From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Matthew J Vogel II (born October 6, 1970) has been a Muppet performer for the Jim Henson Company since the 1990s. On Sesame Street, Vogel served as the assistant puppeteer for Ernie, performing either one or both hands while Steve Whitmire performed the head and vocal. Eventually, Vogel's ability to mimic the sound and performance of Caroll Spinney's Big Bird was put to use. As of 2006, Vogel's primary performances as Big Bird are the "Journey to Ernie" segments. He's also taken over Jerry Nelson's characters, by the recommendation of Nelson himself. Vogel is, as of 2008, the voice of Floyd Pepper, Lew Zealand, Crazy Harry, Robin the Frog, & Camilla the Chicken. He has also taken over the puppetry of Jerry's most famous character, Count von Count, but Jerry is still providing the voice.
