Remembering one of my heroes today

Meeting the man behind Big Bird (and Oscar the Grouch)

Me with Caroll Spinney, plus two of his closest friends from Sesame Street

On April 27 of this year, a documentary film called I Am Big Bird: The Caroll Spinney Story made its world premiere at the HotDocs festival in Toronto. In case you don't know who Mr. Spinney is, you've likely grown up hearing his voice on the now 45-year-old children's TV show Sesame Street.

Spinney has performed both Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch since the series began. At 80 years old, he is the last of the original Muppet performers who can still be heard regularly on the show every weekday morning. He has lived an extraordinary and rewarding life, and I highly recommend seeing his movie. I don't like to give spoilers, except to say that through some dramatic highs and lows, Caroll Spinney has managed to maintain his artistic integrity as an actor, animator, singer and comic performer.

One of my favourite moments in I Am Big Bird is his fond remembrance of Jim Henson, his late mentor and best friend.



Spinney, like Henson, comes across as a gentle genius. I saw the film four days after its premiere with a packed audience. After the screening, he and the two directors appeared and took some questions from the audience. I even got to ask him a question about a book I loved as a child, How to Be a Grouch. Spinney, who wrote and illustrated the book credited to Oscar the Grouch, shared that he came up with the book's concept as a self-book for aspiring grouches.

A few minutes after leaving the theatre, I got to meet him! He was warm and friendly, and genuinely pleased to meet with some of his lifelong fans. At one point during our conversation, he asked me if I had the same physical disability as Tarah Schaeffer, a former child actress who acted on Sesame Street during the '90s. The question didn't bother me because I remembered seeing her on the show. In fact, I was honoured he mentioned her because I told him I had made contact with her on Facebook. He seemed quite impressed!

Here is a profile of Caroll Spinney done by CBC earlier this year.



I enjoyed meeting Spinney and watching his film. Meeting him and seeing I Am Big Bird is an early nominee for personal favourite moment of 2014.

As I said goodbye to Caroll Spinney, he said, as Big Bird, "Nice to meet you," followed by "Have a rotten day" in his Oscar voice.

Trailer for I Am Big Bird: The Caroll Spinney Story

RIP Jane Henson, matriarch of the Muppet family

Not Being Elmo: A sad story

I have always been a fan and admirer of Sesame Street and the Muppets, so you can imagine how sad I felt this week when longtime performer Kevin Clash resigned from Sesame Street after 28 years.

Though I was past the normal viewing age for Sesame Street when Clash started lending his voice to the furry red monster Elmo, I did grow up hearing him as Goriddle Gorilla on the non-Muppet production, The Great Space Coaster. In my adult years I watched some of the Elmo-led specials, and some of the other Muppet projects Clash contributed to, usually as other characters.

When news of the scandals broke, I decided from the outset to refrain from judgment. I'm still not going to make any judgments about Clash or his personal life. What I will state is that it's going to be hard to separate the most popular Sesame Street character from the man who helped make him a star.

I loved watching the documentary made about Clash, Being Elmo, a few months ago. Seeing it now, is going to make for a very different experience.

I wish Clash all the best with whatever creative endeavour he chooses to pursue in the future. I feel badly for the kids who watch Sesame Street, because they are hurting the most by his departure. I also hope that whoever comes along to perform Elmo in the future will retain the integrity of the character, as a teaching tool for those who find him fun and entertaining.

RIP Jerry Nelson

Richard Hunt remembered 20 years later

Happy 75th Birthday Jim Henson, my idol!