Well, at least Elmo's voice and hand that goes up Elmo's butt quit today because of a sex scandal.
From the San Fran Chronicle: Elmo puppeteer Kevin Clash has resigned from "Sesame Street" in the wake of an allegation that he had sex with an underage youth.
In its statement Tuesday, Sesame Workshop said, "The controversy surrounding Kevin's personal life has become a distraction that none of us want," leading Clash to conclude "that he can no longer be effective in his job."
As the announcement was made, a lawsuit was being filed in federal court in New York charging Clash with sexual abuse of a second youth. The lawsuit alleges that Cecil Singleton, then 15 and now an adult, was persuaded by Clash to meet for sexual encounters.
Clash, who had been on "Sesame Street" for 28 years, created the high-pitched voice and childlike persona for Elmo, a furry, red Muppet that became one of the most popular characters on the show and one of the company's most lucrative properties. Sesame Workshop produces "Sesame Street" in New York.
Clash's exit followed a tumultuous week that began on Nov. 12 with a statement from the company that Clash had requested a leave of absence following the charge by a man in his early 20s that he had had a relationship with Clash when he was 16. http://www.sfgate.com/tv/article/Elmo-puppeteer-Kevin-Clash-resigns-4054906.php
Last week, I stood up for Clash, until he paid the supposed victim about $250,000 in hush money.
But Sesame Street says they have other people to put their hands up Elmo's butt and speak in a high voice.
It's almost always the cover up that kills people's careers, not the actual infraction. Nixon didn't learn it. Clash didn't learn it. And certainly Obama hasn't learned it.
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