A highfalutin felon who finagles finery for Carmen Sandiego. Her last known whereabouts: Namibia. Etosha Game Park in Namibia is home to many kinds of animals, but the fastest in fur are the cheetahs. These big cats run up to 70 miles an hour, making them the speediest land mammals on Earth. That speed, plus their keen eyesight and camouflage coat, make cheetahs excellent hunters. But for decades, humans have hunted cheetahs for their beautiful coats, and farmers now use much of the land where cheetahs once roamed. That's why cheetahs are an endangered species. Namibia's one of the few places where they still survive. At least they did until today when the Contessa focused her fancies on feline finery. Conjuring up a case of catnip, she smelt up the pelt, and made all the cheetahs cheery. Then she went for a jaunt in her Jeep, and the enraptured cat encountered capture. Contessa crated the creatures and codded them to her cabana. You've got to track them down, gumshoes, and solve today's case...
Voted most likely to be a rodent by his high school class, he's a faux fur felon for Carmen Sandiego. His last known whereabouts: the Sun. Now if you need a map to find this place, you're in trouble. Our Sun is really a medium-sized star, a huge ball of blazing hot gases where temperatures range from about 10,000 degrees on the surface to over 25 million degrees at the center. But don't believe me? Well, go measure for yourself. As a star, the Sun is nothing special, but without its light and warmth, life on Earth as we know it would cease to exist. And that cute little Coppertone girl would be out of a job. Luckily, the Sun's been around for more than 4 1/2 billion years. But it was a real sundowner at high noon today when Wonder Rat jacked up his custom-built Eclipse-O-Matic, then hijacked Ol' Sol from the sky. Now that rat's catching rays in his own private beach, but you got to catch him, gumshoes. Light up our lives again by stopping...
He's wanted for robbery and assault with a deadly fabric. His last known whereabouts: London, England. Ravens, they're big, they're black, they're related to crows, and they're on the payroll at the Tower of London. No one's sure when ravens started living at the tower, but legend says the British Empire will collapse if the birds ever leave. So eight ravens are kept as full-time residents. Their wings are clipped so they can't fly away and the birds are cared for by the Royal Ravenmaster. He gets the ravens official food allowance of 15p a week, about 22¢ in U.S. currency. Or he did until today when Vic the Slick slithered in, tiptoeing through the tower ground. He raced to where the ravens roost, then baited the birds with prime slime steak. Vic used T-bones, of course, and that T can only stand for thief. Well, before you could say nevermore, those ravenous ravens have flown the coop with Vic. Now, gumshoes, it's up to you to stop this terrible...
The heat's on, Vic. Whisk those ravens to a peninsula on the Red Sea.
I gotta leave now? But I'm getting my mustache sharpened tomorrow.
No time for that. Now, listen. There's a 1,400-year-old monastery on this peninsula, and its library used to have one of the world's oldest bibles.
Used to? What, somebody put it back on the wrong shelf?
In the mid-1800s, someone borrowed the Bible and never returned it.
Wow. Let's see...[mutters to himself while doing some calculations] ...10¢ a day, 52,500 a day [amazed] Ooh, no wonder it wasn't returned! The overdue fine's a fortune!
That psycho on a cycle who swindles swag for Carmen Sandiego. His last known whereabouts: the Galápagos Islands. Ecuador's Galápagos Islands are named for the famous giant tortoises that live there. Galápagos also means saddle in Spanish, roughly describing the size and shape of the tortoises' shells. Charles Darwin first studied these creatures in the 1830s, and back then, there were a couple hundred thousand of the big guys who can weigh up to 600 pounds. But now, partly due to loss of their habitat, only about 15,000 remain. The Charles Darwin Research Center breeds Galápagos tortoises and protects them from extinction. Or it did until today when the Galápagos got grunged. Carmen's bad biker rolled through the islands and lifted every last lumbering tortoise. He thinks there'll be the new rage in biking head gear: shellmets. Gumshoes, you've got to end today's felonious fable...
Chief ...THE TORTOISE AND THE SNARE!
Rockapella (singing) Double Trouble (Trouble)
Those no-good ne'er-do-wells who nab nice stuff for Carmen Sandiego. Their last known whereabouts: Venice, Italy. Built on more than 100 small islands, Venice is famous for its canals that function as streets. These days, most Venetians travel by motorboat, but for 900 years, gondolas were the way to go. Long, narrow canal boats propelled by a pilot in back using one oar. More than 10,000 gondolas once cruised through Venice, but just a few hundred remain, kept mostly for tourists. But today, the gondola count dropped to zero when those Venetian cretins Double Trouble dropped into town. They cruised the canals in their crime trap, roped up the boats, and left oarsmen all struck along the way. Now Venice has this sinking feeling that its gondolas are going, going, gone. Gumshoes, capture those canal conniving kin, then close the book on today's case...
