History YMMV / ASpecialSesameStreetChristmas

* QuirkyWork: Classic ''Series/SesameStreet'' and hokey TV variety specials don't seem like they'd be a good match to begin with, but this special goes the extra mile into complete weirdness, with a messy script, a bizarre jumble of holiday songs and other fare (nothing says Christmas like Anne Murray's "You Needed Me", or Creator/EthelMerman singing [[Theatre/{{Annie}} "Tomorrow"]]), and a wacky AllStarCast. Mere descriptions of moments like Oscar playing an electric guitar and singing [[Music/LeiberAndStoller "Yakety Yak"]], Creator/HenryFonda talking about wingnuts, and Music/MichaelJackson talking about ghosts, sound like someone's fevered hallucinations. Similar to ''Film/TheStarWarsHolidaySpecial'', a lot of kids who grew up in TheSeventies were convinced this special was some sort of dream or false memory they'd had, until the Internet and a commercial DVD release confirmed that it really did exist.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter: How exactly do you cast Music/MichaelJackson in your show and not have him sing or dance so much as one note?
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: A star-studded ''Series/SesameStreet'' special centering on Oscar the Grouch could've been really good. Unfortunately, it got outsourced to people who didn't work on the show,[[note]]Writer Tom Dunsmuir, who'd been a writer on ''Series/TheElectricCompany1971'', would go on to be a ''Sesame Street'' staff writer in TheEighties, but he'd never written for ''Sesame Street'' before this special, and it shows.[[/note]] and it had NoBudget.
* WhatDoYouMeanItWasntMadeOnDrugs: Classic ''Series/SesameStreet'' and hokey TV variety specials don't seem like they'd be a good match to begin with, but this special goes the extra mile into complete weirdness, with a messy script, a bizarre jumble of holiday songs and other fare (nothing says Christmas like Anne Murray's "You Needed Me", or Creator/EthelMerman singing [[Theatre/{{Annie}} "Tomorrow"]]), and a wacky AllStarCast. Mere descriptions of moments like Oscar playing an electric guitar and singing [[Music/LeiberAndStoller "Yakety Yak"]], Creator/HenryFonda talking about wingnuts, and Music/MichaelJackson talking about ghosts, sound like someone's fevered hallucinations. Similar to ''Film/TheStarWarsHolidaySpecial'', a lot of kids who grew up in TheSeventies were convinced this special was some sort of dream or false memory they'd had, until the Internet and a commercial DVD release confirmed that it really did exist.

* SugarWiki/FunnyMoments: Creator/EthelMerman's understandable reaction to seeing Imogene Coca dressed as the Ghost of Christmas Past.
-->"Imogene, what's the matter? You look like an idiot!"

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: A star-studded ''Series/SesameStreet'' special centering on Oscar the Grouch could've been really good. Unfortunately, it got outsourced to people who didn't work on the show,[[note]]Writer Tom Dunsmuir, who'd been a writer on ''Series/TheElectricCompany'', would go on to be a ''Sesame Street'' staff writer in TheEighties, but he'd never written for ''Sesame Street'' before this special, and it shows.[[/note]] and it had NoBudget.

* MemeticMutation: "Imogene, what's the matter? You look like an idiot!"[[labelnote:Explanation]]Creator/EthelMerman's understandable reaction to seeing Imogene Coca dressed as the Ghost of Christmas Past.[[/labelnote]]

* WhatDoYouMeanItWasntMadeOnDrugs: Classic ''Series/SesameStreet'' and hokey TV variety specials don't seem like they'd be a good match to begin with, but this special goes the extra mile into complete weirdness, with a messy script, a bizarre jumble of holiday songs and other fare (nothing says Christmas like Anne Murray's "You Needed Me", or Creator/EthelMerman singing [[Theatre/{{Annie}} "Tomorrow"]]), and a wacky AllStarCast. Mere descriptions of moments like Oscar playing an electric guitar and singing [[Music/LeiberAndStoller "Yakety Yak"]], Creator/HenryFonda talking about wingnuts, and Music/MichaelJackson talking about ghosts, sound like someone's fevered hallucinations. As with ''Film/TheStarWarsHolidaySpecial'', a lot of kids who grew up in TheSeventies were convinced this special was some sort of dream or false memory they'd had, until the Internet and a commercial DVD release confirmed that it really did exist.

* WhatDoYouMeanItWasntMadeOnDrugs: Classic ''Series/SesameStreet'' and hokey TV variety specials don't seem like they'd be a good match to begin with, but this special goes the extra mile into complete weirdness, with a messy script, a bizarre jumble of holiday songs and other fare (nothing says Christmas like Anne Murray's "You Needed Me", or Creator/EthelMerman singing [[Theatre/{{Annie}} "Tomorrow"]]), and a wacky AllStarCast. Mere descriptions of moments like Oscar playing an electric guitar and singing [[Music/LeiberAndStoller "Yakety Yak"]], Creator/HenryFonda talking about wingnuts, and Music/MichaelJackson talking about ghosts, sound like someone's fevered hallucinations. As with ''Film/TheStarWarsHolidaySpecial'', a lot of kids who grew up in TheSeventies were convinced this special was some sort of dream or false memory they'd had, until the internet confirmed that it really did exist.

* AwardSnub: Amazingly, this got nominated for an Emmy. Satisfyingly, however, it ended up losing to ''Series/ChristmasEveOnSesameStreet''.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter: How exactly do you cast Creator/MichaelJackson in your show and not have him sing or dance so much as one note?

* WhatDoYouMeanItWasntMadeOnDrugs: Classic ''Series/SesameStreet'' and hokey TV variety specials don't seem like they'd be a good match to begin with, but this special goes the extra mile into complete weirdness, with a messy script, a bizarre jumble of holiday songs and other fare, and a wacky AllStarCast that somehow tries to shoehorn in everyone from Creator/HenryFonda to Music/MichaelJackson. Mere descriptions of moments like Oscar playing an electric guitar and singing [[Music/LeiberAndStoller "Yakety Yak"]] or him duetting with Creator/EthelMerman sound like someone's fevered hallucinations. As with ''Film/TheStarWarsHolidaySpecial'', a lot of kids who grew up in TheSeventies were convinced this special was some sort of dream or false memory they'd had, until the internet confirmed that it really did exist.