Kevin Clash, the puppeteer who voiced Elmo but was driven out of his job by an underage-sex scandal, made a surprise appearance yesterday.
Not in person — but on the list of nominees for Daytime Emmy Awards as Outstanding Performer on Children’s TV Series
Actors purposefully ignored the scandal to vote for Clash since the nomination process was months after he was forced to quit “Sesame Street” last November, amid charges that he’d preyed on teenage boys he’d met online.
It’s the same category Clash has won every year but one since 2005.
Because he no longer works for “Sesame Street,” it appears this is the last year he will be eligible.
“I can’t comment on why members voted the way they did,” said an Emmy spokesman,
“But I believe they voted for him based on the excellence of work. That’s all.”
Clash hid his sexual orientation during his more than 25 years as the best-known kids TV star of his time.
He admitted he was gay last year — but denied any wrong doing with a string of young men who have sued him for sexual misconduct.
Other notable nominations this year include the first online shows — “Capture” with Mark Seliger and “Hooked Up” with “Top Chef” judge Tom Colicchio, both on YouTube — to be nominated for Best Lifestyle Program in the same category as a regular TV shows like “Martha Stewart” and “This Old House.”
And one personal battle is worth watching.
TV chefs Bobby Flay and Giada De Laurentiis, who are set to become co-hosts of an afternoon talk show starting next year, are pitted against each other in the best cooking show category.
In the Outstanding Lead Actress drama category, one of the performers — Susan Flannery of “The Bold and the Beautiful” — has already left that show, making it a three-way race between Peggy McKay, Michelle Stafford and Heather Tom.Additional reporting by Robert Rorke