Big Bird
Encyclopedia
Big Bird is a protagonist
of the children's television show Sesame Street
. Big Bird, like many of the other Sesame Street characters, is a Muppet
character. He is sometimes referred to simply as "Bird" by his friends.
Officially performed by Caroll Spinney
since 1969, he is an eight-foot two-inch (249 cm) tall bright primrose-yellow bird. He can roller skate, ice skate
, dance
, sing
, write poetry
, draw and even ride a unicycle
. But despite this wide array of talents, he is prone to frequent misunderstandings, on one occasion even singing the alphabet as one big long word (ABC-DEF-GHI), pondering what it could ever mean. He lives in a large nest behind the 123 Sesame Street brownstone (which had to be completely rebuilt during Season 32 after it was destroyed by a hurricane) and he has a teddy bear named Radar, after Walter "Radar" O'Reilly of M*A*S*H, who had a teddy bear and was also lovably naive and innocent. Radar was given to Big Bird by Gary Burghoff when he guest-starred on the show. Later on, however, it was said that Big Bird got the bear as a gift from Mr. Hooper
.
eer Caroll Spinney
has aged, the show has gradually started to train new performers to play Big Bird. These apprentices include both Rick Lyon
in the opening theme song of the show's 33rd season on, and Matt Vogel in the show's Journey to Ernie segment.
Caroll Spinney was sick during the taping of a few first-season episodes, so Daniel Seagren performed Big Bird in those episodes. He also performed Big Bird when he appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show
in 1969 and on The Hollywood Squares
in the 1970s. According to The Story of Jim Henson by Stephanie St. Pierre, the costume was built for Jim Henson
to perform, but when Henson tried it on, Kermit Love
, who had built the costume, did not think that Henson was walking like a bird is supposed to walk, and so Henson decided not to perform Big Bird. Frank Oz
was offered the part, but since he hated performing full-body characters, he turned down the job.
Director Jon Stone, in the 1994 documentary The World of Jim Henson, revealed that the Big Bird costume actually didn't have any openings that would allow the actor to see; a small television was strapped to the actor's chest to allow him to navigate. The camera was set up for Spinney by technician Walt Rauffer, on the suggestion of director Bob Myhrum. Rauffer rigged the camera to a harness strapped to Spinney's chest; Spinney reported that they called the camera "the electronic bra".
During instances where Spinney (or to a lesser extent, Matt Vogel) is performing on location and cannot get a video feed, a small hole is made in the costume to allow him to see. In such cases, Big Bird must wear a necktie
to cover the hole. This can also be seen in the Sesame Street Live
shows. Likewise, during instances where Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch
(both performed by Spinney) are to be in a scene together, Jim Martin
performs Oscar unless Matt Vogel is performing Big Bird, in which cases Oscar is performed by Spinney as usual.
background (something that obviously cannot be done on the main Sesame Street set). Big Bird's body suit weighs ten pounds, and his head weighs four pounds. According to writer Louise Gikow, the heat inside the suit is "unbearable, and it's extraordinarily difficult to hold Big Bird's head".
The costume is partially assembled by company American & Fancy Feather, using the tail feathers from turkey
s; as the feathers are rarely clean, company owner Anthony Trento calls the Big Bird costume his "toughest customer". Sesame Workshop
is said to reject roughly 90 percent of all the feathers selected for use on the costume.
. In an episode of Sesame Street
, Big Bird was asked if he was related to the cassowary
, he replied, "I'm more of a condor
." On a 1976 episode of Hollywood Squares
, he said he was a lark
. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCIeAJ5hRfE In the film Don't Eat the Pictures, Osiris calls Big Bird an ibis
. Zoologist Mike Dickison hypothesizes that Big Bird, or Grandicrocavis viasesamensis, is a type of flightless crane. Big Bird appeared in a series 11 episode of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood
. In this episode he declares he is a "Golden Condor."
