Kevin Clash is the 51 year old voice of Elmo on Sesame Street. According to
TMZ, Kevin is taking a leave of absence from the show because he is being accused of having a sexual relationship with a 16 year old boy. Sesame Street investigated the claims that, six years ago, Kevin and the boy had a sexual relationship. Sesame Street could find no wrongdoing, but Kevin asked for the leave of absence so he would be able to defend himself. Kevin admits having a relationship with the boy, but insists it happened after the 16 year old became legal. The teen has hired the same law firm that handled some of the victims who were molested by Jerry Sandusky. While Kevin has taken a leave, Elmo will continue to be on the show.
Whaaaat the fuck?!
ReplyDeleteWhether or not anything happened before he was 18, that big of an age difference (18 and 46) is inappropriate...
ReplyDeleteI just read about this earlier this morning. Something seems shady about both sides of this. The accuser claims to have an email proving their relationship started when he was underage, but he didn't even mention it during the whole investigation - so some people are saying that it's faked. I wonder if maybe it's a case of the accuser telling Kevin that he was older than he was at the time?
ReplyDeleteEither way, this news makes Elmo sad.
Hmm... Don't know what to believe to be honest. Half of me thinks if true then it's horrible. But the other half can't help but think this is about a way to make $$$$$.
ReplyDelete@beguessin - even if it's not appropriate, once the kid is 18, it's not illegal. And from what I understand (someone correct me if I'm wrong), those large age differences are much more common in the gay community.
ReplyDelete@cathy, u r correct. if the age of consent is met - it isn't illegal. however, from what I read, he knew him as a minor. I read Savage Love, and something about this struck me as a case of grooming. innocent until proven guilty, and no charges have been brought, but my mind just went there
DeleteChrist. How am I supposed to explain this to my 2-year-old? Kidding.
ReplyDeleteI don't know what to believe. Need more deets. Not that I really want them. Sometimes ignorance really is bliss.
I agree, it sounds a bit shady. The way I read it the boy first went to Sesame Street with the allegations and then got a lawyer. Don't you think the first step should be the police? Let them investigate. What was the boy trying to accomplish by going directly to Sesame Street?
ReplyDeleteI can understand taking a leave of absence until the whole thing is resolved. It must be incredibly stressful regardless if he's guilty or innocent.
Oh man, what is wrong with him...a minor, why do these idiots do it ?
ReplyDeletesince when is 16 an adult ?
If the other man was 18 and willing, I Do Not Care. Appropriate my foot. Two adults having consensual sex is not news.
ReplyDelete16 is an adult in many states for statutory rape purposes. That said, we have to have some consistency federally with what we consider an "Adult". Drive at 16, die for your country at 18, but can't drink til 21? Can we just pick an age and apply it across the board? Ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteThat said, even if it was something that didn't start until the guy was 16, I fear there may have been some conditioning and contact prior to that age that is just too across the line of "appropriate" for my tastes from a Sesame Street employee.
@Maximus - both sides agree that they didn't even meet until the accuser was 16, so your fear of "conditioning and contact prior to that age" is a moot point.
ReplyDeleteI saw "Being Elmo," and now it makes more sense why he was so detached from his marriage. Maybe his ex wife is also having an "a-hah!" moment right now...
ReplyDeleteP.S. I hope this isn't gonna be one of those things where more victims start coming forward... :/
ReplyDeleteThe enty article reads very poorly. In other articles it clearly spells out that Kevin is not denying the allegations but insists the accuser was 18 when they started the relationship.
ReplyDeleteSesame Street asked the accuser if he had any proof so they could take action, that the sexual relationship began when he said it did he never produced anything. Then he lawyers up and suddenly there is an email. What makes me think hmmmmm.
I honestly do not know what to think, I will say it is probably a good thing he is taking a leave of absence, I imagine it would be very stressful and also take a toll on everyone who works at Sesame Street.
Consign @Nutty
ReplyDeleteIf he was not, would he need to take a leave of absence just to defend himself? I think this is true. He really waited until the kid was 18? Yeah, just like Wilmer and Lindsay waited or Hillary and Joel (Benji?) waited or Britney and Justin waited. These people never think it will come back to bite them, but if you choose to engage in underage sex with someone who has less money (Kevin is worth about 12 million...working for something subsidized...) then you should be ready for something like this when you break up.
ReplyDeleteYeah, it may not be technically "illegal," but it is pretty immature. I always wonder about people who start relationships with partners with such large age gaps. I've come to find, a lot of times, these people have deep issues.
