News Update: August 11, 2011

NEWS UPDATE: August 11, 2011

Amazon.com recently released previews of all the cover tracks from Muppets: The Green Album, set for release on August 23rd. This means that now we can hear a snippet off every song on the album and get a good feel for what the song will sound like. I really enjoy most all of the songs covered--and of course a few stand out above the rest--but I think I'll just have to hear the whole album before I decide anything firm. So... in conclusion, bring on this album!

Speaking of bringing things on connected with Muppets: The Green Album, in a YouTube video posted the other day, OK Go's Damian Kulash announced that the band would be making a music video together with the Muppets centered around OK Go's cover of "The Muppet Show Theme Song" from The Green Album. This is hugely exciting news for many reasons: one, it's a brand new Muppet music video coming our way; two, it's OK Go, who, no matter what you may think of their music, make incredibly innovative and instantly-viral music videos; and three, putting the Muppets' power of instantly making music videos go viral with OK Go's means instant web sensation. No word on when the music video will be out, but a very reliable source (read: a Muppeteer) has revealed that filming for the video commenced this week. 

After months of praise and adoration from the film-going public and critics alike, the highly acclaimed documentary chronicling the careers of both Kevin Clash and Elmo, Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey, is finally going beyond the film festival circuit and reaching public theaters all around the country in big cities including Los Angeles, Seatle, San Francisco, St. Louis, and many more. Starting on November 4th in three theaters and spreading to a total of 22 theaters by the end of its release run, Being Elmo should be coming to a theater near you. For a complete list of theaters and cities showing the film, click the link to Being Elmo's official Theatrical Press Release.

Our friend Matt James from Party Ideas By a Pro has sent us a link to the website where one of their latest blog posts is all about fantastic Elmo Birthday Party ideas, including food recipes that all look like Elmo (see right), party favors, decorations, party games, and more all themed around everyone's favorite furry red monster. If I had a little kid I know I couldn't keep myself from throwing him/her an Elmo-themed birthday bash... so now all of you readers with kids have to do it so I can live vicariously through you.

Awhile back we mentioned that the SpiritHoods company was making a series of Muppet-themed SpiritHoods (which are basically furry little hat-arm things). We have semi-exclusive pictures to reveal here for you featuring kid and adult SpiritHoods themed around Kermit, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, and Animal. Check out the pictures below!

 Gonzo Hood (Kid's)

 Kermit Hood (Kid's)

 Animal Hood (Kid's)

 Animal Shawl (Adult)

 Kermit Hood (Adult)

Miss Piggy Shawl (Adult)

These SpiritHoods obviously aren't for everyone. But we'd love to hear your thoughts on them!

Check back tomorrow for an exciting update on Sesame Street's 42nd season!





The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, ryguy102390@gmail.com

"Being Elmo" Sweeps Baltimore with Kevin Clash

Kevin Clash and Elmo Return Home for “Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey”
 
Heather Nadolny - On June 21, a packed house waited in anticipation for a SILVERDOCS premiere, and to see its subjects in person: Elmo, and his creator and longtime puppeteer, Kevin Clash.

In a full evening of events, Clash participated in a discussion at the Silver Spring Civic Center, followed by a red carpet premiere of Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey, produced and directed by Constance Marks, at the AFI Film Institute.

During all of it, the Baltimore native was surrounded by his family, or as he called them "his personal hecklers."

"You can tell who the family is. Before the story gets out, they’re laughing already," he joked, glaring at the front row.

Clash recounted the kind of home he grew up in, where everyone loved to laugh and pick on one another. He shared stories of a ripped up trench coat, performing under a clothesline in the backyard, and throwing his sister’s cosmetics out into the snow.

"I’m glad my mom and dad kept me," he quipped.

Clash also discussed the development of his puppeteering skills, which eventually brought him to Sesame Street.

"I had a lot of great mentors that really supported me."

Those mentors initially included TV personalities Stu Kerr and Bob Keeshan, better known as Captain Kangaroo. Clash became the regular puppeteer on Keeshan’s show, furthering his career in both television and making puppets.

His break came when he saw Kermit Love, who built Big Bird and Snufleupagus, on a TV special. Clash met Love during a school trip, and eventually started performing with the Muppets during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

After Captain Kangaroo was cancelled, Clash joined Jim Henson on the set of Labyrinth, and eventually, joined a new group of puppeteers on the set he’d been dreaming about: Sesame Street.

