Elmo

**Elmo** is a furry red Muppet monster with an orange nose. He is self-described as 3-and-a-half years old, and refers to himself almost

   entirely in the third person. The character proved to be immensely popular with toddlers that in 1998, he was given his own full segment on *Sesame Street*, called "*Elmo's World*". Starting in season 43, a new Elmo-centered segment titled "Elmo the Musical" airs in its place.

## Character background

Elmo lives in an apartment on Sesame Street with his mother Mae, his father Louie, and, in some storybooks, a sister named Daisy. He has a pet goldfish named Dorothy.

Other relatives in Elmo's family include his grandma and grandpa; his great-grandmother (featured in a 1989 episode) and his great-grandfather (named Selmo); his Uncle Jack, Aunt Jill and cousin Jesse (featured in When Families Grieve); plus additional cousins Elmer (featured in Kids' Favorite Country Songs) and Chester (featured in Here For You). Additionally, the television special Sesame Street Stays Up Late shows Elmo's "international" cousins — Pepé from Mexico and Elmonosuke from Japan. As seen in The Furchester Hotel, he also has an aunt Funella Furchester, an uncle Furgus Fuzz, and a cousin Phoebe Furchester-Fuzz.

Elmo's early childhood has been shown with Elmo as a 13-month-old infant in the Sesame Beginnings video series, and in flashbacks shown

   in Elmo's Potty Time and "Bye Bye Binky."

According to a Q&A video, his favorite food is wasabi; that's why he has no eyelids. This has been reaffirmed on Rove Live and in other interviews, along with the Muppet bios published in several Sesame Workshop press kits. In 2000, Elmo told Donnie and Marie Osmond that his mother and father tell him to never "hate" any food, but he makes an exception for Brussels sprouts, Marie decided to taunt him with a bowl of them. Brussels sprouts have often been listed among Elmo's pet peeves in press kit bios.

As with many children of his age, Elmo is seen somewhat infrequently with a favorite toy of his: an orange monster-like doll named Baby David. In the film The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland, Elmo is devoted to his blue blanket, Blanket.

Elmo's birthday is February 3rd.

## Popularity

Elmo appeared in a 1991 episode of The Torkelsons and had occasional guest spots on The Frugal Gourmet. In the mid-1990s, Elmo become a regular guest on The Rosie O'Donnell Show, appearing more than a dozen times between 1996 and 2002. The Tickle Me Elmo doll was manufactured in his likeness, and became the must-have toy during the 1996 Christmas season; and subsequent variations and other Elmo dolls (such as Chicken Dance Elmo, Let's Rock! Elmo, Elmo Live, and Big Hugs Elmo) have also been successful.

Elmo has also been prominently featured in many home videos including Elmo's Sing-Along Guessing Game, Elmo Says BOO!, Elmo's Magic Cookbook, and Elmo's Potty Time, and has starred in many television specials such as Elmopalooza, Elmo Saves Christmas, The Street We Live On and Elmo's Christmas Countdown. Additionally, Elmo was the star of the 1999 full-length, theatrically released motion picture The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland.

In 1994, Elmo had a "Best of" video released; a sequel, The Best of Elmo 2, was released in 2010. A "Best of" album was also released in

He stars in the recurring Sesame Street segments Elmo's World and Elmo: The Musical. Additionally, he has performed such songs as "Elmo's Song," "Happy Tappin' with Elmo," "In Your Imagination," "Elmo's Rap Alphabet," "Elmo's Ducks," and "The Elmo Slide."

Elmo has also appeared as a main character in several international co-productions, including 5, Rue Sésame in France, Sesamgade in Denmark, Sesamstrasse in Germany and, most recently, in the English co-production The Furchester Hotel.