# Long-lost episode of Sesame Street found **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted\ **Created:** [June 26, 2022, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867 "2022-06-26T00:06:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CastletonSnob1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@CastletonSnob1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CastletonSnob1)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2022, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/1 "2022-06-26T00:06:05Z")
A banned episode of Sesame Street from the 70s featuring the Wicked Witch of the West from Wizard of Oz was found. The episode was only shown once before being banned for being “too scary” for kids. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/21btSNc6tIU/hqdefault.jpg "Sesame Street - Episode 847 (1976) - RARE! Wicked Witch") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21btSNc6tIU) ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2022, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/2 "2022-06-26T00:13:57Z")
That’s Margaret Hamilton. > **[Episode 0847](https://muppet.fandom.com/wiki/Episode_0847)** > > In this episode of Sesame Street, The Wicked Witch of the West (played by Margaret Hamilton, reprising her role from The Wizard of Oz) wreaks havoc on the street when she loses her flying broomstick. The stated curriculum goals of the episode were to... ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2022, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/3 "2022-06-26T03:15:45Z")
She should team up with the Crack Master. ---
**Author:** ![nelliebly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nelliebly/32/5422_2.png) [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2022, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/4 "2022-06-26T03:50:57Z")
Many, many years ago, I saw Margaret Hamilton on (I think) The DIck Cavett Show. She said she dressed up as the Wicked Witch on Halloween but seldom gave out any candy because the kids all shrieked and fled. It’s ironic she scared children, as she’d been a teacher and loved kids. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2022, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/5 "2022-06-26T04:54:01Z")
And here I would’ve assumed it was the episode that inspired this; 😁 [![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FL7utBnaUAAl5Rz.jpg:large) ](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FL7utBnaUAAl5Rz.jpg:large) ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2022, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/6 "2022-06-26T06:38:02Z")
Banned? By whom? Or simply withdrawn? ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2022, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/7 "2022-06-26T17:26:13Z")
Why doesn’t he just give her the damn broom back?? What a Dick! ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2022, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/8 "2022-06-26T18:02:21Z")
Careful, you’re gonna get zapped. “Ooooh, FUDGE! That makes me furious.” Lol. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2022, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/9 "2022-06-26T18:10:02Z")
> [@Cervaise](#): > > Banned? By whom? > > Or simply withdrawn? I would suspect the latter. This Mashable article from last week (which may have inspired the OP’s post) uses the word “banned,” and indicates that parents wrote letters complaining about how scary it was. But, it doesn’t go into details on exactly what happened, other than it being “pulled from TV for good.” The word “banned” suggests that the FCC or some other government agency ordered PBS or CTW (the show’s producer) to no longer air the episode; what I think is more likely is that PBS and/or CTW voluntarily withdrew that episode from distribution – which is, technically, not a “banning,” though it has the same net effect. > **[Watch the lost 'Sesame Street' episode reportedly banned for being too scary](https://mashable.com/article/lost-sesame-street-episode-scary)** > > The legendary Margaret Hamilton stars as the Wicked Witch of the West. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2022, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/10 "2022-06-26T23:36:07Z")
I know she appeared on Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood. Per IMDb she was on twice as “Margaret H. Witch” and I know I saw one of the episodes years after the original airing. The Roger’s wiki lists 3 episodes with her character also being named “Margaret H. Lizard”. Lots of [videos](https://youtu.be/Oglo3iUYFPY) of the 'tube. I guess the kids who watched Roger’s were just tougher SOBs. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2022, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/11 "2022-06-27T00:09:13Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > I know she appeared on Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood. Per IMDb she was on twice as “Margaret H. Witch” and I know I saw one of the episodes years after the original airing. The Roger’s wiki lists 3 episodes with her character also being named “Margaret H. Lizard”. Lots of [videos](https://youtu.be/Oglo3iUYFPY) of the 'tube. I remember seeing her on Mister Rogers, and my recollection is that she, at first, appeared out of character, and was (with Fred’s help) demonstrating to the viewers that the Witch character was her, in makeup, was a make-believe character, and thus, kids shouldn’t be afraid of her. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2022, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/12 "2022-06-27T00:33:14Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > I guess the kids who watched Roger’s were just tougher SOBs. I remember some Mr. Rogers Kingdom of Make-believe plot that somehow involved this giant cow of the horizon. That one scared the heck out of me. ---
**Author:** ![TRC4941](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trc4941/32/6792_2.png) [@TRC4941](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TRC4941)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2022, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/13 "2022-06-28T14:04:14Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > I know she appeared on Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood. Per IMDb she was on twice as “Margaret H. Witch” and I know I saw one of the episodes years after the original airing. The Roger’s wiki lists 3 episodes with her character also being named “Margaret H. Lizard”. Lots of [videos](https://youtu.be/Oglo3iUYFPY) of the 'tube. > > I guess the kids who watched Roger’s were just tougher SOBs. Well, they’d been watching Lady Elaine Fairchilde in the Land of Make Believe for years. She was creepy looking! ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2022, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/14 "2022-07-01T16:13:10Z")
According to Wikipedia and the iMDB, she also played the Wicked Witch of the West that same year on the Paul Lynde Halloween Special. (Several other of her roles pointed to or suggested the Wicked Witch, as well. She played the witchlike Aunt Huddy in the 1951 Abbott and Costello film **Comin’ Round the Mountain**. In 1970s’s **Brewster McCloud** when her character dies the camera pans down to show her wearing sparkly Ruby Slippers. ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2022, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/15 "2022-07-01T17:11:23Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > I remember seeing her on Mister Rogers, and my recollection is that she, at first, appeared out of character, and was (with Fred’s help) demonstrating to the viewers that the Witch character was her, in makeup, was a make-believe character, and thus, kids shouldn’t be afraid of her. Exactly. As I understand it, they arranged the appearance specifically to help kids who were afraid of the Wicked Witch understand that it was just pretend, and that she was really a nice lady. The segment is easy to find on YouTube, and quite charming: [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEY5EkUR6_M) ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2022, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/16 "2022-07-03T02:12:09Z")
I prefer this version. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/RmDHUwX9Zc0/hqdefault.jpg "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmDHUwX9Zc0) ---
**Author:** ![LegendHasit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/legendhasit/32/8246_2.png) [@LegendHasit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LegendHasit)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2022, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/long-lost-episode-of-sesame-street-found/966867/17 "2022-07-17T00:32:10Z")
I watched that episode on YT last week. She also appeared on Mr Rogers Neighborhood (eta: Yes! as seen above). I always looked forward to springtime when WoO would be a special on TV each year as a child. She’s my favorite scariest witch. A couple of months ago DH and I got the Netflix DVD and watched again. Always brings us back.