Kermit Love on Big Bird[]
Thought I'd place this here.
"His puppets capture chidlren's hearts", Nancy White, Toronto Star, C1, May 26, 1986
One of Love's first Sesame Street characters was Big Bird. "He's rather an enlarged tutu," says Love. "And I had made hundreds of tutus for the ballet."
He thinks part of Big Bird's appeal is that he lives a gentle, beautiful existence. "Like Mickey Mouse, he never gives in to violence."
When creating a character, Love doesn't work from a drawing. "A great puppet is organic - it simply grows," he says.
He molds it, like a sculpture. "It will look at you a certain way and strike a chord. Big Bird kept looking up, and saying, 'I want to be bigger, bigger.' "
Big Bird the Conductor?[]
Hello! I was just re-reading The Wisdom of Big Bird and noticed the chapter about Big Bird touring around the country conducting famous bands, along with Bruno and Oscar the Grouch, where the Bird roller-skated around the stage, Oscar sang "I Love Trash" with the band behind him, etc. Do we have a link for that, or even the official title of the tour? Spinney stated that he had to end the tour because of the health demands he needed (too much time in the hot suits with his arm over his head for long periods of time, breathing oxygen through a mask in between songs, etc.) If we could get a page going on that, that would be splendid. Thanks! - Hairsprayman111 17:36, September 27, 2010 (UTC)
Big Bird on TV[]
The Bird is set to film an appearance on the Martha Stewart Show this week. He is doing a publicity stunt for Beaches Family Resorts. Big Bird is joining the line of characters that appear there, including Elmo and Abby Cadabby. He will be played by Caroll Spinney on his appearance and to a vocal track at the resort by Spinney as well. -- Hairsprayman111 19:17, May 11, 2010 (UTC)
Canary?[]
The article says that Big Bird "generally has been referred to as a canary", but we've got several different items in the species section, and only a couple of them say canary. Where does the idea come from that he's "generally" thought of as a canary? -- Danny (talk) 06:54, March 11, 2010 (UTC)
- Well, Oscar calls him that at the end of Christmas Eve, but he also calls him a turkey in that scene, too. -- Ken (talk) 07:05, March 11, 2010 (UTC)
- I went ahead and took it out, since the main thing is that his species is seldom mentioned at all (and when it is, it's usually as a joke or just whatever Caroll Spinney ad-libbed during a live appearance). If we accumulate enough specific "canary" references to back up the claim, then we can change it, but as an itemized list, I think it works much better without any "generally referred to as" bit (really, if we add them up, Oscar calling him a "turkey" is probably most frequent!) -- Andrew Leal (talk) 07:25, March 11, 2010 (UTC)
Cousin Bubba[]
The Elmo's World episode "Penguins" show Big Bird with a penguin wearing a scarf. Bird talks about his Granny Bird knitting a scarf for his cousin Bubba who lives in the South Pole. I don't access to this video, but is it implied that the cousin is the penguin? From the article we have here, I'm taking it as a yes. -- Nate (talk) 22:24, February 24, 2010 (UTC)
Mr. Hooper's Drawing[]
I was actually talking to Caroll Spinney on the telephone the other day and he said that since the drawing "BB" did of Mr. Hooper in 1982 has been there for SO LONG, his wife suggested something, so he went to the studio and stole it (with the company's permission, or course)! He had it copied and actually a replica of the original hangs on the set today, and the original hangs in his home!
- Whoa, you actually talked to Caroll Spinney? Did he call you, or did you call him? -- Ken (talk) 01:25, January 25, 2010 (UTC)
- Yeah, he called me. We are really good friends. I wrote him a letter when I was five when I found out BB wasn't a real bird (I would constantly debate it as a child) and he has invited me to his house for picnics and the the set multiple times. He gives me all the backstage hints and secrets about guest stars and stuff, before it's even reached the public. Season 41 has movie star Ryan reynolds :)
Matt Vogel[]
We have Matt Vogel in the performer box, with the dates 2002-present. As far as I know, Vogel only performed Big Bird in the "Journey to Ernie" segments, which last aired in Season 36 (2005). Should we change Vogel's dates to 2002-2005? -- Danny (talk) 15:14, October 25, 2009 (UTC)
- He did some Big Bird in Season 31 in 2000, and he's doing Big Bird in some upcoming season 40 segments, so I'd say we put 2000-Present. - Oscarfan 15:16, October 25, 2009 (UTC)
- Yeah and Guillermo added that Matt Vogel play Big Bird in episode 3877. So I agree with Oscarfan to say 2000-Present. - User:Rocketstevo (talk) 08:18, October 26, 2009 (UTC)
Is April 21 significant?[]
Is the date of April 21 significant in any way, to know what actress Shelley Bruce meant, when she said Big Bird was born on April 21, 1969? Maybe that was the date the character was first screen tested? BB's birthday is in March. -- Zanimum 19:47, 10 December 2008 (UTC)
Age[]
This article ays that Big Bird turned 6 in Big Bird's Birthday or Let Me Eat Cake, and that prior to that, he was 4, with Follow That Bird and Sesame Street: 20 and Still Counting being the exceptions. What I'm wondering is, between 1985 (the reelase of Follow That Bird) and 1991 (the first broadcast of Big Bird's Birthday), were there ever any known instances where hew as referred to as being 4? He very well could have been 6 before that special (was his age even mentioned there?). --Minor muppetz 04:45, 10 November 2008 (UTC)
- The whole point of the special is that it was his sixth birthday, within the narrative anyway (as confirmed in articles, promotions, etc.) So that's all that counts. He was definitely four before, as confirmed by other sources, but as Carroll Spinney has noted in the Archive of American Television Interview (not sure which part), the character has grown older and younger and a little older again, depending on the curriculum shifts and so on. Anything else about his being six before the special is speculation on our part. -- Andrew Leal (talk) 07:01, 10 November 2008 (UTC)
Golden Condor[]
This is just a detail, mind you, but I just thought I'd point out that when he appeared on "Mister Rogers", Big Bird never actually told X the Owl that he was a golden condor. It wasn't until King Friday asked if he was related to the cassowary, that he revealed the truth. I would edit it myself, but the way the paragraph is structured, I'm not too sure how to. Someone else could probably do a better job. Garrettk41 18:10, 13 July 2008 (UTC)
Daniel Seagren[]
I know that somebody at the Tough Pigs message board got an e-mail response by Karen Falk back in 2003, onfirming that Daniel Seagren performed Big Bird on The Ed Sullivan Show and in a few first season episodes. However, I wonder if this should be cited. I don't know if it would be easy to link to the Tough Pigs post that revealed this information. I guess that a "Personal Correspondence" source could be put here. I forget the name (or username) of the person who got this info, but Karen Falk did send the info. --Minor muppetz 20:49, 5 April 2007 (UTC)
Attention[]
This is actually more of an Images Wanted issue, but it's one that I suspect can be quickly remedied if folks are aware of it. I've been bothered for some time by the image of Big Bird at the top. It's undersized, throws off the text and the performer template, and just looks like a blemish to me; it was uploaded way back in the early days of the Wiki by Greg James, and has never been replaced or improved. I know with some characters, we have to accept what size images we can find, but that shouldn't be the case with Big Bird or other star players. I'm sure we have better images on the Wiki, I know we do in fact, but I'll admit I don't feel like taking the time to scrounge for the best one. So if anyone cares to replace it, or do any other image spicing up, I think it would really help the page. -- Andrew Leal (talk) 03:21, 23 February 2007 (UTC)