In 1985
, Big Bird was the star of his own movie Sesame Street Presents Follow That Bird
alongside the cast of Sesame Street. The plot focused on him being moved away to live with his own species by a meddling social-worker (voiced by Sally Kellerman
). He is not happy with his new home and he runs away and embarks on a cross-country adventure. Along the way he finds help from a friendly truck driver (Waylon Jennings
) and two farmer kids. But on the bad side, there are two carnival owning brothers (Dave Thomas
and Joe Flaherty
) who want to kidnap him and make him perform in their carnival for their own profit. In the meantime, his friends Bert, Ernie
, Cookie Monster
, Grover
, Count Von Count
and Oscar the Grouch
are in pursuit of him to find him and bring him back home safely. Also joining them are their human friends, Gordon, Maria, Olivia and Linda with Bob aiding them from Sesame Street.
Big Bird appeared in a series 11 episode of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood
in the Neighborhood of Make-Believe segment where he enters for the "Draw the Neighborhood" contest.
Big Bird made a non-speaking appearance in The West Wing Season 5 episode Eppur Si Muove
. During a visit by The Muppets
to the White House, Big Bird sits down on a bench next to CJ Cregg, who has complained during the episode of past comparisons to Big Bird due to her height.
Big Bird also made an brief appearance in The Muppet Movie
and Muppets Take Manhattan.
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
of the children's television show Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
. Big Bird, like many of the other Sesame Street characters, is a Muppet
The Muppets
The Muppets are a group of puppet characters created by Jim Henson starting in 1954–55. Although the term is often used to refer to any puppet that resembles the distinctive style of The Muppet Show, the term is both an informal name and legal trademark owned by the Walt Disney Company in reference...
character. He is sometimes referred to simply as "Bird" by his friends.
Officially performed by Caroll Spinney
Caroll Spinney
Caroll Edwin Spinney, sometimes credited as Carroll Spinney or Ed Spinney , is an American puppeteer most famous for playing Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch on the children's television show Sesame Street.-Life and career:...
since 1969, he is an eight-foot two-inch (249 cm) tall bright primrose-yellow bird. He can roller skate, ice skate
Ice skate
Ice skates are boots with blades attached to the bottom, used to propel the bearer across a sheet of ice. They are worn as footwear in many sports, including ice hockey, bandy and figure skating. The first ice skates were made from leg bones of horse, ox or deer, and were attached to feet with...
, dance
Dance
Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
, sing
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, write poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
, draw and even ride a unicycle
Unicycle
A unicycle is a human-powered, single-track vehicle with one wheel. Unicycles resemble bicycles, but are less complex.-History:One theory of the advent of the unicycle stems from the popularity of the penny-farthing during the late 19th century...
. But despite this wide array of talents, he is prone to frequent misunderstandings, on one occasion even singing the alphabet as one big long word (ABC-DEF-GHI), pondering what it could ever mean. He lives in a large nest behind the 123 Sesame Street brownstone (which had to be completely rebuilt during Season 32 after it was destroyed by a hurricane) and he has a teddy bear named Radar, after Walter "Radar" O'Reilly of M*A*S*H, who had a teddy bear and was also lovably naive and innocent. Radar was given to Big Bird by Gary Burghoff when he guest-starred on the show. Later on, however, it was said that Big Bird got the bear as a gift from Mr. Hooper
Mr. Hooper
Harold Hooper was a character on Sesame Street, played by Will Lee, who was the original proprietor of Mr. Hooper's Store, which still retains his name.-Biography:...
.
Performing
As MuppetThe Muppets
The Muppets are a group of puppet characters created by Jim Henson starting in 1954–55. Although the term is often used to refer to any puppet that resembles the distinctive style of The Muppet Show, the term is both an informal name and legal trademark owned by the Walt Disney Company in reference...
eer Caroll Spinney
Caroll Spinney
Caroll Edwin Spinney, sometimes credited as Carroll Spinney or Ed Spinney , is an American puppeteer most famous for playing Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch on the children's television show Sesame Street.-Life and career:...
has aged, the show has gradually started to train new performers to play Big Bird. These apprentices include both Rick Lyon
Rick Lyon
Rick Lyon is a puppeteer, actor, and puppet designer and builder originally from Rochester, New York, who has worked for the Jim Henson Company as one of the operators of Big Bird...
in the opening theme song of the show's 33rd season on, and Matt Vogel in the show's Journey to Ernie segment.