“Sesame Street has this life that is wonderful,” said Clash. “We call it a street within a street. It’s the people that make the place, and it’s a wonderful place to work.”

It was also, as the film tells, the birthplace of Elmo.

That famous name rippled through the crowds when Clash first brought the little monster out.

"Whenever I hear a child singing, I have to bring out Elmo," Clash joked. "He rests very comfortably, in a nice Coach bag--nothing but the best."

Elmo was initially a failure. Legendary puppeteer Richard Hunt had had enough of trying to create the young character, and literally threw him over to Clash. Clash based the little monster on the children in his mother’s daycare, and it stuck.

"Every character we perform is a part of us," said Clash. "I call it 'Peter Pan Syndrome.' We have so much fun doing what we’re doing. We’re all performers."

Before he knew it, Elmo had taken off, and was requested by children and families alike, all over the world. The film shows Clash on cruises, in Europe, in Japan, as well as doing numerous television appearances.

Even President Obama is Elmo’s friend. During Sesame Street’s recent White House visit, Clash took a picture with the President, and made Elmo eat his face.

"I was up all night thinking the Secret Service would whisk me away the next morning," Clash recounted. "As a puppeteer you know, if you didn’t have the puppet on hand, you’d be arrested."

In addition to the frenzy and famous friends, the film demonstrated Clash’s connection with children through Elmo. There were tearful scenes with Make-A-Wish recipients, as well as schoolchildren who were overjoyed to meet their beloved friend. After the film, he made sure every child present got to hug Elmo.

That, as Clash discussed, is why puppeteering stands apart. "You can’t have a CGI character come up and hug that child."

One particular scene that stood out to the audience, as reflected in the post-screening Q&A, featured 11 year-old Tau, a young puppeteer. The film shows Tau’s visit to Muppet Studios, where he was able to identify every single puppeteer in pictures, and he impressed Kevin Clash with his craft.

Tau was present at the premiere, and never took his puppet, Gregory, off his arm. According to Clash, one of the many joys of his job is seeing new puppeteers emerge.

"That’s how Jim [Henson] wanted it," he said. "He wanted it to be a rainbow of Muppets, a rainbow of monsters."

At the end of the film, Clash brought Elmo out, and danced across the bottom of the rolling credits.  As tears filled his eyes, he looked out across the crowd, and his family, as his and his film’s journey continued in his home state.

"It really is the best playdate in the world."

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, ryguy102390@gmail.com

"Being Elmo" is Coming to YOU!

Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey, as we've reported numerous times, is a critically-acclaimed, audience-adored documentary about Kevin Clash, the man behind/beneath Elmo. As the winner of the Special Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, this documentary is obviously extremely loved and popular. Since it was first released for viewing at film festivals, Muppet fans everywhere have been clamoring for a wide-release of the film. Well, our clamors have been answered! Submarine Entertainment has picked up the film for release in theaters all over the country in hopes to have it considered for the 2012 Academy Award nomination. Alongside that, Being Elmo has also been sold to New Video for DVD and digital distributions. ITVS and Independent Lens have distribution rights to the film for the first TV window, in which PBS already has rights to air the documentary. (via deadline.com)

So, whatever your feelings on the little red guy, this is incredibly exciting news for Being Elmo and everyone involved in the film, including our friends Kevin Clash, Connie Marks, and Corinne LaPook. Congratulations to the entire Being Elmo team and we absolutely can't wait to (finally) see the documentary!

But... until then, please enjoy The Muppet Mindset's interview with the awesome Kevin Clash and his pal Elmo:









The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier

Upcoming Muppet Screening Events - Texas, New York, United Kingdom

Everyone's favorite documentary about Kevin Clash (that I still haven't seen), Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey is screening at the Dallas International Film Festival this Saturday, April 2nd at 12:30pm. Cost is only $10 to get in and see this fantastic film, so if you live in the Dallas, Texas area and haven't had the opportunity to see Being Elmo yet... why haven't you bought your tickets already?!

Speaking of the Longhorn State... the fantastic Jim Henson Legacy sponsored series Muppets, Music & Magic: Jim Henson's Legacy is showcasing several different screenings in the Austin, Texas area at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in the coming weeks. Click the link above for all the information on the various screenings between March 29th and April 10th. I've seen a couple of the screenings being shown, including Inside the Sesame Street Vault and Sesame Street at 40 and they're both wonderful gems that are sure to delight any Sesame fan (and I'm sure the other ones are too) so if you happen to be in the Austin area and you need more Muppet goodness in your life, be sure to check this out!

