Caroll Spinney
Biography
Caroll Spinney was an American puppeteer and artist who portrayed Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch for Sesame Street from its debut in 1969 until 2018. Born in Waltham, Massachusetts, he took up drawing and puppetry as a child and later served in the Air Force, where he wrote and illustrated the comic strip Harvey. He performed in Las Vegas and on Boston television before Jim Henson saw him at a Puppeteers of America festival in 1969 and brought him into the Muppeteers; Spinney joined Sesame Street in its first season. He performed both characters on tours in Australia, China, Japan and Europe, voiced them on dozens of albums, and wrote How to Be a Grouch. His honors included four Daytime Emmy Awards, two Grammys, a Hollywood Walk of Fame star in 1994, and a lifetime achievement award in 2006. He was the subject of I Am Big Bird: The Caroll Spinney Story (2014).
85years old at death
- Born Waltham
- Died Woodstock
- Star sign: CapricornThe sign runs December 22 to January 19
- Caroll Edwin Spinney (birth name)Also credited as Ed Spinney
Movie Career
- Films
- 7
- Career span
- 36 years1978 to 2014
Genres
- Family71%, 5 films
- Comedy43%, 3 films
- Adventure29%, 2 films
- Documentary29%, 2 films
- Biography14%, 1 film
Share
Did you know?!
Big break
In 1962, at a puppeteering festival, Spinney met Jim Henson for the first time. Henson asked whether he wanted to "talk about the Muppets", but Spinney did not see it as a job offer, so the conversation never happened.
Beyond film
Spinney lent his voice to the audiobook of Street Gang: The Complete History of Sesame Street, a book about the show written by Michael Davis.
Caroll Spinney movies on Netflix
Best known for
The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.
- Follow That Bird1985 Adventure, Comedy, Familyas Big Bird / Oscar the Grouch / Bruno the Trashmanvoice
IMDb rating 6.86.2K votes
- I Am Big Bird: The Caroll Spinney Story2014 Biography, Documentary, Dramaas Big Bird / Oscar the Grouch / Self
IMDb rating 7.51.8K votes
Most often with
Jon Stone directed two of these films. Frank Oz appears in seven of them, more than any other actor. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.
Films together
Frank Oz's page
Roscoe Orman's page
Jerry Nelson's page
Jim Henson's page
Sonia Manzano's page
Fran Brill's page
All films by Jon Stone
Also four films together3 more actors
- Emilio DelgadoI Am Big Bird: The Caroll Spinney Story (2014), The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland (1999), Sesame Street: Elmo Saves Christmas (1996) and Follow That Bird (1985)
- Martin P. RobinsonBeing Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey (2011), The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland (1999), Sesame Street: Elmo Saves Christmas (1996) and Don't Eat the Pictures: Sesame Street at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (1983)
- Bob McGrathI Am Big Bird: The Caroll Spinney Story (2014), Sesame Street: Elmo Saves Christmas (1996), Don't Eat the Pictures: Sesame Street at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (1983) and Christmas Eve on Sesame Street (1978)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.
Awards
Two awards and honors from 1974 to 1994, one of them major.
| Year | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emmy Awards | |||
| 1974 | Daytime Emmy Award | Won | |
| Other honors | |||
| 1994 | Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame | Honored | |
Online
Official profiles and reference pages.