Caroll Spinney was sick during the taping of a few first-season episodes, so Daniel Seagren performed Big Bird in those episodes. He also performed Big Bird when he appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show is an American TV variety show that originally ran on CBS from Sunday June 20, 1948 to Sunday June 6, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan....
in 1969 and on The Hollywood Squares
Hollywood Squares
Hollywood Squares is an American panel game show in which two contestants play tic-tac-toe to win cash and prizes. The "board" for the game is a 3 × 3 vertical stack of open-faced cubes, each occupied by a celebrity seated at a desk and facing the contestants...
in the 1970s. According to The Story of Jim Henson by Stephanie St. Pierre, the costume was built for Jim Henson
Jim Henson
James Maury "Jim" Henson was an American puppeteer best known as the creator of The Muppets. As a puppeteer, Henson performed in various television programs, such as Sesame Street and The Muppet Show, films such as The Muppet Movie and The Great Muppet Caper, and created advanced puppets for...
to perform, but when Henson tried it on, Kermit Love
Kermit Love
Kermit Ernest Hollingshead Love was an American puppeteer, costume designer, and actor in children's television and on Broadway...
, who had built the costume, did not think that Henson was walking like a bird is supposed to walk, and so Henson decided not to perform Big Bird. Frank Oz
Frank Oz
Frank Oz is a British-born American film director, actor, voice actor and puppeteer who is known for creating and performing the characters Miss Piggy and Fozzie Bear in The Muppet Show, Cookie Monster, Bert and Grover in Sesame Street, and for directing films, including the 1986 Little Shop of...
was offered the part, but since he hated performing full-body characters, he turned down the job.
Director Jon Stone, in the 1994 documentary The World of Jim Henson, revealed that the Big Bird costume actually didn't have any openings that would allow the actor to see; a small television was strapped to the actor's chest to allow him to navigate. The camera was set up for Spinney by technician Walt Rauffer, on the suggestion of director Bob Myhrum. Rauffer rigged the camera to a harness strapped to Spinney's chest; Spinney reported that they called the camera "the electronic bra".
During instances where Spinney (or to a lesser extent, Matt Vogel) is performing on location and cannot get a video feed, a small hole is made in the costume to allow him to see. In such cases, Big Bird must wear a necktie
Necktie
A necktie is a long piece of cloth worn for decorative purposes around the neck or shoulders, resting under the shirt collar and knotted at the throat. Variants include the ascot tie, bow tie, bolo tie, and the clip-on tie. The modern necktie, ascot, and bow tie are descended from the cravat. Neck...
to cover the hole. This can also be seen in the Sesame Street Live
Sesame Street Live
Sesame Street Live is the live touring show based on the children's television show Sesame Street.Produced by Minneapolis-based VEE Corporation, the show opened on September 17, 1980, with a production of Sesame Street Live "Missing Bird Mystery" playing at the Met Center in Bloomington, Minnesota...
shows. Likewise, during instances where Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch
Oscar the Grouch
Oscar the Grouch is a Muppet character on the television program Sesame Street. He has a green body , has no nose , and lives in a trash can. His favorite thing in life is trash; evidence for this is the song "I Love Trash". A running theme is his compulsive hoarding of seemingly useless items...
(both performed by Spinney) are to be in a scene together, Jim Martin
Jim Martin (puppeteer)
Jim Martin is a puppeteer, best known for his roles on Sesame Street. As part of the cast, he has won an Emmy Award. He has been nominated multiple times, and won for "Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design/Styling" at the Emmys, also for Sesame Street.-Early life:Martin graduated from St...
performs Oscar unless Matt Vogel is performing Big Bird, in which cases Oscar is performed by Spinney as usual.
Costume
The Big Bird performer is completely enclosed within the costume, and extends his right hand over his head to operate the head and neck of the puppet. The Muppeteer's left hand serves as the Bird's left hand, while the right hand is stuffed and hangs loosely from a fishing line that runs through a loop under the neck and attaches to the wrist of the left hand. The right hand thus does the opposite of the left hand: as the left hand goes down, the right hand is pulled up by the fishing line. For some of the Journey to Ernie segments, a second puppeteer (usually Jim Martin) controls Big Bird's right hand. He is concealed by dressing in a body suit the same color as their chroma keyChroma key
Chroma key compositing is a technique for compositing two images together. A color range in the top layer is made transparent, revealing another image behind. The chroma keying technique is commonly used in video production and post-production...
background (something that obviously cannot be done on the main Sesame Street set). Big Bird's body suit weighs ten pounds, and his head weighs four pounds. According to writer Louise Gikow, the heat inside the suit is "unbearable, and it's extraordinarily difficult to hold Big Bird's head".