An uppity upper-crust up to no gooder who uproots loot for Carmen Sandiego. Her last known whereabouts: Manaus, Brazil. The mysterious part of the Amazon rainforest, home to strange plants, unusual animals, and a turn of the century opera house. Built when Manaus was a rich center of the booming rubber trade, the Teatro Amazonas once attracted opera lovers from around the world. But when the boom times left Manaus, so did opera. The theater was almost silent from 1907 until 1990. That's when an ambitious renovation ended which restored Teatro Amazonas to its past glory. But today, the fat lady stopped singing again. The Contessa, that swanky silent of sneak, swept in, set her sights, and then swooped down. A smoky cloud provided a shroud while she tied up the Teatro. Now she's hidden it in a secret location where she listens to her very own opera, "The Contessa Cantata." Gumshoes, I'm declaring today's case...
Contessa, go to a mountainous country on the Adriatic Sea. Until recently, brutal dictators kept it one of the most isolated nations on earth.
Carmen, darling I can get isolation in prison! Don't you have a more inspired chore?
You want inspiration? Then, learn about Besa. When people in this country give their word, their Besa, they do almost anything not to break it.
Oh, honesty is so boring. Surely there is something for me to do.
Well, the country does have some of the world's largest Chromite deposits. You can kill time checking out your reflection.
(at the end of the 1st round) And our ACME Voice Identification Badge and Leave A Message Wallet. (opens it up, revealing an image of the Contessa) It's our secret weapon in a fight against Carmen and her gang, right? (presses a button)
(on recorder) Right. Well, sorta.
Sorta-- Sorta?! Oh, I'm not paying you to say sorta! Greg!
(as he, the Chief, and the gumshoes prepare for departure to Honshu Island, Japan) Work. Okay, guys, time for us to go off--
Greg, would you please take that jacket to the cleaners?! That ketchup stain's been on there since last season.
She does have a point. You guys ready to go? We're goin' to Sado. Come on. Grab the hat. Out the door. Somebody grab me! I got the Chief! We're goin' to Sado.
(while traveling) Well, Chief, I did it. I rounded up a posse.
Next time, Greg, uh, let's try it with live horses.
Prison life is so uncivilized! 600 cells and not a room service menu in sight! Tell Carmen this is more than I can bear. She went to North America.
He's synthetic. He's magnetic. But most of all, he's pathetic. His last known whereabouts: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Greater Pittsburgh's Kennywood Amusement Park has been called the roller coaster capital of the world. If you want a fast reason why, check out the Steel Phantom. In 1991, the Steel Phantom opened at the world's biggest and fastest roller coaster. It hits speed at 80 miles an hour and plunges over 200 feet off a cliff, guaranteed to make you scream your lungs out. Using computers and the latest poster technology, the Steel Phantom includes a vertical loop, a boomerang configuration, and a partial corkscrew, guaranteed to make me lose my lunch. But if you really wanna get queasy, check out what happened today. Robocreep coasted into Kennywood, then rocked the rails, and zapped the tracks from under the Phantom. After finishing the filch with his magnetic amusement moocher, that tinhead reopened the ride at his Robocoaster theme park. Gumshoes, find that phantom and solve today's case...
...STEEL FELON STEALS STEEL PHANTOM!
(after the office segment) You know, I gotta tell you, it's kinda embarassing having two grown people actin' like that about a silly little dog movie. (laughs) ("Frou-Frou" starts barking) (runs back to the office) FROU-FROU!!! FROU-FROU!!!
Get that coaster rolling to the capital of Morocco. Look for Couscous and Harira.
Those words are not in my database.
They're Arabic words from Morocco's spicy soups and stews. People there also eat Pigeon Pie and salads with liver and lamb brains.
Those foods are not in my database.
Robo, not everyone thinks gear oil is fine dining. People have different tastes. Some Moroccans have different table manners, too. They think metal utensils taste bad and carry germs, so they eat with their fingers, instead.
Carmen, what will I do? My fingers are metal utensils.
(as he, the Chief, and the gumshoes prepare for departure to Kathmandu Valley, Nepal) Thank you, Buddy. Okay, guys, time for us to go to Kathmandu Valley--
Oh, Greg, watch out! You're wiping your jacket on my nose!
I'm sorry! Gee whiz. Okay, guys, ready to go? You got the hat. You got the door. I got the Chief. We are on our way to Kathmandu.
(while traveling) Greg, if we could ski on this, we can ski on anything.
Good thing, Chief. The hot lava fields are just ahead.
RoboCrook Unit-059 calling. According to my default program, when imprisoned for more than 11 seconds, I automatically rat on my owner. Look for Carmen in South America.
Carmen Sanidego's bogus baroness of burglary. Her last known whereabouts: Quebec City, Canada. Long, harsh winters are common here, but citizens still enjoy outdoor fun, especially their annual Winter Carnival. Two weeks of frosty festivities including this top attraction: snow sculptures. Everyone builds snowy statues from local kids to international artists competing for big prizes. There's even a snow palace, a full-size castle built entirely from snow. Yep, it wouldn't be Winter Carnival without snow sculpture, and that's why Quebec's bumming big time because today, Contessa crept into Quebec City and connived her way into the carnival. She snagged all the statues and plowed them plumb off the plat, I mean, mat. Now, she's taking them to a secret hideaway where she uses them to keep her caviars cold. Gumshoes, find the stolen statues and crack today's case...
