Joey Mazzarino | |
|---|---|
| Born | Joseph Mazzarino June 4, 1968 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Other names | Joe Mazzarino |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1986–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
Joseph Mazzarino (/mæzəˈriːnoʊ/; born June 4, 1968) is an American puppeteer, writer, director and actor. He is best known for his roles on Sesame Street as Murray Monster, Stinky the Stinkweed and other Muppets,[1] and being Head Writer and Director on Sesame Street, winning 22 Emmy Awards for his work.
Former Muppet performer Camille Bonora influenced Mazzarino when she taught an improvisation class at his university, and eventually introduced him to Jim Henson. Mazzarino later became the head writer for Sesame Street and also worked on The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland, Muppets from Space, and Kermit's Swamp Years.[2]
When Mazzarino auditioned for Sesame Street, he wrote a sketch called "Colambo" and soon found himself cast in the title role. Afterwards, he became a prominent member of the Sesame Street cast, performing Horatio the Elephant, Ingrid, Murray Monster, Papa Bear, Stinky the Stinkweed, and various characters until 2015, when he resigned in response to the show's format change.
Mazzarino spent the next few years as a writer/producer on the Showtime original series Kidding starring Jim Carrey. He directed all 13 episodes of the Netflix series Julie's Greenroom starring Julie Andrews, where he also served as a writer. Mazzarino spent over 20 years on Sesame Street in multiple roles: Head Writer, Director, Lyricist and Muppet performer. He received 25 Emmy Awards for his work in multiple categories (Outstanding Original Song, Outstanding Writing, Outstanding Direction and Outstanding Performer in a Children's Series).
Mazzarino is currently a writer for the PBS puppet series Donkey Hodie and was also a writer for the animated series Nature Cat.
Mazzarino is married to actress Kerry Butler.[3] They have two adopted daughters, one named Segi for whom he wrote the Sesame Street song "I Love My Hair". The Muppet who sang the song was also named Segi.[4]
