Maria as Chaplin skits

A recurring Sesame Street skit paid tribute to silent film star Charlie Chaplin. Maria (dressed to resemble Chaplin's standard film persona) would engage in silent film antics, sometimes as stand-alone sketches, and at other times as films seen by other characters.

Sonia Manzano stated in an interview that as a college student, she was a fan of Chaplin's shorts and wrote the sketches to fulfill her own fandom fantasy.