Episode 2971

Sesame Street
There's a flood in Oscar's can
Air date	March 23, 1992
Season	Season 23 (1991-1992)
Written by	Tony Geiss
Sponsors E, U, 15

Picture	Segment	Description
	COLD OPEN	The sounds of sloshing water are coming from inside Snuffy, who has been recruited by Oscar for an unspecified task. To explain why Snuffy is full of water, Oscar sets the scene back the day prior, where the pipe to his hot tub broke and the can begins to fill with water. He calls Liddy of Casablanca Plumbers to come over and fix it. She tells him it might be a week or two before she gets to the job, until Oscar claims all the wasted water might lead to a mud shortage; she leaves immediately. In the present, Oscar says he'll resume his story, right after the opening song...
	SCENE 1	Oscar continues his story, where everyone helps dry off all of Oscar's soaked pets. He takes a head count and makes sure all eight pets are safe (save for the rhinos, who are at day care). All seem present and accounted for, but Fred the fish remains in the can to play in the water. Grouch plumber Liddy is able to stop the leak, but won't clear out the water until tomorrow. Oscar wonders where he and his pets will spend the night.
	Film	Kids narrate a film about water in hoses, fountains, puddles, streams, bathtubs, rivers, oceans, and other places. (First: Episode 0135)
	Cartoon	"The Room is Full of Chickens"
	Muppets	Ernie sings "Quiet Time Song" while sitting under an apple tree, and is joined by a squirrel, a bird, a hornet's nest, a cat, and Gladys the Cow. (First: Episode 2091)
	Cartoon	The detective sees a lever, and thinks about what might happen if he pulls the lever, being prepared for anything. (First: Episode 2613)
	SCENE 2	As Oscar's story continues, he and Lassie stay at Maria and Luis' apartment, while the rest of the animals stay at Big Bird's nest (Lassie apparently tries to eat the nest, thus must stay with Oscar instead). The family presents Oscar with a healthful dinner, but he points out that a healthy Grouch meal mushes all the different foods together (plus some chocolate syrup, which he brings himself). While he digs into his entree, Lassie is fed some table napkins. Luis tries to comfort Maria with the notion that their guests will be gone tomorrow.
	Muppets	Cookie Monster sings "Healthy Food." (First: Episode 2404)
	Cartoon	Toothpaste March Artist: Ray Favata (First: Episode 1446)
	Film	A boy who lives in the Congo (in Africa) narrates a film of the kinds of games he and his friends play. (First: Episode 2668)
	Animation	School supplies make the letter E. (First: Episode 2880)
	Song	"Sharing Swing with Kids Song" (First: Episode 0926)
	Cartoon	Number creatures 15 (First: Episode 2693)
	SCENE 3	Big Bird has trouble getting the remainder of Oscar's pets (Slimey, Fluffy, Preposterous, Esme, Spot, and Jezabel) to be quiet and go to sleep. He proceeds to sing them "Let's Fall Asleep" (a spin on Cole Porter's "Let's Fall in Love"), which works in getting them all to sleep once the song ends.
	Cartoon	A girl thinks she hears a monster doing a cha-cha outside her window, but it's only the wind and a cricket. Her snores frighten the real monster. Artist: Deanna Morse (First: Episode 2951)
	Muppets	Sesame Street News Flash Kermit the Frog talks to people waiting in line for a football game being held at the SuperGame Stadium. A woman explains why she is last in line, and points out that Kermit is actually last, although Kermit insists that he is not in line. He goes to the front of the line and finds out that the first two people in the line are in a disagreement over which of them is first in line. The gate opens, and everyone walks all over Kermit. (First: Episode 1327)
	Animation	Isadora's sneakers describe all the fun they've had this past year, as the seasons change. (First: Episode 2758)
	Celebrity	Smokey Robinson performs “U Really Got a Hold on Me” with a clingy letter U. (First: Episode 2022)
	Cartoon	A U train spells the words "unite," "U-turn," "underground," "up," and "universe." (First: Episode 0624)
	SCENE 4	Oscar can't sleep due to the pullout couch being much too comfortable. He tries counting skunks, but to no avail. He wakes up Maria and Luis, who stuff the mattress with various odds and ends. Oscar goes down quickly after and starts loudly mumbling in his sleep.
	Cartoon	1-10, 10-1 count with stripes. (First: Episode 0926)
	Muppets	Ernie & Bert — Ernie and Bert go off to sleep but Ernie starts to sing himself a lullaby. Bert then asks Ernie if he would mind singing quieter. So he does and then finds that he can even sing it the quietest. Bert then wonders what's going on and can't seem to go to sleep. Ernie then asks Bert if he's singing it to the extent that he can't hear him then why is he not asleep yet? (First: Episode 0841)
	Cartoon	U for uniform. (First: Episode 0702)
	Muppets	Jimmy is upset about moving to a new house, but Hoots the Owl shows up and sings "Things Are Always Changing." (First: Episode 2937)
	Film	Growing Numbers #15
	Cartoon	Little Red Riding Hood uses a map to get to Grandma's house. (First: Episode 2686)
	SCENE 5	The following morning, Liddy reports that her can-emptier is broken and won't be able to de-flood Oscar's can until next week. Everyone frets about continuing these living arrangements any longer and think of ways to empty the can. A kid proposes they drink it out with a straw, inspiring Big Bird to find just the someone who can accomplish such a task...Snuffy! Using his snuffle, he drinks up all the water (and Oscar's fish Fred by accident). Oscar concludes his story in the present, as Snuffy asks what Oscar wants him to do now. Oscar tells him to wait until after the following...
	Song	Ornate E's go easing by to a song. (First: Episode 2937)
	Muppets	Mr. Johnson is at home when he calls for pizza delivery. Naturally, the delivery comes by way of Grover who keeps messing things up because he's not listening to the order. He brings a carpenter's saw and a potted flower attached to his head as a result of cutting Mr. Johnson off mid-sentence.
	Cartoon	Bruce the moose invites Toulouse LaGoose over for juice. (First: Episode 2498)
	Film	Scenes of flowers set to harmonica music (First: Episode 2497)
	Cartoon	The Great Inventor Series: Science Salutes the Men and Women Who Have Changed the Way We Live. Cartoon about the days when people tried drinking ice cream soda before straws were invented. Awful messes were made getting more of the refreshment on their clothes than in their bellies. Until one day an ice cream parlor janitor noticed that when people brought their leashed pet anteaters in to enjoy an ice cream soda, the floor was always sucked completely clean. Realizing that nature had solved the problem, the janitor invented artificial anteater noses that strapped on over people's mouths... which eventually evolved into the modern straw. Artist: Bruce Cayard (First: Episode 2595)
	Film	"Box City Recycling Rap" Kids sing a rap song about recycling. They build a city out of boxes and cartons. (First: Episode 2851)
	Cartoon	They'd play with me if I had... (First: Episode 0815)
	SCENE 6	Oscar informs Snuffy that when he emptied his can, he also drank up the water in his pool and wants him to put it back. Snuffy puts his snuffle into the can and starts blowing water in. He also waters the plants and the sofa. Fred the fish announces the sponsors.

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