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| PERFORMER | Lynne Thigpen |
| DEBUT | 1998 |
A training officer from WASA appears in several 1998 episodes of Sesame Street (beginning with Episode 3697) to administer the Worm Space Mission to the Moon. She conducts the testing which recruits Slimey and four other worms onto a team of astronauts who will explore space in the wormship Wiggleprise. She also serves as mission controller for the launching of the ship and explains to the residents of Sesame Street what space exploration is all about.
In early script drafts for the episodes, the character was written with the intention of being played by a male actor (with Tom Hanks suggested in the role). Their name is not addressed in the episodes as aired, but the early scripts have them introduce themself as "Buzz Houston"[1] (referencing astronaut Buzz Aldrin and the Houston space center).