Steve Burns | |
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.jpg) Burns in 2024 | |
| Born | Steven Michael Burns (1973-10-09)October 9, 1973 (age 52) Boyertown, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Education | DeSales University |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1994–present |
| Musical career | |
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| Labels | PIAS Recordings |
Musical artist | |
Steven Michael Burns (born October 9, 1973)[1] is an American actor, musician, and television host. He portrayed a fictional version of himself as the host of thechildren's television seriesBlue's Clues from 1996 until 2002, for which he was nominated for aDaytime Emmy in2001. He has also done extensivevoice-over work for advertising, including the "Snickers satisfies" advertising campaign.[2][3]
Following his departure fromBlue's Clues, Burns focused on his music career, releasing the solo albumsSongs for Dustmites (2003) andDeep Sea Recovery Efforts (2009). He later formed the children's music band STEVENSTEVEN with longtime collaboratorSteven Drozd, releasing the albumForeverywhere in 2017.
Burns reprised his role on the 2019 rebootBlue's Clues & You! as a recurring character and cousin of the franchise's new host,Josh Dela Cruz. He also wrote and directed several episodes of the rebooted series until its 2024 cancellation.
Burns was born inBoyertown, Pennsylvania, to Joseph Burns Jr. (1938–2015) and Janet Burns (née Petaccio). He has two sisters. His father served in the U.S. Navy and later became the human resources director of Safeguard Business Systems.[4] He attendedBoyertown Area Senior High School inBerks County, graduating in 1992.[5]
During his high school and college years, Burns played in several bands: Sudden Impact US, Nine Pound Truck, and the Ivys, the latter of which he called a "Morrissey rip-off band".[6] He studied theatre under an acting scholarship atDeSales University inCenter Valley, Pennsylvania, in theLehigh Valley, where he was discovered by an agent.[7] He dropped out of school and moved toNew York City to become a professional actor.[6] He lived in abasement apartment nearTimes Square, finding his first success as a voice-over artist for ads and making appearances onHomicide: Life on the Street andLaw & Order.
In 1994, Burns auditioned forBlue's Clues, thinking it was a voice-over role for a game show. He modeled his audition performance afterChristopher Walken.[8] He had long hair and an earring. "I was a bit of a skate rat," he said.[7] Initially, theNickelodeon executives were not supportive of Burns hosting their new show; in subsequent auditions, the show's creators requested that he dress more conservatively. (Burns reported that the creators, in a call-back phone conversation, asked him, "Could you not look like yourself tomorrow morning?")[9] It became apparent, however, that he was the favorite with preschool test audiences. Executive producer and co-creator Traci Paige Johnson reported that of the 100 people they auditioned, Burns was "the realest".[6] As Alice Wilder, Nickelodeon's Director of Research and Development, said: "There was just something about this kid, who was fresh out of Pennsylvania, who just knew where to look in the camera to really talk to kids. He was just right."[9]
Blue's Clues premiered on September 8, 1996, onNick Jr. and was an instant hit due to Burns's performances as much as the show's format. He became "a superstar" among his audience and their parents, but unknown to everyone else,[6] and enjoyed what he called being a "micro-celebrity, about as small a celebrity as you can be".[7] AsThe New York Times reported, he "developed an avid following among both preteen girls and mothers. The former send torrents of e-mail; the latter scrutinize the show with an intensity that might make evenElmo, the redMuppet, blush."[7] In 2000,People included Burns in their annual list of America's most eligible bachelors.[10] According to writer Diane Tracy, Burns was "destined for the part".[11] Also, according to Tracy, Burns was not the typical children's television host: "There is nothing syrupy about him—his humor is sometimes borderline offbeat, but never inappropriate for preschoolers."[11]
The show was filmed in a studio inTribeca, Manhattan.[12] Burns became "very involved" with the production ofBlue's Clues from the beginning.[10] One of the most challenging aspects of hosting the show was performing on the "blue screen" before the animation was added.[13] Burns called it "maddening"[10] and likened it to "acting at the bottom of a swimming pool".[14]
