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September 17
From Baltimore, Maryland, Clash is the distinctive voice for Elmo, the Muppet character. Elmo was introduced on "Sesame Street" in the 1980s. Clash began making puppets when he was 10, having been a "Sesame Street" fan from early childhood. He began performing with his puppets at age 12 in his neighborhood, later taking his act to Baltimore's Harborplace. Local Baltimore television personality Stu Kerr spotted Clash and hired him for his show, "Caboose." In 1979, he began working for national television shows like "The Great Space Coaster" and "Captain Kangaroo." His work came to the attention of Muppet designer Kermit Love, and he joined the cast of "Sesame Street" full-time in 1985. At that time, the Elmo character existed, but his character did not emerge until Clash was given the task to develop it. Told to provide a voice for Elmo soon after joining Sesame Street as a puppeteer, Clash came up with Elmo's distinctive voice and laugh, turning the puppet into one of the show's most popular characters. It also netted Clash an Emmy Award. Clash gave Elmo a falsetto voice and a sweet, curious outlook on the world, and soon Elmo was one of the most popular characters on "Sesame Street." Clash also contributed his voice to the "Tickle Me Elmo" doll, a marketing sensation in 1996. Clash also was executive producer for the film "Elmopalooza," (1998) co-producer for "The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland" (1999) and co-executive producer for "CinderElmo" (1999) and "Elmo's World." Clash's other Muppet characters include Hoots, Natasha and many others from "Sesame Street," Leon from "The Jim Henson Hour" and Clifford from "The Jim Henson Hour" and "Muppets Tonight." He also works as a talent scout for Jim Henson Productions. Clash won an Emmy award in 1990 for outstanding performer in a children's series and again in 2001 for co-executive producer of "Sesame Street." Kevin Clash has a 9-year-old daughter, Shannon. Reference: CNN One CNN Center Atlanta, GA 30303 Kevin Clash c/o The Muppets PO Box 20726 New York, NY 10023-1488
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The African American Registry®, The African American Registry® Copyright 2005, 2006
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