‘Sesame Street’ star Bob McGrath has died at 90

Bob McGrath, a staple of the past half-century of Sesame Street programming, has passed away at 90 years of age. 

McGrath is survived by his wife and five children and multiple grandchildren, having died peacefully at home, per posts by his family on his social media feeds. 

Bob McGrath was among the first on-screen human characters in the long-running children’s program, having first appeared in the show’s pilot episode back in 1969, and continued to make appearances on the program until 2017. 

McGrath’s likeness was truly synonymous with the Sesame Street brand, having appeared in countless projects over the years beyond the TV show – including films and video games. McGrath also contributed to the franchise by providing his voice to some of its most iconic music, from “ People in Your Neighborhood” right down to the show’s theme song. 

Beyond his near-fifty years on Sesame Street, McGrath continued his involvement with the franchise by working with the show’s parent company Sesame Workshop and attending various events as an advocate, as well as continuing to appear in various Sesame Street videos online.

Sesame Workshop shared a statement on Bob McGrath’s passing, in a thread of tweets celebrating the actor and singer’s life. 

Beyond his work on Sesame Street, McGrath worked on various other projects including Sing Along with Mitch in the 1960s, and was a regular on the annual telethon Telemiracle on CTV outlets in Saskatchewan, Canada. McGrath even made waves in Japan as a recording artist, releasing multiple albums of Irish ballads sung in Japanese. 

Bob McGrath was born on June 13, 1932, and passed away on Dec. 4, 2022.