01x35 - Big Sulky/The Funny Face Competition

[bunniefuu]

Hey, everyone-- it's me, Molly!

♪ Molly of Denali ♪

Let's go!

♪ She's Molly of Denali ♪

(laughing): Whooo!

♪ By plane or sled or snowshoe ♪

♪ She is ready to explore ♪

♪ From Kaktovik down to Juneau ♪

♪ Always wanting to learn more ♪

Yeah!

♪ Together with her best friend Tooey ♪

♪ Always by her side ♪ And Trini!

♪ Discovering the outdoors ♪

♪ On adventures day and night ♪

♪ Come along with Molly ♪

♪ Molly ♪

♪ Through fields of fireweed ♪

♪ Come along with Molly ♪

♪ Molly ♪

♪ From tundra to the sea ♪

Mahsi'choo-- let's go!

♪ Molly of Denali ♪ Yeah!

♪ She's Molly of Denali ♪

♪ Come on ♪ ♪ Let's go! ♪

♪ Molly of Denali ♪

♪ She's Molly of Denali ♪

MOLLY: "Big Sulky."

(wind whistling)

(tree trunk creaking)

Perfect.

Whoa!

(wind whistling)

I've never seen it so windy.

Whoa, look at Big Sulky.

Wow!

If the wind is bending the tallest tree in Qyah,

what will it do to my kite?

Let's find out!

Whoo!

Look at it go!

(wind whistling)

♪ ♪

Whoa!

Ah! (both grunt)

(gasps)

My kite.

It's gone forever!

Huh? Huh?

♪ ♪

No, it isn't.

Look, it's at the top of Big Sulky!

(thunder rumbling)

Come on!

Let's get inside before the storm hits.

♪ ♪

Phew, we got in just in time.

Yeah.

I love storms,

but I'd rather watch them than be in them.

DANIEL: That makes two of us.

Are you taking down the gardening exhibit?

Yup.

Summer's over.

Time to set up a new one.

I think this was my favorite

of all the library's exhibits.

I know, it's going to be hard to top.

Got any ideas?

Ooh, ooh, I got it!

What about a dogsledding exhibit?

But doesn't that seem more like a winter thing?

Yeah, that's true.

(gasps) Why don't we do some research online?

I'm sure we can come up with something perfect for fall.

All ideas are welcome.

Don't worry.

We'll have a great idea for you in no time.

(thunder rumbling)

Or... maybe not.

(thunder rumbling, tree creaking)

♪ ♪

Whoa.

That storm left as quickly as it came.

Did some damage, though.

I wonder if the whole town lost power.

Hey, maybe we can get my kite now.

I bet the wind blew it out of the tree.

Hey.

Where'd Big Sulky go?

♪ ♪

(both gasp)

Whoa. Whoa.

♪ ♪

I, I don't believe it.

The storm winds knocked Big Sulky down?

This was the first tree I ever hugged.

Dad and I would always look for it

when we were dogsledding.

It let us know where we were.

Look.

Big Sulky saved the kite too.

I'm really going to miss it.

AUNTIE MIDGE: We all will.

This tree was a member of our community for a long time.

It has so many stories to tell.

How old was it?

Older than my grandmother.

I think I'll take this spruce cone

and put it on my windowsill.

It'll remind me of the good memories.

(gasps) Wait.

That gives me an idea!

♪ ♪

Huh?

It's for your new exhibit.

It could be all about Big Sulky.

(sighs) The storm blew it down.

No!

(inhales) I loved that tree.

It kept me from getting lost when I went hiking.

See?

Everyone has a Big Sulky story.

Hey!

What if we interviewed people about Big Sulky?

We could include their stories in the exhibit.

Yeah!

And we could photographs on the walls and artwork.

Well, Daniel, what do you think?

Mmm, I was thinking about doing an exhibit

on mushrooms and mosses.

(laughs) But I like your idea much better.

♪ Yes! ♪ Whoo!

(doing victory cheer)

MOLLY: Ready, Auntie Midge?

I was born ready.

TOOEY: Wait.

There.

Now we're ready.

Okay, Auntie, tell us a story about Big Sulky.

Well, first thing,

I didn't grow up calling him Big Sulky.

I have no idea where it got that name.