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After almost six years and nearly 100 episodes, Burns announced he was leavingBlue's Clues in January 2001[15][16][5][17][18][19][9] and in his final episodes, which aired as a three-part special on April 29, 2002, "Steve" introduced new hostDonovan Patton as his younger brother, Joe.[20]
According to Johnson, Burns never wanted to become a "children's host". He loved kids, but stated, "he could not make a life-long career out of it."[6] Burns went on by saying, "I knew I wasn't going to be doing children's television all my life, mostly because I refused to lose my hair on a kid's TV show, and it was happening, fast."[9] The day following the filming of his final episode for the show, he shaved his head – something that he wanted to do for several years, but the show's producers would not allow.[21] He explained in a 2016 interview that "a lot of the original people on the show, like the people who created it, were all moving on to other careers. It just felt like time."[22] In a 2022Variety interview, Burns revealed that he suffered fromclinical depression while on the show.[23]
Burns's departure led to the resurfacing of rumors that had circulated about him since 1998, including death from aheroinoverdose, being killed in a car accident, and (similar to rumors aboutPaul McCartney in 1966) being replaced with alook-alike. Burns made an appearance onThe Rosie O'Donnell Show to dispel these rumors,[9] and he and co-creatorAngela Santomero appeared onThe Today Show to help concerned parents extinguish the fears of kids who may have heard these rumors.[20]
Burns consulted on the casting for the revival ofBlue's Clues, titledBlue's Clues & You! and hosted byJosh Dela Cruz.[24] He and Patton reprised their roles in the premiere episode to welcome their "cousin" Josh, as well as on a recurring basis for the rest of the series. Burns and Patton also made prominent appearances in theParamount+ movieBlue's Big City Adventure in 2022.[25][26] In addition, Burns has written and directed several episodes of the revival.[27]
Burns appeared in videos for the twenty-fifth anniversary of the premiere ofBlue's Clues in 2021, including a widely watchedTwitter video onNick Jr.'s Twitter account in which he – in character as the host of the show – explained reassuringly that he had never forgotten the viewers after leaving to go to college, and marveling at how much each of them had experienced since then.[28][29][30][31][32]
Burns worked on material for his first album,Songs for Dustmites, for two and a half years at a small studio in his home inBrooklyn before it was released byPIAS Records in late 2002. He started work on the album after he leftBlue's Clues in 2002, and it was released in 2003.[6] He posted eleven songs on his webpage and then realizing he needed help with drums and arrangements went toSteven Drozd ofthe Flaming Lips for advice. Drozd assisted Burns with six tracks, Lips bassistMichael Ivins engineered the album, and longtime Lips producerDave Fridmann produced it. One of the songs from the album, "Mighty Little Man", is used as the opening theme for the CBS seriesYoung Sheldon.[33] Burns made several appearances on the series beginning in January 2022, playing aStar Trek enthusiast whom the title character meets.[34]
Burns started a band, Steve Burns and the Struggle, and completed his second album,Deep Sea Recovery Efforts, which was released in 2009. Members of the Struggle include Drozd and Ryan Smith ofA Million Billion.
Burns acted in the 2007 horror-comedy filmNetherbeast Incorporated withDarrell Hammond andDave Foley, playing the part of avampire.[35] In 2008, he played an astronaut inChristmas on Mars, a science fiction film from the Flaming Lips.[21] In March 2012, he appeared in the YouTube comedy seriesThe Professionals.[36]
He appeared in DeSales University's production ofAmadeus as the title character in 2007 and also appeared inThe Comedy of Errors.[37]
In late 2016, Burns released a children's album with Drozd, titledForeverywhere under the name "STEVENSTEVEN". They released a video of the album's first song, "The Unicorn and Princess Rainbow".[22]
Burns made a guest appearance onTim Kubart's 2018 children's albumBuilding Blocks.[38]
In June 2025, it was announced that Burns would be starting up a podcast for adults calledAlive.[39][40]
After residing inWilliamsburg, Brooklyn, for much of his adult life, Burns told theNew York Post in 2020 that he had been living mostly near theCatskill Mountains for the past four years.[41]
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