Aloysius Snuffleupagus
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| Aloysius Snuffleupagus | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | November 8, 1971 (minor character) November 18, 1985 (formal introduction) |
| Gender | male |
| Voiced by | Jerry Nelson Michael Earl Martin P. Robinson |
| Also known as | Snuffy, Mr. Snuffleupagus |
Aloysius Snuffleupagus, more commonly known as Mr. Snuffleupagus or Snuffy, is one of the Muppet characters on the long-running educational television program for young children, Sesame Street. He resembles a woolly mammoth, without tusks or (visible) ears, and he is a friend of Big Bird. He attends Snufflegarten and has a baby sister named Alice.
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[edit] Character biography
For many years, Big Bird was the only character on the show who saw him since his introduction in 1971. The main adult characters teased Big Bird when he said he had seen the Snuffleupagus, because they did not believe there was such an animal, often despite evidence to the contrary (such as an oversized teddy bear that Snuffy had left behind or segments in which Snuffy interacted with other characters, such as a street scene where Snuffy was seen playing London Bridge with some of the neighborhood kids). This concept was meant to echo the existence of imaginary friends some young children have.
By the late 1970s, the storylines had the adult characters becoming increasingly frustrated with Big Bird using Snuffleupagus as a scapegoat whenever something went wrong while they were out of the room. In one episode, newspapers on Sesame Street carried the front page headline, "Snuffy's got to go!"
This running gag ended with the November 18, 1985 episode of Sesame Street, which was also episode 2096 and the 17th season premiere, when the adults finally met Snuffy. Big Bird is sick and tired of not having the grown-ups believing him when he tells them about Snuffy. So he decides to arrange for them to come to his nest when he yells the signaling word, "Food." When Big Bird calls out the word, Snuffy runs off to tell his mother about it, so once again the grown-ups just miss him. Gordon, wanting to help, suggests to Big Bird that he needs someone to help him keep Snuffy in his nest and Elmo offers to be the one. So when Snuffy returns, Elmo holds on to his snuffle so he cannot go, Big Bird yells, "Food," and one by one the adults come and see Snuffy for the first time ever. After Snuffy introduces himself, Big Bird does an "I told you so" routine to the adults.
In an interview on a Canadian telethon that was hosted by Bob McGrath, Snuffy's performer, Martin P. Robinson, revealed that Snuffy was finally introduced to the main human cast mainly due to a string of high profile and sometimes graphic stories of pedophila and sexual abuse of children on shows such as 60 Minutes and 20/20. The writers felt that by having the adults refuse to believe Big Bird despite the fact that he was telling the truth, they were scaring children into thinking that their parents would not believe them if they had been sexually abused and that they would just be better off remaining silent. On the same telethon, during Robinson's explanation, Loretta Long uttered the words, "Bronx daycare," a reference to a news event on New York TV station WNBC-TV, in which there were reports of alleged sexual abuse at a Bronx daycare center. This was seen in the documentary, Sesame Street Unpaved.
Mr. Snuffleupagus remains a prominent part of Sesame Street.
After his first appearance, Mr. Snuffleupagus became more and more a regular member of the Sesame Street cast, even appearing in episodes without Big Bird.
- See also: Snuffy's Parents Get a Divorce
[edit] Spelling "Snuffleupagus"
According to sources like the Sesame Workshop website and Sesame Street Unpaved, the character's name is spelled "Snuffleupagus." Many licensors, close-captioners, and fans (including websites) misspell the word. Even The Jim Henson Company website errors, spelling the character's name "Snuffulupagus."
The 1985 Warner Brothers movie Sesame Street presents Follow That Bird depicts his name properly spelled on his mailbox. At the time he was still considered by others as Big Bird's "imaginary" friend. The fact that he was shown with his own real place, as well as him sending Big Bird a very real postcard, set up his revelation to the rest of Sesame Street later that year.
[edit] Performers
Snuffleupagus was first performed by Jerry Nelson, then Michael Earl, and finally Marty Robinson.
[edit] References
Aloysius Snuffleupagus
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