The Muppets, Music & Magic: Jim Henson's Legacy (pages 10-15 of the PDF) series is being showcased in the United Kingdom as well at The Filmhouse, home of the Edinburgh Film Festival. The screenings will occur from April 18th through April 27th (check the schedule in the PDF link above for specific screenings) and will feature appearances by Martin Baker on April 22nd, 23rd, and 24th at various screenings.

The Tribeca Film Festival in New York City is hosting a screening of The Muppets Take Manhattan on April 23rd at 8:15pm at the Tribeca Drive-In. This is a free screening of the film and it includes, what sounds like, a very fun pre-show with face-painting, Muppet trivia, sing-alongs, and "fuzzy surprise guests." One can only imagine what that might mean. But if you live in the New York area and you've got yourself a free night on April 23rd, why not stop by and witness Miss Piggy's hideous 80's afro on the big screen?

And, finally, for those Muppet fans who don't live near Dallas, Austin, New York City, or the United Kingdom (like myself)--and even for those of you that do--we have a new Super Grover video from Sesame Street to share with you all. It is, in a word Fantastic!









The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier

News Update: February 18, 2011

NEWS UPDATE: February 18, 2011

As we reported earlier this week, Elmo, Cookie Monster, and Telly appeared on Bravo's Top Chef on Wednesday night to judge a cookie making contest. (With no tongues? No way.) The whole episode has yet to surface online--which is fine, because the Sesame Street monsters only appeared in he first half of the show--but there is a great behind-the-scenes segment on Hulu, which you can see below!



Speaking of Elmo, our good friends on the team of Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey and Muppet Mindset correspondent Chase Beecher have informed us that the film will be screening at another film festival! This time at the SXSW (South By Southwest) Festival in Austin, Texas. No word yet on if Elmo or Kevin Clash will be in attendance, but you can find all the information about screening times and locations at SXSW's website and BeingElmo.com.

More exciting news from the world of Sesame comes in the form of a brand new Sesame Street video game, via our friends at ToughPigs.com, being produced for XBox 360 and compatible with its Kinect accessory. The game is tentatively titled "Once Upon a Monster" and features Elmo and Cookie Monster in a Where the Wild Things Are like world. The Kinect allows you to play games using your whole body, so the game is designed to improve youngster's motor skills and reaction times. The game will be available this fall and we'll keep you posted as new information surfaces!

Last Sunday, a group of fantastic Jim Henson Company puppets appeared on the Grammys with Cee Lo Green and Gwyneth Paltrow performing Cee Lo's hit "(Forget) You." In case you missed our coverage of it on Valentine's Day, here's another look at the wonderful appearance!



While we're on the subject of The Jim Henson Company, exciting news has surfaced about their partnering with Guillermo Del Toro in producing a new film based on the Pinocchio story. Apparently the Henson Company is designing puppets for the film. Once again, our good friends at ToughPigs have the scoop and some exclusive, awesome looking images for us to ogle.

You didn't think we'd be done with The Jim Henson Company that quickly, did you? Good. Because Jim Henson's Fantastic World opened this past Saturday in Peoria, Illinois and will run through May 21st. And, apparently, Jane Henson will be appearing in person on February 24th! Check out all the information about the exhibit at this local newspaper's website. Also... let us know if you'll be going to see Jane Henson on the 24th, because we think our own Ryan Dosier will be there!

In our grand tradition in mentioning ToughPigs far too many times in our News Updates, we've got another ToughPigs link in the form of their fantastic coverage of ToyFair 2011. They've got tons of pictures of upcoming Sesame Street and Fraggle Rock merchandise and a video of Elmo and Cookie Monster in person at ToyFair! How cool is that? Also... before you freak out, there isn't any new Muppet merchandise presented, and we're fairly certain that this is because Disney is holding off on a big marketing push for the Muppets until ComicCon in the summer where they can showcase merchandise closer to the film's release date. But we don't really know anything for sure, so please don't quote us on that, because, really, we know nothing and we just like to talk.