ReplyDeleteForgot to mention it reminds me of that girl in California who went to live with her former high school teacher. Later came to find out he was having inappropriate relations with another student at another school.
ReplyDeleteAm I the only one other than Maximus who doesn't think it's right to view a 16 year old as being the same as a pre-pubescent child? If the accuser had killed someone, would we be calling him a "child" because he's 16?
ReplyDeleteAgree that the age for adulthood should be the same across the board for everything, say 18. However, I do think driving tests should be way harder because teen drivers are THE WORST. (This is coming from a former really bad teen driver.)
ReplyDeleteYeah. Don't get why the accuser would go to Sesame Street other than to get major dollas dollas. Based on the Sesame Street crap my family alone has purchased, no doubt the voice of Elmo is swimming in cash.
No matter what, its just plain creepy. Imagine if it were a 16 girl with a 51 yr old man. Its just plain creepy.
ReplyDeleteI so do not want to believe this. Anyone else seen BEING ELMO? If so, you probably don't want to believe it either. That documentary made this guy seem magical. Oy. :-(
ReplyDeleteSo the voice had the sex, and not the rest of him?
ReplyDelete:-)
Hey Cathy, they've both agreed no sexual relationship until 16 but they don't specify when the emails actually began, so until we find out if it was before or after 16, maybe we shouldn't be calling any points "moot". Thanks :)
ReplyDeleteChris - I agree. I, in general, have some severe issues with a good lot of statutory rape laws, but I think just because of the job this man has it was extremely poorly thoughtout to begin a relationship with someone this close to the age of consent. I reckon even 18 years old would have become a problem for him in the eyes of many parents who have children watching the show and, frankly, I don't know if I can blame them.
I'm just hoping and praying nothing like this ever surfaces about Mister Rodgers. That would cause my world to shatter. He's just GOT to be one of the good ones!
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, like Cathy so eloquently said, this makes Elmo sad :-(.
that would destroy my childhood :-(
DeleteI can't believe no one's made a "Tickle me, Elmo" joke yet.
ReplyDeleteheeheeheeheeeeheeeeeeee! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4x-VW_rCSE
It, the thing that always blew my mind about fred rogers was his decades long estrangement with his son. I mean this guy was so nice, he cldnt forgive? I always wondered what happened btwn them.
ReplyDeleteJust with the accusation alone PBS needs to fire him! he is a sick fuck and where there's smoke there are flames shooting out of his ass! he should be fully investigated before being allowed back on a children's set. this is very disturbing!
ReplyDeleteFrufra, you're spot-on correct. I NEVER want to hear ANYTHING bad about Mister Rogers. I seriously don't think I could handle it. :-/
ReplyDeleteWhoa, auntliddy, really? I'd never heard that. Which son? I remember he had two, but I don't know what happened.
I can't...between the allegations against Elmo's voice, Mr. Roger's being estranged from his son and Patty Mayonnaise posting "[...]where there's smoke there are flames shooting out of his ass!", my childhood has taken on a different tint. LOL! and crying inside, especially about Mr. Rogers because he can NEVER do wrong.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the order of operations seems odd. If I were raped by a guy that works at Starbucks, I wouldn't go to Starbucks and be like, "hey, he raped me - help!" I'd go to the police. I don't want this to be true, because I don't want it to be true that a minor was taken advantage of. However, if it's a lie to try to extort money, this unfortunately tarnishes Kevin forever. Even if he didn't do it, people are going to remember him as the Elmo guy that raped that kid.
ReplyDeleteThere's not enough information for me to form an opinion. Being connected to a teen, even one of consensual age, is asking for trouble on Clash's part. But why didn't the accuser go to the police first? It seems he went looking for hush money. Let's face it, Elmo is a pop culture icon and beloved children's figure. The mere idea of inappropriate behavior is enough to want to keep things quiet. Not to mention that the character makes tons of money.
ReplyDeleteI'll just have to wait and see on this one.
If you need a little hope, Jim (the estranged son) and his son Alex (the grandson) appeared on an episode in 1990. So maybe they made up....
ReplyDeleteHe's on leave, he's on PBS (tax payer funded), the accuser is now 23 . Clash's net worth is est at 12M. Yes, it's creepy but it is unknown what happened. Follow the money trail and we'll see ! Maybe we can fix Clash up with Papa Simpson. More age appropriate ..
