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Steve Burns hosted Blues Clues for its first six seasons, from 1996 until he left the show in 2002. He left because he felt he was getting too old for it, but that didn’t stop the Internet’s early rumor mill from going into overdrive. I had aged out of shows like Blues Clues when it came out, but even I had heard that Steve had died. Although rumors of his death had been greatly exaggerated, Steve didn’t speak up and give fans closure until he made a very moving video in 2021. He made another comeback last fall, when he gave the New York Times an interview that addressed how much those rumors had affected his mental health.
Steve has just given us another rare interview. Appearing on Rainn Wilson’s Soul Boom podcast, he talked about his time on the children series. Originally aspiring to be a voice actor, he accidentally landed Blue’s Clues. Unfortunately, he wasn’t paid very much. In fact, according to Steve, he made so little money from the show that it was basically just “side hustle” money and his friends who were waiters made more money than he did.
Steve Burns, from the popular ’90s children’s show “Blue Clues,” is revealing a surprising detail about his time sitting in the infamous Thinking Chair.
While appearing on the podcast Soul Boom, hosted by actor Rainn Wilson, Burns shared candid reflections on his time with the beloved series, which he hosted from 1996 to 2001.
“I got ‘Blue’s Clues’ early, but every waiter I ever knew made more money than I did for the first many seasons of that show,” he revealed.
Burns went on to call the show his “side hustle” based on the modest pay, and credited voiceover work as his main source of income.
“My real gig was, I was a voiceover guy. I fell into that early,” Burns said.
He explained commercial voiceovers “would kind of sustain him,” though he confessed those early years in New York City were “grim.”
As he tells it, he ended up on “Blue’s Clues” by accident just after finishing theater school.
“I thought it was a voice thing, I went to the audition,” Burns said. “And when I got there, there was a camera in the room. And I thought, ‘Oh, shit. I better do something.’ And I looked at the script, and, you know, I figured … I’m gonna act the shit out of this.”
Burns also opened up about how rumors of his death impacted his mental health.
“I was in kind of the throes of this depression after I left the show,” he explained. “But what a lot of people don’t understand is that, that during the show, the internet was beginning to internet, and the world decided, or a large portion of the world decided, that I had died.”
The suicide rumors were “not what you want to hear when you’re severely clinically depressed,” he said.
That is so wild that Nickelodeon paid him so little back then. Since Steve stumbled upon the gig thinking it was a voice audition, I’m guessing he either didn’t have an agent who could fight for him to get paid or, if he did, he didn’t have a very good one. That would not fly nowadays, especially with the licensing and merchandise that comes with today’s successful children’s shows. Like, it really sucks to put in the work and make your television show such a big hit, and still only make “side hustle” level salary. (Though, at the right establishment in Manhattan, where BC filmed, some waiters make absolute bank through tips.) I’m really glad Steve was able to get out of that situation and take back control of his life.
On a nicer note, while looking to see if Steve had an agent (inconclusive), I discovered this Reddit thread from a few days ago. There are stories within the comments from people who met Steve back in the day. Everyone talks about how lovely he was in real life. It’s a great read if you were a fan or if you need a pick-me-up. I wonder if he’d ever consider tip-toeing back into the biz again. It sounds like he’s made a lot of fans through the years. I would definitely not blame him if he was completely done, though. It does not sound like it was a good experience.
I really really really hope he gets residuals because my kids were born in the mid 2000s and that show was still on constant rotation in our house, not on streaming but on the actual Nickelodeon and Nick Jr.
My kid loved that show and him especially. I’m so sad to hear he didn’t get paid. Make it right Nickelodeon!
I didn’t even mind watching Blues Clues with my nieces and nephew, and it’s the only show I can say that for from their early childhood. I had my son after them, and all new shows were my penance.
That show was great. Came out during my kids toddler years and I know Nick must have made a ton of money on the merch alone. His replacement was just not the same. And they paid him peanuts? Of course, because they needed millions for the CEO.
Same. Blue’s Clues was by far my kids’ favorite show, and my kid who is on the spectrum was obsessed. Steve was so earnest and sweet and soothing. There was so much merch from the get-go (when potty training, my son would only wear Blue’s Clues underwear, lol), so it breaks my heart to know Steve was so poorly compensated.
There are Blue’s Clues toys still around. I wonder if he got paid any extra for his likeness with those.
My kid is three and is obsessed with Blue’s Clues. He recently started referring to himself as Steve. The legacy lives on!
This is heartbreaking, considering what he meant to so many kids [and moms!] during the Blues Clues era. I had a toddler when the show started and it was one of the few shows [even on PBS] that I could reliably watch with my daughter and find something good about. We had a computer game that was hilarious and fun for her too. She aged out of it before he left, thank goodness, but I have some wonderful fond memories.
My daughter was in love with Steve. We had a Blues Clues birthday party before all the merch came out. I had to be very creative with the decorations for that two year old party. We both look back fondly at Steve.
Have y’all heard his 2003 album Songs For Dust Mites? I really dug it back in the day. It’s kind of Flaming Lips adjacent.
Blue’s Clue’s is still on, with it’s third host, and Steve has a reoccurring role on the series. He is also super active on TikTok and is a delight in both of these venues. I just love him.
Man people leaving waiting jobs for entry level jobs can sometimes take a huge paycut! I know can be true in accounting.