November 20th 2009; Tom Sparks had just died a few days after opting out of the ABC reality game show "Wipeout" after suffering a fatal stroke due to a pre existing blood condition which all started with a knee cramp. When Ernie asked Bert to comment on what he thought of the incident, Bert commented "some contestants prevailed, but Sparks wiped out. That pun was absolutely tasteless and insensitive. Even for Ernie and everyone else who makes these memes