Elmo puppeteer Kevin Clash resigns from 'Sesame Street' over sex scandal
Accuser later recanted story
Kevin Clash
Image copyright 2012 Getty Images. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Posted: 11/20/2012
Last Updated:
182 days ago
NEW YORK - The puppeteer who performs as Elmo on "Sesame Street" has resigned from the popular children's show, calling recent sex allegations a "distraction."
Last week, a man accused Clash of having sex with him when he was a teenage boy, a charge Clash denied.
A day later, the man recanted his charge. A lawsuit by a second accuser was filed Tuesday, according to attorney Cecil Singleton.
Sesame Workshop called the controversy surrounding Clash's personal life "a distraction that none of us want" and led to his decision to leave the show.
Clash created the voice and persona for Elmo in the 1980s, who has since become one of "Sesame Street's" most popular characters.
Copyright 2012 Scripps Media, Inc. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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