The costume is partially assembled by company American & Fancy Feather, using the tail feathers from turkey
Turkey (bird)
A turkey is a large bird in the genus Meleagris. One species, Meleagris gallopavo, commonly known as the Wild Turkey, is native to the forests of North America. The domestic turkey is a descendant of this species...
s; as the feathers are rarely clean, company owner Anthony Trento calls the Big Bird costume his "toughest customer". Sesame Workshop
Sesame Workshop
Sesame Workshop, formerly known as the Children's Television Workshop , is a Worldwide American non-profit organization behind the production of several educational children's programs that have run on public broadcasting around the world...
is said to reject roughly 90 percent of all the feathers selected for use on the costume.
Breed
The book "G" is for Growing: Thirty Years of Research on Children and Sesame Street refers to Big Bird as a canaryDomestic Canary
The Domestic Canary, often simply known as the canary, is a domesticated form of the wild Canary, a small songbird in the finch family originating from the Macaronesian Islands ....
. In an episode of Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
, Big Bird was asked if he was related to the cassowary
Cassowary
The cassowaries are ratites, very large flightless birds in the genus Casuarius native to the tropical forests of New Guinea, nearby islands and northeastern Australia. There are three extant species recognized today...
, he replied, "I'm more of a condor
Condor
Condor is the name for two species of New World vultures, each in a monotypic genus. They are the largest flying land birds in the Western Hemisphere.They are:* The Andean Condor which inhabits the Andean mountains....
." On a 1976 episode of Hollywood Squares
Hollywood Squares
Hollywood Squares is an American panel game show in which two contestants play tic-tac-toe to win cash and prizes. The "board" for the game is a 3 × 3 vertical stack of open-faced cubes, each occupied by a celebrity seated at a desk and facing the contestants...
, he said he was a lark
Lark
Larks are passerine birds of the family Alaudidae. All species occur in the Old World, and in northern and eastern Australia; only one, the Shore Lark, has spread to North America, where it is called the Horned Lark...
. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCIeAJ5hRfE In the film Don't Eat the Pictures, Osiris calls Big Bird an ibis
Ibis
The ibises are a group of long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae....
. Zoologist Mike Dickison hypothesizes that Big Bird, or Grandicrocavis viasesamensis, is a type of flightless crane. Big Bird appeared in a series 11 episode of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood
Mister Rogers' Neighborhood
Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, also known as Mister Rogers, is an American children's television series that was created and hosted by Fred Rogers. The series is aimed primarily at preschool ages, 2-5, but has been stated by Public Broadcasting Service as "appropriate for all ages"...
. In this episode he declares he is a "Golden Condor."
Other appearances
1985 in film
-Events:* 3 December - Roger Moore steps down from the role of James Bond after twelve years and seven films. He is replaced by Timothy Dalton.* The Academy Award for Best Picture was won by Out Of Africa, while the highest grossing film was Back to the Future.* Bliss wins AFI Award for best Movie...
, Big Bird was the star of his own movie Sesame Street Presents Follow That Bird
Sesame Street presents Follow That Bird
Sesame Street Presents: Follow That Bird is a 1985 American road film directed by Ken Kwapis, starring many Sesame Street characters . This was the first of two Sesame Street feature films, followed in 1999 by The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland...
alongside the cast of Sesame Street. The plot focused on him being moved away to live with his own species by a meddling social-worker (voiced by Sally Kellerman
Sally Kellerman
Sally Clare Kellerman is an American actress and singer known for her role as Major Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan in the film MASH , for which she was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.-Early life:...
). He is not happy with his new home and he runs away and embarks on a cross-country adventure. Along the way he finds help from a friendly truck driver (Waylon Jennings
Waylon Jennings
Waylon Arnold Jennings was an American country music singer, songwriter, and musician. Jennings began playing at eight. He began performing at twelve, on KVOW radio. Jennings formed a band The Texas Longhorns. Jennings worked as a D.J on KVOW, KDAV and KLLL...
