Kevin Jeffrey Clash (born September 17, 1960) is an American puppeteer, director and producer whose characters included Elmo, Clifford, Benny Rabbit, and Hoots the Owl from Sesame Street; and Azibo the Monster from Panwapa.\n', '

Clash developed an interest in puppetry at an early age and, in his teen years, performed for local TV children\'s shows in his hometown of Baltimore, Maryland. He joined the cast of Captain Kangaroo in the early 1980s and began performing on Sesame Street in 1984. He was the fifth puppeteer to perform Elmo, who became his signature character, and also served as an executive producer and director for the show. Clash worked in various productions with The Jim Henson Company and occasionally on other projects. Clash\'s autobiography, My Life as a Furry Red Monster, was published in 2006; he was later the subject of the documentary Being Elmo: A Puppeteer\'s Journey (2011). He resigned from Sesame Street on November 20, 2012, after allegations of sexual impropriety, all of which he denied and were later dismissed due to expiration of the statute of limitations. Clash returned to puppeteering as a supporting performer in the comedy The Happytime Murders (2018).\n', '

Clash was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on September 17, 1960, the third of four children born to George Clash, a flash welder and handyman, and Gladys Clash, who ran a small daycare center in their two-bedroom, one-bath home in the Turner Station of Dundalk, Maryland. Clash developed an interest in puppetry at an early age, inspired by children\'s shows like Kukla, Fran and Ollie and Sesame Street. He made his first puppet, a version of Mickey Mouse, at the age of 10. When he was twelve, he created a monkey puppet out of the lining of his father\'s coat. His first performances were for his mother\'s daycare children.\n', '

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