom out at the beginning. The soundtrack is redone, with "man" replaced with "monster," and when the announcer says "Faster than lightning" we hear a thunderclap, and "Stronger than steel" we hear a clanging sound, and "Smarter than a speeding bullet" we hear a ricochet. Plus when Super Grover crashes through it, it breaks like a wall, and does not tear like paper like the old title card. The rest of it is pretty similar though.
SESAME STREET NEWS
This series probably went through the most title card modifications, but they all had the same theme music and announcer (once again voiced by Jerry Nelson). In most cases, the announcer said "We take you now to Kermit the Frog in another fast-breaking news story!" (there were some exceptions, the Princess and the Cookie segment had the announcer saying "News item! We are told there is a story breaking at the palace. So we take you to Kermit the Frog at the scene." and the Monster Day Care segment had the announcer saying "We take you now to Kermit the Frog for this slow-breaking human interest story."
1971-1974
STANDARD LOGO: The cloud outline is pink, and the lightning bolt, stars, wind lines and "NEWS FLASH" text is white, all on a black background.
VARIANTS: On the segment about the Princess and the Cookie (1971), the logo starts like normal but then suddenly it cuts to the castle setting with Kermit talking to someone offscreen and the News Flash logo is now superimposed over the footage. And on the segment with the Count counting the Three Little Pigs (1972), the original version had the scene already there with Kermit in front of the pigs' house and it had a flashing black-and-white version of the NEWS FLASH logo flashing over the footage. And on occasion, the logo would be completely black-and-white (such as the Old Mother Hubbard segment) or would be sepiatoned (such as the Christopher Columbus segment).
The Miss Muffet segment (from either 1971 or 1972) had a different title card with "news bulletin" in white letters with yellow stars on top and bottom on a blue background, but the theme music remained the same.
The "Sesame Street Sports: Tortoise and the Hare" and "What Makes People Angry?" skits did not use a News Flash logo.
1974-1984
This one had the logo slightly enlarged a bit, and it had the cloud outline and wind lines and "NEWS FLASH" text white, but two of the stars are now yellow and the lightning bolt is now red.
NOTE: The "Hey Diddle Diddle" and "Aladdin" segments originally did not start with a News Flash logo, but they probably had one of the newer logos plastered onto the beginning in reruns of these skits in the 1980s and 1990s. Similarly, the Dr. Nobel Price segments featured this logo at the beginning with the same theme music but the announcer would instead report Kermit the Frog being on the remote island lab of Dr. Nobel Price and then it would fade to an exterior shot of the lab as it zooms in as the music and announcer continues.
1984-1986
The logo is now smaller, and the lightning bolt is now blue, and all the stars are now yellow, and the "NEWS FLASH" text is red and it flashes on and off. The segment where Kermit and Telly interview each other uses a still shot of this logo. Also, in most cases there is now just one recording of Jerry's announcer line used for all newer News Flash sketches from here on.
1986-1994
Similar to the 1974 logo but it is not as enlarged, and all the stars are now yellow instead of only two of them. This was often used to plaster older News Flash title cards.
1996 ("Elmo Saves Christmas" only)
A map of the world background is seen as the yellow "NEWS FLASH" text slides in and a red blotch appears underneath. The theme music is the same, and the announcer (Jerry Nelson again) says "We interrupt this program for a special news bulletin! We take you now to Kermit the Frog for a fast-breaking news story!"
MONSTERPIECE THEATER
1979/1980-1992
We zoom out on a Union Jack flag that is part of the P in the title "MONSTERPIECE THEATER" in white letters on a blue background. On "Upstairs, Downstairs," it takes longer to zoom out as the theme plays, and we then hear an announcer (voiced by Jerry Nelson yet again) saying "Good evening, and once again it is time for another episode of Monsterpiece Theater. And here is your host, Alistair Cookie." And at the end of the skit, the final section of the theme plays as we slowly zoom back into the Union Jack flag. Some segments end with a brief still shot of this logo.
1992-1995
This is the infamous longer intro where it pans around the various books and photos and sweets as we hear a reorchestrated heater theme play with sound bytes of Cookie Monster eating (taken from a sketch where he eats shapes), and then at the end it comes up to a paper reading "Monsterpiece Theatre - hosted by Alistair Cookie." This sketch was often used to plaster the Union Jack logo on older pre-1992 Monsterpiece Theater segments.
1995-2001
Just a green curtain with "Monsterpiece Theater" wiping onto the curtain. Like the previous logo, this was often used to plaster older Monsterpiece Theater title cards. It should also be noted that the print of "Waiting for Elmo" with this intro has the theme playing throughout the entire Alistair Cookie intro scene!