ReplyDeleteIf they were more famewhorish, they could have been the gay version of Courtney Stodden and her creepy old husband. Then they could go on Celebrity Relationship Therapy or whatever it's called. I bet they'd love to have the voice of Elmo.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Nutty_Flavor. And I want to see how it plays out.
ReplyDeleteAs Amber put it 'the order of operations' is all hinky. If he was abused the first place to go would be the police. The only way that doesn't make sense is if it was a consensual relationship and the victim was over the legal age of consent. Then nothing illegal happened (although lots of ill-advised went down) and going to Sesame Street first works because they may pay just to avoid the scandal. I am inclined to believe Sesame Street, being aware of the potential damage to their brand, thoroughly investigated this and decided there was nothing to be concerned about. Can you imagine how it would be spun in some corners of the media? "Is Big Bird Elmo's Paterno? Pull Public Funds From Pedos Now!" Ugh. No way they are going to leave that door open.
Admittedly, I'm too old to have "grown up" with Mr. Rogers, but I hafta say he seriously creeped me out.
ReplyDeleteYou make a lot of good points, Lucas.
ReplyDeletetbc
ReplyDelete@Lucas - yup. Same thoughts here. Especially with it being on the tail of the Sandusky stuff.
ReplyDeleteWell, it's been pretty well established pedos go where kids are. Sesame Street would be a good place to find a job.
ReplyDeleteHaving sex with a minor teenager (if this guy actually did) is bad and illegal, but there's a difference between that and being a pedophile. Pedophile is a specific term for someone who is sexually attracted to pre-pubescent kids.
ReplyDeleteHang on there, Patty Mayo. Having sex with a 16-year-old MAY be illegal (age of consent varies by state and all that), but it is NOT pedophilia. Watch that high horse you're on - it can buck!
ReplyDeleteYeah, Elmo's target audience is anything BUT teenagers. I think he's a puppeteer who is great with very small kids, but likes sex with young men or teens in his spare time. Just like the Wall Street guy with the same tastes, or the janitor, or the restaurateur...you get my point. I think his job has little to do with it.
ReplyDeleteIt's not right at all, but I think it's much more accepted than pedophilia. These guys are encouraged by many industries, advertising, and society at large.
It's not just here--look at Japan, or South Korea, where girls get surgery to look cuter and more doll-like; younger.
People having those fantasies about underage teens aren't being told they're wrong, period. Maybe if we tolerated this less instead of ignoring it, it would happen less.
Well i searched and searched sbout fred rogers snd his son. Very little out there on that, brief hints if problem, no readon why, but loads and loads of stories about how wonderful a person he was. I remember my 4 yr old staring intently at mr rogers on tv screen, and asking me," is this a girl or a boy?" Lol. He was pretty mellow!
ReplyDeleteIt both saddens and angers me, at some CADN'ers immediate willingness to label this man a pedophile, simply because he's gay. STOP with the Sandusky comparisons. Sixteen, while age inappropriate for a 46 yr old, in my opinion, is not a child. If this were a 46 year old man and a sixteen year old girl, I don't think these terms would be thrown about so easily.
ReplyDelete@MalibuBarbie, Libby & Cee Kay - YES! First of all, Sandusky's victims were much younger. Second of all, what he did to them was NOT consensual. The accuser in this case, is not claiming that he didn't consent to it; he's just saying that the relationship started before he was 18. I'm not saying it's okay for someone to be having sex with a 16 year old, but I think that a lot of people here are really mis-using the word "pedophile." It is dangerous to be so free and loose throwing that word around.
ReplyDeleteReally people, this has nothing to do with pedophilia!
ReplyDeletePersonally, this whole story reeks of bullshit from a vindictive ex, not a real sex scandal.
It is a disservice to real crimes against children to have people scream PEDO without knowing what it even means. Sorry for being grumpy, but dumbasses + working sick on a holiday Monday makes my tolerance pretty low.
I watch the documentary about him. Puppets and entertaining always came first. Maybe he is gay, so what?
ReplyDeleteThe fact that he took a leave of absence, to me, does not means he's guilty. I think he loves that show so much that he doesn't want it tarnished while this gets straightened out. I'm thinking the relationship ended and young dude wanted a check.
Ugh this breaks my heart. I'm a huge fan of Kevin Clash. I really really hope this isn't true.
ReplyDeleteAnd BTW, pedophilia refers to people who are attracted to prepubescent children, i.e., kids who are under 13 and who haven't started puberty yet (no pubic hair, etc.). Can we stop throwing the term around when it doesn't actually apply?