Chief ...THE HOT ICE HEIST!
A bubbly blonde with bright eyes on big bucks for Carmen Sandiego. Her last known whereabouts: China. The Chinese system of writing dates back more than 4,000 years. It doesn't use letters like we're used to seeing in English. Written Chinese consists of about 50,000 characters and each one stands for a word or part of a word. For example, this is the character for mouth, and this is the character for dog. Now you put them together and arf-arf, that's how you write bark. But they couldn't write anything in China today. Patty Larceny mused in a museum on this spot, that Chinese characters would look great in her room, so with a wave of the wand, she whipped to China where Patty picked off the pictographs, copped the calligraphy, and wronged the writing. She's stolen the written language of China. Gumshoes, teach that decadent decorator some decorum. Today's case.
A vile voice villain who vacuums vaults for Carmen Sandiego. Her last known whereabouts: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and London, England. Andy Warhol was one of pop art's greatest artists. His radical work filled with common images like Brillo boxes and Campbell's soup cans, and famous faces redefined what people called art, mostly Warhol had stopped painting with brushes. He produced his work using a process called silk screen printing. Warhol's prints of Marilyn Monroe in different colors and arranged in rows are known the world over. Several now hang in London's famed Tate Gallery and more Marilyns will be on view in the new Warhol Museum in his hometown in Pittsburgh. But last night, those Warhols walked. That Marilyn moocher Sarah Nade tethered into the cape and picked off the paintings. While alarm bells shrieked, she hoisted them skyward and then coptered away. The police and tape director twitched their arms in disbelief while tadpoles jumped off one of their heads. Gumshoes, don't let Sarah have her...
(singing) Double Trouble (Trouble)
The Tweedledee and Tweedledum of Carmen's twerps. Their last known whereabouts: Paris, France. About 800 years ago, workers started building Notre Dame Cathedral. It took almost a century to finish and still stands today. Inside, beautiful stained-glass paintings and carvings illustrate religious scenes, but on the outside walls of Notre Dame, you'll find gnarly little beasts called gargoyles. Sculptures made them gargoyles as ugly and frightening as possible. The idea was to scare away demons, so that the inside of the church would remain peaceful. Well, the scare tactic worked until today when those dorky double-dealing demons named Double Trouble pulled into Paris. They climbed the cathedral, then quickly changed from gargoyle greeters to gargoyle grabbers. Now those bad boys want to party hearty with their newfound frightful friends. Gumshoes, your mission is clear.
GET THOSE GARGOYLE-GRABBING GEEKS!
A case concede cerr who carts off contraband for Carmen Sandiego. His last known whereabouts: the Black Hills, South Dakota. When sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski died in 1982, he left behind a literal mountain of unfinished work. Namely, a mammoth monument called the Crazy Horse Memorial. Since 1947, Korczak had been transforming an entire mountain into the image of the Oglala Sioux chief Crazy Horse. The sculpture was creating the memorial to honor the heritage of Native Americans. Today, work continues on the unfinished Crazy Horse. Korczak's wife and children have vowed to fulfill his dreams. But today, that dream became a nightmare. Wonder Rat's monumental ego got the better of him. The repugnant rodent stole the statue and choppered it off. Soon, it will be his mug on the memorial pointing the path to mountainous mayhem. Gumshoes, get that rat off his high horse and solve today's case...
That interstellar stealer of stellar stuff for Carmen Sandiego. Her last known whereabouts: the Southern Sky. The view of space from Earth's Southern Hemisphere is quite different from the view in the north. For this reason, many of the star patterns called constellations are unique to the Southern Sky. The most visible and famous of all southernly constellation is called Crux, the Southern Cross. The pattern of four bright stars that form Crux has captures imaginations for centuries. In fact, this constellation is so well-known that five countries in the Southern Hemisphere now honor Crux on their flags. But there was dishonor in the skies tonight. That unheavenly body Kneemoi cribbed Crux and every southern constellation. After whirling herself in a burgling black hole, she snarked up the stars, then swapped the space-time continuum. Now the only view of Crux is from the southernly skies of Roddenberry. Gumshoes, you've got to nebulize Kneemoi and crack today's case...
...CONSTELLATION CONSTERNATION!
The well-mannered crook who wrote The Book on Jailhouse Etiquette. Her last known whereabouts: East Africa. The Maasai are traditional cattle herding people of the East African plains, and for generations, it's been a tradition for the Maasai to wear spectacular beadwork. Glass beads were introduced to the Maasai by Arab Caravan traders. The beads were then crafted into all kinds of body ornaments. But Maasai beadwork is worn for more than appearance. Their beads are also symbolic, from beaded earrings that indicate marriage status to necklaces that identify a woman's ethnic group. But today, those beads went bye-bye. Patty Larceny eased into East Africa to plot her bead misdeed. She hot-wired a safari Jeep, then made a clean sweep of every necklace and beaded bauble. Gumshoes, you have got to lasso Miss Larceny and close the book on today's caper...
...TO BEAD OR NOT TO BEAD?