(laughs)

But when I was little,

we used to use the first sap from the white spruce

to clean our teeth.

I was measuring it for the State Registry

of Big Trees, and was high at the top,

when suddenly a raven flew towards me.

The clouds were so thick, I couldn't see.

But as soon as I spotted Big Sulky,

I knew just where to land.

I used to make tea from the spruce needles.

They're full of vitamin C.

Tastes pretty good too.

(slurps)

You know you can use these roots for weaving?

I have a Tlingit friend who used to make baskets with them.

Big Sulky's roots might be too old to make baskets, though.

But they are beautiful.

MOLLY: Mahsi'choo, Mr. Patak.

That was great.

I think we've got plenty of interviews for the exhibit.

Oh wait, one more question.

Do you know how Big Sulky got his name?

Hmm, nope, can't say that I do.

That's always been a bit of a mystery.

Well, time to make some firewood.

(screams) Wait!

You can't turn Big Sulky into firewood.

Why not?

Big Sulky will keep us all warm in the winter.

But our exhibit is so Big Sulky won't be forgotten.

If you turn it into firewood,

it's gone for good.

Oh, I see.

Well, maybe this will help.

I was going to hang it in my workshop,

but you can use it for your exhibit.

Wow, a slice of Big Sulky!

You see the rings?

If you count them,

you'll know how old the tree was.

Each ring is one year.

Cool!

This'll be perfect.

BOTH (to the tune of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat"): ♪ Roll, roll, roll your tree ♪

♪ Gently down the trail ♪

♪ Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a... ♪

(both scream)

Hey. Come back!

TOOEY: Stop that log!

Slow down!

Huh.

MOLLY: Big Sulky is getting away.

TOOEY: Get back here!

Huh.

(sighs, Molly screams)

TOOEY: How is it going this far?

Huh?

♪ ♪

(goose squawking)

I'll get my boots.

♪ ♪

, , .

Good, that's what I got.

"Big Sulky, years old."

This ring is...

the year Big Sulky got into the Registry of Big Trees.

This ring shows the year of the great flood.

And this ring...

That's the year I was born.

DANIEL: Hey.

I think I might have found a clue

about how Big Sulky got its name.

It's a journal from a traveler named Fitzwalter Holbrook,

who passed through Qyah years ago.

(clears throat) "My cabin is near the giant spruce tree

the Russians call 'Big Sulky.'"

And then there's a map.

Big Sulky is on an old map?

That would be great for the exhibit.

Can we print it?

(chuckles) Sure. (gasps)

People are here for the Big Sulky exhibit.

Whoa. What a fun idea.

We're sure going to miss Big Sulky.

Tooey!

Press play on the interviews.

And when it hardened a little, you could chew on it

like bubblegum.

But it was crumbly

and not as sweet as the gum you're used to.

It's not as pretty as the ones my friend made,

but is it too late to add to the exhibit?

I made it with Big Sulky's roots.

No, it's never too late.

Mahsi, Mr. Patak.

Huh, "The wood,

the sap, and the needles are all useful parts of the tree."

MOLLY: Oops.

Let me fix that real quick.

"The wood, the sap, the roots, and the needles

are all useful parts of the tree."

There.

Fixed it.

Look what you've done.

Well, we're still doing it.

It keeps growing!

♪ ♪

Well, I guess the exhibit is a success.

Yeah, but...

I still kind of wish Big Sulky was still out there.

Me too.

But you brought everyone together

to keep its memory alive.

I am proud of you.

Mahsi'choo, Auntie.

Find me after.

I have a surprise for you.

♪ ♪

A spruce sapling!

The same kind of tree as Big Sulky.

Did you ever figure out how it got its name?

No, but Daniel found an old map with Big Sulky on it.

Yes, but here's a weird thing.

In the journal, it's called Big Sulky.

But on the map, it's called, uh, Vy-something.

Let me see.

Huh.

"Vysokiy."

It's Russian.

It means the tall one.

Vysokiy?

That sounds like...

Big Sulky.

Vysokiy, Big Sulky.

They do sound similar.

(chuckles)

Maybe people got used to saying Big Sulky

instead of Vysokiy, and the name stuck.

Ooh. Of course.

Makes sense. (chuckles)

(sighs) I love research.

♪ ♪

I bet this tree will grow as tall as Big Sulky.

