Steve Burns, Blues Clues, and us

Yesterday, I came upon this video. I'm not exactly sure of the context here, but I gather it's part of a storytelling series by something (someone?) called The Moth. The storyteller here is Steve Burns. If you ever watched an episode of Blues Clues--particularly the earlier episodes--it is THAT Steve. Blues Clues was a good deal after my time of being a child watching children's tv, but by the time my daughter was born and of tv age (she's 5 now) she came in on the tail end of Blues Clues and was immediately a huge fan of the show. Pretty much anything she's a huge fan of, Julie and I are huge fans of too. (We'll see how we feel when baby girl discovers pop music.) We loved the insane enthusiasm of Steve. The genuine goofy and sincere sweetness he brought to the show. The bright, vivid animation coupled with good ol' Steve. How he talked directly, gently, kindly to the viewer... Something about the show, and watching it with our daughter who loved it so, just made us feel good. When Steve was replaced and he left the show and Blue--in the plot, it was because he went off to college--I must admit... I got a little misty-eyed. [snif]

Anyhow, back to this video. Julie and I often wondered what happened to our old pal Steve. Well this video, it's a video of Steve Burns today. Or, I think, September of 2010. And in a more grown-up setting, maybe even a comedy club. He's reflecting on what his life was like at the height of Blue's Clues and he gives us a glimpse at why--or partly why--he ultimately bowed out. Something about this guy... I love this video. He seems so humble and true and funny and sincere. He pokes a little bit of fun at himself and the wild enthusiasm of the show, but pays genuine respect to it as well. He talks about what it was like to be famous--or "fameish" as he calls it. And there's a highly absurd anecdote about one of the strange moments fame brought to him. And by the end, I got a little misty-eyed again.

If you are a grown-up (there's some slightly adult-ish humor here, not for young 'uns) who ever enjoyed hanging out with Steve and Blue, and you have 17 minutes to spare, I suggest you watch this clip. Do it for Blue. Do it for you.