Big Bird is a Muppet character designed by Jim Henson and built by Kermit Love for the children's television show Sesame Street. An eight-foot-two-inch-tall (249 cm) bright yellow anthropomorphic bird, he can roller skate, ice skate, dance, swim, sing, write poetry, draw, and ride a unicycle. Despite this wide array of talents, he is prone to frequent misunderstandings, on one occasion even singing the alphabet as a single word. He would refer to grocer Mr. Hooper as "Mr. Looper", among other mispronunciations. He lives in a large nest behind the 123 Sesame Street brownstone and right next to Oscar the Grouch's trash can. In Season 46, the nest sits within a small, furnished maple tree, and is no longer hidden by used construction doors. He has a teddy bear named Radar.
Big Bird (left) during filming of a 1989 episode of Sesame Street alongside then-First Lady of the United States Barbara Bush.
Harness with small monitor worn by Caroll Spinney when performing Big Bird in the 1970s
Big Bird is one of two Muppets to have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
A walk-around character of Big Bird, at a theme park.
James Maury Henson was an American puppeteer, animator, actor, and filmmaker who achieved worldwide notability as the creator of the Muppets. Henson was also well known for creating Fraggle Rock (1983–1987) and as the director of The Dark Crystal (1982) and Labyrinth (1986).
Henson in 1979
Reproductions built in the Muppets Workshop of the Wilkins (left) and Wontkins (right) Muppets
Henson with Miss Piggy and Fozzie Bear in 1979
Henson and producer George Lucas working on Labyrinth in 1986