Yes, be sure NOT to tell people here that if they want to slap a label on this, ephebophilia is actually more accurate (and not even necessarily what happened in this case, or even in the Doug and Courtney situation). You will be told that it doesn't matter what it says in the "psychology dictionary." :-/
ReplyDeleteAlso, gay doesn't equal pedophilia, and pedophilia doesn't equal gay. (Which, of course, is beside the point, because even if true, this isn't pedophilia.) When will folks figure this out? It's 2012!
:-( i'm watching Elmo right now
ReplyDeleteOH my God. I feel sick. The BBC, Gary Glitter and that kids show pervert that cooperated with Gary to feed each other's pedophilia, now frickin Elmo? I really feel nauseous. If you're gay and you like young looking/feminine/bieberish guys there's nothing wrong with that, as long as they're 18 +, just stop going for childen you sick fucks! 18- is a child. This just proves that anyone who works with kids should be suspect. Everyone in kids/preteen showbiz should be thoroughly background checked and fired if there's any impropriety. Ruining children's lives with sexual misconduct is never ok, and should never be covered up. Jesus Christ protect the children.
ReplyDeleteCarmeliteLady - with all due respect, please read the comments before your post, and think about what you just wrote.
ReplyDeleteSixteen and seventeen year olds aren't children, and that's the dilemma we face when trying to decide what's wrong about this and how wrong it is. They're at a stage where they're allowed to make their first few steps into adulthood (driving, working) and to treat them as children utterly unable to understand or voluntarily enter into sexual relationships isn't entirely accurate. They, like everyone else regardless of age, are entitled to be protected from predators. It's when they decide to indulge their curiosity about sex that it gets so iffy.
ReplyDeleteIf this guy had sex with a minor, he deserves to suffer the consequences. If the relationship was consensual, meaning there was no force or coercion used on the kid, then odds are very good that the kid will not suffer lasting emotional harm from the relationship. It will be a bad relationship, but not necessarily an abusive one in terms of damage.
Whether or not the kid's allegations are true, Elmo dude was an utter fool to enter into a relationship with someone that young. Even eighteen was way, way too young for him. It looks creepy as hell.
Anybody remember the Frugal Gourmet? His career was ruined after seven men came forward alleging he'd molested them when they were minors. They had all kinds of people lined up to testify on their behalf, so the case was settled before it went to trial. That killed the Frugal Gourmet's tv career.
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ReplyDeleteI agree that we don't have enough information to be condemning this man. It sounds to me more like a disgruntled ex than an abused person. A friend of a friend kicked her husband out & is acting like a petulant child. If he was abused, throw the book at his abuser, but if this is an extortion attempt, throw the book at the extorter. No matter the it come, even if he is found innocent, he will be forever tarnished in the eyes of some people.
ReplyDeleteI also wholeheartedly agree with the poster who mentioned the sexualisation of children and young people. Trying to find shorts for my friend's daughter that didn't look like she would be standing on a street corner later was almost impossible. What scares me is they wouldn't make these clothes if they didn't sell, who the hell is buying this stuff?
^ outcome, not it come.
ReplyDeleteNot the only Sesame Street performer with this kind of problem.
ReplyDeleteHappened after he was 16? If u mess with a GROWN ASSSSSSSS ADULT wouldn't have these problems !
ReplyDeleteGoing to stay in denial about this until there are cold hard proven facts telling me otherwise.
ReplyDeleteNever trust people who pander to children. You'd have to be a complete idiot to assume people just get into this shit because they're soo incredibly warm-hearted. Please! These people want sex and money just like everyone else. Where they get the former can often tell you where they get latter.
ReplyDeletePlease please please let it come out he would use the elmo voice during sex "suck emlo's big cock" "ooh ooh elmo says lick my ass"
ReplyDeleteNews update:
ReplyDeleteThe accuser recanted !!
End of story.
http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2012/11/13/accuser-recants-sex-allegation-against-elmo-puppeteer/
This all seems like a shakedown to me. And he was an easy target, as he was in the public eye, and working with children on a beloved long running show handling one of the biggest characters, and his sexuality not commonly known, I can see how someone decided to go after his money. Victims don't go to Sesame Street unless they were victimized on the show. They don't take large settlement offers. They go to the police. And to those who say he should be fired, for what? Remember that sometimes the accused are truly innocent. Just keep an open mind and wait, there are always two sides to every story.
ReplyDelete