National Council of Churches

No Tailgating featuring Billy Sue and Sneegle

"No Tailgating!"

In 1962, Muppets, Inc. was commissioned by the Protestant Radio and Television Center to create a series of short films for the National Council of Churches. These included a few traffic safety PSAs produced in cooperation with the Citizens Advisory Committee on Highway Safety, as well as a five-minute pilot for a potential series for the NCC. These films starred children Billy and Sue and a menacing monster named Sneegle, who would often tempt the kids into doing unsafe things but was often punished for his careless behavior.

When the programs were tested, the audience preferred the malicious Sneegle rather than the bland Billy and Sue, so the films went unused. Billy and Sue joined the repertoire of stock Muppets through the late 60s while Sneegle sparsely appeared afterwards.

Commercials

The following are transcripts for three PSAs created for the Citizen's Advisory Committee on Highway Safety. They can be viewed at the Museum of Television and Radio as the last two films on a compilation video entitled The First Part of This Film is Silent/The Second Part is with Sound on Film.

Cast: Sneegle (Jim Henson), Billy (Jerry Juhl), Sue (Bob Payne)

Don't Play in the Street

	Open on city playground. Enter Billy and Sue camera right, in front of a large wire fence. Billy is holding a large kick ball. Enter Sneegle camera left behind the fence.
Sneegle	Hey kids, come out and play in the street!
Sue	But it's safer to play in the playground.
Sneegle	Playgrounds are for kids!
Billy	We have lots of fun in the playground.
Sneegle	I have lots of fun in the street! I live dangerously!
Sue	That doesn't sound like a very good idea.
Sneegle	Watch this! Doesn't this look like fun?
	Sneegle runs off screen camera right. Sound FX: Car screeching, bonk! Oh!!!
Billy	It looks like more fun to play in the playground.
	Cut to card: Citizen's Advisory Committee on Highway Safety.

Use the Crosswalk

	Open on a city setting. Billy and Sue are seen in front of a building. Enter Sneegle camera left.
Sneegle	Hey, come on, let's cross the street!
	Sneegle runs off screen camera left. The screeching of tires is heard.
Sneegle	Come on!
Billy	We use the crosswalk.
Sue	It's safer.
Sneegle	Hold it!
	Sneegle runs back on screen.
Sneegle:	Why don'tcha cross here?
Sue	You shouldn't even hop between parked cars like you just did.
Sneegle:	Baloney! Watch this, here I go!
	Sneegle runs off screen camera left. Sound FX: Car screeching, bonk! Billy and Sue look upward as Sneegle is launched into the air.
Sue:	There he goes!
Billy	Let's use the crosswalk.
	Cut to card: Citizen's Advisory Committee on Highway Safety.

No Tailgating!

	Sneegle is driving a top-down car. In front of him is the back of a bigger car where Billy and Sue can be seen through the back windows. Both cars are in front of a blue-screen, indicating fast driving.
Sue	That man is following us too close!
Billy	Hey, you're following us too close!
Sneegle	If you don't want me to follow so close, then speed up!
Billy	We're going the speed limit now!
Sneegle	I don't see any speed limit sign!
Sue	Here comes a...
	Extreme closeup of Sneegle. Cut to brief Henson animation of star-like shapes, coinciding with "Kaboom" sound effect. Back to cars again, both have stopped, and the blue-screen background is stationary. Sneegle's car is mangled up and emitting smoke; his eyes are cock-eyed, and the top of his pointy head is twisted
Sneegle	(in a dazed voice) A speed limit sign?
Billy	No, a stop sign.
Sue	I told you you were following us too close!
	Cut to card: Citizen's Advisory Committee on Highway Safety.

Educational film

The five-minute film, simply titled "Billy and Sue," was included in a presentation produced by the Protestant Radio and Television Center called "What is Television?"

Billy is digging a hole in the sandpit. Sue wants to dig too, but doesn't have anything to dig with. When Sue asks Billy if she could use the shovel, he doesn't know. Sue then goes on to say he isn't sharing it, and he'd be selfish for doing so. Sneegle then enters the scene, Billy still hasn't decided if Sue should use the shovel, but Sneegle insists him to not let her, and that she can dig with her hands. Sneegle then tempts Billy to dig a really deep hole, to which Billy insists. Sue is worried that he'll go too deep, and thus Sneegle goes into the hole, digging it himself to show how really deep it could be. The sand eventually caves in on the two, as Sneegle begs to get out. Because Sue doesn't have the shovel, she uses her hands to dig them out. Sneegle, frustrated, leaves the scene. Sue then pulls Billy out and states that he shouldn't have listened to Sneegle, when he said to dig the hole deep and to not let Sue use his shovel, because as it turns out, Billy tells Sue that she can use his shovel anytime she wants from now on!

See also

• Unfinished Commercials