Panel Nerds: Being Elmo Is All About Love

Who: Kevin Clash, Constance Marks, and many, many others, interviewed by Ron Simon
What: “Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey”
Where: Paley Center for Media
When: October 17, 2011
Thumbs: Up

Even after 40-plus years on the air, Sesame Street remains a mainstay of public programming, but it’s actually become a big part of pop culture, too. On my walk to a screening of Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey, I passed a man in a giant Elmo costume in Times Square, and then afterwards I heard a man with a trombone play the Sesame Street theme song on a subway platform. First thing this morning I spotted a blog link to an old video of James Earl Jones appearing on the show.

People young and old love Sesame Street. That what part of the reason that filmmaker Constance Marks decided to make her film focused on Kevin Clash, the man behind (and underneath) kids-favorite Elmo. Clash had more to offer than just a hand, the writers said. Old footage helped “illuminate” different parts of his life which lent themselves well to a narrative forming around a young man’s love for entertaining, writer Justin Weinstein said.

Kid aren’t the only ones fooled by the mystique of Elmo, producer James Miller said; reporters will often lean the camera in the direction of the Muppet’s mouth when interviewing Clash. Then the filmmakers panel gave way to a panel of Sesame Street performers, with Clash remaining on stage. Roscoe Orman, who plays Gordon, said he admires the puppeteers not only for making the Muppets come alive but for their abilities to keep their hands raised for so long.

It’s remarkable that Elmo has resonated so strongly with children considering he’s so minor in comparison to some of the other, bigger Muppets. But it’s what he represents, the panel agreed, that has made him the program’s most popular character. Toward the end, Clash and his fellow puppeteers gave a short demonstration of the fun that they have on the set by getting into their characters with Muppets in hand. The puppeteers matched the expressions they gave to their little friends, keeping them active and moving at all times. Both Clash and Elmo were having a great time doing it.

What They Said
The film was “structured around the notion of ‘what did Kevin want to be?'”
– Philip Shane says that the writers of Being Elmo were struck by their subject

“Mr. Rogers made me feel good about myself and Sesame Street‘ made me laugh.”
– Puppeteer Fran Brill describes how the kids’ show helped keep her hopes high while seeking theatrical work

“I think puppetry is something that has evolved so tremendously through Jim Henson and ‘Sesame Street.'”
– Roscoe Orman is amazed by what he sees at work every day

“As the kids were learning through the characters, the parents were learning through the actors.”
– Kevin Clash explains how the show reaches all audiences

What We Thought

• Why does Elmo talk in the third person? someone asked Clash. “It’s just the way Elmo talks,” he responded. Ordinarily, we wouldn’t accept this type of answer, but in this case it was okay.
• Ron Simon did a nice job allowing these two panels, massive in both size and energy, speak for themselves. We’ve never seen two separate panels operate back-to-back like this, and Simon was what made it possible to gain from them.

PANEL RULES!
Some audience behavior seems to repeat itself panel after panel. We’ll be updating a running list of “PANEL RULES!” that will help ensure that you are not the dweeb of the Panel Nerds.

Panel Nerds don’t like…Cleverness Causing Confusion
One woman asked Clash if he’d “seen Elmo’s cousin up at Lincoln Center” yet. After a few moments of confusion, Clash and the rest realized that the lady was talking about “War Horse,” a show that has marvelous puppeteering. Clash confessed he hadn’t seen it, but hopes to. It’s not a bad thing to ask about – entertainers are probably drawn to others doing similar things. But if you’re going to ask a question, it’s better to be straightforward with it so everyone is on the same page.

This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.