The story starts in New York's China Town where Big Bird spies an old scroll with a picture of a beautiful phoenix on it. The shop keeper explains that the phoenix is magical and lives in China. It won't be easy to find and Big Bird will have to find the four places pictured on the scroll, and in each place he'll get a clue from a monkey to find the phoenix. There is a sand timer which he must beat in solving the clues given by the monkey. Big Bird thinks "Well, what a good thing it would be if a great big American bird went to meet that beautiful Chinese bird! I mean, she could tell me everything about China, and then I could come home and tell everybody here!" So, he sets out with Barkley on a boat and makes it to China.
Highlights include Chinese landmarks like the Great Wall of China and Beijing, Big Bird learning the "little duckling dance", and a song to teach Chinese words. A character called The Monkey King appears in the special; despite an appearance that has scared many youngsters, he helps Big Bird and Xiao Fu in their quest. Big Bird wears a tie for the entire movie which is a change from his normal appearance. Oscar decides to try to dig his way to China from his trash can and when he gets to China he finds it boring and goes straight home.
The movie was based in the People's Republic of China 1 year after the Cultural Revolution. Eventually also 7 years before the movie was filmed, Nixon open relations with Mao during the Sino-Soviet Split. The movie show happy communists and Chinese propaganda.
The production was released on DVD on February 10, 2004. The DVD lacks about a minute of the original production, in which Big Bird is looking for someone who speaks "American," though it can be seen on the VHS version).
Read more about Big Bird In China: Origins, Cast, Crew, Awards
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