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For many, Steve Burns is who they think of when they hear Blue’s Clues. The beloved host helped teach children across the nation during his stint on the show from 1996-2002. However, burns himself wasn’t always convinced he was the right choice for Blue’s Clues. In fact, he often wondered if having someone like him host the show was a mistake on Nickelodeon’s part — here’s why. Plus, the real reason Steve Burns left Blue’s Clues. 

Steve Burns took ‘Blue’s Clues’ very seriously 

During a performance for The Moth, Blue’s Clues host Steve Burns discussed his time on the show and how it affected his life. He discussed how when he was working as the host, he often felt that he was “fame-ish.”

“It afforded me a sort of rare thing, I called it micro-celebrity. Because I wasn’t famous really, I would tell everyone that I was fame-ish. … Fame-ish people are like famous people, but without the public dignity that’s involved in being famous,” Burns joked. 

However, he soon realized that his fame came with a hefty responsibility to the children he was educating — something that he spent a lot of time thinking about. 

“And I thought, ‘Oh. Wow.’ Because the show actually became very popular, and despite how wonderful it was, the more popular it became the more that started weighed on me,” Burns explained.  

“For real, I started to think, well I’m saying these wonderful things to kids, I’m saying you’re so mart, and you can do anything that you wanna do. But I couldn’t help thinking, you know, is that true?”

It came to a point where Burns began to wonder if he was really the person Nickelodeon should take on as host. 

“Am I saying the right things to all of these children? It felt like a really tremendous responsibility. … I didn’t expect any of this, I didn’t even know any children when I moved to New York. And [I was] like, really worried, like am I the right guy for this job?” Burns said of Blue’s Clues. 

“I took it really, really seriously. … And I was starting to seriously think that as great as this is, they might have the wrong guy here, you know? Maybe this should be a teacher, or a child-development specialist, or something. And I was very, very conflicted about it.”

He didn’t want to lose his hair on television

‘Blue’s Clues’ host Steve Burns at 25th Anniversary celebration in a blue suit jacket and yellow button up.
‘Blue’s Clues’ host Steve Burns at 25th Anniversary celebration | Roy Rochlin/Getty Images for Nickelodeon

The fact that Steve Burns was so concerned about whether or not he was the right fit for Blue’s Clues, and that he spent so much time thinking about it, speaks to how much he cared. So when Burns did finally depart the show in 2002, many young fans were disappointed. 

“I knew I wasn’t gonna 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,” Byrnes said during a Nickelodeon lookback.

While Steve Burns was indeed balding, he also left to pursue his passion for music, which resulted in an album entitled “Songs for Dustmites.” He later started a band named Steve Burns and the Struggle, and they released an album entitled “Deep Sea Recovery Efforts.”

Steve Burns has a message for fans

Blue’s Clues fans recently saw Steve Burns make a brief return in a video recorded for Nickelodeon in which he told fans he was still thinking about them to this day. 

“I mean, we started out with clues, and now, it’s what? Student loans and jobs and families? And some of it has been kind of hard, you know? I know you know,” Burns said in part. 

“I guess I just wanted to say that after all these years, I never forgot you. Ever. And I’m super glad we’re still friends,” he added.

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