Tribute to Carroll Spinney (Voice of Big Bird on Sesame Street)

Jeremy Levy back with you with some sad news to report. Carroll Spinney, the actor who first voiced and brought to life Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, and Grannie Bird on Sesame Street has passed away at the age of 85. I would like to pay a tribute to him.I can remember days as a young child listening to Sesame Street. Whenever I heard Big Bird’s voice, played by Spinney, it always mad me smile. The way Carroll played Big Bird reminded me of myself because of his curiosity. I can remember going to Disneyland and there being a Sesame Street show at the park. My dad told me that I was in my stroller and suddenly my ears perked up. My dad had a little bit of trouble figuring out what was making my ears perk up. He finally realized that I was hearing Bob Mcgrath and Big Bird. We went over to listen to the show. I also remember having a tape of Big Bird music. I remember that a friend of mine, Gayle Scheihing, copying this tape for me. The first song on this tape was big Bird singing a song called There Is Just One Me. This song was special because it reminded me as the listener that I am my own person and there is no one else like me. That is just one of the lessons I have learned from Big Bird and Carroll Spinney over the years.Another song that is one of my favorites was a song titled Tall Enough. In this song Big Bird sang and talked about being small that you can’t do everything, yet you still can do things and when you get older you can do more and more things. It was a little bit surprising to me at the beginning of the song Big Bird saying that he wasn’t as tall as he is now (It taught me that everyone grows). The next song I would like to talk about is, Everyone Makes Mistakes, that conveys the words in the title. This is a good reminder for all of us. Even as adults, we can make mistakes.Listening to Big Bird and Carroll Spinney play Big Bird has given me a lot of joy over the years and I feel like Carroll’s voicing of Big Bird over the years has shaped me into the caring and curious person I believe I am today. Listening to the Sesame Street tapes I had over the years with Big Bird helped me discover different keys of music. I really liked a lot of the Big Bird music because it was in my favorite key of music which the key of F.When I listened to Sesame Street and Big Bird was in the show, I would love to stay tuned to find out what was going to happen next to Big Bird in the show that particular episode. My favorite TV Sesame Street interactions on Sesame Street were Big Bird and Bob Mcgrath. I really think that Bob had a good grasp of Big Bird’s curiosity and feelings.I also really enjoyed the interactions with Big Bird and Snuffy. It was really nice for Big Bird to have a best friend named Snuffy. It reminds me of my best friend Lucas. Some times Big Bird would come up with a great idea and Snuffy and Big Bird would try and make Big Bird's idea work. I really liked episodes like that. As I have gotten older it was nice to listen as Big Bird would develop other friend ships such as Baby Bear.I really liked it when Big Bird and Grannie Bird were together on Sesame Street. The main song that I remember them singing was a song called I will Sing With You. This song's message is even though your family isn’t close to you sometimes that they will always be in your heart. One time on Sesame Street, Big Bird spent a whole week at camp. This was a little bit hard for him, but that weeks episodes talked about it being alright to miss your family when you are apart from them.Bob McGrath said in his online tribute on Facebook that Carol Spinney was a great person. I agree with this. Carroll’s characters have always helped guide me be a better person. I will miss Carroll Spinney.Happy Holidays and Happy 2020 to one and all. I am looking forward to a great year with lots of adventures.Thanks for tuning in.