Or taller.

And it will have lots of stories to tell.

♪ ♪

Hey, everyone!

Molly here to answer your questions about life in Alaska.

Uma from Michigan says,

"I heard you can make things using fish skin.

Is that true?"

It is!

My friends can show you.

Nts'e dit'ae, Molly!

BOY: We are at Ya Ne Dah Ah School in Sutton.

GIRL: We speak Ahtna.

GIRL : Ahtna is Athabascan language.

In Ahtna, salmon is luk'ae.

This is a salmon skin,

and we can make all sorts of things out of it.

GIRL : Today we're making jewelry out of salmon skin.

Our people have been making things out of salmon skin

for a really long time.

It's a value of ours to use every part of the animal.

GIRL : We eat the fish and then use the skin to make things.

GIRL : Salmon skin is waterproof and very strong.

GIRL : This is a Tl'ankaani, which means sewing needle.

I've been working on this for days.

I designed this.

It's a necklace that I made out of glass beads with salmon skin.

We are going to make an exhibit about salmon skin today.

GIRL : It's for anybody who's visiting Chickaloon

and wants to learn about salmon skin.

This is all the steps to process salmon skin.

We wrote the steps in Ahtna and English.

Our exhibit has lots of different useful information,

like our Ahtna values and how they relate to salmon.

GIRL : Udii'a ludakodo'onii means "be respectful at all times."

So we'll respect the luk'ae fish skin.

These are historical salmon-skin items.

This is a bag made out of salmon skin

and these are boots.

This display is helpful because

it teaches that salmon skin is useful in many ways.

Aa' Xona, Molly!

Mahsi'choo.

Thanks for asking, and see you next time!

MOLLY: "The Funny Face Competition"

(book scanner beeps)

(book scanner beeps)

You okay there, Molly?

(struggling)

I got it, I got it.

(exhales)

(sighs) I don't got it.

Sorry, Daniel.

Huh?

People of the Rivers?

Yeah. That's an old book

about the tribes who live along the rivers.

Ooh.

What's going on in this picture?

Why don't you read the caption?

Captions give more information about pictures and photos.

The caption says,

"Mushers play an important role

"in transporting goods through the community.

Pictured here: Tim Hawke, musher, age ."

(chuckles) Who feeds their dogs in dance regalia?

It's like farming in your fancy clothes.

(gasps)

She's wearing regalia to clean fish?

Who wants fish slime on moose hide?

Maybe the caption will tell us.

"Fish are an important staple

"of the Alaskan diet.

"Families go to fish camps each summer.

Pictured here: Sarah Johnson, age ."

Huh, nothing about why she's dressed up--

or looks so grumpy.

Everyone I know is happy at fish camp.

Well, no one's happy in here.

How can you call your book People of the Rivers

if it doesn't look anything like the people of the rivers?

(sighs) It isn't very accurate.

But Auntie Midge is in here somewhere.

What? Where?

There she is.

Wow. (gasps)

Who's that with her? It doesn't say.

Where's the caption when you need one?

I know who can tell us who the mystery man is.

Oh, that's my Uncle Isaac.

This is what he really looked like.

Ah, he seems fun.

He was.

That picture in the book doesn't look anything like him.

No one in there looks like themselves.

The photographer told us not to smile.

That's why everyone looks so grumpy.

And he made us wear regalia for everything.

Huh.

Someone should fix this book.

Mm-hmm.

I told him he should take pictures

of one of our funny-face competitions

and put those in there.

But he wouldn't.

Huh? Huh?

Funny-face competition? Funny-face competition?

Mm-hmm.

People could have seen we have fun.

We should have a funny-face competition now.

I bet it would be hilarious.

(making funny noises) (chuckles)

(laughs) Oh, they are.

My Uncle Isaac used to win all the time.

(making funny noise)

(both laugh, Tooey makes funny noise)

(both making funny noises)

(gasps) Tooey,

that's it. What's it?

That's how we'll fix the book.

By having another funny-face competition.

And I could totally win.

No one makes funnier faces than me.

(making funny noise)

(chuckling)

How is this funny-face competition

going to help you fix that book?

Everyone is frowning in here and wearing regalia.

That's not us.

So we'll have a funny-face competition,

and people will come in their everyday clothes.

