Elmo left a significant mark in modern pop culture and was a widely recognized and beloved character for decades.

Clash developed an interest in puppetry at an early age, inspired by children's shows like Kukla, Fran and Ollie and Sesame Street. Elmo is given a complete makeover as he is noticeably bigger than before, and has considerably more fur, bearing a resemblance to the 1986 puppet. She claims that there was an extra red puppet just lying around, and the production decided to give him a personality and create an entirely new character. Elmo puppeteer Kevin Clash accused of relationship with boy, 16, taking leave from 'Sesame Street' ". Clash's autobiography, My Life as a Furry Red Monster, was published in 2006; he was later the subject of the documentary Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey (2011).He has stated in interviews that his racial identity was pertinent to his work, and that it came through in his performances. Clash was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on September 17, 1960, the third of four children born to George Clash, a flash welder and handyman, and Gladys Clash, who ran a small daycare center in their two-bedroom, one-bath home in the Turner Station area of Dundalk, Maryland. As time passed, there was also a live-action version of Elmo, which was used in the 4206th episode and other special episodes such as Elmo’s World: Happy Holidays.

In 2006, Clash published his autobiography, co-written by Gary Brozek and Louis Henry Mitchell, entitled My Life as a Furry Red Monster: What Being Elmo Has Taught Me About Life, Love and Laughing Out Loud. He based Elmo's character on the preschool children that attended his mother's daycare in Baltimore and upon his own personality and the personality of his parents. Clash resigned from Sesame Street in 2012 after allegations of sexual impropriety, all of which he denied and were later dismissed due to expiration of the statute of limitations. He was the fifth puppeteer to perform Elmo, who became his signature character, and he also served as an executive producer and director for the show. He performed in several productions with Jim Henson Productions, including as the Muppet Clifford in The Jim Henson Hour (1989), [note 1] and performing the puppetry for Frank Oz's characters ( Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Sam the Eagle, and Animal) in Muppet Treasure Island (1996).I have never been ashamed of this or tried to hide it, but felt it was a personal and private matter.