Bob McGrath, who has spent nearly 50 years playing Bob Sesame Street He became a familiar face for generations of children, is dead. He was 90 years old. McGrath, who performed on Sing with Mitch He was briefly a teen idol in Japan before settling into the gig that would define his career. He was one of the original cast members in Sesame Street. As Bob Johnson’s music teacher, he occasionally served as the “nice guy” in Oscar the Grouch, leading to some memorable exchanges with the grumpy doll. He also later turned his singing talents into being one of the rare non-Muppets cast members to be released officially licensed. Sesame Street Music.
McGrath’s family announced his death on McGrath’s Facebook page today. Several other outlets have reported as well, incl Tough pigsone of the best online resources for information related to The Muppets, Sesame Streetcompanies and Jim Henson characters.
“Hi Facebook friends, the McGrath family has some sad news to share,” McGrath’s post read. “Our father, Bob McGrath, passed away today. He died peacefully in his home, surrounded by his family.”
McGrath said in a 2015 interview that he was reluctant to do so Sesame Street in the beginning; A college friend offered him the chance to audition, and he wasn’t interested—until he had the chance to view the audition footage, and was blown away by the work of Jim Henson, Frank Oz, and the rest of the puppeteers behind the Muppets.
McGrath, Loretta Long (as nurse Susan Robinson), Matt Robinson (as her husband Gordon, another teacher) and Will Lee (candy shop owner Mr. Hooper) portray five pilots, which have been shown to children across the country, by Sesame Street It was officially launched.
In addition to working on Sesame Street and his music McGrath and his wife, Ann Logan Sperry, wrote a series of “Pop Books” that dealt with issues McGrath thought were important for children to think about and learn about. His books would cover a variety of issues, from parenting and toilet training to truth-telling and good manners.
He quit playing Bob as a series regular in 2016, but has returned several times, including for the 2019 50th anniversary celebration. He also appeared in the HBO Max documentary Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Streetwhich was about the early days of the series.
McGrath is survived by his wife, Anne, five children, and eight sons.
Our condolences go out to Mr. McGrath’s family, friends, fans and collaborators during this difficult time.
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