When I worked at Mashable, I got to meet Mr. Spinney in 2013. I was direct off a redeye and came straight from JFK to the office so I could meet him (it was a closed set and we were doing a collab with Sesame Street/Oscar the Grouch and Grumpy Cat, I was one of like 4 employees they let observe and I’m forever grateful for that opportunity). I cried like a a baby meeting him and thanking him for all he did for children all over the world.<p>As a kid, Sesame Street was extremely important to me. I loved it as much as I’ve ever loved anything and Big Bird was just so wonderful. The first movie I ever saw in the theater was Follow That Bird in 1985, and even at 2 years old, that experience left an indelible mark that influenced the rest of my life.<p>I think I loved Sesame Street and the muppets so much because it was a TV show and characters that felt like they understood what it was like to be a child. It educated without pandering and it encouraged creativity and learning.<p>Spinney said in interviews that he thought his success with Big Bird was because he never forgot what it was like to be a child. That came through with the work.<p>And Oscar, though not a character I loved as much as Big Bird, was always a favorite. He was mean and he liked nasty things, but he was always kind to children and his pets. It was proof all types of people can exist and be friends, even when they don’t have a lot in common.<p>The Museum of the Moving Image had a Jim Henson exhibit last year that was really fantastic - and seeing all the stuff from Sesame Street and beyond really made me grateful people like Henson and Spinney and Frank Oz and so many others existed.