But, hands down the most exciting news of the week, in my humble opinion, is the thrilling announcement that The Muppets will be preceded in theaters by a brand new Toy Story short film! The Muppets and Pixar have always had a great respect and homage paying thing with each other--in fact, Disney even put The Muppets script through the Pixar brain trust--so this is pretty much the perfect partnership. I've hardly met any Muppet fans that aren't also Toy Story fans... so this is basically the best possible situation! I for one am extremely excited for this hugely awesome pairing. Kudos, Mouse House! Gotta love that synergy.

And, finally, I have to be unprofessional for a minute and make a shout out to Sean, my best friend in the world, who said he'd actually get around to checking out my website if I made a shout out to him in a post (I know how it sounds, but he really is a good friend). So... there it is and I've probably completely lost my credibility as a professional blogger (what professional--I don't get paid) by doing this... but hey, I've got to get him to see it somehow. Oh, and so I don't get in trouble... I'll also shout out to Peter, Hannjoo, Tiffany, Sam, and Mickey too.

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier

A Chat with Muppet Fan Chase Beecher/A Look at "Being Elmo"

Ryan Dosier - Today on The Muppet Mindset we get an insider's look at the new documentary, Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey all about Kevin Clash. Our friend Chase Beecher was kind enough to stop by and give us some of the details about seeing the film, meeting Elmo and Kevin, and talking with some of the Being Elmo production team. It's a great, insightful look into this film. So, without further ado, here's Chase Beecher!


RYAN:   First of all, Chase, welcome to The Muppet Mindset. Can I get you anything?

CHASE:   No. Thanks for having me! I am good. Well, this couch sure is lumpy. Let me nestle in. That is better. Oh dear, a spring. Springs. Plural. Is this Pepsi in this mug? Blech. You can get me some fresh water, Ryan…

RYAN:   Thanks so much for agreeing to talk to us a bit about your experience at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. Can you talk to us about your Sundance experience as a whole?

CHASE:   Being a resident here in Salt Lake City, UT, I hate to say this, but this is my first time really checking out the "world famous" Sundance film fest. Oh yeah, the residents here love to go stargaze and party and whatever, and I have never really gone. Never seen films up there. For some reason I thought they were all sad movies about tin cans, or little cats who wanted to dress up in their mother's socks. It's not like that at all! (Well, maybe a few films about kitties and socks.) There are some great films here with good, quality actors. It has a great independent spirit, of you can do anything you want if you put your mind to it. It's great.   Around Thanksgiving,when it was announced that this project was going to be here I knew I had to go. I just had to. I was not going to let something like this get this close to home without me getting in on the action. It's Kevin Clash and Elmo for cryin' out loud! It also opened up Sundance to me, too. I will not miss it again. It sure is cold, though. I will wear a warmer coat next year. Maybe two coats. And Mittens.

RYAN:   You got to see Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey while at the festival—something tons of Muppet fans should be jealous of. Tell us about this new Kevin Clash documentary.

CHASE:   I feel like "The Golden Boy!" Muppet fans should be jealous, and if they are not, they are going to be after I tell you about this wonderful film. It tells the wonderful story of a young Kevin Clash and how he got to be where he is now--a brilliant performer, producer, director, and charitable guy. The filmmakers followed Kevin around for six years, so there is a lot in this 85 minutes! It starts by telling us about a young Kevin, who becomes passionate about puppetry and sticks with it, and chronicles his journey along the way. It shows us Kermit Love mentoring a young Kevin in archival footage and tells us his journey through meeting Jim Henson and working on Labyrinth, and finally stumbling across a little furry red monster named Elmo, after Richard Hunt didn't know what to do with him. The film shows us home movies with his family (Elmo on the way to the hospital on the day Kevin's daughter was born was priceless) and also takes us to France, where Kevin is training performers on the French version of "Sesame." The film ends with Kevin calling up a young boy, inviting him up to Sesame Workshop to learn the ways of a Muppet performer. Kevin is passing it on. It was perfectly bookended.

RYAN:   What were some of your favorite parts of the documentary?