People will make faces. Like this.

They'll laugh, and we can take photos

and put them in this book, just like Auntie Midge wanted.

(laughs) I'm in.

(camera clicks)

Let's get the word out.

♪ ♪

(microphone humming)

(keying microphone) Hello, Alaska!

Get ready to laugh, because...

Qyah is bringing the funny back to faces.

AUNTIE MIDGE (on radio): That's right!

Huh? Hmm?

This Saturday, we're having

an all-new funny face competition.

(laughs)

TOOEY (on radio): So start scrunching your eyebrows

and stretching your cheeks.

MOLLY (on radio): Bring your silliest faces

and your friends.

The rules are simple.

You make funny faces to get other people to laugh.

(whispers): Gonna win.

But the person who doesn't laugh at anything

is the winner.

Huh?

You mean the person who makes the funniest face

isn't the winner?

AUNTIE MIDGE: Nope.

The person who stays stone-faced

no matter what kind of silly face someone makes at them,

wins.

Hmm.

(radio powers down)

I'm good at making funny faces,

but not this stone-face stuff.

You just need practice.

♪ ♪

TOOEY: Lemons?

Let my face be stone.

♪ ♪

(both wincing)

What does this do, exactly?

Helps you learn how to control your face muscles

so you don't laugh.

(both wincing)

(breathes deeply)

Face of stone.

♪ ♪

(laughing)

♪ ♪

(laughing)

♪ ♪

(laughing)

(sighs)

Mm-hmm.

You are ready.

Just in time to win the competition!

AUNT MERNA: I wouldn't be so sure about that.

(growls)

That's right, Dolt'ol.

Auntie Merna always wins the funny-face competitions,

doesn't she? (barks)

ALL: Oh, man.

I thought you said Uncle Isaac always won.

I said he used to win.

Then Merna started b*ating him.

That's Merna.

This was taken the first time she won.

And she's been winning ever since.

Merna never smiles.

Ever.

GRANDPA NAT (on microphone): Drin gwiinzii!

Good day, everyone!

Welcome to the Qyah funny-face competition!

(applause)

(fly buzzing)

Here's a little joke to get us started.

What's orange and sounds like a parrot?

A carrot.

(coughs)

(chuckles nervously)

So, uh, contestants, form a line over...

(door opens, Nat gasps)

♪ ♪

It's Merna. Is that...

MOM: I don't believe it! It's Merna!

Merna. Merna.

Ooh, game on.

Ooh, things just got interesting, folks.

Our long-reigning non-laugher Merna is here!

(barks tersely)

You all know the rules.

He or she who doesn't laugh, wins!

Okay, who's our first challenger?

♪ ♪

(laughing)

♪ ♪

Oh!

She closed the book on that one.

♪ ♪

(laughing)

(chuckles) Our pilot never got off the ground.

(laughing, sighs)

(slurps)

All the lemons in the world can't help me now.

(Dad laughing)

Oh, someone send help,

our wilderness guide is lost. (chuckles)

(Dad continues laughing)

(laughing)

(laughing)

(various townspeople laughing)

Okay, who's next?

Come on up, Shgguya.

(exhales)

(Molly laughing, camera clicks)

(sighs) It's up to you, Tooey.

(barks)

Remember, face like stone.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

(sighs)

♪ ♪

(fly buzzing)

(blowing)

♪ ♪

(continues blowing)

♪ ♪

(laughing)

(Merna and Dolt'ol laughing)

(crowd gasps, cheers)

GRANDPA NAT: We have a new champion.

Give it up for fly guy Tooey!

(cheering continues) What?

I won?

I won!

(laughing)

(camera clicks)

MOLLY: Read the caption.

AUNTIE MIDGE: "Funny face competitions are an Alaska Native Tradition,

based on a Inupiaq game called 'Maq.'"

How'd you know that?

Grandpa Nat helped us with the captions.

"Pictured above,

"funny face champ, Tooey Ookami, age ,

and former champ, Merna Williams,

age 'None of your business.'"

Now people can see what we're really like.

We wear regular clothes, and we like to laugh.

And look!

AUNTIE MIDGE: "For Uncle Isaac, the original funny face champ.

Now everyone can see what a happy man he really was."

♪ ♪

♪ ♪