Are Elmo dolls not going to be sold this year for Christmas ? (Details inside) (NSFW)

Officially, Kevin Clash was acquitted of all charges. However, that does not mean that nothing ever happened. We don’t know the whole story and it’s unlikely that we will. The men who came forward did not call the police and file a report when the incidents allegedly happened, which always makes these cases much more difficult to prove.

I want to believe that Clash is innocent.

EDIT: I think some of the charges filed against him were also solved outside of court, but I can’t recall.

@muppetish – do they have a replacement Elmo on staff yet? And if so, how do you feel about them?

@Seek_Kolinahr After Clash resigned, Ryan Dillon took over as Elmo. I have seen snippets of his performances of Elmo, but am not familiar enough with his work to really say how strong his performances are. Those are big shoes to fill. Clash wasn’t just Elmo to me. He was a fantastic performer, puppet creator, and also trained many of the staff members who came through Henson studios. It’s quite a loss.

Since Clash was acquitted, is there a chance he can return to the show?

@jca As far as I know, Clash was not asked to leave by the Sesame Street executives: he resigned from his position in the frenzy of the news media and unwanted attention that it was bringing. I am not sure if he considered leaving the show prior to that. It would be unfortunate if this were a Fatty Arbuckle situation where he was completely innocent but drive out.

Gives a whole new meaning to tickle me elmo…

I had the impression from what I read that Kevin Clash had some consensual relationships with older teens. It makes me sad since I had just seen a great documentary about him beofre the story broke.

From the NPR story, I have the same information as @janbb. Clash had consensual relations with other males over the age of consent.. He is not a pedophile, nor has he been accused of being one. He voluntarily resigned rather than take the Sesame Street name down, but his former coworkers fully support that he did nothing wrong.

He wants Elmo, the character, to continue with another voice.