Don't Eat the Pictures (special)

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Cover of VHS release.

Don't Eat the Pictures is a 1983 Sesame Street video about a visit to New York's most recognized art museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Its title comes from a song sung by Cookie Monster. It was released to VHS in 1987. While looking for Big Bird, who has gotten lost looking for Snuffy, the cast gets locked in the museum overnight, and must stay in the museum till the morning while avoiding a security guard. The special features the usual human cast of Sesame Street along with several of the muppet characters, including Big Bird, Cookie Monster, Telly, Bert and Ernie, the Count, Grover, and Oscar. Snuffy also appears, however at this point in the show's history he is still the 'imaginary' friend of Big Bird, never seen by the other characters.

[edit] Plot

The cast of Sesame Street has gone on a field trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Big Bird has arranged to meet with Snuffy at the museum but before he can, it is time for the group to leave for the night. Big Bird decides to go off and look for Snuffy.

Before the group can leave, they realize Big Bird is missing and run all through the museum looking for him. The case has them going through different exhibits at high speed and missing, spotting, and chasing Big Bird. After a bit, the group gives up to find they are locked in the museum for the night. They decide to go back out and look for Big Bird and look at all the exhibits while they are at it.

Oscar finds an exhibit of statues that have been broken by natural disasters. He looks in and breaks into song on how beautiful they are to him.

Big Bird eventually finds Snuffy and wanders the Egypt exhibit and encounter an Egyptian prince and imaginary friend named Sahu and his cat who has been cursed to remain on Earth and not be able to become a star like his parents until he answers the question "Where does today meet yesterday?" Every night at midnight for thousands of years, a demon (James Mason) appears to ask Sahu that and he has answered wrong every night.

Meanwhile, the other group has split up and are all in different exhibits. Bob and Cookie Monster find themselves looking at pictures with food in them. While Cookie tries to eat the pictures, Bob points out to him a sign that says "PLEASE DON'T EAT THE PICTURES." Cookie Monster replies with "Oh, this going to be a long night." He later sings a song about this.

Grover finds an exhibit filled with armor from medieval times and think a suit of Maximillian armor is a guy named "Max" and tries to befriend him by changing into his Super Grover costume and sings this song.

As the night passes, Big Bird and Snuffy continue to try and figure out the answer to the question. Soon before midnight Big Bird unknowingly figures out the answer is "a museum." When the demon appears that night, the question is answered correctly and Sahu is sent to Osiris (Fritz Weaver) to have his heart weighed. When the feather to weigh his heart doesn't appear, Big Bird offers one of his to help. But when Sahu's heart is too heavy, Big Bird claims that it wasn't fair since Sahu was on Earth for so long and so alone his heart would be heavy, so he cannot become a star.

After this, Sahu's heart becomes lighter and he is allowed to join his parents and take his cat. When morning comes around Big Bird finds the other group and Snuffy is not there. He left early to get to "Snuffle Garden."