Pam Arciero

 Pam Arciero  ( born May 8 th, 1954 ) is a very talented Muppeteer  as well as a voice - over artist who is best known in the world of the Muppets for her incredible work on Sesame Street. For almost 30 years, Pam Arciero has served as the primary performer for  GRUNDGETTA  to Caroll Spinney  ' s  OSCAR THE GROUCH .

Only a few years before joining Sesame Street, she had auditioned for the role of '''[http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Mr._Snuffleupagus Mr. Snuffleupagus ]''' after Michael Earl left the show. She didn ' t get the part, but she eventually became a Muppeteer  in 1 9 82.

Arciero earned her Master ' s in Puppetry from the University of Connecticut & has performed characters for numerous shows outside of the Sesame Street / Muppet sphere, including  The Great Space Coaster  ,  Allegra 's Window  , Between the Lions ( replac ing Kathryn Mullen a s Leona ) ,  Eureeka ' s Castle  , &  Lomax , the Hound of Music  ( a s Louise ).

Arciero has also been active in the world of theater, including a stint at the Orpheum Theater with Little Shop of Horrors , & serving as director for several live shows at Sesame Place & El Capitan Theater in Los Angeles.

Arciero has served as Artistic Director for the prestigious O ' Neill Puppetry Conference since 2002 & continue s to participate in puppetry workshop s & other event s across the country.

Life as GRUNDGETTA  & working w / Caroll Spinney
For almost 30 years, Pam Arciero has served as the performer  for  GRUNDGETTA  to  Caroll Spinney  ' s  OSCAR THE GROUCH  , taking over the  character  following  Brian Muehl  leaving the Muppet business.

Pam Arciero has been had a great honor & privilege working alongside Caroll Spinney  for almost 30 years. When asked in an interview what working w / Spinney  h a s been like, Arciero said : "  Carroll  is a blast , a child at heart &  he  is both the  Grouch  & the Bird at different times . You can sit at dinner & be talking with  him  in Big Bird mode , & someone will do something stupid &  Oscar  will blast out of  him  at full force . My favorite  Oscar  quote is " If you don't want to be a murderer , don’t hang out with peo ple who should be killed. "  Grouch  words to live by . He  also is a wonderful story teller & a great friend . "

When asked in that same interview on what some of her favorite moments as  Grundgetta  are Arciero said : "  Oscar  &  Grungy  almost got married, & th  ey  had a fantasy about having  Grouch  kids .  Th  ey  decided it might make them happy , so they bailed out of the wedding . Little did they know that way to be truly  grouchy  is to get married . They also went on vacation to  Camp Mushy  muddy  , &  th  ey  did a wonderful  song  floating down a  swamp  in an old tire . Andrea Martin played Edith Prickley as a shoe salesman , & she tried to get  Grundgetta  some shoes. Jerry Nelson played Professor Piggens ( as a human ) who tried to teach  Grundgetta  to be a real  Grouch  a la My Fair Lady. That was just great. "

Caroll Spinney / Pam Arciero Muppets Pairings

 *  OSCAR THE GROUCH  /  GRUNDGETTA 
 *  OSCAR THE GROUCH  / Nani Bird ( soon )
 * BIG BIRD /  GRUNDGETTA 
 * BIG BIRD / Nani Bird
 * BIG BIRD / Pammy
 * GRANNY BIRD / Nani Bird
 * GRANNY BIRD /  GRUNDGETTA  ( soon )

Muppeteer Credits

 * Sesame Street :  GRUNDGETTA  ( 1984 - present ), Sally Wilson , Little Lizzy Hammertoe , Telly Monster ( assistant only ) , Abby Cadabby ( assistant ) , Katie , " Let ' s Go Driv ing " daughter , Ernie ' s friend from " Don ' t Throw That  Trash  on the Ground " , Vanessa , Rosa , Robin , Kermit the Frog 's right hand in " I Love My Elbows"
 * Sesame Beginnings : Nani Bird
 * The Muppets Take Manhattan :  GRUNDGETTA 
 * Follow That Bird :  GRUNDGETTA 
 * Little Muppet Monsters : Penguin
 * Sesame Street : 20 & Still Counting :  GRUNDGETTA , Telly Monster ( assistant )
 * The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson :  GRUNDGETTA 
 * Jim Henson ' s memorial service : Herself /  GRUNDGETTA 
 * Sesame Street Stays Up Late
 * The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss : Lulu ' s Dog
 * Sesame Street 4D :  GRUNDGETTA 
 * Play With Me Sesame
 * Sesame Street : A Is for Asthma :  GRUNDGETTA 
 * Sesame Street Jam : A Musical Celebration
 * Getting Ready to Read : Pammy
 * Learning About Letters : Dentist
 * Elmo cize
 * Telling the Truth : Sheep
 * Learning to Share :  GRUNDGETTA 
 * Elmo palooza
 * Elmo Saves Christ mas :  GRUNDGETTA 
 * A Magical Hallo ween Adventure : Green Surprise Monster
 * Panwapa
 * Elmo ' s Christ mas Countdown
 * Abby in Wonderland
 * A Muppets Christ mas : Letters to San ta
 * The Muppets : Operation STS ( Save the Swamp ) :  GRUNDGETTA  ( maybe )

Trivia

 * Arciero is left - handed.