CHASE:   Wow. This is going to be tough to narrow down. Can you give me a second to think? (15 min later) Okay Okay, I got a few. I think just the pure and simple fact that there is a documentary about a Muppeteer out there is fantastic. They are notoriously shy, quiet folk, so this is huge. I loved the few "Sesame" bloopers they had. Elmo yelling "You wanna piece a' me?" to everyone and then biting a talking piece of cheese is brilliant. Way better than the Katy Perry blooper. Kevin telling his story about meeting Jim Henson after a Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. He was introduced by Kermit Love, and then was not allowed to get a word in edge-wise by Kermit! It is a very funny story. We then get to see Kevin's audition tape for the Henson Company, which is priceless. A few of the Muppeteers are interviewed, Fran Brill, Bill Barretta, Marty Robinson, and Frank Oz. Frank gives Kevin one of the best compliments, I think anyone working in the Muppet company can receive. He says that Kevin is a one of a kind performer, and that he is now part of the brotherhood and sisterhood of the performers. Can it get better than that? I am sure I have more favorite parts, but I don't want to give away the whole movie, and bore the audience!

RYAN:   Amazingly, you got to meet Elmo and Kevin Clash in person. Did you get to talk to Kevin at all? What was it like to meet him?

CHASE:   I did get to meet Kevin very briefly. He is a very large man! I am 6'4 and it takes a lot to make me feel small. I accidentally stepped on his foot, which I felt terrible about. He was so mobbed he didn't notice. Elmo and Kevin are real rockstars! It was surreal to even see them let alone met them. Seeing your first real Muppet is... well, they haven't made words for it yet. Well, Muppetational. That's the word. Elmo was on my shoulder! I did get to talk to Kevin just for a second. The film was real emotional for him. I can tell you this. Clifford WILL be in the new Muppet movie. That is all I can say. I really don't want him to beat me up. That dude is built!

RYAN:   You got a great picture with Elmo as well. How much fun was it to get to stand alongside Elmo and feel like a five year old?

CHASE:   Judging from talking with me, it's not hard to tell that acting like I am five is a stretch for me, man! I flipped when I got close to Kevin and Elmo! Elmo put his arm on me. His eyes were next to mine, and we chatted! I kept looking at Kevin and then back to Elmo. Time froze. I was meeting my first Muppet in person! A thousand things went through my brain! His fleecy fur touched my neck! His hand swatted me! We both smiled really big for the camera! THIS IS THE BEST DAY EVER! I didn't expect to be so emotional meeting my first Muppet, but I was. I hear this happens. I will confess! I may have cried a little after! Go ahead. Make fun! So, I guess that means when I meet Kermit and Piggy, get the smelling salts because I WILL faint. Everyone stand back, and have a hankie...

RYAN:   Did you have any other Elmo experiences at Sundance while you were there? Did you attend any of the Q&A sessions with Kevin and Elmo?

CHASE:   I did attend the premiere screening that Kevin and Elmo were at. I did not tape it. There was just a special, warm, sweet, vibe in the room it felt inappropriate. It was a very emotional event for Kevin. It is out there on YouTube. He talks about how emotional it is seeing his life up there on the screen. I would get teary too, man. He took a few questions and then brought out the furry, red guy. People lost their minds! He first popped up to pose with a pregnant woman. That is out on YouTube. Seeing people light up when Elmo comes into the picture is fantastic. The old, the very old, the young, the very young, and everyone in between, they all have an inner child just come bubbling out. They get giddy. Kevin gets mobbed. Kevin is the most anonymous celebrity. Of course, people only see him as the one "holding Elmo up." The "Being Elmo" team was cruising around Park City in a red SUV with eyes and an orange nose on it. That was pretty sweet. I wonder if they called it the "Elmo Wagon?" I would have, and I did.

RYAN:   Elmo got to live his dream and go skiing, did you?

CHASE:  Gee, I wish I had been there for that. I wonder which resort he hit up. Wouldn't it be great to go skiing with fur? You would never get cold! But, really I have size 18 feet. Almost as big as Big Bird. Almost. I attempted to go skiing once in junior high, but the ski boots were all too small. ALL the ski boots in the whole place! I spent my day in the lodge crying over a cup of hot coca. That's the way to get the girls in the 7th grade!! Tears and chocolate! Now I just go bare foot, slap some Vaseline on the bottom and go down the hill until I can't feel my toes anymore. Don't worry, I haven't got frostbite yet. Boy, is it exhilarating! It's kind of a redneck way to do it, but it's the only way for a big foot-ed guy like me!

RYAN:   Based on what you saw at Sundance, what do you think the chances are of seeing Being Elmo released on DVD for the masses?

