Steve Whitmire Video | Celebrity Interview and Paparazzi

Steven Whitmire (born 24 September 1959) is an American puppeteer. He works for The Jim Henson Company, Sesame Workshop and Disney's The Muppets Studio. Whitmire was born near Atlanta, Georgia. During childhood, he professed interest in puppetry. While in high school at Berkmar High School, Whitmire's nickname was "Kermit" because of his interest in the Muppets. He built his own crude version of Henson's alter ego, and performed the character at high school talent shows and choral recitals. Whitmire first appeared on local Atlanta TV with his then alter ego puppet Otis. WATL-TV was owned... MORE

Steven Whitmire (born 24 September 1959) is an American puppeteer. He works for The Jim Henson Company, Sesame Workshop and Disney's The Muppets Studio. Whitmire was born near Atlanta, Georgia. During childhood, he professed interest in puppetry. While in high school at Berkmar High School, Whitmire's nickname was "Kermit" because of his interest in the Muppets. He built his own crude version of Henson's alter ego, and performed the character at high school talent shows and choral recitals. Whitmire first appeared on local Atlanta TV with his then alter ego puppet Otis. WATL-TV was owned at that time by former Atlanta children's television host "Officer Don" Kennedy. Otis made appearances on various WATL 36 shows with Ludlow Porch, voice of the Georgia Bulldogs Larry Munson, Don Kennedy and Entertainment Page host Artie Goodman. As Otis, Whitmire interviewed Olivia Newton John during a tour promoting an album. He worked with puppets after graduating high school, and eventually got a job working on The Muppet Show in 1978. Since then, Whitmire has performed in almost every major Henson company project, including non-Muppet fare such as the feature films The Dark Crystal and LESS