) and two farmer kids. But on the bad side, there are two carnival owning brothers (Dave Thomas
Dave Thomas (actor)
David "Dave" Thomas is a Canadian comedian and actor. He was born in St. Catharines, Ontario, but moved to Durham, North Carolina where his father, John E. Thomas, attended Duke University and earned a PhD in Philosophy. Thomas attended George Watts and Moorehead elementary schools...
and Joe Flaherty
Joe Flaherty
Joe Flaherty is an American-Canadian actor and comedian. He is best known for his work on the Canadian sketch comedy SCTV, from 1976 to 1984, and as Harold Weir on Freaks and Geeks...
) who want to kidnap him and make him perform in their carnival for their own profit. In the meantime, his friends Bert, Ernie
Ernie
Ernie is a fictional character, a Muppet on the Public Broadcasting Service's long-running children's television show, Sesame Street. He and his roommate Bert form a comic duo that is one of the program's centerpieces, with Ernie acting the role of the naïve troublemaker and Bert the world-weary foil...
, Cookie Monster
Cookie Monster
Cookie Monster is a Muppet on the children's television show Sesame Street. He is best known for his voracious appetite and his famous eating phrases: "Me want cookie!", "Me eat cookie!", and "Om nom nom nom" . He often eats anything and everything, including danishes, donuts, lettuce, apples,...
, Grover
Grover
Grover is a Muppet character on the popular television show Sesame Street. Self-described as lovable, cute and furry, he is a monster who almost never uses contractions when speaking or singing....
, Count Von Count
Count von Count
Count von Count, often known simply as "The Count", is one of the Muppet characters on Sesame Street, performed by Jerry Nelson. The Count is a vampire modeled after Bela Lugosi's interpretation of Count Dracula.-Description:...
and Oscar the Grouch
Oscar the Grouch
Oscar the Grouch is a Muppet character on the television program Sesame Street. He has a green body , has no nose , and lives in a trash can. His favorite thing in life is trash; evidence for this is the song "I Love Trash". A running theme is his compulsive hoarding of seemingly useless items...
are in pursuit of him to find him and bring him back home safely. Also joining them are their human friends, Gordon, Maria, Olivia and Linda with Bob aiding them from Sesame Street.
Big Bird appeared in a series 11 episode of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood
Mister Rogers' Neighborhood
Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, also known as Mister Rogers, is an American children's television series that was created and hosted by Fred Rogers. The series is aimed primarily at preschool ages, 2-5, but has been stated by Public Broadcasting Service as "appropriate for all ages"...
in the Neighborhood of Make-Believe segment where he enters for the "Draw the Neighborhood" contest.
Big Bird made a non-speaking appearance in The West Wing Season 5 episode Eppur Si Muove
Eppur Si Muove (The West Wing)
"Eppur Si Muove" is the sixteenth episode of The West Wings fifth season, and episode 104 from the start. It originally aired on NBC March 3, 2004. Events centre on a controversy relating to the National Institutes of Health, involving President Bartlet’s middle daughter Ellie...
. During a visit by The Muppets
The Muppets
The Muppets are a group of puppet characters created by Jim Henson starting in 1954–55. Although the term is often used to refer to any puppet that resembles the distinctive style of The Muppet Show, the term is both an informal name and legal trademark owned by the Walt Disney Company in reference...
to the White House, Big Bird sits down on a bench next to CJ Cregg, who has complained during the episode of past comparisons to Big Bird due to her height.
Big Bird also made an brief appearance in The Muppet Movie
The Muppet Movie
The Muppet Movie is the first of a series of live-action musical feature films starring Jim Henson's Muppets. Released in 1979, the film was produced by Henson Associates, Children's Television Workshop and ITC Entertainment....
and Muppets Take Manhattan.
Further reading
- Simon, Ellen. "He's Big Bird: Caroll Spinney loves every feather", Associated PressAssociated PressThe Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
via Google NewsGoogle NewsGoogle News is a free news aggregator provided by Google Inc, selecting recent items from thousands of publications by an automatic aggregation algorithm....
, 16 June 2008. Accessed 19 June 2008.