CHASE:   I am 100% sure it will see DVD, if not a limited release. The director and editors told me that there is so much that they had to leave out, that the DVD will be stuffed with special features. One editor said there is enough to make about five more documentaries! "Kevin Clash: The Miniseries" will now return on PBS, I can hear it now... The audience was really excited as well and wants to see it distributed. The director said the best thing to do is to let distributors know that you want to see it, by tweeting and Facebooking about it and by visiting the film's website, beingelmo.com. Thanks for having me Ryan! Can you help me out of this couch? It has sunk to the ground. You can check out all my videos at youtube.com/chasebeechershow and follow me at twitter.com/chasebeecher, chasebeechershow.blogspot.com or find me on Facebook! now, can I have money for a cab? (here is the link: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Chase-Beecher/278362726924)

 Special thanks to our friend Chase Beecher for this great chat about a great film!







The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier

News Update: January 27, 2011

NEWS UPDATE: January 27, 2011

This past Sunday in San Francisco, Brian Henson sat down to be interviewed by awesome person and Muppet fan Neil Patrick Harris. The contents of this interview are still mostly unknown but The Jim Henson Company did showcase a great picture of Brian and NPH from the event (see right). If any of our great readers were at this event, email Ryan Dosier at ryguy102390@gmail.com--we'd love to talk to you about writing something about the event!

Another cameo has been confirmed for The Muppets in the form of Modern Family's "Manny Delgado," Rico Rodriguez. The young actor tweeted last Saturday saying, "My childhood is coming alive right now. I'm filming with the muppets for their new movie! It's pretty epic!" I don't know if you've seen Modern Family or the work of Rico Rodriguez... but he's absolutely perfect for a Muppet movie. This is quite a bit of cameos... so check out The Muppet Mindset tomorrow for our attempt to name all of the cameos appearing in the film (that we know of).

Speaking of The Muppets, Examiner.com has posted an incredible video of the filming that went down at The El Capitan Theater last week. The video includes such great moments as Chris Cooper yelling at the Muppets, the Muppets goofing around, Fozzie slapping Kermit around, and much, much more. It really is incredible and you should definitely check it out.

Extremely sad news this week as we report the loss of Sesame Street show writer, song writer, and composer Tony Geiss (1924-2011). Geiss worked on Sesame Street for years and his credits are almost innumerable as you can see on his Muppet Wiki page. Geiss was the conceptual mind behind the Honkers and Abby Cadabby. He wrote the first Sesame Street movie Follow That Bird and some favorite Sesame songs including "Elmo's Song," "I'm Proud to Be a Cow," "That's What Friends are For," and, my personal favorite, "Sing After Me." Thankfully, Geiss's legacy will live on forever with his wonderful songs, writing, and memories.



After that... how about a cheer up? Check out this magnificent video of Kevin Clash and Elmo making a pregnant woman's day at the Sundance Film Festival during a Q&A after a screening of Being Elmo.



And, to conclude, today we're celebrating the 500th post here on The Muppet Mindset! Yes, after 500 posts we're still here--and even more amazingly, you're still here. We're so, so thankful to all of you for being so supportive of us through all 500 of these posts. The support and love you show us is nothing short of incredible! So, to celebrate, watch as I present a gorgeous piece of artwork heinously edited by yours truly!

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier

Interview with Muppeteer Kevin Clash

Ryan Dosier - Hello, Muppet fans! I am so, so excited today because I get to share with all of you a brand new interview with yet another legend: Kevin Clash. Kevin, as you probably know, is the performer of Elmo on Sesame Street. Kevin has been a great part of Sesame Street for nearly 30 years now, performing other great characters like Hoots the Owl, Baby Natasha, Wolfgang the Seal, and Kingston Livingston III. He also performed Clifford with The Muppets. Recently, Kevin has directed numerous episodes and specials for Sesame Street and is the subject of the recent film Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey which premiered this past Sunday at the Sundance Film Festival.

I was so beyond humbled to have the opportunity to sit down and talk to Kevin for a little bit on Skype about his characters, his directing, and more. We also get joined by a special guest that I'm sure you'll adore--because, quite frankly, it's fairly impossible not to. I'm also very pleased to announce that this will be our second all-audio interview! You'll hear me, Kevin, our special guest, and my geek out moments--what more could anyone need?



My huge thanks to Kevin and Elmo and all of the people listed there at the end credits! This really is a childhood dream come true and I'm so, so happy that I get to share it with you all!







The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier