Carroll Spinney (born December 26, 1933 – December 8, 2019) was an American puppeteer, cartoonist, author and speaker most famous for playing Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch on Sesame Street from its inception in 1969 until 2018. He was usually credited as Caroll Spinney but has sometimes been credited using the alternate spelling Carroll Spinney or under the name Ed Spinney.