Sesame Street icon Bob McGrath dies at age 90

[TMC]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...7-dies-90.html

• Bob McGrath, who was one of the original stars of 'Sesame Street,' died Sunday at age 90, his family announced
• 'He died peacefully at home, surrounded by his family,' said a post on the entertainer's Facebook page
• McGrath was one of four cast hired for the Sesame Street launch in 1969
• McGrath interacted with humans and Muppets on Sesame Street for 47 seasons, until he was let go in 2017

By JAMES GORDON FOR DAILYMAIL.COM

PUBLISHED: 18:19 EST, 4 December 2022 | UPDATED: 18:51 EST, 4 December 2022

Bob McGrath who was one of the original stars of Sesame Street has passed away at the age of 90.

McGrath featured in the pilot in 1969 and continued to star in a further 47 season.

News of the actor's death was shared by the family on his official Facebook page.

'Our father Bob McGrath, passed away today. He died peacefully at home, surrounded by his family,' said a post on the entertainer's Facebook page.

McGrath finally stopped acting on Sesame Street with his last episode entitled Having a Ball in 2017.

McGrath conducted lessons for children through his puppeteering and also wrote original sons for the production including People in Your Neighborhood, Sing a Song, If You're Happy And You Know It and the Sesame Street theme song.



McGrath was one of four cast members hired for the launch of Sesame Street in 1969, playing a character named Bob alongside Matt Robinson as Gordon, Loretta Long as Susan and Will Lee as Mr. Hooper.

'We've always looked at children as just short people,' McGrath told the Sun-Times in 1998. 'We've never talked down to them.'

'The kids we were meant to reach, I think we've reached,' McGrath added. 'They've grown up. They're in their 30s now. They have kids of their own, our Sesame Seeds, and they come up to me and say: "Thank you very much. It made a major difference in our lives."'

Although McGrath finally stepped away from appearing in front of the lens for Sesame Street in 2017, he continued to work behind the scenes with the Sesame Workshop.

He would still appear at public events relating to the television franchise serving as an advocate for the show.

He also starred in numerous Sesame Street productions over the years including standalone films, sing-alongs, holiday specials, video games and more.

Before Sesame Street, McGrath sang the hits of the week as part of the vocal ensemble on conductor Mitch Miller’s 1960s NBC series Sing Along With Mitch.

He was one of the longest-standing human adult cast members on the series and is survived by his wife, Ann, and their three kids, plus five grandchildren.

[JO Sweet Heart]

I wish that there was a way that we could get a hold of those who are still here from the show. I would love to ask them about Northern Calloway who gave us David, but so far, I have not seen any legitimate social media pages for those who are still here.

God bless you and them and Bob's family always!!!

Holly

P.S. I would also like to know why it isn't being said what has been going on with Bob most recently. In other words, what happened to him.

[rusty spike]

May he rest in peace.

[MrCleveland]

This has been a bad year for Sesame Street...first we lost the huy who played Luis...now we lost Bob.

[Hawkee]

I do remember Bob McGrath when I would see Sesame Street as a toddler and he really was wonderful interacting with the kids and he really did have a gentle heart and his never mean always cheerful personality probably got him the role of Bob because kids really needed a wonderful character that could connect well with them. Bob McGrath also did commercials too and he appeared in Burger King commercials during the 70's. It's a shock that Bob McGrath left in 2017 because without Bob Sesame Street wasn't the same anymore. It's also hard to believe that Bob McGrath was 90 years old and he was very active and still showed his wonderful side
Bestie

[Yong Fang]

I was born in 1967 and was a first generation Sesame Street viewer. I stopped watching the show by the early 1970's in elementary school, (I did learn how to count to ten in Spanish on Sesame Street and now can count to ten in English, Spanish and Chinese)

I grew up and never had children so I long forgot about Sesame Street but was shocked to see that Bob was still on the show in the 2010's. I was 50 years old when he retired. There are toddlers who first watched him who had grandchildren watching the show when he retired. Made me wonder why Bob stayed on so long. It must have provided him with a good living, since he seemingly did not do anything else professionally or left.

[howilu]

A sad day for fans of the long running Sesame Street with the passing of Bob McGrath. He had one of the longest runs on any TV show, 47 years. A great singing voice on the show has gone silent. May he rest in peace.

[rusty spike]

Just speculating, but Bob may have been let go when he turned 85.

It's kind of disappointing, but the film/tv/movie industry have regulations that performers/entertainers must pass a physical and the production company is REQUIRED to insure all actors in case of death and personal injury. At some point, these insurance companies don't want to be liable if an "old" person suffers heart attack or stroke while working on a show. It's the reason that some older actors/actresses suddenly disappear from show business.

[JO Sweet Heart]

^^^ To me, that is not fair when the people give as much as they give to the shows that they are a part of for so long. Do these "camps" not know what a retirement plan is?

God bless you always!!!

Holly

[Dude111]

Originally Posted by JO Sweet Heart

I wish that there was a way that we could get a hold of those who are still here from the show. I would love to ask them about Northern Calloway who gave us David, but so far, I have not seen any legitimate social media pages for those who are still here.

I would love to hug everyone who was involved with the show before 1992 when it went to crap and tell them thank you for a wonderful show!!

[JO Sweet Heart]

^^^ I saw it said earlier today that a stroke was more recently on Bob's plate.

God bless you and his family always!!!

Holly

[MIKEPR]

Originally Posted by Yong Fang

I was born in 1967 and was a first generation Sesame Street viewer. I stopped watching the show by the early 1970's in elementary school, (I did learn how to count to ten in Spanish on Sesame Street and now can count to ten in English, Spanish and Chinese)

I grew up and never had children so I long forgot about Sesame Street but was shocked to see that Bob was still on the show in the 2010's.

Why was that shocking?


It's not like he was the only one that lasted a long time.

[Yong Fang]

It just was. Maybe "shocking" is not the right word, but am very surprised. The series must have afforded him a very comfortable living and then in his elder years did not want to quit because he must have enjoyed what he was doing.

How many of the other players are there in the 2010's at least who were there in the 1970's? The only one I vaguely remember was a black woman named Susan. There was Mr. Hooper who ran the store, but he was an elderly man who died decades ago, however the store is still called "Hoopers" in his memory.

I do remember as a small child that there were Seseme Street merchandising. I had a Burt puppet, another kid had an Ernie. Would have perferred an Ernie.

[MIKEPR]

There others besides him!

[80sTrivia]

So sad that so many stars of our childhood days are leaving us. I'll always remember his gentle voice and kind smile from the series...