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Caroll Spinney, 'Sesame Street's' Big Bird For 50 Years, Is Retiring

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Caroll Spinney, the puppeteer who played Sesame Street‘s Big Bird as well as Oscar the Grouch character since the iconic children’s show’s premiere episode in 1969, is retiring. Producer Sesame Workshop announced the news Wednesday.

The world famous Big Bird has had a great flight in the hands of Spinney, having visited China with Bob Hope in 1979, danced with the Rockettes, received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and named a “Living Legend” in 2000 by the Library of Congress.

“Caroll has been one of the leading lights of Sesame Street from the very beginning,” said Joan Ganz Cooney, co-founder of Sesame Workshop, in a release announcing the news. “His genius and his talent made Big Bird the most beloved yellow feathered friend across the globe. But the sheer artistry of Caroll is that he also brought Oscar to life and made him the most lovable Grouch in the world.”

Sesame Street, created by Jim Henson and now airing first-run episodes on HBO after 45 years on PBS, said a pair of puppeteers mentored by Spinney will take over his roles. Matt Vogel, the series’ Puppet Captain and part of its Emmy-winning directing team, will take over Big Bird while continuing to perform Count von Count on the show as well as Kermit the Frog for Disney’s Muppets franchise. Oscar the Grouch will be performed by Eric Jacobson, who also performs Grover, Bert, and Guy Smiley for Sesame Street, and Fozzie Bear and Miss Piggy for the Muppets.
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https://deadline.com/2018/10/caroll-spinney-big-bird-retiring-sesame-street-1202484591/
 
He's done an amazing job, making children smile for the past 50 years. May Caroll enjoy his retirement!
 
If anyone hasn't seen it yet, I recommend checking out I Am Big Bird, a documentary made in 2014 about Spinney's career. Excellent story, and with great interviews with Spinney, his wife, some of his Sesame Street castmates, including his apprentice Matt Vogel. One thing that really stood out in that documentary, Spinney (in the Big Bird character) was actually supposed to be on the ill-fated NASA Challenger flight in 1986, but because of the lack of space inside the ship (particularly with the Big Bird costume), he and his crew obviously didn't take part of the flight. The flight was supposed to be included as part of a Big Bird/Sesame Street special about space exploration that PBS was producing at that time.

http://www.iambigbird.com/
https://www.history.com/news/big-bird-challenger-disaster-nasa-sesame-street
 
When my oldest son was having his 2nd birthday his favorite character was Big Bird so grampa rented a suit and came to the party. Scared the living crap out of the boy and he wouldn't go near him. And he loved Sesame Street!
 
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